For Jason Novak, climbing electrical poles is part of his job description. But once a year, the lineman for Ameren Illinois executes the 40-foot ascent as part of the International Lineman鈥檚 Rodeo 鈥� pitting his climbing skills against workers from all over the world.
Novak and his team from Ameren Illinois made their mark, taking second place in the . The competition, which included eight teams of linemen from Ameren Illinois, took place in Overland Park, Kansas, on Oct. 13 and 14.
鈥淓verybody's got a chance out there,鈥� said Novak, who has competed in the rodeo 22 times in the past 30 years. 鈥淲e've got a lot of great teams and apprentices coming up through Ameren. 鈥� This is probably the best showing Ameren has ever had out there.鈥�
For the past three years, Novak and his company teammates have used the competition to raise funds for St. Jude Children鈥檚 Research Hospital. This year, raised more than $107,000.
To hear more from Jason Novak, including what it鈥檚 like to train to climb a 40-foot pole while carrying an egg, listen to St. Louis on the Air on , or or by clicking the play button below.
鈥�鈥� brings you the stories of St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our region. The show is produced by , , , and . is our production assistant. The audio engineer is . Send questions and comments about this story to talk@stlpr.org.
