The Line Life Podcast

Hurricane Helene Heroes, Part 1: Featuring Miles Bell, Jordan Henderson and Heath Burrell of Duke Energy

In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, we featured the Line Life Podcast episode, "Voices from the Field." For this new two-part series, we are featuring the 2025 International Lineman's Rodeo Duke Energy journeyman team of Miles Bell, Jordan Henderson and Heath Burrell, who all responded to Hurricane Helene. 

During this podcast episode, they discuss their careers in the line trade, their most memorable storms, and their memories of the Hurricane Helene response. They also share stories about how their families and communities came together to support the line crews as they worked long days to restore power and rebuild infrastructure. 

Stay tuned to the Line Life Podcast to hear Part 2, which will focus more on the damage caused by the hurricane and how the line crews worked together to overcome obstacles in the field. Also, look for a two-part article in T&D World magazine, "Hurricane Helene: One Year Later." Thanks for listening to the Line Life Podcast!

ICYMI: Fast Forward to the Future of the Line Trade, Part 2

This Line Life Podcast episode shines the spotlight on seven pre-apprentices, who are the future of the line trade. In the first part of this ICYMI series, we featured an overview of different training programs and the opportunities available in the line trade. Part 2 profiles recent and current pre-apprentices who are training to work on the line.

This episode shares the stories of Bryy Marriott, who won the Edison International Lineworker Scholarship and studied at LATTC; Matthew Miller, a former wildland forest firefighter who attended the Lineman Institute of the North East (L.I.N.E.); Klarence Pilinkington, who worked in the oil fields with his four brothers before becoming a student at American Lineman College; Wyatt McCauley, a pre-apprentice in the high-voltage training program at OSU Institute of Technology; Weston Fabian, a Marine Corps veteran who graduated from Northwest Lineman College (NLC); AJ Bruns, who is now working at Midland Power Constructors after wrapping up his training at Des Moines Area Community College (DMACC) and Justin Gonzales, who attended American Lineman College and is following in his brother's footsteps in the line trade.

For more information, listen to Part 1 of this series or read the full story, which went online as "How Training Programs are Shaping the Future of the Utility Workforce, on the T&D World website.

Live from the 2025 International Lineman's Rodeo Grounds

This episode looks back at the 2025 International Lineman's Rodeo competition, which was the largest event in more than four decades. This episode features highlights from the opening ceremony and interviews live from the Rodeo grounds. For more Rodeo coverage, stay tuned to the Line Life Podcast and visit the T&D World website to view photo galleries, videos, articles and more. Congratulations to all the winners and competitors, and we look forward to seeing you during the 2026 International Lineman's Rodeo Week! 

ICYMI: Fast Forward to the Future of the Line Trade, Part 1

T&D World's annual Lineworker supplement celebrates the line trade with in-depth feature articles about line work. For this episode in our In Case You Missed It series, we are highlighting the first article in the supplement, "Fast Forward to the Future of the Line Trade." 

This article explores the pre-apprenticeship training opportunities available in the utility industry and how these programs are preparing up-and-coming lineworkers for a career in the line trade. For the first part of this audio story, we are focusing on the pre-apprenticeship programs. For the second part, we will highlight seven recent and current pre-apprentices who are aspiring lineworkers. 

Stay tuned to the Line Life Podcast to hear more audio stories narrated from our September 2025 Lineworker Supplement and interviews with guests at the 2025 International Lineman's Expo. For more Rodeo coverage, visit the T&D World website.  Thanks for listening to the Line Life Podcast!

Celebrating the 2025 International Lineman's Rodeo Week

The International Lineman's Rodeo Week is having its biggest year yet, with more exhibitors and competitors in its largest show to date. About 225 exhibitors and 5,000 people are at the event this year. This episode includes interviews with Sam Posa, exhibit and sponsorship sales manager for the International Lineman's Rodeo, and Zackery Gough, who recently topped out as a journeyman at Pedernales Electric Cooperative but won the apprentice division twice at the Rodeo. 

Come join us at the International Lineman's Expo, where you can enter a drawing for a Milwaukee tool package, subscribe to the Lineman Life enewsletter, spin the wheel to win prizes and participate in a Line Life Podcast recording. Have a wonderful 2025 International Lineman's Rodeo Week, and stay tuned to the Line Life Podcast and www.tdworld.com/electric-utility-operations for more Rodeo coverage. 

ICYMI: Lineman's Rodeos: A Tradition Unlike Any Other

With the 2025 International Lineman's Rodeo Week just around the corner, we are featuring the article, "Lineman's Rodeos: A Tradition Unlike Any Other," in our ICYMI series for the Line Life Podcast. 

This article honors Duke Energy's lineworkers, who will be returning to compete at the 2025 International Lineman's Rodeo after spending the 2024 Rodeo Week on storm response following Hurricanes Helene and Milton. 

On the road to the international event, Duke Energy's lineworkers competed in regional Lineman's Rodeos in Florida, the Midwest and the Carolinas. The top finishers secured a spot to compete at the International Lineman's Rodeo in Bonner Springs, Kansas. 

I look forward to seeing all of you at the 2025 Lineman's Rodeo Week. Make sure to stop by the T&D World booth at the 2025 International Lineman's Expo to participate in a recording for the Line Life Podcast, enter a raffle drawing for a Milwaukee Tool prize package and scan your badge and spin the wheel to receive prizes. 

 

Blazing the Way for Women in the Line Trade: Featuring Foreman Shannon Skinner of NV Energy

At the 2024 International Lineman's Expo, I had the honor of meeting many incredible lineworkers, including Shannon Skinner, foreman for NV Energy and the president of IBEW Local 396. Her step-father, two uncles and cousins worked in the line trade, and she became the first female lineworker west of the Mississippi in 1984. 

When she first started working out in the field, she remembers hot sticking in a tank top and wearing men's workwear and PPE. Now that more women are entering the trades, they can stay safe and protected with garments and fall protection specifically made for them. She said NV Energy has taken good care of her throughout her career and given her the tools and equipment needed to succeed in the trade. 

Along with serving as a foreman for NV Energy and serving on multiple committees, she also joins her coworkers to visit schools in the community to educate them about the dangers of electricity and raise awareness about the careers available in the utility industry. 

If you want to be a guest for a future episode of the Line Life Podcast, stop by the T&D World booth at the 2025 International Lineman's Expo. Field Editor and Line Life Podcast Host Amy Fischbach will be interviewing lineworkers and their families on the trade show floor and featuring the interviews on Podbean. We look forward to seeing you In Kansas City for the International Lineman's Rodeo week. 

ICYMI: ROWs and Corridors: Nature's Treasured Pathways from the 2025 Vegetation Management Supplement

Every June, T&D World publishes the annual Vegetation Management supplement in partnership with the Utility Arborist Association (UAA). One of these feature articles explores how Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) is driving biodiversity through its ROW and utility corridor management program in Northern California. 

This article, authored by Dr. Anand B. Persad of Tetra Energy Sciences and Eric Brown of SMUD, is also available online on the T&D World website. 

If you are interested in submitting an abstract for the 2026 T&D World Vegetation Management Supplement, click here. You can also listen to two other audio stories narrated from articles in the 2025 supplement and interview-style episodes featuring Dr. Persad and Dennis Fallon, executive director of the UAA, on Podbean. Thanks for listening to the Line Life Podcast!