You want your event to be a success. We'd like to offer a few suggestions we've picked up along the way to help the way, both generally and for specific events.

General  •  Birthdays  •  Parades

General
The arrival of one or more fire trucks at your event will require a bit of up-front planning.

• Don't forget your camera! These are rare events for you, your child and your guests. Our crew generally will arrive with a digital camera and will also take some pictures. These pictures are primarily for promotional purposes of sharing your event on our web site, but we are always happy to share the links, or even put the photos on a CD (no charge, of course) if you'd like to have our photos as well. (The terms of our use of photos on the web site is governed by our Privacy Policy and Statement.)
• If your event is in a public place (city park, shopping center, or property you don't own), we strongly suggest when planning that you let the owner know we're coming. They may have additional requirements or restrictions on large vehicles.
• If your event is at your home, consult with any Homeowners Association rules and guidelines about such events. It's also never a bad idea to let the neighbors know -- both to ensure enough parking is available for us to park out of traffic lanes (and it's just neighborly to let them know the big fire truck outside doesn't mean anyone's hurt).
• The trucks range are all roughly eight feet wide and eight or more feet high (the tallest is about 12 feet high). The pumper engines run about 30 feet long, but there are longer trucks: Copperopolis Truck 75 at 45 feet, and Livermore Truck 61 roughly 55 feet long. Adequate space to park and clearance to get in and out of parking spots is also important (trust us on this one -- unless you have already tried to parallel park in a fire vehicle).
• The trucks are heavy, so solid ground is an important consideration. Street asphalt, concrete, gravel roads, and dry playing fields are all fine. (Wet grassy areas, sand, or mud can be problematic when trying to move a 20,000-50,000 pound vehicle.) Driveways are possible, but please keep in mind these are big trucks with big engines, and may drip oil, coolant, or other fluids that may stain the ground surface.

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Birthday Parties
The popularity of firefighting and fire apparatus usually means you can find a healthy supply of fire theme items at your local party store or retailer. With a bit more time to work with, there are also a number of online merchants that offer a variety of items in the fire area. Oriental Trading Company, for example, carries both complete party kits and particular items. Even red plates, forks and cups can go a long way to setting the mood without breaking the bank.

• Fire helmets tend to be an inexpensive item for a fire birthday party. Having the children's names on the helmets may help them find their seats or goodie bags when they arrive, as well as helping our crew speak on a more personal level when chatting with the kids during the party.
  • Not to put a damper on helmets, but keep in mind they are also very light-weight, and blow off little heads at the first breeze.
• To warm up the little ones, how about a series of firefighter-like drills? (Birthday boy Preston's parents did this one with great success.) Tasks included things like these below, and when they finished they were awarded a plastic Junior Firefighter badge to wear and keep.
  • Rescue an animal from a low-laying tree branch the children can reach safely. (A cat, teddy bear, or panda from last summer's trip to the San Diego Zoo all work great.)
  • Crawl through a "smokey" building or area. (You can make a tunnel with a few ropes bewteen trees or fixed objects, and sheets or blankets tented over it.)
  • Any sort of stop, drop, and roll task across the lawn.
  • Put out the fire -- a few water balloons thrown at a "fire" of your own making can do the trick. (Maybe it's a "fire" in a trash can, a playhouse, a "grass" fire... you get the idea.)
  • Time to clean up -- tidy up the balloon bits and any other trash. (Firefighters spend 5 minutes respond to fires, and an equal amount of time between actual firefighting, and cleaning up the gear, hoses, equipment, and of course, washing the truck.)
• Polaroid pictures of the little ones make a great addition to a goodie or gift bag you're sending home with your guests. (Another great suggestion from Preston's dad.)
• Let us know the age range of your guests (a rough ballpark is fine). Odds are, what will hold the attention of a 3-5 year-old crowd is going to vary from that of a 9-10 year old, so we can ensure we plan (and pack) accordingly.
• Have a backup plan in case of bad weather. While we can drive in the rain, you may not want your birthday guests running in and out of your home during wet rain. (We can reschedule for another day, but putting off guests at the last moment can be a disappointment to the birthday boy or girl as well as the guests who've planned to attend.)

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Parades

• Many parades in the last few years have imposed restrictions on items being handed out. When planning a parade where we'll be providing fire trucks, consult the parade information from the organizers for specific detail about thrown-out and handed-out items if that's in your plans.
• The parade may have other restrictions to consider, such as passenger riding areas, display of banners or your corporate brand, etc. While the trucks are safe for extra passengers to ride in non-seatbelt areas, parade coordinators may have requirements in their rules outlining rules about how and where participants may be located.
• For organizers who are planning space, the truck measurements of each truck are found on the Apparatus page, clicking on the truck's "For a summary of this truck's facts and stats, click here" link.. (For trucks without this information yet listed, feel free to Contact Us to get the facts 'n figures.)