The Nontraditional Truck Company

Jim Silvernail is a second-generation firefighter and is the fire chief of the Kirkwood and Glendale Fire Departments of St. Louis County, Missouri. He is a graduate of the National Fire Academy Executive Fire Officer Program and is internationally accredited as a Chief Fire Officer (through the Center for Public Safety Excellence). He has previously published the text Suburban Fire Tactics (Fire Engineering Books and Videos, 2013) and he is the coauthor of Suburban Fire Tactics from the Right Seat video (Fire Engineering Books and Videos, 2016). Jim has more than 25 years of experience and was a lead instructor at the St. Louis County Fire Academy, specializing in truck company operations. Jim has written numerous articles for Fire Engineering magazine in addition to Suburban Fire Tactics and serves as an advisory board member to both Fire Engineering magazine and Fire Department Instructors Conference (FDIC). He has been a workshop instructor at FDIC (2011-2023) and presents at various regional conferences. He served on the board of the International Association of Fire Service Instructors and has also served as a member of MO-TF 1 (a Federal Emergency Management Agency urban search and rescue team), acting as a planning team manager.Arthur Ashley has been a firefighter since 1986. He has been with the City of Lexington, Kentucky, for 30 years, assigned to both engine special operations and ladder companies. Arthur is a captain assigned to one of the city's seven ladder companies. He is an FDIC Hands-On Training (HOT) instructor as well as a classroom presenter on truck company operations. Captain Ashley is a Kentucky Level II Instructor, a Kentucky State Fire School instructor, and an adjunct instructor with Lexington Fire Training Academy. He travels throughout the state of Kentucky and around the country teaching hands-on training sessions and speaking on truck company operations, leadership, and crew management. Captain Ashley is a cocreator and administrator of Truckie-Talk, a social media-based training page focused on promoting aggressive truck work, passing along training tips, and highlighting the rich tradition of the fire service. He is an instructor for Truckie-Talk Training and Task Force 1, Inc., the Highwaymen truck company cadre, and Bearers of the Oath. He has spoken at many large functions and instructed thousands of people. His teaching and speaking engagements at conferences and schools include FDIC; Wichita HOT; Firemanship Days Harrisburg, PA; PDX Work Conference; many Fraternal Order of Leatherheads conferences; the Metro Atlanta Fire Fighter Conference; the Maryland State Fireman's Association; and The Work Conference.