The Fire You Carry

In this week's episode Kevin challenges Nole with a great topic; are we making idols out of comfort and entertainment? There are so many areas of our lives that we intentionally put ourselves into uncomfortable situations because we know the outcomes will be beneficial. Are we doing that same thing in our lives at home as husbands and fathers? This is a fun episode with some great stories, do...

In this episode, Kevin and Nole are joined by Matt Belcastro. Matt is an active duty Marine, currently at the rank of Chief Warrant Officer 2. He is a husband and father, devoted to his faith, his family, and his fitness. This episode has a lot of great knowledge about leadership, both in the workplace and at home. We also talk about Mighty Oaks where Matt and Kevin met recently and of course, we...

In this episode, Kevin and I are excited to be joined by Mike Yarbrough of The Wolf & Iron Podcast. Mike and his podcast were integral in Kevin and I launching our own podcast and through the years we have both benefited from Mike's wisdom and ability to communicate in a clear and concise way on topics ranging from being a man in today's culture to raising children, marriage and beyo...

In this episode, Kevin and Nole talk about Kevin's recent trip to one of Mighty Oaks Legacy Programs. Mighty Oaks is a non-profit ministry that helps veterans and first responders deal with post-traumatic stress and build resiliency to deal with the traumatic parts of life and the job. We also get an update on Kevin's injury and find out when he'll be able to return to work.  Brande...

In this episode, Kevin and I are very excited to have Captain Kevin Tobia join us. KT is widely respected here at Los Angeles County Fire and had a great career here that spanned 34 years. His leadership of the men he worked with was top-notch and was personally witnessed and experienced by both Kevin and Nole. On top of that KT is a great husband, father, and friend. This episode is filled with s...

In this week's episode, Kevin and I talk with Kevin's buddy from the private academy they attended together many years ago, Derek Wreesman. Derek's first job as a full-time fireman was out in Arkansas but he's made his way back to the West Coast and now works for Ventura County Fire.  We talk with Derek about his journey, about being a father, and about starting his own podcast...

In this episode, Kevin and I are joined by Travis Berenbach, a known savage. Travis recently attended class one of the Fire Up Program and together we talk through some of his experiences and thoughts on that. We also talk a lot about being a father and being present while also being a hardworking provider for the family. Don't miss this one! Big thank you to My Epic and Facedown Records for...

This week's episode is a really fun conversation with BJ Huether. BJ is the Associate Pastor of Calvary Chapel Joshua Springs. He has been booking shows for bands since he was 15 and has a lot of fun stories from those experiences. Kevin and I had a great time recording this in person out in Yucca Valley, don't miss this one! Big thank you to My Epic and Facedown Records for the use of t...

In this episode Kevin and Nole get into times they have experienced what some people call a "gut feeling", "the 6th sense" or even embarrassingly "spidey senses" and the lessons they have learned through those experiences. They also share some parenting lessons from their perspectives as fathers who are currently going through some challenging times. Don't miss t...

In this very short episode, Nole talks through his thoughts on the phrase "Into The Storm", how it has been helpful to him in the past few months and how his perception of it has changed as he has gone into the current "storm".  Big thank you to My Epic and Facedown Records for the use of their song "Hail" in our podcast! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dz2RZThURTU&am...

In this episode, Kevin and Nole break down more of what The Fire Up Program is,  why it has been amazing so far and how they intend to make it even better in the future with the rest of the cadre, Chris, Dave, and Jason.  Nole also shares a story that involves him getting called out by a friend, getting "stabbed in the front". Big thank you to My Epic and Facedown Records for the use of...

In this episode, we are joined by Julian Serrano. Julian is a very motivated and inspirational firefighter and in this episode, we go into some of what has led Julian to become the man he is today, some of the challenges he has faced along the way, and how he plans to continue to grow and develop both as a man and a firefighter. Julian has a passion to help bring other guys up to the level that th...

This episode is about honesty. We delve into it from multiple different perspectives including whether or not complaining about someone behind their back is dishonest, should you teach your kids to believe in the Tooth Fairy and more. Big thank you to My Epic and Facedown Records for the use of their song "Hail" in our podcast! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dz2RZThURTU&ab_channel=F...

We are back after missing two episodes in a row! We are sorry about that by the way. Listen to this episode to catch up with us about why we missed two weeks and what is currently going on in life. Big thank you to My Epic and Facedown Records for the use of their song "Hail" in our podcast! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dz2RZThURTU&ab_channel=FacedownRecords Join us on Discord. ht...

In this week's episode, Kevin and Nole talk through some of the ways they plan to make the new year, 2022 into a good one. In our opinion, there are likely going to be a lot of things that we can't change going on this year that we will probably not enjoy or agree with. But, that doesn't preclude us from taking action in our lives to do things that will ensure it is still a good yea...

Merry Christmas! In this episode, we are joined once again by our Engineer Eric Eastlund as we talk about Christmas traditions, music, movies, and nostalgia. If you have little ones within earshot be advised that we let out some insider information regarding Elf On The Shelf and Santa Claus... Big thank you to My Epic and Facedown Records for the use of their song "Hail" in our podcast!...

In this episode, Kevin talks with Miguel Aguilar about his incredible and inspiring story of being abandoned by his mom at age 12, ending up homeless at 16 to where he is now as a very successful entrepreneur. Miguel is very honest about the struggles he has had through life and the lessons he learned along the way. His willingness to share honestly the path that he has walked to get where he is t...

Nole has been getting a lot of questions about where he stands on his department's vaccine mandate and how it is going to impact his job as a fireman.  In this week's episode, Nole briefly explains where the process is at currently, his personal stance on the mandate, and the possibility of losing his job as a fireman. Donate to the fight! https://lacountyfree.com/ Huge thank you to Face...

This challenge was brought to us by a couple of our listeners! David and Edward started this one on their own and we decided to do it along with them. Join us! 

In this week's episode, Kevin and I break down Class Zero of the Fire Up Program. This Class Zero was meant to be a test run of our leadership, fitness, mental and spiritual challenge weekend and it exceeded all of our expectations. We developed this program with the help of Chris Runao of Prep and Defend, Dave Tebo, and Jason Teter. All of us are very excited to take this program live and ge...

Kevin and I delve into one of our favorite subjects in this episode, mental toughness. We go over why we think you need it and some ways that we continue to develop it that you can incorporate it into your own life. Thank you to Facedown Records and My Epic for the use of their song "Hail" in our podcast! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dz2RZThURTU&ab_channel=FacedownRecords Join the...

In this episode, we wanted to keep things light as we know many of our listeners are going through a lot of stress right now. To that end, Kevin and I share funny and interesting encounters we've had on the job involving animals, odd situations, and some pranks thrown in for good measure. There are a couple of grisly details in one story here so listener discretion is advised. Thank you to Fa...

This episode will give you some great perspectives on facing adversity in your life or supporting others that are struggling, with cancer or anything else life throws at you. Make sure you share this episode with someone you think would benefit from it! Eric Eastlund is the new Engineer on our shift. He has been a fireman with our department for over ten years now. He and Kevin went through the to...

In this special episode, we are partnering with Chris Ruano of the Prep and Defend Show! Together the three of us have a great conversation about how The Fire You Carry helped Chris launch his own podcast. Chris shares how his recent injury has been a blessing in disguise. And finally, we talk about our upcoming weekend live event for men, known as The Fire Up Program.  This weekend event will be...

Short last-minute episode for you this week. We talk about a fitness challenge we are currently in with our MyZone heart rate monitors, Nole defends his workout methodology and we talk about the ethics of shopping carts, again. Enjoy!