It’s time to make your list and check it twice to ensure you’re covered this holiday season. Unsure what to buy for your firefighter friends and family or even your crewmembers? You can skip the line for Santa because the real magic is at TheFireStore.com, which is offering a 15% discount to Better Every Shift listeners from Nov. 21-30. Listen in for the code to ensure you grab the best firefighter gifts without breaking the bank.

This episode of the Better Every Shift Podcast is sponsored by TheFireStore. Learn more about getting the gear you need at prices you can afford by visiting TheFireStore.

Enjoying the show? Send an email to bettereveryshift@firerescue1.com to share your feedback!

“There's so much we don't know about fires. We're still killing firefighters. We're still killing people in fires. There's still so much to know and to do differently.” Chief Derek Alkonis, who serves as a research program manager for UL’s Fire Safety Research Institute, shares his passion for learning about fire dynamics and how best to translate fire behavior research into actionable lessons – and updated tactics – for firefighters. Plus, we dig into all of this:

• The Mike Singletary analogy for “aggressive” firefighting

• Why the Lahaina fire moved so fast and Alkonis’ current work on the fire investigation team [Read the Maui Wildfire Analysis]

• How the heavy burden of command drove him to learn more about fire behavior early in his career

• Alkonis’ work with Los Angeles County Fire to put fire behavior research into practice – and the process of getting buy-in from the firefighters

This episode of the Better Every Shift Podcast is sponsored by MagneGrip. Eliminate diesel exhaust fumes from inside the fire station with a MagneGrip exhaust removal system. Learn more at MagneGrip.com.

Enjoying the show? Email bettereveryshift@firerescue1.com to share your feedback.

To help Better Every Shift commemorate 100episodes, Chief Frank Leeb returns (again), this time with several surprise guests, live from the recent pro-wrestling-themed Brothers Helping Brothers event – a perfect example of the collaboration among the “Misfit Nation,” all working together to row in the same direction for the betterment of the fire service. There’s a lot happening, so buckle up for an action-packed show that may or may not go totally off the rails in the best possible way. Tune in for some great nuggets of wisdom, peppered with plenty of shenanigans:

• How to pin firefighter health
• The WWE star who video-bombs the show
• The “highlight reel” that shows Zam as a totally ****ing professional
• Plus, new hot seat questions!

Also, don’t miss the opportunity to attend next year’s Brothers Helping Brothers event. Email bettereveryshift@firerescue1.com for more information.

This episode of the Better Every Shift Podcast is sponsored by TheFireStore. Learn more about getting the gear you need at prices you can afford by visiting TheFireStore.

Enjoying the show? Send an email bettereveryshift@firerescue1.com to share your feedback or suggest a guest for an upcoming episode.