Horsham Lights Up For 150th

Participating brigades were joined by CFA appliances old and new for the evening parade, following an afternoon of Western Districts Fire Brigades Association (WDFBA) Championships competition at Horsham's Park Drive track.

Horsham Fire Brigade Captain Marc Ampt said seeing the town's main street lined with onlookers was a proud moment.

"The atmosphere was incredible, it's something our members will remember for a long time," Marc said.

"Torchlight is a proud CFA tradition, and having it line the streets here in Horsham for our 150th was very special.

"It was a great way to end what was a brilliant day of competition."

Among those marching was Ex-Captain John Davies, a stalwart of CFA's urban and state competition scene, having attended every State Championship event since 1971.

He first joined the CFA competition scene after a mate convinced him to "come down for a run" and instantly fell in love with the sport.

John first trained and competed at Wendouree and Portland before settling in Horsham, where, as he puts it, "I expected to stay three years and somehow never left."

"The camaraderie was enormous," John said.

"Travelling to events together, piling into cars, learning from the older members and helping bring younger ones through that's what kept me involved all these years."

There've been many highlights across John's career, but one competition stands above the rest.

"In 1983 I claimed first place in the one-man hydrant, one-man Marshall and one-man ladder events at the Western Zone Demonstration, as it was called back then.

"Those days were great fun," he said.

While he has hung up his running gear, John remains an avid follower of the competition scene.

"I still follow every event. There's nothing else like it. To anyone that's never seen it in action, I highly recommend giving it a go."

Saturday's event saw the Osborne Park A team claim Senior honours, while the side from Hamilton took out the junior competition.

The WDFBA season continues with upcoming rounds in Colac, Stawell, Osborne Park, Warrnambool and Hamilton in early 2026.

Following that, attention will turn to the 2026 CFA/VFBV State Firefighter Championships, returning to Stawell for the first time since 2006.

John said there's a real buzz about seeing the Championships back in the west.

"It'll be a huge couple of days for brigades, families and the whole region. Hopefully we see some teams from this part of the world that haven't competed for a while."