Skilled lineworkers tackle the toughest tasks in the trade
May 2026
Gaffs (often referred to as hooks or spikes) are sharp steel spikes attached to a lineworker’s climbing boots. They are used to dig into wooden power poles for safe climbing. Gaffs allow lineworkers to ascend poles when bucket trucks cannot reach.
by Laura Emery, Staff Writer
Children watch wide-eyed. Spouses look on with pride. Veterans of the trade observe with quiet respect. All eyes are on the lineworkers in hard hats as they scale poles with astonishing speed and unwavering focus, the sharp clunk of gaffs biting into wood echoing across the grounds. A blend of athletics and artistry, it’s the real-life skill behind reliable electricity on display.
Elite lineworkers from across the East Coast will come together May 15-16 at Meadow Event Park in Doswell, Va., for the 22nd annual Gaff-n-Go Rodeo, the region’s premier electric lineworker competition, which is open to the public.
Hosted by the Virginia, Maryland & Delaware Association of Electric Cooperatives, the Gaff-n-Go Rodeo features competitors from electric cooperatives, investor-owned utilities, municipal systems and contract crews. Apprentices and journeyman lineworkers test their skills, speed, precision, safety knowledge and teamwork in events modeled after real-world challenges faced while restoring power. The competition offers a rare opportunity to see firsthand the skill, discipline and coordination behind the work that keeps electricity flowing to homes and businesses every day.
“This event showcases lineworkers’ incredible skills, minus the nasty weather conditions in which they usually work, and judges them on how efficiently and safely they complete a wide range of tasks,” says Brian Mosier, president and CEO of VMDAEC.
The Rodeo is a family-friendly event with free parking, free admission and food trucks on site, making it easy to spend the day enjoying the excitement.
The Gaff-n-Go Rodeo began not in a boardroom, but in a Chevy van winding the mountain roads of West Virginia in the spring of 2002. Central Virginia Electric Cooperative lineworkers, along with their friends and family, were returning from a weekend of competition and camaraderie at the Mountains State Rodeo in Charleston. A spontaneous remark about creating a lineworker rodeo for Virginia and surrounding states sparked what would become the East Coast’s premier lineworker event.
The idea quickly gained momentum. In 2003, CVEC hosted the inaugural rodeo in Nelson County. As interest grew, so did the event. VMDAEC joined as co-host in 2007, helping expand participation and visibility. After three years in Nelson County and four more in Lynchburg, the event was moved in 2010 to its current location in Caroline County.
For participants, the rodeo is about more than trophies and rankings. It’s a celebration of a shared commitment to safety, professionalism and pride in a demanding and dangerous trade — the very same dedication that communities across Virginia and Maryland rely on when storms roll in and the power goes out.
For more information, visit gaff-n-go.com.