Wind The Q Podcast
Wind The Q - The Stories Behind The Sirens is a fire service podcast hosted by Derick Dodson, bringing real conversations from the fireground, the fire house, and the home. From leadership and training to mental health and personal stories, this show dives into the experiences firefighters carry long after the sirens fade.
Episodes
27 episodes
How Do You Know When It’s Time to Leave the Fire Service? | 25 Years as a Firefighter - Lt. Rick Carroll
How do you know when it’s time to walk away from the fire service you love?After nearly 25 years as a firefighter, engineer, lieutenant, volunteer firefighter, and fire chief, retired Lt. Rick Carroll knows what it means to build a life ...
What The Fire Service Does To A Marriage - Travis & Ashlee Moore
What does the fire service really do to a marriage? In this episode of Wind The Q — The Stories Behind The Sirens, Lt. Dodson sits down with firefighter Travis Moore and his wife, Ashlee Moore, for an honest conversati...
25 Years After 9/11 - Lt. Dodson
Twenty-five years after September 11, 2001, we remember where we were when the world changed. But do we remember who we became the morning after? In this special 25th Anniversary episode of W...
Firefighter Mental Health: The Conversation That Started Wind The Q | Revisited
We’re going back to where Wind The Q began.For this special re-release, Derick Dodson revisits the very first episode of the podcast—and the most listened-to episode to date—with Lt. Axel Agan discussing one of the most imp...
The Firefighter Family: What the Job Really Does to the People at Home - Family Round Table Discussion
What is it really like growing up and living in a firefighter family?In this special Wind The Q family roundtable, Derick Dodson sits down with his wife, Mindy, and their four daughters, Gracie, Callee, Hynlee, and Piper...
The Last Call: The People We Meet, The Moments We Miss, and Why Every Call Matters - Lt. Derick Dodson
What if the last call you ran with someone was just that... the last call?In this solo episode of Wind The Q, we take a hard look at something firefighters rarely think about in the moment: we never know when we're exper...
Raising a Family on Shift: The Reality of Parenting in the Fire Service | Diego Gonzalez
What does it really mean to be a parent when the fire service regularly pulls you away from home?In this episode of Wind The Q – The Stories Behind The Sirens, Lt. Dodson sits down with firefighter Diego Gonzalezfor an hone...
Who Are You Without the Badge? | Firefighter Identity with Lt. Axel Agan
Who are you when the uniform comes off?In this powerful episode of Wind The Q – The Stories Behind The Sirens, Lt. Dodson sits down with Lt. Axel Agan to discuss one of the most overlooked topics in the fire service:...
What They Never Teach You - FF Carson Murray, FF Travis Moore, & FF Ian MacFadden
What are the little things that make a big difference in the fire service?In this episode of Wind The Q: The Stories Behind the Sirens, Lt. Dodson sits down with firefighters Ian MacFadden, Carson Murray, and Travis Moore f...
Would You Want To Teach You? The Inside Scoop On Coachability - FF Adam Hollis
The best firefighters never stop learning—but not everyone is willing to be coached.In Season 2, Episode 3 of Wind The Q, Lt. Dodson sits down with Firefighter Adam Hollis to discuss one of the most important traits ...
Roundtable Reality Check - Leadership, Training, & Firehouse Culture - Lt. Adam Sambor, Lt. Jared Robison, & Lt. Kyle Hudson
Roundtable Reality Check | Leadership, Training & Firehouse Culture | Wind The Q PodcastThree experienced fire service leaders. One table. No scripted answers.In this episode of Wind The Q, Lt. Dodson is joined b...
The Gap Nobody Talks About In The Fire Service - Lt. Derick Dodson
SEASON 2 PREMIERE — NOW LIVE What happens when firefighters stop getting better… and don’t even realize it? In this Season 2 opener of Wind The Q — The Stories Behind The Sirens, Lt. Dodson delivers a raw, ...
Are You Ready For The Responsibility? Young Officer Leadership - Lt. Adam Sambor
Are you really ready for leadership in the fire service… or just the position?In this Season 1 Finale of Wind The Q — The Stories Behind The Sirens, Lt. Dodson sits down with Lt. Adam Sambor for a raw, unfiltered con...
Substance Abuse, Addiction, Recovery, & Redemption - Justin Kimball
What does it take to come back from a life most people never escape?In this episode of Wind The Q — The Stories Behind The Sirens, Lt. Dodson sits down with Justin Kimball of Crosspoint City Church Compassion Center ...
1984 vs 2026...What Will A Father Tell His Son? - Batt. Ch Mark Bagley (Ret.) & FF Conner Bagley
37 years in the fire service…and standing across from someone just getting started.This episode dives into the reality of the job from two perspectives—what it was, what it became, and what nobody truly understands ...
Firehouse Roundtable - The View From The Inside - Batt. Ch. Michael Mitchell, Sgt. Stetson Mealer, FAO Donovan Suwinski, FF Chan Wise, FF Carson Murray, & FF Ian MacFadden
Firehouse Roundtable – The View From The InsideWhat does the job actually look like… once you’re in it?In this episode of Wind The Q – The Stories Behind The Sirens, we step away from structured interviews and brin...
Firehouse Rumors - How They Start, Spread, and Destroy Morale - Lt. Derick Dodson
If you’ve been listening and want to help keep this going, you can support the show here: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2605628/subscribeFirehouse Rumors – How They Start, Spread...
Faith, Pressure, and The Weight of The Job - Rev. Clay Willis
🎙️ Faith, Pressure, and The Weight of The Job | Wind The Q PodcastIn this episode of Wind The Q — The Stories Behind The Sirens, Lt. Derick Dodson sits down with Clay Willis of Crosspoint City Church to have a real conver...
We Let Kids Run The Fire Scene… Bad Idea?” - Piper Dodson & Keegan Tolosa
Wind The Q — The Stories Behind The SirensThis one’s different.Keegan and Piper are on the mic—and we put them to the test.What’s a Halligan tool? What do we actually use to put out fir...
Rookie Reality - Expectations vs The Job - FF Aiden Flanagan
Episode 8 — Rookie Reality: Expectations vs The JobWhat you think the job is… and what it actually is—are two very different things.In this episode, I sit down with fire recruit Aiden Flanagan, who currently just completed ...
The First 10 Minutes - Lt. Derick Dodson
In just the first 10 minutes of your shift, you set the tone for the entire day. Walk in with confidence, focus, and readiness. Remember, it’s not about what you say; it’s about what you do!
The First Year - What I Thought vs What It Was - FF Adam Hollis
Before we get into this episode, we want to take a moment to support one of our own. Retired Battalion Chief Chad Hendrix dedicated 31 years to the fire service. Just one week after retirement, Chad was diagnosed with neuroendocrine cancer. He ...
Promotion Is Not Guaranteed - Navigating The Process - Capt. Andrew Swancy
Promotion in the fire service is something nearly every firefighter thinks about—but not everyone truly understands. It’s often talked about around the table, debated in the bay, and sometimes criticized as a “circus.” But at the end of the day...
Say You're A Firefighter Without Saying You're A Firefighter - Lt. Derick Dodson
Most people think they understand the fire service. They hear the sirens, see the trucks, and picture the big moments—but there’s a whole side of the job that doesn’t get talked about nearly as much.In this solo episode of Wind The Q...