Firefighters from Coquitlam and across Canada will be running a charitable gauntlet this weekend.

The Coquitlam Fire and Rescue, in conjunction with the Coquitlam Firefighters Charitable Society, will play host to the Pacific Regional FireFit Championships Friday, May 14 through until Sunday, May 16.

Set to be held in the parking lot of Coquitlam Centre, the event is a type of job-related competition that is based on common tasks and techniques used while firefighters are on the clock.

"Coquitlam Fire was looking for a nice, big event for the community to raise money for charity," said Coquitlam firefighter Craig Stewart. "Plus, we're going to be out there in the community showing off the trucks and showcasing what our department does. It gives us a chance to show families how it all works."

The event will include a number of skill-based and physically demanding events, with competitors carrying 20-kilogram hoses up stairs and makeshift towers, as well as carrying 75-kilogram dummies -- used to replicate a human -- for upwards of 30 metres.

All told, there are six events and the competition features both individual entries and groups, all fully equipped with the additional weight of firefighting gear.

"It's called the toughest two minutes in sports," Stewart said

Though official entries have yet to start trickling in, Stewart said firefighters from as far away as Toronto will likely join in the festivities with firefighters from Port Moody, Delta, Vancouver and Chilliwack.

Five members of Coquitlam Fire and Rescue will compete in the individual events, while 10 others -- including Stewart -- will round out Coquitlam's involvement in the group entries.

Organizers anticipate somewhere between 100 and 150 competitors taking part each day.

"I've never done anything like this before; however, Coquitlam Fire and Rescue uses a similar event to this for our hiring process and I did it about three years ago -- it's grueling," Stewart said.

On top of the competition, the weekend will also include hotdog and hamburger sales, a beer garden, children's activities and prize giveaways.

The weekend will also feature an antique car display and two of the department's antiques: a 1952 LaFrance fire truck and the "Grey Ghost," a fire truck-ambulance hybrid used by emergency crews in the 1950s and 1960s.

All of the proceeds from the weekend's events will be divvied up at the end the year, and in years past, the Coquitlam Firefighters Charitable Society has donated money to the B.C. Professional Fire Fighters' Burn Fund, the B.C. Cancer Society, the SHARE food bank and the Crossroads Hospice Society. Organizers are still looking for sponsors and volunteers.

Contact Stewart at cstewart@coquitlam.ca.