come one come all

[BW510]

Hi...I’m planning on applying for Federal Law Enforcement sometime in the next 1-2 years and something came up in a conversation the other day that kind of bugged me. A friend of mine who is a local police officer was discussing with me the differences in the local and federal level application process, when he brought up the fact that one of my "extra-curricular" activities (Bull Riding) may cause some agencies to view me as damaged goods physically because of the toll it puts the body through. Yeah I've been banged up good, had a couple broken bones but as of my last physical which including hearing, vision, chest/back x-rays and flexibility test(s) everything seemed to still be working. Id be interested in hearing what your feelings are on the afore mentioned. Thanks and Happy Holidays

[mxwelch]

I believe the fact that you would get on a bull is going to cause problems with the physc, not the physical. :D

[mxwelch]

Oh and one more thing... I used to have one of those extra activities that really took a toll. Motocross, broke plenty of bones, but my bike never tried to kill me after I got spit off though. It shouldn't be a problem as long as you pass the physical. They didn't even bring it up, but it wasn't a federal agency either.

[mcsap]

I don't suspect that such a background could in any way lawfully prevent you frm being hired BUT , when the "inner circle" of admin looks at a prospective applicant and sees a history of injury and or risk taking , they MIGHT take that into consideration when deciding who to hire.

Losing an employee for months at a time due to a sport or hobby on off duty time , will not go over well when you are considered an important part of an organization. Especially while on probation , such an event could cost you your job.

My PD cannot call Manpower for a temp replacement.

[DeltaV]

Most people who fail our medical exam do so because of either cardiovascular or orthopedic problems. Just having broken bones won't necessarily DQ you, but when you start having surgeries and continuous problems because of bone/joint injuries, a department will be leery of hiring you. They don't want to hire someone who goes on disability the next year for aggravating a condition that they had prior to coming on the job.

[Switchback]

As long as you can pass the medical and physical, you will have no problems. I have always been rough on my body with extracarriculars, it never mattered. Remember that a lot of fed guys were in the military. Do you think that cane be abusive on the body?

FWIW, SOG has sent me through plenty of training that one would look to be a bit "risky", to include rock climbing/rappelling, ATV and dirtbiking, etc. In my freetime, I mountain bike... still having minor issues with a shoulder that I separated last spring. LOL

My partner races motorcycles. Talk about hig-risk! :D

[Ironhead]

I don't think it will be a problem in getting hired - but once you are hired, if you lose a lot of time during your probationary period due to injury, they can drop you for "incompatibility" reasons (ie. they need someone to show up for work and you can't :rolleyes: )

[BW510]

Thanks for all the replies...In all honesty if I were to get hired I would at minimum hang up the Bull rope at least till my probation was over if not longer. Thanks again

[Terminator]

I had a guy in my police academy in his late twenties who rode bulls before going thru the academy. He was hired with no problem.