Known to be a swampy region, people swatted or kicked at gnats the size of drones
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Anyone in Cajun country knows that mudbugs are best when they're boiled alive. |
In addition to receiving comprehensive classroom and outdoor instruction on the practice of pile driving, participants from throughout North America found time to immerse themselves in a fun and fellowship-filled, southern Louisiana experience. Among the highlights was an authentic Crawfish Boil, courtesy of nearby Baton Rouge-based Contractor, Cajun Industries. Between the generosity of site-host Patriot Construction & Idustrial, LLC, which lent much of its 20-acre facility to PDCA for delivery of The Driven Pile Academy, and the bushels of mudbugs that were cooked on-site and served for the participants' Wednesday evening feast, attendees (many of whom traveled great distances), received a unique experience in the historically significant region of the U.S. and Louisiana known as "Acadiana." (Crawfish Boil photos, later in the post.)
But first, here are scenes from the lighter side of the The Driven Pile Academy:
Rise and shine Vance - it's 8 am in Louisiana, you're not in Hawaii anymore!
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'Old School' anyone? The Rick-ster (l) defends his Sigma ICE frat-brothers to 'Dean' Cunningham (r) who questions him about reported pranks.
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Suppliers demonstrated pile driving power at the Academy, Heath brought mad sprinting skills.
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Dylan's preferred side of the camera |
Mario throws up the obligatory 'Deuces' |
Jason struts the runway, turning heads as he goes |
Hoosiers earn a bid to the Cajun Bowl - brought to you by Alamo Rent-A-Car. |
Site-host Kevin tells Connecticut guests that, 'around here, its gumbo, not chowder and we like our lobsters much smaller' |
Floridians Scott and Luke maintain compliance with TSA COVID rules in a parting shot from MSY |
Who is Tim? Equipment sales or US Secret Service? |
Channeling his inner drill sergeant, Chris asks a student: 'Is that a water bottle in your pocket...or are you just happy to be here?'' |
What are all these voices in my head? |
Some scenes reminded us of classic movies: 'Blues Brothers' |
Classic Movies 2: 'Up in Smoke' |
Classic Movies 3: 'The Deer Hunter' |
Social media and other reactions from The Driven Pile Academy poured in throughout the week as attendees and observers passed along sentiments from the event:
- "If you weren't there, you missed an awesome event!" Kevin
- "I had a blast...there was information to help us gain a deeper knowledge." Arjin
- "What a great week!" Rick
- "The academy overbooked, and we believe it was a great learning experience for all the contractors, pile bucks, geotechnical engineers, designers..." Franki
- "Great idea and great to see it implemented..." Pete
- "It wouldn't be a pile drivers [sic] event in Louisiana without a killer crawfish boil!" Mike
Speaking of the Crawfish Boil, courtesy of Cajun Industries, LLC, most attendees adopted the popular practice of native Louisianans, as you will notice below:
PDCA thanks all students, training coordinators, volunteers, organizers, and of course our sponsors for participating in the inaugural CFI -Driven Pile Academy.