The Wildfire Contracting World: Starting A Company, The Issues, Policy Changes, The Stereotypes, And More. A conversation with one of the most dialed in operators, Derrick Holdstock.
From The Hotshot Wake Up by The Hotshot Wake Up
May 21, 2026 · 1h 11m
About this episode
Derrick Holdstock discusses his experiences and insights in the wildfire contracting industry.
On Today’s Show: To Support And Subscribe: 👉https://thehotshotwakeup.substack.com/ Today, I talk to Derrick Holdstock, owner and operator of Western Fire Resources. Derrick has been very proactive in the contracting and wildfire world, recently returning from a trip to D.C. Before he started Western Fire Resources, Derrick was a wildlife biologist who practiced prescribed fire and later served as the Regional Fire Coordinator for West Texas, covering one third of the state. He also worked as a biologist for the Bureau of Land Management before venturing into the contracting world. Derrick is highly versed in everything related to wildfire and the industry. We talk about current issues in contracting, policy, starting a company, the stereotypes, and a lot more. THE HOTSHOT WAKE UP — Thank you to all of our paid subscribers. Your support allows us to donate generously to firefighter charities and supports all of our content. You also receive all of our article archives, more podcast episodes, Monday morning workouts, and also entered into our giveaways, plus more.
People in this episode
Host: The Hotshot Wake Up
Guest: Derrick Holdstock
Topics covered
- wildfire contracting
- policy changes
- starting a company
- wildlife biology
- industry stereotypes
Keywords
- wildfire
- contracting
- policy
- biologist
- firefighter charities
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Western Fire Resources, Bureau of Land Management
Places: West Texas, D.C.
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