This tale is by Gary Reeve who posted it to P.U.N.Y.

Our hero is a career fireman who had worked his way up to captain of a hook and ladder unit. Although he was famous for manning the ladder, himself, and performing many spectacular rescues, time as it does to many of us had put many pounds on his body. Now at over 300 lbs, he still insisted that he was capable of climbing and carrying. In spite of their respect for the large fellow, his men now referred to him as:

The Lard of the Rungs.