The Canadian military lineman dangled above the ground in a training exercise while his companions sought to rescue him.

Lineman McCabe, a member of the 1 Line Squadron of the Canadian Forces Joint Signal Regiment, was one of 41 soldiers from a station in Kingston, Ontario, who met with their American counterparts to demonstrate rescue and pole-climbing skills.

As linemen, called "cable dogs" in the United States, the soldiers are responsible for running copper wiring, fiber optics and any other type of communication lines in a war zone.

"They're really kind of a jack-of-all-trades," said Lt. Col. Ralph Higgins, the commander of the 369th Signal Battalion at Fort Gordon. "You can really call them Larry the Cable Guy because they bring it all."

The Canadian soldiers shared their skills in gaff climbing, which uses metal spikes worn on the bottom of the feet. Gaff climbing is no longer used by Americans, who usually use ladders and step poles for their wiring.

"It's kind of an art we don't teach anymore," Lt. Col. Higgins said.

Maj. Curtis Penney, of the 1 Line Squadron, said his unit has been operating in Afghanistan, where it is responsible for installing the wiring between various camps as part of its NATO mission in the country. He said the squadron's time at Fort Gordon, a first for the unit, was a good chance to interact and learn from Fort Gordon personnel.

"We're here to see what their techniques are," Maj. Penney said. "Both in the operation sense and in their teaching method."

Before departing today, the Canadian linemen will visit the base's Fisher House, which provides a home for families while they visit sick or wounded loved ones, to donate $500.