For Annie Urbay, it was like an obstacle course straight from hell.

The petite teenager was decked out in full firefighter gear, with a 27-pound oxygen tank strapped to her back and the visor of her face mask covered.

In self-imposed darkness she crawled 100 feet, following a fire hose and navigating obstacles along the way. It took more than eight long minutes.

When it was over, the redhead shed her gear, gathered herself and headed to her next assignment -- a CPR workshop.

It was a pretty typical Tuesday for Urbay and the 50 other members of the Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Explorers, a firefighter-training program for young people from age 14 to 21.

The idea is to give youngsters a chance to see what firefighters really go through. They train hard, because real firefighter training is tough. Some of the kids fall in love with it -- others decide it might not be for them.

In addition to training, the group also takes part in community events and some eventually end up going out on real rescue calls.

During the Tuesday night meetings at Miami-Dade fire headquarters in Southwest Dade, the groups rotate jobs every 30 minutes; those who dawdle between stations have to answer to firefighter Rick Reboso.

``This is not a day care where parents can drop their kids off on Tuesday nights,'' says Reboso, an Explorer alumni, Miami-Dade firefighter and the program adviser. ``This is a program for teens who want to learn more about rescue-related careers and get experience in the field.''

Before Reboso signed on as the adviser to the Explorers, the program was faltering, in danger of falling apart.

After two years of his guidance, however, the group has become a close-knit club of 50 future firefighters, doctors, nurses and paramedics.

The club includes teens such as Brian Drake, who had trouble focusing and handling responsibility until he joined the program almost three years ago.

``Before he joined, he was sometimes forgetful and couldn't concentrate,'' Rosy Drake said of her 18-year-old son, a senior at Killian High. ``Now he gets good grades in school and does dual enrollment at Miami-Dade while working part time and participating in the Explorers.''

While most high school students are still trying to decide what they want to do, Drake (the club's quartermaster) is already taking courses to become a certified Emergency Medical Technician.

Drake attributes a large part of his work ethic to the example of leadership Reboso has provided.

``He always gives us reasons why to do certain things and asks us in a way that makes us want to do it,'' Drake said. ``For example, he has us all wear the same uniform to the meetings so that no one is different or more special than anyone else.''

Reboso repeats that sentiment when talking about the kids in his program.

``When I look at a kid, I don't see black, white, male, female, short, tall, nothing. I just see a kid that needs guidance, needs a friend and sometimes needs a father figure,'' Reboso said.

He also acknowledges the help of parents and other volunteers.

``The only reason I can do this program is because I have good people that help me,'' Reboso said.

The program tends to stick with people.

Miami-Dade firefighters Ray Jadallah and Brian Gelabert are former Explorers who work as volunteers with the program.

John Olexa, whose two kids graduated from the program, is an adviser to the group's color guard.

Olexa's wife, Hilda, is involved with the program as are Alicia Bao-Garciga and Lorri and Rudy Rudassil, parents of other teens in the program.

Explorers work closely with both the Boy Scouts and the Miami-Dade Fire Department.

``We go to all the Boy Scout camping trips to provide first aid,'' said club president Gabriel Figueroa, 18. ``We also get the opportunity to ride on the rescue trucks and help the fire department conduct training exercises. We helped the volunteer group that went to New York after Sept. 11 by serving as a decoy for search and rescue simulations.''

However, Fire Rescue Explorer graduates do not receive any special consideration when applying to become a Miami-Dade firefighter, a practice that many would like to see changed.

``Explorers from Miami-Dade are given preference in other counties,'' said Jadallah, whose experience helped him become a firefighter in Palm Beach before coming back to Miami-Dade. ``I would like to see the same kind of treatments given to Explorers here.''