FARGO - He's the rumbling voice of Fargo's flood fight, the 6-foot-5 big guy from a small town who tempers a gruff exterior with constant quips and a tendency to break down in tears when he visits volunteers.

Now Mayor Dennis Walaker faces his biggest test as residents count on him to save their city from a swollen Red River. Those who know him best say he's up to the challenge.

"I don't think we would want anyone else in this situation," Fargo City Commissioner Dave Piepkorn said. "He's Denny. He's authentic. People like that."

For Walaker, a native of nearby Leonard, who spent 32 years working for the city before voters elected him mayor in 2006, flood fighting is nothing new. Then director of the city public works department, he was on the front lines during the 1997 Red River flood, when Fargo escaped the devastation that ravaged Grand Forks. His confidence and humor during press briefings made him a hero among citizens and a media favorite.

He has shown the same flair in the current crisis, leading a frantic weeklong sandbagging effort to raise the city's dikes to 43 feet. The mayor was cautiously optimistic about predictions Saturday that river levels were headed down after reaching nearly 41 feet on Friday.

Walaker usually begins each morning's flood briefing with a joke. One day he told residents they should conserve water by showering together.

Fargoans applauded their mayor at community meetings earlier this week, even some who were told that their houses would be on the wrong side of backup levees if the river topped the reinforced dikes. He told residents that once it was all over, he would buy everyone a beer.

"Dennis is like one of those big teddy bears," said Brad Wimmer, another Fargo city commissioner. "Dennis has been to tears several times during this flood, with neighbors and friends and working with staff."

Eva Fredrickson professed her love for the mayor Saturday while playing pull-tabs at Teamsters Hall. She said his approach to the flood instilled confidence in everyone.

"He just looks like an ordinary man to me. An ordinary, run-of-the-mill man," Fredrickson said. "He's not highfalutin and acting like he knows more than anyone else. He makes people feel real good. And every once in a while he tells a little joke."

Walaker was 65 years old when he decided to run for mayor in June of 2006. When someone told him it was a good idea to run for city commission first, he said he didn't want that job. He promised a modest campaign and delivered, getting 34 percent of the vote against five challengers. Flood protection was at the heart of Walaker's platform.

"It was a field of very good candidates and they all spent a tremendous amount of money," Piepkorn said. "Mayor Walaker basically spent nothing and won."

Fargo's city offices are nonpartisan, and Walaker leaves people guessing about his politics. He voted to keep a Ten Commandments monument outside city hall. He also attended a summit of mayors against illegal guns.

Walaker tried out for the basketball team at North Dakota State University, but he didn't make the cut. He didn't hold it against the school, later becoming president of the NDSU booster team.

When the NDSU men's basketball team qualified for the NCAA tournament earlier this month, Walaker said his beloved Bison had a "positive effect on everything." Then the first flood forecast was released.

"This wasn't the kind of March madness I anticipated," he said.

His office is adorned with sports memorabilia. The biggest piece of art, though, is an embroidered poster from the Coen brothers movie "Fargo." While many residents were offended by the parody, believing the thick accents and simpleton characters put their city in a bad light, the poster is a testament to Walaker's sense of humor.

He also can speak bluntly on issues when others in city government would prefer he filter his comments.

When an 8-year-old girl was killed after the car she was riding in spun out of control and was struck by another car, Walaker blamed a rut that the city failed to fix for causing the crash. He thought it was important to let the driver - the 15-year-old sister of the victim - know the crash wasn't her fault, and he wasn't worried that it could open up the city to a lawsuit.

Walaker angered some Grand Forks residents earlier this month while talking about flood protection at a Fargo Chamber of Commerce Forum. Walaker said the reason Grand Forks received money for a floodway is because the city failed during the 1997 flood. Walaker said he didn't mean to slam Grand Forks, but he didn't back down from his statements.

Earlier this week, Walaker admitted he was exhausted by days of fighting the flood and by years of fighting for money for permanent flood protection.

"This is getting old, guys," Walaker said. "Or I'm getting old. That's probably true on both ends."