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    NC National Guard Chooses ‘Best Warrior’

    NC National Guard 2013 Best Warrior competition

    Photo By Capt. Rick Scoggins | (left) Army Sgt. Nkosi Campbell and (right) Spc. Dustin Wilmoth, both of the North...... read more read more

    BUTNER, NC, UNITED STATES

    04.07.2013

    Story by Staff Sgt. Robert Jordan    

    North Carolina National Guard

    STEM, N.C. - The best of the best North Carolina National Guard soldiers gathered at the 2013 Best Warrior Competition at Camp Butner National Guard Training Center, here, March 26 - 28.

    Thirteen soldiers chosen from more than 10,000 NCNG soldiers across the state competed. One noncommissioned officer, from the rank of sergeant or higher and one soldier, from the rank of private to specialist, will win the honor of Best Warrior.

    Before the competition began, NCNG State Senior Enlisted Leader, Army Command Sgt. Maj. John H. Swart spoke to the soldiers at the NCNG armory in Butner, N.C.

    “You are the future of the Guard,” said Swart.

    The soldiers' minds and bodies were challenged with a physical fitness test, land navigation and tests of soldier skills, such as, common weapon knowledge, radio use and vehicle searches for weapons.

    Early in the morning, the soldiers lined up for the push-ups and sit-ups that began the physical fitness test.

    Normally an armory full of first sergeants screaming is enough to make any soldier who has faced enemy fire cringe, but these were cheers as each soldier strained to complete one last push-up or make one last sit-up before time expired.

    The relative warmth of the armory was forgotten however as the soldiers ran two-miles in freezing weather in order to complete the test.

    The woods and hills of Camp Butner would prove challenging for the confident warriors in their next event.

    Each soldier was given a map and compass for the land navigation test. The soldiers’ mission was to find five points that were hidden amongst 30 other points spread out across miles of the course’s rolling hills.

    Each soldier carefully planned their routes in order to accomplish the mission in the most efficient and expedient manner possible. Careful pencil marks plotted their course and attention to detail was critical.

    Compasses were held steady and checked routinely in order to ensure the warriors were on the right track.

    Some soldiers used a technique that utilized the shortest path between the points over the woods and hills. Others decided running along the most open and flattest terrain allowed for much faster movement but a longer distance overall. One warrior blended both approaches as part of his strategy for success. The longest distance between any of the points on the course was nearly four kilometers!

    The land navigation course ended where the next event began.
    Instructors waited for the Soldiers behind a series of long tables. Common weapons, a radio and a training dummy representing a wounded soldier tested the warriors’ Common soldier Skills.

    The soldiers safely disassembled and reassembled each weapon from memory, as manuals could not be used.

    Later the warriors were tested on a medical evacuation (MEDEVAC) request and general first aid support. A simulated MEDEVAC on the radio gave first responders and fellow military units the location, radio frequency, number and type of patients, equipment needed, and other information in a nine-sentence format.

    Soldiers treated the simulated injuries on the dummy with bandage and tourniquet.

    The last skill tested was conducting a vehicle search for hidden explosives. Concealed under seats, in storage compartments and the engine compartment were five fake explosives.

    The next day of the best warrior competition pushed the thirteen warriors to their limits.

    A road march, shooting contests and an obstacle course awaited the best in the N.C. Guard.

    The early morning cold yielded to the warmth that only a 6-mile march with a forty-pound pack and weapon could provide.

    The soldiers moved as quickly as they could through the winding trail. With a mixture of running and walking along the path, the soldiers went to the next event at one of the many ranges at Camp Butner.

    The soldiers stripped off their sweat soaked packs and ate a quick meal ready-to-eat, the military’s field rations, before taking on their next challenge; weapons qualification.

    Spread across a 300-meter firing line were a series of pop-up targets at different distances and locations. The warriors identified the targets and fired their weapons in a matter of seconds before the target dropped out of sight.

    As the weapon qualification portion tested marksmanship, the aptly named “stress shoot” honed the warrior’s warfighting skills.

    Across a one kilometer course composed of four weapons stations: machine gun, rifle, shotgun and pistol, the soldiers tested their speed, accuracy and endurance. Soldiers used a variety of weapons at different targets and ranges and were required to sprint between each station.

    The last event for the soldiers was the obstacle course. Narrow beams that shifted under the slightest pressure, sheer walls, ropes and a series of cargo nets seemed to increase in height as Soldiers negotiated the station.

    Soldiers cheered as their peers ran, jumped, pushed, pulled, climbed, dove, slithered and slid up, over, under, down and across the more than 20 obstacles.

    As the last soldier climbed the highest tower, all of the other soldiers gathered around and screamed encouragement. Their efforts paid off as the respective warriors slid down the thick coarse rope from the top of the tower and stopped just inches from the end.

    With the mind stressed and the body exhausted, a much different test ended the competition on the following morning. The final day of the competition was a battle of military knowledge as soldiers faced a board of senior NCNG leaders with more than a hundred years of combined military experience.

    Before meeting the board, each soldier checked and rechecked their uniform. Every piece of lint removed and the smallest thread cut off.

    At the appointed time, the soldiers, one by one, approached and knocked on the closed door of the board. On the other side, leaders with decades of experience waited to quiz each candidate on military knowledge and leadership. The leaders scored each candidate on their answers, military bearing and professionalism.
    Soon after the board, the soldiers prepared for the award ceremony. The thirteen warriors stood at attention as Army Maj. Gen. Greg Lusk, the adjutant general of North Carolina, thanked all of them for their service.

    “We are one heck of a team because of you,” said Lusk. “No other force in the world can do what you do, respond to disaster at home and protect our nation overseas.”

    Lusk then announced the winners.

    “Sergeant Nkosi Campbell, Specialist Dustin Wilmoth; post.”


    On command, the two soldiers of the 60th Troop Command marched up and stood in front of the formation of their peers and former competitors as the NCNG’s best warriors.

    They will represent the more than 10,000 NCNG soldiers across the state at regional competition with other states' best warriors later this year.

    EDITORS AND PRODUCERS: To see more pictures of all three days of the 2013 NCNG Best Warrior Competition, at Camp Butner Training Facility, visit our Flickr site at: Day 1 - http://www.flickr.com/photos/ncngpao/sets/72157633042737346/with/8573097235/; Day 2- http://www.flickr.com/photos/ncngpao/sets/72157633109101464/ and Final Day - http://www.flickr.com/photos/ncngpao/sets/72157633116424300/.
    For any questions, please contact the North Carolina National Guard Public Affairs Office at pao@ng.army.mil or by phone at (919) 664-6242. For more NCNG news, visit our website: www.nc.ngb.army.mil/. To become a Facebook fan of the NCNG, please visit www.facebook.com/NCnationalguard or follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/NCnationalguard. To view additional pictures from this and other events, visit www.flickr.com/photos/ncngpao.

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    NEWS INFO

    Date Taken: 04.07.2013
    Date Posted: 04.07.2013 13:18
    Story ID: 104755
    Location: BUTNER, NC, US

    Web Views: 323
    Downloads: 0

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