NC Guardsmen compete to be named Best Warrior

Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Mary Junell | Staff Sgt. Samuel Carlin, with 30th Special Troops Battalion, 30th Armored Brigade Combat Team, assembles an M240B Machine Gun during the Warrior Tasks event at the North Carolina National Guard’s Best Warrior Competition, at Camp Butner, on March 3, 2014. The competition, which runs from 2 through 5 March, will name one noncommissioned officer and once junior enlisted Soldier or Airmen Best Warrior for North Carolina. (U.S. Army National Guard Photo by Staff Sgt. Mary Junell / Released)  

BUTNER, NC, UNITED STATES

03.03.2015

Story by Staff Sgt. Mary Junell  

North Carolina National Guard

BUTNER, N.C. – Soldiers and Airmen from across North Carolina are competing in their state’s Best Warrior Competition March 2-5, in hopes of being named the Best Warrior of the North Carolina National Guard.

The competition, being held at Camp Butner, will test the Guardsmen’s mental and physical toughness and will include events like weapons qualification, a road march, land navigation, an obstacle course, a stress shoot event, urban operations, common warrior tasks and a mystery event.
The 13 Guardsmen competing are split into two categories; seven in the noncommissioned officer category and six in the junior enlisted category.

In addition to friendly competition, Best Warrior gives the Guardsmen involved an opportunity to meet their counterparts from across the state.

“The competition builds camaraderie between the different brigades,” said Staff Sgt. Kurt Geldner, with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 130th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade, who is competing in the NCO category.

“For the individual Soldier you get a chance to meet a lot of the senior leadership from across the state and they get to see what you can do. It is also a chance to exercise that competitive arm and represent your brigade,” said Geldner.

As the competition moves forward to the Regional level and beyond, it becomes an Army-only competition.

Should the Air Guardsmen competing win, the runner-up for their category will move into their place, but many feel it is important for the branches within the North Carolina Guard to compete together.

“Just to instill some of the teamwork between Air and the Army components,” said Air Force Senior Master Sgt. Buddy Arthur, with the 118th Air Support Operations Squadron, who was at the competition to support the Airmen from his unit. “We deploy the same way so why not compete the same way.”

Points are awarded for each event and winners will be announced at an awards ceremony here, March 5, 2014.

• Date Taken: 03.03.2015
• Date Posted: 03.03.2015 16:39
• Story ID: 155826
• Location: BUTNER, NC, US