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    US Army South hosts Best Warrior Competition

    US Army South hosts Best Warrior Competition

    Courtesy Photo | Spc. Kyle Fields, military police officer, 525th Military Police Battalion, U.S. Army...... read more read more

    SAN ANTONIO, TX, UNITED STATES

    05.08.2015

    Courtesy Story

    U.S. Army South

    CAMP BULLIS, Texas – From taking the Army physical fitness test to completing 24 warrior tasks, 32 Soldiers and noncommissoned officers competed to earn the titles of Soldier and NCO of the Year for their respective units during the 2015 Joint Base San Antonio Best Warrior Competition here, May 4-8.

    Soldiers and NCOs from U.S. Army North, U.S. Army Installation Management Command, U.S. Army Medical Command and U.S. Army South competed in the U.S. Army South-hosted competition.

    The Army North and Army South winners will represent their units at the BWC hosted by U.S. Army Forces Command scheduled later this year. Winners from the FORSCOM competition will compete at the Army-wide BWC, scheduled in October at Fort Lee, Virginia, for the chance to be named the U.S. Army’s NCO and Soldier of the Year. IMCOM and MEDCOM winners will move straight to the Army-wide competition.

    “The goal of the Best Warrior Competition is to recognize the top Soldier and NCO to compete at the Army level,” said Command Sgt. Maj. Dennis Zavodsky, senior enlisted leader, U.S. Army South. “More importantly, BWC makes everyone in the organization better. When Soldiers compete at these types of competitions, they gain confidence in their abilities and I’m extremely confident that the winners will do well at the next level.”

    Participants found the competition to be tough, yet rewarding, as they pushed themselves to the limits.
    “I think it [BWC] is a good program, and it’s challenging,” said Sgt. Eric Herhager, a field artillery tactical data system specialist with Operations Company, Headquarters and Headquarters Battalion, U.S. Army South, and a native of Denver, Colo. “To get ready for this, I studied a lot for the board portion of the competition. I took care of my mind and my body followed.”

    Herhager had the fastest time for the 12-mile road march finishing in 2 hours and 40 minutes.

    “It’s been a fun couple of days,” added Herhager. “Competitions like these make Soldiers better, and the Soldiers who compete can teach other Soldiers around them what they have learned.”

    One Soldier who took to heart learning from other competitors is Spc. Kyle Fields, a military police officer with the 525th Military Police Battalion, and activated Reservist from Kenosha, Wisc., who is currently stationed at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

    “This is a big self-confidence boost,” said Fields. “I’m looking forward to the next level and competing. I enjoyed the obstacle course, and I was glad that I got to do the board.”
    Tasks to complete during the grueling three-day competition included a written test, weapons qualification, the Army physical fitness test, day and night land navigation, urban warfare simulations, an obstacle course, a situational training exercise, 12-mile road march, and a selection board, officiated by command sergeants major and sergeants major. The board is meant to test the competitor’s knowledge on the Army, its programs, and other topics of interest to Soldiers via a series of questions.
    Soldiers in the ranks of private through specialist are eligible for Soldier of the Year and NCOs in the rank of corporal through sergeant first class are eligible to compete for NCO of the Year. All Army active duty, National Guard and Reserve Soldiers are also eligible to compete.

    Only two Soldiers from each command move on to the next round of the competition; however, all participants said they gained valuable experience and understood the importance of the BWC.

    “I’ll be a NCO the next time I compete in the Best Warrior,” said Spc. Lauren Geyer, information systems operator, Operations Company, HHBN, U.S. Army South, from Winder, Ga. “I did a lot better than I thought I would be able to do. I would definitely do it again. It’s an honor that I got to compete.”

    The U.S. Army North NCO winner for the BWC was Sgt. Katherine Bolcar from the 323rd Band. MEDCOM winners were SGT Felipe Montoya, US Army Dental Command, named NCO of the Year and SPC Jordan Mejia, Western Region Medical Command, was named the Soldier of the Year. IMCOM awarded Staff Sgt. Jacob Kasarda NCO of the Year and Spc. Shane Sital Soldier of the Year. Both are military policemen with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, U.S. Army Garrison Benelux-Shinnen, Netherlands. U.S. Army South named Sgt. Eric Herhager and Spc. Kyle Fields the 2015 NCO and Soldier of the Year, respectively.

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    NEWS INFO

    Date Taken: 05.08.2015
    Date Posted: 05.18.2015 12:08
    Story ID: 163647
    Location: SAN ANTONIO, TX, US

    Web Views: 180
    Downloads: 0

    PUBLIC DOMAIN