Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Brett Miller | Best Warrior competitors carry equipment, and their own bodies, across a team-building...... read more read more
CAMP GRAFTON TRAINING CENTER, N.D. — The North Dakota Army National Guard’s 2015 Best Warrior Competition came to a close Aug. 23 after 22 Guardsmen from across the state tested their Soldiering skills during three days of military tasks and challenges at Camp Grafton Training Center, near Devils Lake, North Dakota.
Staff Sgt. Michael Tavis, of Mandan, N.D., a member of the Grand Forks-based 1st Battalion, 188th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, was the winner of the state-level Best Warrior Competition in the noncommissioned officer category. In the enlisted-level competition, Sgt. Colin Dunn, of Hettinger, N.D., a member of the Dickinson-based 816th Engineer Company (Horizontal), took top honors.
“You all belong to an elite group from within the North Dakota Army National Guard’s ranks, and you are all winners,” said Col. Robert Fode, the North Dakota National Guard’s Army Component commander, who addressed the Best Warrior competitors during an awards ceremony. “By participating in this tough competition, you all deserve to be recognized as leaders within our organization, and I thank you for your participation and warrior spirit. Be proud of what you have accomplished. To the winners, we wish you the best of luck in further competition and know you will do well.”
Soldiers representing their units must first win in their respective major commands in order to vie for the “Best Warrior” title during the state-level competition. According to Command Sgt. Maj. Brad Heim, North Dakota National Guard state command sergeant major, the event this year was designed to determine winners based on the “total-Soldier” concept. The victors had to demonstrate a mastery of multiple Soldier skills — tasks designed to challenge both physically and mentally — to outdo their competitors.
On Friday evening, the Guardsmen arrived and immediately immersed themselves in the competition by participating in the Army Physical Fitness Test. The following day, the competitors spent their morning answering a barrage of questions on current events and military-related topics in front of a board of sergeants major and also were evaluated on their wear of the military dress uniform. From there, they moved to Camp Grafton Training Center’s land navigation course where they were tasked with finding map grid locations using a compass.
“It was an excellent competition with great Soldiers,” Tavis said. “The land navigation course was challenging and increased the degree of difficulty, which made us (the Soldiers) really compete, work hard and dig deep. Overall, it was good to see what we were able to do as all-around Soldiers competing against one another.”
Saturday’s outing to the land navigation course was followed by an event titled “Warrior Stakes.” Competitors darted through Camp Grafton’s Military Operations in Urban Terrain, or MOUT, site where they were tested on tactical movements on foot, Modern Army Combatives techniques and using a Single Channel Ground and Airborne Radio System, or SINCGARS, radio.
The final day of competition, Sunday, got progressively more challenging, with the final event being foreshadowed to the Guardsmen as a 'mystery challenge'. The competitors, without knowing what they were up against, marched to locations across Camp Grafton, stopping at checkpoints to lead their own assigned squad of Soldiers through team-building obstacles while being timed and evaluated on their leadership abilities.
“This was a very interesting year of competition. The enthusiasm for this weekend’s event, with 22 Soldiers participating, has not been seen in recent years,” Heim said. “We had a lot of support from our staff within the North Dakota National Guard to run the event, and we wanted to make it as challenging as we could to help our winners prepare themselves for the next level of competition. Because, from here, it doesn’t get any easier.”
The winners now will prepare for the regional competition held in June 2016. The Soldiers will compete against Guard Soldiers from seven other states: Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, South Dakota, Washington and Wyoming. Regional winners go on to compete in the All-Guard Competition and, if they win there, they compete in the All-Army Competition.
Should the winners not be able to compete, they will be replaced by the runners-up from the state competition. This year, Sgt. Jordan Gehlhar, of Lauderdale, Minnesota, with the Jamestown-based 817th Engineer Company (Sapper), was the runner-up in the noncommissioned officer category. Spc. Tara Loomer, of Wahpeton, North Dakota, with the Bismarck-based 814th Medical Company (Area Support), took the runner-up position at the enlisted level.
Since the 2001 terrorist attacks on America, the North Dakota National Guard has mobilized more than 4,200 Soldiers and nearly 2,600 Airmen in support of the Global War on Terrorism. About 70 percent of all members serving today have joined since that time. Currently, nearly 40 North Dakota Guardsmen are mobilized for overseas and domestic service. With a total force of about 4,400 Guardsmen, the North Dakota National Guard remains ready for stateside response and national defense. For every 10,000 citizens in North Dakota, 65 serve in the North Dakota National Guard, a rate that’s more than four times the national average.
| Date Taken: | 08.23.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 08.27.2015 16:27 |
| Story ID: | 174469 |
| Location: | ND, US |
| Hometown: | HETTINGER, ND, US |
| Hometown: | MANDAN, ND, US |
| Web Views: | 108 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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