Army National Guard Best Warrior Region VI winners stem from Engineer Units

Photo By John Hughel | A National Guard Soldier competing in the 2021 Best Warrior Competition for Region 6, moves through a training course of smoke and other training ordnance at Camp Rilea, Warrenton, Ore., May 7, 2021. Soldiers are competing in nearly 20 events that were part of the 2021 Region VI Best Warrior Competition hosted by the Oregon National Guard. The competition included Soldiers from Alaska, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Washington and Wyoming. (National Guard photo by Master Sgt. John Hughel, Oregon Military Department Public Affairs)  

WARRENTON, OR, UNITED STATES

05.11.2021

Story by Master Sgt. John Hughel 

Oregon National Guard Public Affairs Office

WARRENTON, Ore. – With nearly 20 events on the schedule to determine the top Enlisted and Noncommissioned Officer (NCO) in an eight-state district, the Region Six Best Warrior Competition for 2021 was hosted by the Oregon National Guard at Camp Rilea, May 4-7, 2021.

Army Guardsmen from Alaska, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, Idaho, Oregon and Washington took on four days physically demanding and intense conceptual challenges to determine the finalist, who will represent the region at the upcoming national-level competition later this summer.

In the NCO level, North Dakota Army National Guard Sgt. Brandon Wendland, 957th Engineer Company won, and in the Enlisted Soldier category, Wyoming Army National Guard Spc. Aiden Carroll, 133rd Engineer Company took top honors.

Oregon Army Guardsmen Sgt. John Mayer, 2nd Battalion, 162nd Infantry Regiment and Spc. Trevor Foster, Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 186th Infantry Regiment both finished runner-up in their respective categories.

Often times the weather can play a tough competitiveness factor with temperature extremes, intense winds and rain but for the Best Warrior Region Six event, the conditions were nearly ideal thought-out the 2021 competition.

The opening day events had the Soldiers in physical fitness gear and being tested on portions of the new Army Combat Fitness Test, or ACFT, then changing into their Class A’s for testing and appearing before formal boards.

Over the preceding days, the Soldiers were qualified on small arms weapons, Rucked Marched twice, conquer early morning land navigation routes, pushed themselves through the main obstacle course and numerous other challenges in-between on limited sleep and rest periods.

The culmination on the final day pressed the 16 competitors into the most rousing events, beginning with an early morning 12-mile final Ruck March and quickly transition to the “Mogadishu” event. For this situation, each state team worked in duo’s under heavy smoke and other training ordnance, then making their way through the MOUNT training village to find simulated wounded casualties and move them to air medevac rescue.

For the final event, the Pacific Ocean and shoreline provided the perfect stage for the “Omaha Beach” event, evoking the D-Day landings on June 6, 1944. Taking Omaha was to be the responsibility of United States 1st Army, 5th Corps’ and was portrayed in the movie, “Saving Private Ryan.”

As the Soldiers ‘stormed the beaches,’ they quickly ran to a station where heavy ammunition canisters waited, then carried the two canisters up and over a high sand dune, and then, run the route back to the shoreline with a final sprint to the finish.

“It was a blast, we’re all sore and tired but I really had a great time,” said Washington Army National Guard Cpl. Iver Nitz, Medical Detachment, also joking on the climate conditions for the week. “The weather was great too, but that’s because we brought it south with us from [Washington] home.”

For winning their categories, both Wendland and Carroll were presented with the Army Commendation Medal by the Oregon Army National Guard Land Component Command team, Brig. Gen. Gregory Day and Command Sgt. Maj. Lee Smith.

“You all know, there are those Soldiers who just make it through basic training and struggle to show up on time during drill weekends, but you all characterize the best of the best, said Day. “Each of you represent the Army’s core values, and are going to be our future senior leaders.”

The overall goal of the Best Warrior Competition is to recognize the top performing Soldier and NCO, but Smith said that the competition also characterizes the Army’s values and the Warrior Ethos among the participants.

“Throughout the week, I was impressed and inspired by each of these competitors,” he said. “They pushed each other to bring out the very best in themselves.”

• Date Taken: 05.11.2021
• Date Posted: 05.11.2021 15:56
• Story ID: 396147
• Location: WARRENTON, OR, US