Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Zane Craig | Col. Laura McHugh, deputy adjutant general-Army, Pennsylvania National Guard, presents...... read more read more
Subscribe
FORT INDIANTOWN GAP, Pa. – Enlisted National Guard Soldiers from Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, Washington, D.C., and Delaware competed in the 2021 regional Best Warrior Competition here May 11-14.
The Soldiers competed in nine events designed to test their physical and mental endurance: night land navigation, a medical event, a written exam, a mystery event, weapons zero and qualification with the M4, M17 and M500, the obstacle course, the Hartranft 1000 fitness challenge, a 12-mile ruck march, and finally, a leadership/appearance board.
Pfc. Alexander Gravely, a combat medic with 1st Battalion, 201st Field Artillery Regiment, 77th Brigade Troop Command, West Virginia Army National Guard, was named Soldier of the Year, and Sgt. James McGill, a radiology specialist with the 224th Medical Company Area Support, Maryland Army National Guard, was named Noncommissioned Officer of the Year at the conclusion of the competition on Friday.
“I want to thank you for taking the time out of your personal lives to better yourselves, and to represent your state and your individual National Guard,” said Maj. Gen. Mark Schindler, Pennsylvania’s acting adjutant general, adding that these 11 competitors represent more than 31,000 Army National Guard Soldiers in the region. “It’s an amazing feat to make it this far and to compete with the best of the best of this region.”
The Best Warrior Competition recognizes Soldiers who demonstrate commitment to the Army values, embody the Warrior Ethos, and represent the Force of the Future. The challenges featured a mix of physical and mental tasks, assessing basic soldiering skills not unique to any military occupational specialty.
“I hope, win or lose, that you got something out of this competition that made you better,” said Pennsylvania’s Senior Enlisted Leader Command Sgt. Maj. Jon Worley to the competitors.
“I hope by competing in the Region II Best Warrior Competition you have had to step out of your comfort zone, that you’ve met new friends, that you’ve felt a surge of adrenaline, and that you’ve learned something new about yourself,” added Worley.
Ultimately, all the competitors were able to use their mental toughness to overcome their physical limitations and exhaustion and to forge strong bonds among themselves.
“I loved working with the people I got to work with, I’m definitely going to keep in touch with these guys,” said McGill, before thanking his state and unit leadership for their support, saying his win reflects a team effort.
Both winners said the competition was well-run and the events challenging, especially the land navigation course, which took seven hours and covered a huge area in the training corridor here.
“It’s been an absolute honor to be in this environment,” said Gravely, adding that it would have been a great experience win or lose.
Gravely and McGill will represent Region II in the national level Best Warrior Competition at Camp Navajo, Ariz., July 19-23, 2021. There, the best Soldiers and noncommissioned officers in the Army National Guard from the seven regions across the United States will compete to represent the National Guard at the Army’s Best Warrior Competition in the fall.
The competitors for Soldier of the Year were:
Spc. Michael Choi, Virginia; Spc. Zachariah Fink, Delaware; Spc. Richard Granke, Maryland; Pfc. Alexander Gravely, West Virginia; Spc. Derek Knoll, Pennsylvania; and Spc. Alonzo Thompkins, Washington, D.C.
The competitors for Noncommissioned Officer of the Year portion were:
Sgt. Brody Fulks, West Virginia; Sgt. Samuel Johnson, Virginia; Sgt. James McGill, Maryland; Staff Sgt. Dylan Pitetti, Pennsylvania; and Sgt. Jordan Sturgis, Delaware.
For more photos of the competition, please see the following image galleries:
words
words
words
FOR MORE INFORMATION: Please contact the public affairs office at: ng.pa.paarng.list.pao@mail.mil
| Date Taken: | 05.14.2021 |
| Date Posted: | 05.14.2021 16:28 |
| Story ID: | 396494 |
| Location: | FORT INDIANTOWN GAP, PA, US |
| Web Views: | 128 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Fort Indiantown Gap hosts Region II Best Warrior Competition, by SFC Zane Craig, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
LEAVE A COMMENT