Photo By Master Sgt. Charles Johnston | Tech. Sgt. Amber Martine of the 157th Air Refueling Wing, New Hampshire Air National...... read more read more
Midway through the rain-soaked race, Tech. Sgt. Amber Martine surged forward to seize the lead.
She never looked back.
That’s what the air transportation specialist from the 157th Air Refueling Wing said after she bested 56 New Hampshire National Guard Soldiers and Airmen in an 18.6-mile Norwegian Foot March on June 14 in Concord.
The 41-year-old triathlete from Kittery, Maine, had just completed a 70.3-mile Ironman in Hawaii two weeks earlier. Though fatigued, Martine was motivated to compete in the march.
“It sounded like a new challenge, something that I’ve never done before,” she said.
Martine’s dominant 3:15:00 winning time was about nine minutes faster than the runner-up and 11 minutes quicker than the third-place finisher. She lapped several competitors during the fourth and final loop around the city course.
The field of participants featured 44 Soldiers and 12 Airmen. They donned 25-pound packs, battledress uniforms, and then “rucked” around the capital in a race against each other and the clock. Time requirements were set by age and gender.
This marked the third time since 2021 the NHNG has coordinated the event through Norwegian consulate officials. Known as the Marsjmerket, it dates to 1915 when the Norwegian military used it to prepare soldiers for combat. Qualifiers earn a bronze badge for their first completed march, silver for the second and gold for a fifth.
Master Sgt. Jason Inglis, a boom operator with the 133rd Air Refueling Squadron, pushed through severe side cramps in the 13th mile to place second at 3:24:00.
“I feel tired, but that was awesome,” Inglis said. “My goal was to run maybe for the first seven miles. But then I was, like, ‘All right, now run to 10. Now run to 13.’ I just kept pushing the bar, basically.”
Col. Paul Kell, a pilot at Pease Air National Guard Base, placed third at 3:26:00. Upon crossing the finish and catching his breath, his attention turned to the winner.
“That’s super impressive,” an incredulous Kell told Martine. “The pack is such a disproportionately large amount of weight for your body size.”
Martine, Inglis and Kell combined for an Air Force podium sweep of the march. The first Soldier to cross the finish was Capt. Anthony Rorick of the 12th Civil Support Team. He placed fourth at 3:36:55.
Airmen have now won two of the three foot marches hosted in Concord. Lt. Col. Heath Huffman won last year's race.
Chief Warrant Officer 4 Athena Clements, the event’s lead organizer, held a brief awards ceremony at the conclusion of the march.
Forty-three of the competitors qualified for a badge. Thirty-five bronze and eight silver badges were awarded.
“All who earned this prestigious badge poured a lot of sweat and maybe some blood and tears into the effort and should wear it proudly,” Clements said.
| Date Taken: | 06.14.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 06.17.2025 18:23 |
| Story ID: | 500902 |
| Location: | CONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE, US |
| Hometown: | KITTERY, MAINE, US |
| Web Views: | 153 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, NH Air National Guard Dominates Norwegian Foot March, by MSgt Charles Johnston, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
