Photo By Sgt. Spencer Rhodes | The NEX/MWR 13th Annual Customer Appreciation Weekend offered a plethora of events...... read more read more
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GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba - The NEX’s customer appreciation weekend was a busy string of events that kept Naval Station Guantanamo Bay residents busy, entertained and often full with numerous culinary options available during the entertainment. Prizes were also a large attraction, especially for those competing in Saturday afternoon’s Humvee pull.
The NEX pulled out all the stops, not holding back or giving out simple mugs that say “I <3 the NEX.” No, the first place team for Saturday’s Humvee pull received iPads, while the second place team received new iPod touches. With three members to a team, the prizes were genuinely motivating, in addition to the bragging rights of having the fastest time.
More than 40 individuals signed up to test their abilities and team work; as a slip in form from one team member could have spelled disaster for his or her team, since each team only received one chance to pull. Those who were granted a second try received it due to technical difficulties unrelated to their efforts, and a second pull was granted to allow their entries to be fair and competitive.
Bill Marx, one of the gentlemen running the event, said each team pulled the Humvee roughly 120 feet, or in this case, 11 segments of concrete. As soon as the front tires passed the cones marking the finish line, one of two judges yelled out “time” and the clock was stopped, sealing the teams’ efforts into a time they hoped would be worthy of contest for the top two spots.
For those whose teams were later in the lineup, they knew they were going to have all eyes on them to see if they could beat the fastest times.
“Being number 14, I was almost getting nervous, I was just thinking ‘I want this’ and I know it’s an endurance game,” said Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Dexter Evans. “I told my teammates I wanted to be in the middle, it’s where I felt more comfortable. Our lead anchor guy had the endurance to go with the strength in his legs, so he was able to just pump it out after throwing that rope over his shoulders, while the two of us made sure we kept any momentum we gained. It’s all endurance, you can have huge muscles in your legs, but if you can’t keep it up 100 percent for the whole thing, it’s not going to help you.”
Evans’ team came in second place and received the iPod touches; while the first place team, only finishing within tenths of a second of their rivals, received the grand prizes. The event was short, but it drew quite the crowd, as members from all over the island came out to pull the Humvee, supplied for the event by the Marine Corps Security Forces Company.
| Date Taken: | 10.10.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 10.10.2014 11:07 |
| Story ID: | 144856 |
| Location: | GUANTANAMO BAY , CU |
| Web Views: | 28 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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