Photo By 2nd Lt. Christopher Garibay | Army Capt. Brandon J. Blaska, S2 intelligence and S6 communications officer-in-charge...... read more read more
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GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba - Troopers with the 525th Military Police Battalion readied themselves, weighed their more than 35 pound ruck sacks and waited patiently just before sunrise to get started on the 12-mile course. The course went from the Joint Task Force Guantanamo’s Headquarters building, through Kittery Beach Road, up Ridgeline Trail and back through Magazine Road. The event was coordinated exclusively for the Troopers of the 525th MP Bn.
One hundred competitors and participants took part in tryouts to send qualifying Troopers to compete on behalf of the U.S. Army South team in the 27th Annual Bataan Memorial Death March held at White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico, March 20. The long trek would ultimately test the mental and physical fortitude of all participants, pushing them to post their best times. The 525th MP Bn set aside two days for the tryouts, in order to accommodate Soldiers with varying schedules. Army Lt. Col. John A. Fivian, commander of the 525th MP Bn. said there were 75 competitors who came out during the two days to try out for a position to represent the battalion at the Bataan Memorial Death March in New Mexico.
His goal is to have all five U.S. Army South team slots to be filled by Soldiers from his battalion. Two of the Soldiers who competed for a top position motivated each other throughout the entire course, Spc. Mamadou Bah, and Spc. Cody Rice, Soldiers with the 525th MP Bn. Both crossed the finish line within a second of each other, each posted a time of 2:41:07, on the first day of the tryouts.
“It was motivating, we pushed each other every step of the way,” said Bah. “We’re in the same unit and we do everything together. The ridgeline trail was brutal. I’ve trained on the island before but I wasn’t prepared for that trail, but we kept pushing each other to the end.”
Rice said he and Bah both earn 300 points on their Army Physical Fitness Test, the maximum points awarded on the standard scale.
“When we (saw) how competitive we both were, we’ve had a good, friendly competition (toward) each other for the past six months,” said Rice.
Fivian said in addition to the great conditioning Soldiers would get by training for the ruck march, they would also benefit from coming together as team to represent the battalion in one of the
most honored historical events.
The event commemorates the 75,000 American and Filipino Soldiers who surrendered in the Philippines to the Imperial Japanese Army, then were forced to march 65 miles to a concentration camp on the southern end of Bataan. The grueling march, which cost the lives of thousands of men, was just the beginning of a more than two-year ordeal for those
prisoners in 1942.
This event, however, brought out the best in some troopers as they used the opportunity to encourage and support one another through the grueling course.
“It was a really good event,” said Army 1st Sgt. Grant S. Burch, a company first sergeant with the 525 MP Bn. “I got to see a lot of Soldiers pushing each other and demonstrating a high level of camaraderie. It was great to see Soldiers pushing their bodies (through) the ridgeline.”
Burch said he encouraged troopers to train for the march by starting small and building their distance incrementally. He said he was proud that two of the top three competitors were from his company. Bah and Rice both said they were proud to take part in the event, hoping to represent the battalion and the Army South team at the memorial march in New Mexico.
The second day of the tryouts would see the overall winner of the tryouts. Army Capt. Brandon J. Blaska, S2 intelligence and S6 communications officer-in-charge with the 525th MP Bn., crossed the finish line after 2:41:7.
“Personally, I don’t think posting the fastest time in this event is as important as pushing yourself to your physical and mental limit,” said Blaska. “To me, pushing through physical pain in an event like this is a means of honoring their sacrifice and memory.”
For Blaska, being able to represent the battalion on behalf of Army South would bring special meaning to him.
“It would be an honor to represent the battalion at the Bataan memorial Death March in White Sands, New Mexico.
People come from all over the world to join in the march and it truly is a special event,” said Blaska.
Last year a shadow march was hosted for Troopers at GTMO. Details of a shadow ruck march held this year will be forthcoming.
| Date Taken: | 02.05.2016 |
| Date Posted: | 03.04.2016 15:43 |
| Story ID: | 191170 |
| Location: | GUANTANAMO BAY, CU |
| Web Views: | 129 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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