Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Ashley Brown | U.S. Army Sgt. Bailey Ruff, a horizontal construction engineer assigned to the South...... read more read more
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The Army National Guard named its top noncommissioned officer and enlisted Soldier after a week-long competition held July 7-13, 2023, at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Fort Greely, and Black Rapids Training Area, Alaska.
Spc. Luke Harrison, a field artillery radar operator assigned to the Wyoming Army National Guard, and Sgt. Bailey Ruff, a horizontal construction engineer assigned to the South Dakota Army National Guard, both representing Region VI, took the title as the 2023 noncommissioned officer and enlisted Soldier in the U.S. Army National Guard.
Spc. Luke Harrison said he enjoyed working with and learning from so many highly skilled soldiers.
"I came in with the attitude of just treating it like a training exercise and just did my best," said Harrison. "But now that I have won, I realize how much I put into it and how much I care. I'm very thankful to have won."
Following this competition, the best five competitors will form a squad and represent the Army National Guard in this fall's U.S. Army Best Squad Competition.
Command Sgt. Maj. John T. Raines, Command Sergeant Major of the Army National Guard, said these types of competitions are important because they remind us what our primary responsibility is as a component of the Army.
"So you know, our job is "close the width and destroy the enemy"- to produce the most dominant land component in the world," said Raines. "Every unit has a mission, and you roll those missions down into collective tasks, then to individual tasks. This competition shows that our training is working because these soldiers out here represent those 336,000 soldiers in the Army National Guard.
Raines also says that facilitating events such as this demonstrates overall readiness throughout the organization because coordinating events of this scale is a big undertaking.
The winning enlisted soldiers and noncommissioned officers who will represent the U.S. Army National Guard are:
Staff Sgt. Leo Kerfeld, assigned to the Minnesota Army National Guard, representing Region IV.
Sgt. Bailey Ruff, assigned to the South Dakota Army National Guard, representing Region VI.
Spc. Luke Harrison, assigned to the Wyoming Army National Guard, representing Region VI.
Spc. Bret Williams, assigned to the West Virginia Army National Guard, representing Region II.
Spc. Hunter Gammon, assigned to the Missouri Army National Guard, representing Region V.
The alternates are:
Staff Sgt. Daniel Abbott, assigned to the Virginia Army National Guard, representing Region II.
Sgt. Quentin Holden, assigned to the Georgia Army National Guard, representing Region III.
Sgt. Jackson Jacobs, assigned to the Tennessee Army National Guard, representing Region III.
The competitors tested in several events that challenged their physical readiness and mental fortitude.
Such events included the Army Combat Fitness Test, an obstacle course, multiple shooting events, land navigation, medical tasks, drill and ceremony, the Army Combat Water Survival Test, a 14-mile timed road march, and several others, all graded by senior enlisted leaders who were subject matter experts for each event.
Maximizing readiness and lethality is the National Guard's top priority. The 2023 Army National Guard Best Warrior Competition and all levels of the competition before it demonstrated our most ready and lethal forces.
The next step for the winners and alternates is training them to work together as a squad. The team will train for 40 days at the Warrior Training Center at Fort Moore, Georgia, to prepare for the Army competition.
Sgt. Bailey Ruff said he's thrilled to be continuing with another Soldier from his region.
"There were a few opportunities where I got to work together with the other competitor from Region VI," said Ruff. "Those few events have me really looking forward to continuing to work with him as we move on to the Best Squad Competition."
| Date Taken: | 07.13.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 07.14.2023 01:21 |
| Story ID: | 449179 |
| Location: | JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, ALASKA, US |
| Web Views: | 1,076 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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