SANTA FE, N.M. — New Mexico National Guard members competed to claim the title of Best Warrior during the annual Best Warrior Competition held here and at the National Rifle Association Whittington Center in Raton April 22-25, 2019. Soldiers pushed themselves to their limits throughout the grueling four-day challenge which ended in an awards ceremony at the Oñate Military Complex where the winners were announced. Spc. Dominic Barreras, a combat medic specialist in the 1209th Area Support Medical Company, earned the title Soldier of the Year and Staff Sgt. Reynaldo Yazzie, a platoon sergeant from A Company, 1-200th Infantry Battalion, earned Noncommissioned Officer of the Year. Other awards included the Iron Warrior Award which went to Spc. Arnulfo Marquez, a utilities equipment repairer in the 642nd Ordnance Company, for the best overall score in athletic events and Top Overall Weapons, which went to Yazzie. “From my perspective, the best warrior competition is a barometer,” said State Command Sgt. Maj. Jerry Garcia, who has spearheaded the competition for the past four years. “It’s one of the ways that I can look at our soldiers and can see where they’re at, whether or not they’re proficient in the tasks that we all need to be able to do.” An event like the Best Warrior Competition, which took place across multiple training areas spread throughout the state, wouldn’t be possible without the work of dedicated support staff. “We had over two dozen people supporting the event this year,” Garcia said. “Some of them are still working, driving home from Raton right now. I want to thank all of you for the hard work and the hours that you put in.” This year, 12 competitors were scored in over 40 tasks, ranging from classroom tests and public speaking to demanding physical challenges. The competition began with Water Combat Survival challenges and the new Army Combat Fitness Test on Monday afternoon. The ACFT is designed to test a soldier’s strength and endurance in a combat environment. The test includes a three repetition maximum deadlift, a standing medicine ball power throw, hand release push-ups, the sprint-drag-carry event in which soldiers must pull a weighted sled and carry kettlebells, the hanging leg tuck, and finally a timed two-mile run. For many of the competitors, the competition was the first time that they have taken the new ACFT. On Tuesday, warriors woke early to complete a daytime land navigation challenge at the Camel Tracks training site outside of Santa Fe. From there, they were transported to the NRA Whittington Center for range activities and weapon tasks. Participants fired their M16A2 rifles and completed basic soldiering challenges such as radio tests and basic medical tasks. Competitors faced another challenging day on Wednesday, which began with more range activities, the “Chili Pepper Shoot,” in which participants must fire three weapons and sprint to the end of a timed event, and an 8.5-mile ruck march through rolling foothills of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Many participants took the competition not only as a chance for bragging rights but also as an opportunity to challenge themselves personally and gauge their effectiveness at soldiering. Staff Sgt. Steven Schmitt, from the 64th Civil Support Team, said that the ruck march was the event that he was the most excited about completing. For Schmitt, the ruck as a chance at redemption. Schmitt, who competed in the 2018 Best Warrior Competition, finished this year’s ruck at a jog. “I didn’t do very well on the ruck last year,” Schmitt said, “so for me, it was a chance to do better.” In completing over 40 challenges that were set before them, competitors like Spc. Joseph Rubalcaba, a motor transport operator in the 1115th Transportation Company, were rewarded with meeting or exceeding many personal goals. “I’m already an athletic person on the civilian side,” Rubalcaba said, “so I enjoyed competing in the new PT test and the warrior challenges. Those were definitely the most rewarding for me.” In the fourth and final day of the competition, participants completed the Warrior Challenge, a tolling obstacle course spread across the Oñate Military Complex as well as public speaking challenges such as an appearance board and an on-camera interview, and written tests of their knowledge in basic soldiering tasks. “These competitors impressed me this year,” Garcia said. “This has been one of the strongest groups we’ve seen so far, and I hope that the competition gets even tougher next year.” Winners from this state competition will move on to compete in the 2019 Regional Best Warrior Competition, representing New Mexico among other soldiers from Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Nevada, Utah, and the territory of Guam.]]>
