U.S. Army Maj. Samantha Wood, a medical specialist officer with Joint Forces Headquarters, California National Guard, places her medal around her neck after crossing the finish line of the Spartan DEKA FIT, a fitness competition that consists of 10 events, each preceded by a 500-meter run, in Austin, Texas, Jan. 15, 2022. Wood placed first among the National Guard women competing for a spot on the All Guard team.
U.S. Army Maj. Samantha Wood, a medical specialist officer with Joint Forces Headquarters, California National Guard, places her medal around her neck after crossing the finish line of the Spartan DEKA FIT, a fitness competition that consists of 10 events, each preceded by a 500-meter run, in Austin, Texas, Jan. 15, 2022. Wood placed first among the National Guard women competing for a spot on the All Guard team.
By Maj. Jean Kratzer, 42nd Infantry Division
AUSTIN, Texas โ National Guard Soldiers and Airmen put their endurance and strength to the test during the National Guardโs All Guard Endurance Team competition in Austin Jan. 15.
The 120 Guard members, coming from 35 states and territories, competed for male and female slots on the team.
California Army National Guard members took top honors in both the menโs and womenโs competitions.
Maj. Robert Killian, a Special Forces Soldier who has won the Armyโs Best Ranger competition twice and Spartan World Championship obstacle race, finished first in the menโs category.
Maj. Samantha Wood, an ultramarathoner and physical therapist assigned to Californiaโs Joint Force Headquarters, finished first among the women.
The All Guard Endurance Team began as a way to expand the National Guard Marathon Program, which promotes the Army and Air National Guard and improves retention through physical fitness, self-discipline and esprit de corps.
Guard members competed on 10 exercise machines after running 500 meters, the equivalent of a 5K run, indoors at the Austin Convention Center.
The system is known as DEKAFIT, from the Greek word for 10. Each machine tests endurance and strength in different ways.
โReally, what this competition showed me regardless of your fitness level โฆ youโre competing against yourself. โฆ Youโre showing excellence and going above and beyond,โ said Brig. Gen. Michael Oster, the assistant adjutant general for the South Dakota National Guardโs Joint Force Headquarters.
Oster, who was the keynote speaker at the awards ceremony, said the competitionโ makes you feel good about who you are and it makes you feel good about what you do.โ
โYou get camaraderie and teamwork in this while participating,โ he added.
The competitors ranged from elite athletes to first-time participants.
Most of the competitors have been training for the new Army Combat Fitness Test, which emphasizes agility and strength. This competition provided new challenges with obstacles and more running.
The 10 โzonesโ of the competition were:
โข RAM Alt Reverse Lunge
โข 500M Row
โข 24โ Box Jump / Step Overs
โข Med Ball Sit-Up
โข 500M Ski Erg
โข 100M Farmerโs Carry
โข 25 kcal Air Bike
โข Dead/Slam Ball Shoulder Over
โข 100M Tank Push/Pull
โข RAM Burpees
The eventโs overall intent is to demonstrate a favorable opinion of physical fitness and promote holistic health and wellness across the National Guard force, according to Sgt. 1st Class Douglas Stephens, the National Guardโs military competitions coordinator.
The winners and the top three men and women in the masters (over 50) will represent the All Guard Team for the next two years.
Typically, the team will hold six events per year to spread the message of the National Guard and enhance recruiting.
โIt opens up the door to talk to people at every venue,โ Stephens said. โWe have so many cool stories on the team. We have a guy that was in a car wreck and was told he would never walk again, and now heโs running marathons. So he gets to tell that story at every race, and it encourages people to join.โ
Oster said the competition was all about excellence.
โEverybody I talked to today wanted to run a better time than they ran the last time or the last workout they did before they came here,โ Oster said.
2021 All Guard Endurance Team:
Top overall
Male- MAJ Robert Killian, California
Female- MAJ Samantha Wood, California
Team Award (Top three times from each state gender-mixed)
1st Place California
2nd Place Michigan
3rd Place Ohio
Team Members-Male
โข SGT Derek Yorek, Arkansas
โข 2LT Joshua Collins, Utah
โข CPT Paul Fitzpatrick, Michigan
โข SGT Bailey Ruff, South Dakota
โข SSG James Ross, Wisconsin
โข SGT James Potteiger, Virginia
โข SSG Jerrod Abel, Ohio
โข MSgt Jarred Surprenant, Rhode Island
โข 1LT Jesse Mascoe, Kentucky
โข CW2 Andrew Cato, South Carolina
โข CPT Valentine Roberts, Hawaii
โข CPT Ethan McIntosh, Texas
โข CPT Austin Tenelshof, Michigan
โข SFC Paul Hoffman, South Dakota
โข SSG Anibal Soto, Puerto Rico
โข MAJ Nick Whaley, New York
โข CPT Joel Engle, South Dakota
โข MAJ Andrew Miller, New York
โข TSgt Brandon Eckel, Tennessee
โข 1LT Justin Lowe, Arkansas
โข MAJ Miguel Perez, New Mexico
โข SSG Lucas Scott, South Dakota
โข 1LT Nicholas Trentanelli, New York
โข SGT Matthew Lee, Kentucky
โข 2LT Brendan Sawyer, Michigan
โข SSG Chris Edwards, Ohio
โข SSG Shawn Schomer, Nebraska
โข TSgt Brian McKinnon, Rhode Island
โข SSG Jonathan Kunstmann, Texas
โข CPT Gary Parks, Indiana
โข SSG William Collins, Ohio
โข SSG Nicholas Haggerty, Texas
โข CPT Benjamin Smith, Maryland
โข CPT Travis Kirchner, Nebraska
โข ILT Andrew Sepulveda, Tennessee
โข TSgt Zachary Walker, Rhode Island
โข MAJ Daniel Barrow, Washington
โข MSG Ramon Abreuperez, Virginia
โข CPT Jeffrey Hopkinson, Nevada
โข SSG Ian Turner, New York
โข 2LT Daniel Wolf, Florida
โข SSG Erich Friedlein, Pennsylvania
โข SFC Travis Muhlnickel, New York
โข COL Brian Coleman, Oklahoma
Team Members-Female
โข SGT Alysha Moser, North Dakota
โข SSG Margeruite Zaepfel, Wisconsin
โข 2LT Crysta Halgrimson, North Dakota
โข CPT Hannah Manson, Oklahoma
โข MAJ Amanda Schmid, Nebraska
โข SGM Shelley Horner, Texas
โข SSG Jessica Bloom, Florida
โข CPT Victoria Dibacco, Ohio
โข CPT Lauren Meyer, Ohio
โข SGT Katherine Roskoff, New York
โข SGT Erin Jacobson, Washington
โข CPT Alexandra Zacks, Michigan
โข SPC Yesenia Ortiz, Puerto Rico
โข LTC Tracy Graves, South Dakota
โข SGT Erika Munoz, New Mexico
โข SSG Yoraidyl Covey, Arizona
Masters (50 and older)-Male
โข MSG Daniel Martin, Arkansas
โข MAJ Jeffrey Kragh, Oklahoma
โข SFC Kenny Culbertson, South Carolina
Masters (50 and older)-Female
โข LTC Deborah Fisher, Pennsylvania
โข MAJ Miki Matsuo, New Mexico
AUSTIN, Texas โ National Guard Soldiers and Airmen put their endurance and strength to the test during the National Guardโs All Guard Endurance Team competition in Austin Jan. 15.
The 120 Guard members, coming from 35 states and territories, competed for male and female slots on the team.
California Army National Guard members took top honors in both the menโs and womenโs competitions.
Maj. Robert Killian, a Special Forces Soldier who has won the Armyโs Best Ranger competition twice and Spartan World Championship obstacle race, finished first in the menโs category.
Maj. Samantha Wood, an ultramarathoner and physical therapist assigned to Californiaโs Joint Force Headquarters, finished first among the women.
The All Guard Endurance Team began as a way to expand the National Guard Marathon Program, which promotes the Army and Air National Guard and improves retention through physical fitness, self-discipline and esprit de corps.
Guard members competed on 10 exercise machines after running 500 meters, the equivalent of a 5K run, indoors at the Austin Convention Center.
The system is known as DEKAFIT, from the Greek word for 10. Each machine tests endurance and strength in different ways.
โReally, what this competition showed me regardless of your fitness level โฆ youโre competing against yourself. โฆ Youโre showing excellence and going above and beyond,โ said Brig. Gen. Michael Oster, the assistant adjutant general for the South Dakota National Guardโs Joint Force Headquarters.
Oster, who was the keynote speaker at the awards ceremony, said the competitionโ makes you feel good about who you are and it makes you feel good about what you do.โ
โYou get camaraderie and teamwork in this while participating,โ he added.
The competitors ranged from elite athletes to first-time participants.
Most of the competitors have been training for the new Army Combat Fitness Test, which emphasizes agility and strength. This competition provided new challenges with obstacles and more running.
The 10 โzonesโ of the competition were:
โข RAM Alt Reverse Lunge
โข 500M Row
โข 24โ Box Jump / Step Overs
โข Med Ball Sit-Up
โข 500M Ski Erg
โข 100M Farmerโs Carry
โข 25 kcal Air Bike
โข Dead/Slam Ball Shoulder Over
โข 100M Tank Push/Pull
โข RAM Burpees
The eventโs overall intent is to demonstrate a favorable opinion of physical fitness and promote holistic health and wellness across the National Guard force, according to Sgt. 1st Class Douglas Stephens, the National Guardโs military competitions coordinator.
The winners and the top three men and women in the masters (over 50) will represent the All Guard Team for the next two years.
Typically, the team will hold six events per year to spread the message of the National Guard and enhance recruiting.
โIt opens up the door to talk to people at every venue,โ Stephens said. โWe have so many cool stories on the team. We have a guy that was in a car wreck and was told he would never walk again, and now heโs running marathons. So he gets to tell that story at every race, and it encourages people to join.โ
Oster said the competition was all about excellence.
โEverybody I talked to today wanted to run a better time than they ran the last time or the last workout they did before they came here,โ Oster said.
2021 All Guard Endurance Team:
Top overall
Male- MAJ Robert Killian, California
Female- MAJ Samantha Wood, California
Team Award (Top three times from each state gender-mixed)
1st Place California
2nd Place Michigan
3rd Place Ohio
Team Members-Male
โข SGT Derek Yorek, Arkansas
โข 2LT Joshua Collins, Utah
โข CPT Paul Fitzpatrick, Michigan
โข SGT Bailey Ruff, South Dakota
โข SSG James Ross, Wisconsin
โข SGT James Potteiger, Virginia
โข SSG Jerrod Abel, Ohio
โข MSgt Jarred Surprenant, Rhode Island
โข 1LT Jesse Mascoe, Kentucky
โข CW2 Andrew Cato, South Carolina
โข CPT Valentine Roberts, Hawaii
โข CPT Ethan McIntosh, Texas
โข CPT Austin Tenelshof, Michigan
โข SFC Paul Hoffman, South Dakota
โข SSG Anibal Soto, Puerto Rico
โข MAJ Nick Whaley, New York
โข CPT Joel Engle, South Dakota
โข MAJ Andrew Miller, New York
โข TSgt Brandon Eckel, Tennessee
โข 1LT Justin Lowe, Arkansas
โข MAJ Miguel Perez, New Mexico
โข SSG Lucas Scott, South Dakota
โข 1LT Nicholas Trentanelli, New York
โข SGT Matthew Lee, Kentucky
โข 2LT Brendan Sawyer, Michigan
โข SSG Chris Edwards, Ohio
โข SSG Shawn Schomer, Nebraska
โข TSgt Brian McKinnon, Rhode Island
โข SSG Jonathan Kunstmann, Texas
โข CPT Gary Parks, Indiana
โข SSG William Collins, Ohio
โข SSG Nicholas Haggerty, Texas
โข CPT Benjamin Smith, Maryland
โข CPT Travis Kirchner, Nebraska
โข ILT Andrew Sepulveda, Tennessee
โข TSgt Zachary Walker, Rhode Island
โข MAJ Daniel Barrow, Washington
โข MSG Ramon Abreuperez, Virginia
โข CPT Jeffrey Hopkinson, Nevada
โข SSG Ian Turner, New York
โข 2LT Daniel Wolf, Florida
โข SSG Erich Friedlein, Pennsylvania
โข SFC Travis Muhlnickel, New York
โข COL Brian Coleman, Oklahoma
Team Members-Female
โข SGT Alysha Moser, North Dakota
โข SSG Margeruite Zaepfel, Wisconsin
โข 2LT Crysta Halgrimson, North Dakota
โข CPT Hannah Manson, Oklahoma
โข MAJ Amanda Schmid, Nebraska
โข SGM Shelley Horner, Texas
โข SSG Jessica Bloom, Florida
โข CPT Victoria Dibacco, Ohio
โข CPT Lauren Meyer, Ohio
โข SGT Katherine Roskoff, New York
โข SGT Erin Jacobson, Washington
โข CPT Alexandra Zacks, Michigan
โข SPC Yesenia Ortiz, Puerto Rico
โข LTC Tracy Graves, South Dakota
โข SGT Erika Munoz, New Mexico
โข SSG Yoraidyl Covey, Arizona
Masters (50 and older)-Male
โข MSG Daniel Martin, Arkansas
โข MAJ Jeffrey Kragh, Oklahoma
โข SFC Kenny Culbertson, South Carolina
Masters (50 and older)-Female
โข LTC Deborah Fisher, Pennsylvania
โข MAJ Miki Matsuo, New Mexico
