Back To Bataan 2016

[1369]

Allow me to tell a small story about a man. I rucked a fair bit of the 26.2 miles with Ian. A double amputee. His one question was whether any other amputees were trailing him. When he found out he wasn't dead last a smile crossed his face and he said "When I'm done we go back. No one finishes alone on my watch.".

It's not about you.

[Stoof]

Back To Bataan 2016

Not only are your GIF's and your commitment inspirational but you've gotten me back running trails again. Keep up the good work.
And you've been slacking on the GIF's.

[1369]

Not only are your GIF's and your commitment inspirational but you've gotten me back running trails again. Keep up the good work.
And you've been slacking on the GIF's.

Sorry about that. Both things.

Got back home a couple of hours ago, threw my nasty stinky Bataan gear in the wash and had a hot epsom soak bath for myself. Transferring data from my Garmin now and will have some more pics up hopefully tomorrow

To say that this event is inspiring does not do it justice.

Grab a ruck, some weight, and meet me in White Sands next year Stoof. It's not something you will soon forget.

This is the elevation profile of what we did yesterday. The vast majority through shifting, ankle deep sand. Well, except for the part where I evidently went way sideways.



Click here for (hopefully) the full data dump.

[Stoof]

That's really not to bad of an elevation gain over that distance. I went for a trail run on the OSHA in Cloudcroft and just about lost my lungs. But that was at over 8000'.
I'm gonna put this ruck on my list of to do's. I've got a good friend who lives in Alamogordo who has done it the last couple of years with his son. If I make it out will you sign my hula hoop?

[Neano]

Good stuff! Congrats to you and your team. I did it about 6 years while in ROTC at Texas State. It's a butt kicker for sure. Hopefully my brother and I will be out there doing it this next year.

[1369]

So, here it is. All of it. The good, the bad, and the ugly (The following pics will confirm that).

Like I said before, this was about an hour and a half longer than I wanted. But, with such a large group to tend to, and 3/4 of them being rookies on this course, it was bound to happen. We lost a ton of time from miles 1-8 because of the long lines at the port-a-cans, and just having folks who weren't as fast as the others due to the deep sand on much of the terrain. That being said, this event isn't about who can have the fastest time. It's about honoring the sacrifices of those who were surrendered at Bataan and the hellish march into captivity they endured.

13 started.

13 finished.

No significant injuries.

I hope we did their memories proud that day.

[stayfit]

Well done 1369! 13 is a big herd - did you all finish together? That's tough to match pace.
You all did the vets proud. It's the best marathon ever!

[Chew]

Great job guys. Something to be proud of for sure.

[ArcheryAddict]

Well done. Great showing of respect.

On a side note, I had seen that Kinessa Johnson (the poacher hunter that was in Africa) was in it as well.

[1369]

Well done 1369! 13 is a big herd - did you all finish together? That's tough to match pace.
You all did the vets proud. It's the best marathon ever!

Funny thing about that. When I was having to cat herd around the ports cans, I had two rabbits on my team that I told to go on as I knew they were itching to step it out. I felt fine letting them go on since they were together and if one went down, the other would be there to help.

Fast forward to the finish. I see these two by the chute and the group all goes across. I just figured they finished ahead of us, chilled out at the tent with my wife (who was our "den mother" for all of this) and then came back to cross the line together when they saw us.

But they didn't.

Those two (I still don't know whether to yell at them or hug them) got to mile 26. One went right up to the line to check the time (but didn't cross) and went back to look to see where we were. Even to the point of going BACK up the course two miles.

They waited for TWO FREAKING HOURS for the rest of the team so that we all could make the finish line together. The true embodiment of the spirit of the March.

I'm still stunned by that.

[Dave]

Good stuff, well done.

[quarterback]

We've been waiting for this. Congratulations to you and all your team members on successfully completing the march. What an accomplishment! You Sir are an inspiration to all of us who know we need to get out there and set our sights on something significant like what you just did. Thanks for letting us tag along. Makes me proud to be an American when I see stuff like this. Wow!

[1369]

Thanks for the kind words.

Best part (for me) was watching the folks I trained finish and having their faces light up when they realize what they had done. That moment when someone finally "gets it" that they are a lot stronger than they thought they were.

[1369]

Got this today, a 60 Minutes piece about Bataan survivor Colonel Skardon who every year shows up at White Sands and marches an 8.5 mile route.

Why we go, and remember