FORT INDIANTOWN GAP, Pa. –
Virginia Army National Guard Soldiers assigned to the Rocky Mount-based 229th Chemical Company, 1030th Transportation Battalion, 329th Regional Support Group and the Lynchburg-based Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 116th Infantry Regiment, 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team made a strong showing at the Region II Best Warrior Competition May 5 - 9, 2025, at Fort Indiantown Gap, Pennsylvania.
Spc. Nicholas Warren and Staff Sgt. Ivo Garner, the VaARNG Soldier and NCO of the Year, both placed second in their respective categories, competing against other Soldiers and NCOs from the region, including Washington, Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.
Pennsylvania’s Spc. Robert Ruiz-Rhoades and Maryland’s Sgt. Miles Crawford took first place as the Region II Soldier and NCO of the Year and advance to the national-level competition. Warren and Garner will serve as their alternates.
“I feel very proud being able to represent my state well,” said Warren. “Virginia has a history of doing well at these competitions and I'm very honored to continue that legacy.”
“I left it all out there,” said Garner. From my experience at the state competition, I knew I couldn’t be sure I’d win any technical events due to factors I can’t always control, like weapons qualification, land nav or the medical event, so I had to give it everything I had on the physical stuff. Overall, I’m happy with my performance and I feel like I made my leadership and the State of Virginia proud.”
The two VNG competitors more than held their own, only finishing a few points behind the winners, with much larger gaps between them and third place.
The four-day competition pushed the Soldiers’ limits of strength, speed, endurance and knowledge. Events included a Ranger Physical Assessment, a kayak-foot race event, marksmanship and land navigation. The group also conducted a ruck march, written exam and a medical simulation event.
Some of the events were held either very late or very early in the day, adding more difficulty to already-tough events.
“The hardest part of the competition was the very early mornings and late nights specifically for the unknown distance ruck,” said Warren. “The lack of sleep definitely made each event much harder and took a lot more effort.”
That “unknown distance” ruck turned out to be 17 miles, and immediately proceeded one of the competition’s toughest events.
“The hardest event for me was the mystery event,” said Garner. “It started with an open-water swim across a lake, then we got out and ran about half a mile, mostly uphill, to a station where we were tested on the M249 squad automatic weapon. From there, we loaded a casualty into a litter and dragged the litter up a 200-meter hill, then immediately ran to another station where we assembled a radio and called up a nine-line medical evacuation.”
“My favorite event was traditional marksmanship it was a nice break after the prior very physically demanding events, and being able to use a bunch of weapons that you usually don't get to use was super cool,” added Warren.
In March, Warren and Garner won the VaARNG’s Best Warrior Competition after four days of intense challenges, earning the chance to compete at the regional event.
Now, preparations are already under way to plan for next year’s VaARNG Best Warrior Competition. Command Sgt. Maj. Timothy Hawley, the VaARNG command sergeant major, said any Soldier considering competing should pursue the opportunity through their chain of command.
“Do it, you’ll challenge yourself, you’ll do cool things like shoot AT4s and ride on helicopters,” said Hawley. “There’s promotion opportunities because of this. There’s a whole bunch of good things that come out of it if you just try and push yourself. You’ll also take some of these skills you’ve learned and go back to your unit and be that much more proficient in your job as a Soldier.”
Garner and Warren also offered advice to anyone considering competing.
“Prepare for the things you know you’ll be tested on at every competition; general fitness, rucking, swimming, land nav and the appearance board,” Garner said. “If you can perform at all of those things you will likely succeed.”
“When preparing for the competition, don't only focus on being physically prepared,” added Warren. “Studying for the board and being knowledgeable on things like first aid and land nav are very important.”
More photos from the Regional competition: https://vngpao.info/mr3cm3fj
Photos from the VaARNG competition: https://vngpao.info/ycyd5rsz