CAMP DAWSON, W.Va. –
Rain, mud, exhaustion and unrelenting Appalachian terrain challenged Soldiers as they vied for the titles of Best Soldier and Best Noncommissioned Officer during the Region II Best Warrior Competition May 4-7, 2026, at Camp Dawson near Kingwood, West Virginia. Representing the Virginia Army National Guard were Spc. Javan Cooper, an infantryman assigned to the 116th Mobile Brigade Combat Team, and Staff Sgt. Frederic Newton, a recruiter assigned to the Recruiting and Retention Battalion.
The multi-day event pushed 10 competitors through a relentless cycle of physical, mental and tactical challenges that left little room for rest or error. In total, competitors tackled 29 graded events and covered more than 25 miles on foot across Camp Dawson’s training areas.
“You guys have all learned more about yourself and you’ve probably pushed harder in the last few days than you’ve ever had to push in a two-day period,” said Command Sgt. Maj. James “Dusty” Jones, the senior enlisted advisor to the West Virginia National Guard.
Cooper ultimately earned second place overall, while Newton finished third in the noncommissioned officer category.
On the day of their arrival, competitors eased into the chaos. They drew weapons, secured their equipment and zeroed their rifles before tackling the Norwegian Pistol Qualification, the first graded event of the competition. There, shooters completed one precision-fire and two rapid-fire sessions, all strictly timed. In the end, Cooper was one of just two competitors to earn the Norwegian Military Marksmanship Badge.
The first full day of competition began at 3:30 a.m. under the glow of streetlights. After weighing their rucks to ensure they met the 35-pound minimum, competitors stepped off into the darkness on a route of unknown distance that eventually stretched 12.5 miles across Camp Dawson’s rugged terrain.
The 12.5-mile ruck march remained one of the most memorable challenges for both Newton and Cooper.
“The ruck was pretty awful,” Newton said.
During especially difficult moments, Cooper said he leans on his faith.
“I usually just go to God,” Cooper said about how he pushes through difficult moments during the competition. “That’s just my religious beliefs and it gives me the motivation and the strength to continue on when it sucks.”
With tender feet and little time to recover, Cooper, Newton and the rest of the competitors transitioned directly into a land navigation course, locating points across several kilometers of rugged terrain before moving into a series of emerging technology lanes. Competitors reconnoitered an area, identified small objects in an open field and maneuvered across berm-pocked terrain while aerial drones circled overhead and dropped simulated chalk munitions, forcing constant movement adjustments under pressure.
After a brief recovery period, competitors shifted into a marksmanship challenge, engaging targets at unknown distances as heavy winds tested their stability and precision. Competitors then moved into a multi-station range run that combined weapons, medical and communications tasks before they were hoisted from the training site via UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter.
In the minutes before his extraction, Cooper was struck in the chin by the buttstock of his rifle while throwing a smoke grenade. Undeterred, he remained stoic as medics assessed the resulting gash and, bandaged, he was pulled up onto the aircraft using a jungle penetrator.
“My favorite thing was probably getting pulled up in the jungle extractor,” Cooper said. “That was pretty cool.”
Overnight, competitors established an observation post where they monitored for enemy activity and, with little time for rest, were back on the course early the next morning for a 3 a.m. night land navigation lane. As rain started to fall, the men searched the darkness for their points, battling fatigue from the previous day’s efforts.
As the rain continued, Soldiers set off on a second range run. The course began with a call-for-fire exercise before competitors entered a CS gas chamber, performing physical tasks while masked and unmasked as they pushed through disorientation and irritation.
Emerging from the gas chamber red-eyed and coughing, Newton offered a blunt and unfavorable assessment of the event and said “whoever came up with that” was deeply disturbed.
From there, the course continued as competitors conducted detainee searches, identified improvised explosive devices, responded to a CBRNE event and demonstrated hand-and-arm signals for small-unit formations.
After a brief break, competitors stepped off for a 3-mile run to Volkstone Training Area, where they conducted urban movement techniques, engaged targets with training grenades and crossed the Cheat River before continuing into an obstacle course and stress shoot.
“After being in the river with raw feet and then running around, that was crappy,” Newton said.
Still, he cited the stress shoot as his favorite event of the competition.
“Transitioning guns, shooting pistols and rifles — that’s always good,” he said.
As the second full day of competition settled over Camp Dawson, competitors tackled a swim test followed by a written exam, essay and logic-based problem-solving event conducted under strict time constraints.
Early the next morning, competitors prepared for one final physical challenge — the Combat Fitness Test. Afterwards, exhausted and sore, they cleaned themselves up and appeared before a board of sergeants major, answering questions on military knowledge, leadership and technical proficiency.
Finally, seated together in the front row of the auditorium, the competitors were called to the stage as senior leaders recognized their efforts throughout the competition.
“There’s not a loser in that group,” Jones said in his remarks during the closing ceremony.
While Maryland’s NCO and Pennsylvania’s Soldier claimed the top spots, both Cooper and Newton gained knowledge and experience from the competition.
“I gave it my best,” Cooper said. “I’m proud of the work I put in and put out and, you know, sometimes it just doesn’t go the way you want, but you do your best and that’s all you can do.”