A Cadet carrying a 35-pound pack checks his phone as he nears the half-way mark during the Bataan Memorial Death March in White Sands, N.M., Sunday. Photo by Terry Mann
For a photo gallery of the event, click here.
By Terry Mann
U.S. Army Cadet Command
WHITE SANDS, N.M. — Nearly 70 years have passed since the brutal Bataan Death March. Time has claimed the lives of many of the survivors of the forced march of United States and allied prisoners of war in the Philippines during World War II.
During the 21st Bataan Memorial Death March competition held Sunday, nearly 5,700 people marched to remember and honor the survivors of the actual march. Among the participants were Army ROTC Cadets from more than 30 campuses that competed in the living-history event staged in the expansive White Sands Missile Range.
The Cadets were greeted by an unusually cold morning as they assembled for the start of the competition. With temperatures hovering a few degrees above freezing, many stood shivering to ward off the chill as they were dressed for a long, hot day running, marching or walking. The day and the Cadets warmed up as the miles wore on.
The day before the race featured a historical symposium, movies and discussion groups led by some of the remaining Bataan survivors, where they shared their experiences during the war and as POWs.
Before the 26.2-mile marathon the veterans, now in their late 80s and early 90s, greeted participants at the starting line. They remained throughout the day and congratulated the competitors at the finish and during an awards ceremony.
“It’s a powerful thing meeting the survivors. It adds an element of pride in doing this,” said Cadet Ryan Ball, a senior at the University of Missouri. He carried the dog tags of his wife’s grandfather, Edward C. Greer, a Bataan Death March survivor, during the competition.
“This is a lifetime event for a military guy to compete in at least once,” Ball said.
The memorial competition featured civilian and military team divisions and individual categories. The Colorado State University Ram Battalion won the ROTC heavy competition with a time of 5 hour, 45 minutes, 20 seconds. The University of Texas-El Paso Fighting Miners Battalion took the ROTC light division in 5:04:57.
Bataan Death March survivor Tony Reyna, 95, looks at a coin presented by White Sands Missile Range Commander Brig. Gen. John S. Regan. Reyna spent three and a half years as a POW after the Bataan Death March in 1942. He attended the 21st Annual Bataan Memorial Death March held Sunday at WSMR, New Mexico. Photo by Terry Mann.
Participants walked, ran and jogged on a dusty, rocky trail, snaking through the desert unfolding before the Organ Mountain range of New Mexico. The military division featured individual, light and heavy categories. The heavy division required a rucksack weighing at least 35 pounds. Competitors in the military divisions had to forgo high-tech footgear and sportswear designed for comfort and rough terrain. They had to wear combat boots and ACU field uniforms.
“Winning the ROTC light division was really special. This same group also won the Ranger Challenge last year,” UTEP Cadet Xavier Lombardo said.
For motivation and focus during the race, Lombardo wrote “World War II” on his boots.
“Being able to meet and talk to the veterans was the best part of this,” he said.
“It was incredibly humbling meeting the Bataan veterans before the race…on mile 23 when you’re tired and sore and want to quit, you think of them and what they went through …you shook their hand at the start of the race … finishing is a way of honoring and respecting them,” CSU Cadet Nathan Seitz said.
A unique training regime developed by team captain Scott Geers propelled the Ram Battalion to first.
“We did 16- and 25-mile marches with 50-pound rucks,” Seitz said. “We also did eight-mile marches with the rucks while carrying water jugs.”
In addition to the military competitors, many wounded warriors completed the march along with teams from across the nation representing law enforcement, fire departments, corporations, charities, marathon running groups and other civilian organizations. The event had international flavor, with some participants traveling from Brazil, Germany, Canada, Britain and Australia.
One ROTC battalion drove 26 hours through the night – alternating designated drivers. After completing the marathon, the Cadets from St. Cloud State University and the College of St. Benedict and St. John’s University located in Collegeville, Minn., began their 26-hour trip home in hopes of being at class on Tuesday morning.
“We hope we can continue participating in this event, though funding is a challenge,” said Cadet Adam Larson of St. John’s “Fighting Saints” Battalion. “This is the best extra-curricular event we do.”
Cadets James Moore (left) and Benjamin Zakariasen, from Maranatha Baptist Bible College, a partner school of the University of Wisconsin-Madison "Badger Batalion," strike a pose as they reach the first checkpoint of the 21st Annual Bataan Memorial Death March in White Sands, N.M., Sunday. The team finished 14th in the heavy division. Photo by Terry Mann
With snow-capped ranges looming in the distance, the competitors challenged themselves to travel 26.2 miles, slightly less than half the actual distance of the forced march in 1942, to replicate the experience endured by the “Battling Bastards of Bataan.” During the Bataan Death March, there was little to no food, only days of forced marches under brutal conditions and a constant fear of death.
“This was a lot harder than Airborne School where you only have to conquer your fears,” said Cadet Cheyanne Walsh from the Cowboy Battalion at the University of Wyoming. “Here, you have to conquer your mind and your body. It really hurts around 22 miles, but you have to just get through it. The last four miles are the hardest.”
Walsh competed as an individual and placed seventh overall in the female military category. She finished fourth in her age group for 20 to 29-year-olds in the female individual category.
“I hit the same wall last year right around the 20-mile point,” said Cadet Dustin Wambach, team captain for the Wyoming light division team. “Your legs and knees hurt, but you have to drive on. I’m proud of the entire team’s performance.”
In 2008, he won the 19 and under ROTC military heavy individual category and last year, he was a member of the Wyoming ROTC heavy team taking first place.
Like many Cadets competing, Wambach views the Bataan Memorial Death March as more than a competition. It means of paying tribute and respect to veterans who endured a horrific ordeal and survived. It also builds esprit de corps.
“Listening to the Bataan survivors, that’s what this is all about,” he said. “Hearing living-history is hugely important.”
By symbolically trudging in the footsteps of those who came before them, the Cadets hoped to keep the spirit of Bataan veterans alive.
“It’s an honorable thing to pay respect to the memory of the Bataan veterans and survivors,” said University of Missouri Cadet Alexander Jenkins said. He also carried the memory of his grandfather, an Army veteran who recently passed away, with him during the race.
Mizzou Tiger Battalion Cadets Clark Maynard and Andrew Lang finished first and second, respectively, in the 19 and younger category. They finished 39th and 40th overall, while Ball finished 41st. Jenkins finished 60th overall.
The course took its toll on even the most experienced marathoners and physically fit military competitors. The rocky trail wound up and down foothills and steep slopes, which led to a dried river bed.
The river bed was the course trail for most of the last five miles of the course. The sandy bottom proved challenging for tired and sore competitors to negotiate.
“The last five miles were horrible,” Seitz said. “It was like walking through hell with a rucksack. Every step was like walking through water with rock feet. Your feet sunk into the sand and the added weight of the ruck made it worse.”
After completing the marathon, the CSU team rode on a bus through the night to be at classes Monday morning. On Thursday evening, the battalion headed to the plains of Wyoming for a three-day field training exercise.
“It’s inspirational seeing Cadets out here enduring this course. It gives hope for the future generations to remember Bataan,” said Lt. Col. Andrew Taylor, professor of military science at New Mexico State University.
As a Cadet in 1989 at New Mexico State University, he participated in the inaugural Bataan Memorial Death March. The NMSU ROTC founded the event in 1989. Twenty-one years later, he led his Cadets through the course.
For a complete list of finishing times, visit http://www.arizonarunningeventsco.com/BataanTeams2010.htm
My son Alex Jenkins (mentioned in this article) participated in this march. I am so proud of him. It was extra hard for him because two or three years ago he had major knee surgery (he had torn his acl, mcl and meniscus) but his knee is better than ever. However, it was hard on him for another reason. He much loved grandpa who was also one of his closest friends (my dad) passed away a month before this event happened. It says he was an Army veteran but he retired from the Marine Corp. Even though he wasn’t in WW2, he was in Vietnam and the Cuban Missile Crisis. He was a fighter up to the very end. He died of cancer on Feb. 20, 2010. Alex was devistated. We are so proud of Alex for doing this in gpa’s honor.