FORT MCCOY, Wis. -- Thirteen junior enlisted Soldiers from the 412th Theater Engineer Command entered the board room, one by one, but only one could move on to the next level.
That Soldier is Army Reserve Spc. Gregory Doty, an allied trade specialist and machinist with 854th Engineer Battalion, 411th Engineer Brigade, who competed against his peers at the 412th and 416th TECs' Combined Best Warrior Competition at Fort McCoy, April 28 to May 1.
The newly-promoted specialist and Lake Peekskill, New York, native has only been in the Army just shy of two years, but that didn't hinder him from winning the competition in the 412th junior-enlisted category and taking the title of 412th Best Warrior on to the U.S. Army Reserve Competition in June.
Doty began the competition at his company level contest and moved on to represent his battalion, besting 23 other Soldiers with ease.
"Initially, at my company, I had the highest (physical fitness) score, I think top three in my battalion, so they sent me to the battalion Best Warrior Competition," said Doty. "I kind of blew it out of the water."
It was that kind of confidence that carried him onward.
Doty was grateful to move on to the next level, but he thinks it's because he is just good at Soldier skills.
"It's a huge honor (to be at the TEC level). I've only been in the Army two years. Before the Army, I would never have expected I'd be this good at everything we do," he said.
"I was always a strong runner in high school, and I got good grades and I was good at studying, but once I joined the Army, I figured out I was in a top-tier position. And that kind of just came out of nowhere. So, I'm extremely honored to have that gift, that I'm just a competitive enough person to be doing these kinds of things."
After arriving at Fort McCoy for the TEC level competition, Doty said he finally felt he was competing more at his level.
"When I was at battalion, it wasn't the same competition it is here," said Doty. "These are all really top of their class Soldiers. The NCOs here are the best in their units and the Soldiers are way above their years. So, it's really great to put yourself against those people. There's that saying, 'If you're the smartest person in the room, you're in the wrong room,' so that's kind of what I feel like here. It's a great way to motivate you and make yourself better by being around people like this."
Doty's confidence lets you know that he has found the "right room" for him, and has established that his competitive nature has pushed him further than he thought he would go.
"I've pushed myself, in the ruck march especially, I pushed myself to a point that I didn't think I could push myself to: an hour and 18 minutes," said Doty about the six-mile event.
"I'm a skinny guy so putting that ruck sack on and those plates and that rifle and running with it in an hour and 18 minutes … is kind of mind-blowing now that I think back on it, especially the fact that I had those blisters from land navigation the night before," he said. "And it's all because there were guys I wanted to catch up to. I'm a competitive person; I wanted to pass them. If I'd done it by myself it probably would have been three hours at the least."
Doty said his urge to compete has always been a driving force in making him better and that he is inspired to do better by his fellow competitors.
"Competition is really what drives me all the time. Even back in the day when I used to run track, if I ran by myself I just don't have the motivation. I'll run like a three-minute half mile, but when I'm running against people who are on the same heat as me, I'll be running a two minute," said Doty. "It's something I could never do by myself."
While the competition is a great motivating factor for him, Doty also just enjoys what the Army does, even when it sucks.
"Personally I love this stuff, ruck marches and shooting," he said. "I've never shot a pistol before so that was fantastic. I'm really good at it apparently. Ruck marches, land navigation, those are things I do for fun. So this was just a great chance to do everything that I love, I had a blast here. It was tough, the rain, the blisters. I got my first blister, never got one before. But I had a lot of fun with it."
While Doty has found he is an ace at Soldier skills and enjoys events like those of the Best Warrior Competition, he knew years ago the military was his calling. He made the decision to join the military on Sept. 11, 2001, at the age of 9. It took a few more years for his parents to convince him to take the path to become an officer rather than enlisted Solider.
"I've wanted to be an officer since I was about 12 years old. When I was really young I kept bugging my dad and my mom, 'I want to go military, I want to go Army or Marines.' They said, 'you can do that, but we have a college fund for you so we want you to go to college. We would rather you be an officer.' So, my parents kind of talked me into it," he said.
Doty is currently in the Army Reserve Officers' Training Corps at Fordham University in New York City as part of Bravo Company, Ram Battalion. He expects to gain a commission in two years as an active duty engineer officer. He saw this competition as a final chance to compete as an enlisted Soldier.
"I want to get as far as I can in this, because it's really my last chance to do anything fun as an enlisted (Soldier)," he said. "Being enlisted is great; I'm kind of going to miss it."
Doty is going to push himself even further because he won the 412th and 416th TECs' CBWC in the 412th junior enlisted category. The competition was close and he won with only a three-point lead. That lead earned him a spot to compete at the U.S. Army Reserve Command's Best Warrior Competition in June against the best in the Army Reserve.
If his confidence and rivalry can help propel him past that milestone, he may find himself amongst the Department of the Army's best and completely in "the right room."
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412th Theater Engineer Command NEWS & INFORMATION
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