Fort Bragg team triumphs in Best Sapper Competition

By Guidon staffApril 28, 2016

Fort Bragg team triumphs in Best Sapper Competition
1 / 5 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Capt. Jason Bahmer and Sgt. 1st Class David Rizo hoist the 2016 Best Sapper Trophy they earned by placing first in the Fort Leonard Wood Best Sapper Competition held April 19 to 21. Bahmer and Rizo, assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg,... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Fort Bragg team triumphs in Best Sapper Competition
2 / 5 Show Caption + Hide Caption – (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Fort Bragg team triumphs in Best Sapper Competition
3 / 5 Show Caption + Hide Caption – First Lt. Edward Colon and 2nd Lt. Leah Mullenix, representing 326th Brigade Engineer Battalion, Fort Campbell, Ken., consult their notes, before taking on the next task during the Sapper Stakes portion of the competition. Team 23 ended the competiti... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Fort Bragg team triumphs in Best Sapper Competition
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Fort Bragg team triumphs in Best Sapper Competition
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Hailing from Fort Bragg, North Carolina, Capt. Jason Bahmer and Sgt. 1st Class David Rizo, Team 5, proved victorious in Fort Leonard Wood's 10th Best Sapper Competition.

Bahmer and Rizo, assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division, brought their A-game to defeat the other 47 two-person teams, who covered more than 50 miles in 50 hours as a part of the BSC events, which tested their physical and mental prowess.

"This is my second time competing; last year was my first," Bahmer said. "We're just happy that we could compete. We're glad to represent the 82nd Airborne Division and do so well."

According to Rizo, he and Bahmer did a lot to prepare for the competition, which helped to reassure them about competing.

"I was ecstatic; we put a lot into this for the train up at our home station down in Fort Bragg, so we were confident going into a lot of the events," Rizo said. "When the standings were announced it was definitely a surprise overall."

Coming from as far as Europe and as close as Missouri, the 48 teams vied to be named the Army's best Sapper team, but only one would carry the trophy.

"It was also awesome to see basically the best of our regiment throughout the Army; whether it was CONUS (contiguous United States) or OCONUS (outside the contiguous United States), we had guys from Hawaii and Italy fly in to compete in this event," Rizo said. "They truly were the epitome of an engineer; it was great to compete against them and see where we (stood) against the best."

Placing second and third, respectively, were Team 13, Capts. William Whitfield and Michael McLaughlin, 3rd Engineer Battalion, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division of Fort Hood, Texas, and Team 17, Sgt. 1st Class Timothy Shay and 1st Sgt. Jose Casillas, 82nd Airborne Division, Fort Bragg.

Related Links:

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Maneuver Support Center of Excellence and Fort Leonard Wood