Officers with 11th ADA Brigade compete in Army Ten-Miler

Officers with 11th ADA Brigade compete in Army Ten-Miler

Story by Staff Sgt. Norman Llamas, 11th Air Defense Artillery Brigade Public Affairs

FORT BLISS, Texas -- Upon hearing the title ?"Army Ten-Miler," most people may say, ?"that sounds long and painful," because running isn?'t something everybody enjoys doing. Then you have people like Lt. Col. David E. Shank, Commander, 1st Battalion, 43rd Air Defense Artillery Regiment and Capt. Rita C. Rosales, Commander, A Battery, 2nd Battalion, 43rd ADA Regiment who love to run, and that title to them means a chance to test themselves against other runners.

?"The Army Ten-Miler is the third largest ten mile race in the country," said Shank. ?"It?'s a great opportunity for Soldiers to compete not just individually, but also as a team. Over thirty thousand participants both national and international participated in the annual event. It?'s all about bragging rights. The race is held in Washington D.C. and this year, it was held on October 21."

?"There were two teams from Fort Bliss that competed in the Army Ten-Miler, the men?'s active duty team and the women?'s active duty team, both in the Commanders?' Cup category," said Rosales. ?"This year, the active duty women?'s team earned 3rd place out of 19 teams represented in the Commander?'s cup category."

Shank was part of the Fort Bliss Masters Team. The masters?' team is for runners over the age of 40.

?"I ran a little slower than I expected," said Shank. ?"Although, I am very pleased with my performance and with being able to help Team Bliss Masters win 2nd Place, over all."

Both Shank and Rosales feel they are above average runners and both of them had their own reasons for participating.

?"I felt I could help Team Bliss bring home the win. The camaraderie amongst the competitors and also being able to represent Fort Bliss, those were my main reasons for competing in the event," said Shank.

?"I?'m a competitive person and it was somewhat of a frustrated goal I had to fulfill because last year I was unable to participate due to a deployment," said Rosales. ?"While deployed, I trained hard and after redeploying, I made it a point to qualify again and be able to compete in D.C. this year, which happens to be my last year at Fort Bliss."

Rosales was Team Bliss?' Women?'s team captain for the 2012 competition.

?"I feel truly lucky and honored to have been selected to lead the Fort Bliss Women to D.C. this year," said Rosales. ?"This was truly the best part of having been allowed to represent Fort Bliss." ?"This team is comprised of some of the most capable, confident, enthusiastic, strong, intelligent, and positive women Soldiers with Fort Bliss."

?"I did well," said Rosales. ?"I placed 4th in our team with a time of 70:12 minutes." ?"My goal was to break 68 minutes this year; however, I fell a bit short of my mark." ?"Far from being disappointing, it serves as a motivation to continue to train hard so I can do better next year."

Training for the event was for the most part, very different for both Shank and Rosales.

?"I run year-round," said Shank. ?"Prior to the tryouts in May, I focused solely on the ten mile distance running for four to six weeks prior to the event." ?"Due to an upcoming deployment, I was unable to train as consistently as I would normally do, but overall, I did okay."

?"I am fully confident that I trained to the best of my ability and with the constraints and limitations at hand," said Rosales. ?"I had to juggle being in command, volunteer work that I am committed to and also the Ten-Miler team." ?"I had a debilitating foot injury from a trail race earlier in the year that prevented me from being able to train until a month prior to the May tryouts."

Shank and Rosales both said that if you enjoy running, you must try out for the Army Ten-Miler.

?"It?'s a great experience, competing with the Army?'s best and with thousands of other runners," said Shank.

?"I support and participate in most races on post and in the community," said Rosales. ?"I am constantly recruiting runners to try out for the team." ?"Running to represent Fort Bliss and being part of such an amazing team are opportunities that will leave an indelible mark in my Army career." ?"I encourage anyone interested in participating to do so; it has been one of the best experiences in my Army career second only to having the privilege to command U.S. Soldiers."

?"This was a great year," said Shank. ?"We sent three teams to compete and we brought back two trophies; 2nd over all for the Men?'s Masters and 3rd place for the Women?'s Active Duty open category." ?"The Masters Team would not have been possible without the generous donation from (Retired) Command Sgt. Maj. Tony Wyno and his company, ?'Warfighting Solutions.?'"

The mission of the Army Ten-Miler is to promote the Army, build esprit de corps, support fitness goals and enhance community relations. The Army Ten-Miler is produced by the U.S. Army District of Washington (MDW) located at Fort Lesley J. McNair. Proceeds from the race go to the Army Morale, Welfare and Recreation, a comprehensive network of support and leisure services designed to enhance the lives of soldiers and their families, according to www.armytenmiler.com.