Sweat dripped from the Soldier's brow as he struggled to lift a casualty torn apart by a suicide bomb in a dark market. Gunshots rang out in the distance, but the trooper had to save his wounded buddy.
"You're going to be OK," the Soldier calmly told his fallen comrade as he wrapped the wounds with gauze in hopes of stanching the bleeding.
The life-saving procedures would save his wounded comrade if performed quickly and correctly.
Fortunately, no none actually was injured because this scenario was part of a larger competition to determine the top Soldiers on Fort Jackson.
The 2015 Drill Sergeant/Platoon Sergeant/Non-commissioned officer/Soldier of the Year competition held Monday through Wednesday tested the warrior skills, endurance, knowledge and mental fortitude of Fort Jackson troops during strenuous events held around post.
"It's tough," said Staff Sgt. Chan'nel Torres-Washington, a drill sergeant with Charlie Company, 3rd Battalion, 34th Infantry Regiment. "It's one thing to train it to Soldiers, but it's a different thing when you go through it fatigued.
"A lot goes through your mind" when you are tired; you have to push yourself while relying on your training, she said.
The contestants agreed that being tired was part of the competition.
The competition began with a physical-training test and moved on to different soldiering skills, such as weapons qualification; navigating the confidence course in hot, humid conditions; and conducting both day and night land navigation.
Day two of the competition included a 10-mile ruck march in full combat gear - helmet, body armor and weapon. The day would not end until competitors had been graded on physical-readiness training, warrior tasks and drills, and demonstrating combatives proficiency.
The final day was set aside to test the Soldiers' mental dexterity as they sat through a stressful board in which senior leaders fired off tough questions one after another.
"The 10-mile (ruck march) took a lot out of me," said Spc. Martha McMullen of 1st Battalion, 13th Infantry Regiment as she nervously awaited her turn to evaluate a casualty. McMullen was so tired she lay back on her ruck sack, "resting her legs" before the next event started.
Some competitors found the mental and physical aspects trying, but others such as Staff Sgt. George Rodriquez welcomed the chance to test their strengths.
"It's a challenge," said the drill sergeant with Echo Company, 3rd Battalion, 13th Infantry Regiment. "We do a lot of the physical stuff all the time, so we don't have a really hard time. But it does give you the opportunity to learn things not directly related to your job skills."
Rodriguez is competing for Drill Sergeant of the Year for the first time and set the pace at the confidence course when he scorched the competition with a time of 1 minute, 4 seconds.
McMullen and Torres-Washington also found the competition to be a learning experience.
"It's a reality check," said Torres-Washington. "It's a humbling experience" because it shows where personal strengths and weaknesses lie. She found the physical parts the most difficult, since most of her physical-training goes toward instructing Basic Training Soldiers.
McMullen echoed those sentiments.
"It's a learning experience," she said. "You find you can do things you didn't think you could before you started."
The winners for each category were:
Drill Sergeant of the Year - Staff Sgt. Eric Hulien, Echo Co., 3rd Battalion, 34th Infantry Regiment
Platoon Sergeant of the Year - Sgt. 1st Class Bradley Kelso, Bravo Co., 187th Ordnance Battalion
NCO of the Year - Staff Sgt. David Schrock, Echo Co., 1st Battalion, 61st Infantry Regiment
Soldier of the Year - Spc. Martha McMullen, HQ Co., 1st Battalion, 13th Infantry Regiment
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