FORT BENNING, Ga., (April 13, 2016) -- Get your team T-shirts and cheering voice ready - the 33rd annual Best Ranger Competition is almost here.
The competition kicks off April 15, and Family and friends are encouraged to come out and cheer on their favorite Soldiers as they compete in two-man teams for the title of Best Ranger.
The 2016 Best Ranger Competition will showcase 100 Ranger-qualified Soldiers ranging from specialist to captain, including a first sergeant from U.S. Army Alaska and one from Fort Jackson, South Carolina.
"The Best Ranger Competition highlights the top Rangers across the U.S. military. That's including anyone with a Ranger tab, whether it be Navy, Marines, Army or National Guard," said Sgt. 1st Class Ronald Salley, public affairs NCO for the Airborne and Ranger Training Brigade.
Although the competition is open to all the services, this year's competitors are from the Army only. The competition consists of round-the-clock events over the course of 60 hours, demanding each competitor be a decathlon-caliber athlete, according to www.bestrangercompetition.com. Events from previous years include everything from a combat water survival assessment, stress shoot, a writing test covering the Ranger handbook and an unknown distance swim.
"They will get minimum sleep. It also takes maximum effort to just finish the race so this is basically the ultimate endurance race that only the Army puts on for the top Rangers," said Salley.
The teams competing must be prepared for the unexpected. The events are posted just before the competition begins. While some of the events may be similar to previous years, each year the events are changed in effort not to give any one team the edge, said Salley.
The 2016 Best Ranger Competition officially starts at 6 a.m. April 15 at Camp Rogers on Harmony Church and will conclude 10 a.m. April 18 with an awards ceremony on Main Post in McGinnis-Wickam Hall's Marshall Auditorium.
The competition is open to the public. Gates on Benning Road, I-185 and Harmony Church will have a Best Ranger lane where the spectators can get their passes for the weekend event. Everyone in the vehicle over 18 years old will need to present a valid ID. The Best Ranger lane will be available during peak competitor hours. Visitors outside these hours will need to go to the I-185 visitor center for a pass.
"All the events are great. They are all worth coming and seeing," said Salley, who also encourages spectators to visit www.bestrangercompetition.com for schedule information and to check back as the competition gets closer for official events and locations. Additionally, Airborne and Ranger Training Brigade will post updates, information, and scores throughout the competition on its Facebook page, which can be found by searching Airborne and Ranger Training Brigade.
Also, Family and friends of the competitors are encouraged to tweet updates during the competition using #2016BestRanger and follow @FortBenning on Twitter.
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