The grueling physical, mental and emotional tests of the Reserve Officer Training Corps' Ranger Challenge were no match for the members of Marquette's nine-man team, which recently claimed the overall top prize in the competition for the first time since 2001.
The three-day challenge took place Oct. 14 to 16 in Fort McCoy, Wis., and consisted of nine events, each hosted by a different school from the competing region. Twelve teams competed in Marquette's division, which included other regional schools such as University of Wisconsin-Madison and Wheaton College in Wheaton, Ill.
"It's the varsity sport of ROTC," said Kyle Moore, a senior in the College of Arts & Sciences and ROTC cadet who competed in the event. "It's the hardest thing you can do in ROTC."
The competition began with an evening orienteering course, which required teams to uncover 40 marked and unmarked points within a nine-square-kilometer wooded area using only a map, protractor and compass, according to Moore.
"It takes practice, let's just put it that way," he said.
Marquette's team was up before dawn the following day to compete in a fast-paced physical fitness test of two minutes of push-ups, two minutes of sit-ups and a two-mile run, followed by a 16-kilometer (9.94 miles) orienteering course. Competitors were required to wear full battle gear and carry a 30-pound backpack and M-16 rifle. Various course checkpoints tested teams' physical and mental endurance with activities such as dragging an Army vehicle across a field, crossing a body of water on a single-rope bridge, and evaluating and responding to hypothetical high-risk situations, according to Moore.
"Your body starts to hurt and your mind wants to give up. The level of difficulty at the competition itself is unbelievable," Moore said. The competition "separated people based on that mental commitment to keep going no matter what," he said.
The climax of the Ranger Challenge came the morning of the third day as teams lined up for the final 10-kilometer race in the same heavy battle gear they had worn the day before. Moore described the scene: the grassy course was still tipped in frost as the race began, the nine-man team running together for the entire course. Chants of "We are Marquette!" could be heard as they crossed the finish line in first place, according to Moore.
"I am very proud of the team's victory for several reasons, but most of all because of the dedication and effort each of the cadets gave on the day of the event," said Lieutenant Colonel Clark Backus, professor of military science, who was in charge of the Marquette team at the competition.
"I think just completing the competition is a feat," Moore said.
Dan McGonagil, a senior in the College of Arts & Sciences and ROTC cadet, said the course was a challenge to body and mind.
"People may think (the Ranger Challenge) is more physical, but you have to see what your goal is and overcome the mental limitations," he said.
This article was published in The Marquette Tribune on October 25, 2005.