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The Call of the Wild

There is perhaps no better way to build comradery and teamwork than to receive a collective physical beating. Just ask the members of “The Devil’s Rejects,” a four-person team of Marines from Camp Lejeune who participated in the 8th annual All-Military Wilderness Challenge near Fayetteville, West Virginia. The two-day event offers service members the opportunity to take in some of the world’s most scenic vistas in exchange for suffering some of the cruelest body poundings imaginable. QUOTE. A total of 58 four-person teams from all five branches of the military competed for bragging rights in this year’s event hosted by the Mid-Atlantic Region Morale, Welfare and Recreation Department. The winning team walked away with an engraved wooden trophy – and countless bumps and bruises – to show for their hard work.

Multimedia

Video from the Wilderness Challenge

Team 113

“The Devil’s Rejects”

Camp Lejeune, NC

Cpl. Simon Miller, Team Captain (25)

Cpl. Justin Jindra (22)

Sgt. Juan Galvan (22)

Cpl. Kristen Steil (21)

Stats

Number of Teams: 58

Cost to Participate: $700 per team

Rest Time Between Events: Half an Hour to One Hour

The course consisted of:

Day One

- 5-mile mountain run

- Half-mile swim

- 14-mile whitewater raft

Day Two

- 14-mile mountain bike

- 7-mile “duckie” boat

- 14-mile mountain hike

Total Miles: 54.5

DAY ONE

Friday, Oct. 3

1.       8k Mountain Run

For the Challenge’s first event, 58 teams of four, each with one female, traversed five miles of scenic Appalachia trail and unpaved road skirting the Gauley River. The Challenge began with groups of five teams starting two minutes apart; teams were required to stay within 100 feet of one another at all times and to finish as a group. “The number one goal here is to finish and to be nice to each other. Those are pretty much the only rules we have,” said Michael Bond, the event’s coordinator.

IN THEIR OWN WORDS

“Some parts have gotten harder and some parts have gotten easier. Like the rafting. I was kinda freaked out about it because, when I did it [last year], it was scary. But it didn’t seem so bad. I wonder if it’s because the water’s higher so the rapids aren’t as bad.”

-       Cpl. Simon Miller, USMC, Team Captain, “The Devil’s Rejects”

2.       Half-mile Swim & 14-mile Whitewater Raft

One member from each team swam downstream for half a mile to rendezvous with his or her raft. Two teams were placed in a 9-person raft, with one experienced river guide, and continued down the Gauley River for five miles, through 35 separate rapids. A whitewater guide can make or break a team’s chances of winning this event. According to Cpl. Miller from “The Devil’s Rejects,” his boat had a less-than-stellar guide. “He was horrible,” Miller said. “He fell out, he dropped his paddle and we had to go backwards to get it.” Teams were then required to haul their rafts from the river’s shore up a short path to the finish line, ending the day’s event.

IN THEIR OWN WORDS

“In the end, really, I don’t think the rafting counts for much because I’ve seen teams do horribly in the rafting and kayaking, but as long as they run and they do good in the bikes, [they do well overall]. So it’s not really the water sports… To me it’s just luck. So far, I’ve never had much luck in the water sports. There’s always next year, though.”

-       Cpl. Simon Miller, USMC, Team Captain, “The Devil’s Rejects”

DAY TWO

3.       14-mile Mountain Bike

Rising before the sun, teams assembled at the starting line near the bank of the New River. Each team of four departed 30 seconds apart and traveled 14 miles along the picturesque trail to the village of Thurmond. Participants rode their own mountain bikes, or rented one locally, for the course, which took teams about three hours to complete and featured uphill and downhill stretches with mud puddles and dangerous switchbacks. “If you miss one of these switchbacks going too fast,” Bond said, paraphrasing a local guide, “you’re going to get so much airtime that you’re going to be able to figure out what you did before you even hit the ground.”

IN THEIR OWN WORDS

“Some of these downhills are steep. There’s no shame in getting off (your bike). Don’t take too many chances. You guys gotta go back to work on Monday.”

- Michael Bond, event coordinator

4.       7-mile “Duckie” Boat

Teams were placed two to a “duckie” boat (an inflatable kayak) and paddled down the swift – and chillingly cold – waters of the New River. The middle of the river had the fastest currents – and the highest potential for dumping out of the boat. Plenty of boats and team members flipped while traversing Surprise Rapids, a fast-moving stretch on the bend of the river ranging from class I to class III, because they entered the rapids sideways or unprepared.

IN THEIR OWN WORDS

“The female [member of the team] is always the key. If you’ve got a good female, you can take it all the way.”

-       Cpl. Simon Miller, USMC, Team Captain, “The Devil’s Rejects”

5.       14-mile Mountain Hike

Hands down the toughest part of the course, the hike featured 14 miles of some of the most rugged trails in the Appalachia Mountains and crossed below the New River Gorge Bridge, the longest steel-arch bridge in the Western Hemisphere. “You all are feeling real good right now,” said Michael Bond, “but at the end of the hike, please be nice to each other.” Some teams, like “The Devil’s Rejects,” ran for most of the grueling hike. They finished second among the Marine Corps teams and eighth overall.

THE FINISH LINE: IN THEIR OWN WORDS

“I can’t feel anything.” - Cpl. Justin Jindra

“I need a beer.” - Sgt. Juan Galvan

“I’m ready to do it again.” – Cpl. Simon Miller

“I don’t even know what to tell you right now. I feel pretty good.” – Cpl. Steil

“I need a bath.” – Cpl. Jindra

“I could deal with a beer, no bath.” Sgt. Galvan

IN THEIR OWN WORDS

“We started in the last heat, but then we passed every team so we were in the front, but then 112 passed us and then another team passed us, but we held our own.”

-       - Cpl. Simon Miller, USMC, Team Captain, “The Devil’s Rejects”

“You guys are tough as nails. I know you can do this…A marathon has got nothing on you guys.”

-       Michael Bond, event coordinator

“Team 105! Get it in gear, baby!”

-       Spectator at finish line