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Photo Information

Competitors bear crawl through a mud pit during the annual Marine Special Operations Command All-Terrain Competition at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, N.C., Oct. 30, 2015. Eleven teams of Marines and Sailors from the air station competed in the more than seven-mile competition. The first place winners were the Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 14 Honey Badgers. (U.S. Marine Corps Photo by Lance Cpl. Jason Jimenez/Released)

Photo by Lance Cpl. Jason Jimenez

MALS-14 Honey Badgers maneuver obstacles, zombies

2 Nov 2015 | Sgt. Grace L. Waladkewics Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point

Eleven teams of the fiercest warriors from 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing and Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point used their brute strength and teamwork skills to complete the annual Marine Special Operations Command All-Terrain Competition here, Oct. 30.

“The All-Terrain Competition is a very unique event,” explained Berna Crosby, the special events coordinator with Marine Corps Community Services. “It was designed for the purpose of bringing units and squadrons’ personnel together to promote healthy physical activities and improve the camaraderie between units. It makes use of cooperation, teamwork and is extremely popular, due to the type of competition, the intensity, and difficulty of the course.”

The Honey Badgers of Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 14 took home the first place trophy and bragging rights after successfully completing the more than seven-mile long course, which featured several obstacles through various types of terrains.

“We decided to participate in the competition this year because we participated last year and won second place,” explained Capt. Agustin Arreola, the operations officer with MALS-14 and team captain for the Honey Badgers.  “We knew this was our year, we wanted to win first and we were very fortunate that we did it.”

According to Crosby, events like the competition are important for cohesion between the Marines because it develops strong bonds of shared confidence, trust and discipline that make event completion possible under chaotic conditions. Additionally, the event is a way to display unit readiness and prepare the service members to deal with a wide range of potential obstacles that may arise in the future.

“Winning was a pleasant surprise,” explained Arreola. “We started ninth and passed teams who started before us, which kept us motivated to keep pushing. It builds camaraderie within the squadron because it’s just another great opportunity for MALS-14 to be made public and gain recognition. We have a lot of talent within our squadron and this is just another opportunity for us to showcase those talents.”

The race could not have been completed without the entire team coming together and working as a unit, said Arreola.

“My favorite part about participating in this event was the fact that it was truly a team event and that we had to use all of our different strengths together to get us through to the finish line,” said Arreola. “But we did it and we look forward to taking the trophy again next year.”


Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point