Sixteen National Guard Soldiers will be racing to be Best Warrior for the northeast at Niagara Falls State Park on Wednesday Morning, May 15

Niagara Falls State Park will be hosting 5 mile race as part of Best Warrior contest for top National Guard Soldiers from New York, New Jersey and New England.

Niagara Falls , NY (05/14/2024) — Sixteen Army National Guard Soldiers from New England, New York and New Jersey will be running a 5-mile race around Goat Island early Wednesday morning, May 15, as par of a regional Best Warrior Competition being hosted by the New York Army National Guard.

Members of the press are invited to cover the race which kicks off at 6:30 a.m. at Parking Lot 2.

WHO: Sixteen National Guard Soldiers who have won their state Best Warrior Competitions. The two Soldiers representing New York are members of the 2nd Squadron, 101st Cavalry, a western New York unit: Sgt. Peter Fillion from Amherst and Sgt. 1st Class Travis Wood from Basom.

WHAT: A 5-mile race that is one of a number of events designed to test the Soldiers's military skills, marksmanship, physical fitness and endurance over the course of four days.

WHEN: Members of the press should be in place by 6 a.m. in order to cover the event.

WHERE: Niagara Falls State Park, 332 Prospect St, Niagara Falls, NY 14303

Coverage Opportunities:

Video and still photographs of the events and interviews with Soldiers taking part in the events as well as event organizers.

1st Lt. Jason Carr, the public affairs office for the 107th Attack Wing, will be the on the ground press contact at 716 475 0011.

BACKGROUND

The Best Warrior Competition is an annual event for Soldiers in the Active Army, Army Reserve and Army National Guard.

National Guard Soldiers compete at the battalion and then brigade level and then eventually compete to be the best in their state. Soldiers compete in the junior enlisted and noncommissioned officer categories.

The winners at the state event then compete in regional competitions, like that the New York National Guard is hosting. Those winners then compete to be the best in the National Guard. The winners of that competition then compete against Soldiers from the active Army and Army Reserve to be the top Soldier in the Army.

The New York National Guard's competitors in this year's event are Sgt. 1st Class Travis Wood and Sgt. Peter Fillion. Both men are assigned to C Troop, of the 2nd Squadron, 101st Cavalry Regiment which is headquartered at Niagara Falls Air Reserve Station.

Fillion is from Amherst, while Wood is from the hamlet of Basom in Genesse County.

When the New York Army National Guard has hosted the regional competition in the past, the contest was held at Camp Smith and the United States Military Academy at West Point.

This year, the event organizers wanted to give the competitors a chance to see more of New York.

Events on May 13 and 14, which include written exams, land navigation, a stress shoot during which Soldiers run and shoot, grenade throwing and several hands on military skills test will take place at Camp Smith.

At Camp Smith the competitors will board a CH-47F Chinook helicoter and fly to the New York National Guard's Youngstown Training Area in Niagara County to spend the night.

At 7 a.m. on May 15 they will conduct a five-mile run at Goat Island at Niagara Falls State Park. They will then return to the training area, compete in an M-17 pistol firing contest and test their medical skills and knowledge.

From there they will fly to Fort Drum New York. At Fort Drum and compete to see who can direct 120 millimeter mortar rounds onto a target in the shortest time.

At the end of the day, they will fly back to Camp Smith on board a CH-47.

On May 16 the Soldiers will be flown to New York City to conduct a 12-mile forced march with a 25-pound pack starting at the Battery Park helipad, going up the west side of Manhattan to the Intrepid museum and back. They will finish at the 9/11 Memorial.

That night the competitors and support staff will share in a formal meal at the Thayer Hotel, located on the grounds of the United States Military Academy at West Point.

The cumulative scores in all these events will determine the top winners in the enlisted and noncommissioned officer categories.

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