thedrifter
02-25-08, 08:43 AM
Marines march for fallen vets
BY LANCE CPL. M. DANIEL SANCHEZ, SPECIAL TO THE SUN
2008-02-24 23:01:00
Seven Yuma-based Marines are lacing up their boots and donning packs to prepare for a trek next month honoring veterans forced to make a death march as prisoners of war in World War II.
The Marines, all from the Installation Personnel Administration Center at the Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, began training in October to get in shape for the annual 26.2-mile Bataan Memorial Death March through the dusty and hilly desert terrain of the Army White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico on March 30.
The march honors a group of U.S. veterans, who after surrendering to Japanese forces at Bataan in April 1942, were forced to march nearly 60 miles for days through the scorching heat of Philippine jungles. Several thousand troops died due to wide-ranging physical abuse and murder, while the survivors faced the hardships of a prisoner of war camp.
"It's always been one of those things that I wanted to do," said Chief Warrant Officer 2 Randolph Mann, IPAC personnel officer. "I mentioned it in front of a couple gung-ho Marines, and the next thing you know, they were like 'OK sir, let's do it.'"
While the Marines are scheduled to compete in the five-man military team heavyweight division with the two remaining Marines in the individual division, they still plan to march together, said Mann.
The training has been challenging, to say the least, said Cpl. Jose Garcia-Castro, administrative clerk. Marching for 16 miles with a 35-pound pack wears out the body, but having other Marines there helps.
"We started out with 'boots and utes' runs, and then we went to an empty pack and from there started increasing the weight in the pack, as well as the mileage along the way," said Mann. "When we first went from 25 pounds to 35 pounds, it was like driving your car with the brakes on. There was a big difference."
"Their improvement from my point has been remarkable. If you ask them, they're gonna think that they're getting worse, but in actuality their endurance is beyond that of anyone else in the shop," said Mann.
The marching has benefited the Marines in more than just physical gains in strength and endurance, said Mann.
The Marines also learned to take care of their feet, such as changing socks at the right time or wearing properly fitted boots. They have also developed the mental fortitude to continue even when their body feels ready to give out, he said.
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Lance Cpl. M. Daniel Sanchez writes for The Desert Warrior, the newspaper of the Marine Corps Air Station, from which this story is reprinted.
Ellie
BY LANCE CPL. M. DANIEL SANCHEZ, SPECIAL TO THE SUN
2008-02-24 23:01:00
Seven Yuma-based Marines are lacing up their boots and donning packs to prepare for a trek next month honoring veterans forced to make a death march as prisoners of war in World War II.
The Marines, all from the Installation Personnel Administration Center at the Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, began training in October to get in shape for the annual 26.2-mile Bataan Memorial Death March through the dusty and hilly desert terrain of the Army White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico on March 30.
The march honors a group of U.S. veterans, who after surrendering to Japanese forces at Bataan in April 1942, were forced to march nearly 60 miles for days through the scorching heat of Philippine jungles. Several thousand troops died due to wide-ranging physical abuse and murder, while the survivors faced the hardships of a prisoner of war camp.
"It's always been one of those things that I wanted to do," said Chief Warrant Officer 2 Randolph Mann, IPAC personnel officer. "I mentioned it in front of a couple gung-ho Marines, and the next thing you know, they were like 'OK sir, let's do it.'"
While the Marines are scheduled to compete in the five-man military team heavyweight division with the two remaining Marines in the individual division, they still plan to march together, said Mann.
The training has been challenging, to say the least, said Cpl. Jose Garcia-Castro, administrative clerk. Marching for 16 miles with a 35-pound pack wears out the body, but having other Marines there helps.
"We started out with 'boots and utes' runs, and then we went to an empty pack and from there started increasing the weight in the pack, as well as the mileage along the way," said Mann. "When we first went from 25 pounds to 35 pounds, it was like driving your car with the brakes on. There was a big difference."
"Their improvement from my point has been remarkable. If you ask them, they're gonna think that they're getting worse, but in actuality their endurance is beyond that of anyone else in the shop," said Mann.
The marching has benefited the Marines in more than just physical gains in strength and endurance, said Mann.
The Marines also learned to take care of their feet, such as changing socks at the right time or wearing properly fitted boots. They have also developed the mental fortitude to continue even when their body feels ready to give out, he said.
----
Lance Cpl. M. Daniel Sanchez writes for The Desert Warrior, the newspaper of the Marine Corps Air Station, from which this story is reprinted.
Ellie