For the fourth year, the Pine Bluff Arsenal was the scene of an annual competition for high school Junior Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (JROTC) students. This year’s Raider competition was again hosted by the White Hall JROTC program and saw 15 Arkansas high schools participate in the Nov. 16 event.
Schools represented included Arkadelphia, Brookland, Catholic, Conway, Harrisburg, Jacksonville, Lake Hamilton, Lonoke, North Little Rock, Russellville, Sheridan, Van Buren, Warren, Watson Chapel and White Hall.
U.S. Army Capt. Brian Hutchinson is commander of the White Hall contingent.
“I’ve been the JROTC instructor at White Hall since 2016 and have watched the program triple in cadet enrollment,” Hutchinson said. “The intent of the Raider’s competition is to bring cohesiveness, competitiveness and camaraderie across Arkansas.”
“We have 300 student participants, 150 graders who score the different teams in the various skills and well over 100 parents on hand,” he said.
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Hutchinson, who spent 21 years in the military before taking over the White Hall program explained the numerous challenges students faced during the day. These included a 2.5-mile team run, sits up with a ball tossed back and forth between participants, a bear crawl, burpees (a combination of going from a pushup to a standing jump), covert mission in which students navigate an obstacle course to retrieve and return a device to the start point, crab walk, deadlift, pushups, diamond pushups, a Humvee push, duck walk, 1.54 mile march with full backpack, improvising a litter from random material as well as a standard litter carry through wooded terrain, log sit ups, log jump, long jump, low crawl, manual carry, plank, weighted plank, pull ups, weighted pull ups, rope bridge, tire flip, tire jump, sled pull, weighted carry and wheelbarrow.
Participants entered the arsenal grounds through the Dexter gate where they proceeded to the 1942 vintage arsenal headquarters building for the 10 a.m. opening ceremonies.
Additional support for the games was provided by the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. UAPB ROTC commander Army Lt. Col. Nicolai Birch teaches military science at the university. Birch is a naturalized U.S. citizen originally from Denmark.
“This is one of those great things I love seeing. A bunch of high school students gain a vision of what military training is like. It instills leadership and discipline and they learn the values that come with training,” Birch said.
“Only 30% to 40% of JROTC students go on to service in the military but the experience makes them more attentive in whatever they do next. They often have a better mindset and tend to take more pride in their chosen field of work,” he said.
He further explained how each of the armed forces has specific ROTC programs with specialized training for the requirements unique to that particular branch of service.
Welcoming students over the public address, Birch said, “I know I stand between you and the competition so I’ll be brief.” Regarding the excellent conditions for the day’s event compared to previous years, he said, “A lot of you remember the last two years so I ask, what happened to the cold rainy weather?”
White Hall senior and JROTC Command Sgt. Major Reece Stewart briefly addressed the ranks.
“I’m proud of every one of you for coming out. Today you take everything you’ve learned and put it into action. You are stronger than you think so give it everything you’ve got,” Stewart said.
The competition organizer was Niyah Hutchinson.
“I’m excited to see all the schools coming together and building teamwork. Even though it’s a competition, we all work together. Everyone learns from the different school programs and count on each other, always asking advice from one another,” Niyah Hutchinson said.
Immediately following opening remarks, firing of a 75 mm Pack Howitzer sent the student teams on the 2.5-mile double quick run to the ball field. The remainder of the afternoon’s 31 challenges took place on the 20-plus acre ball field and parade grounds.
Graders for each station were White Hall JROTC students. In addition to acting as event graders, two five-person teams represented White Hall in the competition.
While challenges were generally designed for four participants, each team consisted of five members, allowing one person from each team to set out selected competitions. This optional candidate rotation promotes critical thinking by requiring cadets to determine which four participants have the best skill set for a particular challenge.
At the end of the day, Brookland High School won rope bridge and team run, while Watson Chapel took the litter carry award.
Third place overall went to Lake Hamilton and second to Brookland while the first-place Commander’s Cup was captured by Little Rock Catholic. Catholic was the only Marine Corps JROTC program participating in the games.
Cadets compete in the log sit up during the competition at the Pine Bluff Arsenal, hosted by White Hall High School. (Special to The Commercial/Hugh Morgan)
Little Rock Catholic JROTC accepts the overall first-place plaque and Commander’s Cup trophy following the White Hall High School JROTC Raider Competition Nov. 16. The team is pictured with White Hall Cadet Maj. Niyah Hutchinson, Cadet Sgt. Maj. Jesus Carillo and JROTC Senior Army Instructor Capt. Brian Hutchinson. (Special to The Commercial/Rachel Selby/U.S. Army)