CENTENNIAL, Colo. – Two Colorado Army National Guardsmen traveled to Flagstaff, Arizona, May 11, 2025, to compete in the Region VII Best Warrior competition.
U.S. Army Pfc. Erich Bendele and Sgt. Raden Chambers won the Colorado National Guard’s state competition in October 2024, earning themselves the chance to be crowned the best Soldier and noncommissioned officer at the regional level.
“This was a lot tougher competition than the state level,” Chambers said. “The events were more varied, and the elevation is higher than Colorado, which a lot of the competitors were feeling from day one.”
U.S. Army Command Sgt. Maj. Walter Wayts, Arizona National Guard, operations sergeant major and 850th Military Police Battalion command sergeant major, said he wanted the competition to be focused on what the sergeant major of the Army described as four key tasks that NCOs should be able to accomplish: urgency, the ability to fight tonight; lethality, being able to close with and destroy the enemy; determination, carrying heavy loads over long distances; and, competency, being good with warrior tasks and drills.
“This is a big lift for the state, but we love having everyone here,” Wayts said. “We have four different partners participating in this competition. It’s the first time I know of that we’ve had this many SPP [State Partnership Program] partners go through a regional competition.”
While the SPP participants were integrated into the scoring, they were not eligible for top honors which is reserved only for U.S. military personnel capable of advancing to the national-level competition.
Over the course of the 4-day event the competitors were pushed physically and mentally, sometimes for hours at a time. During the strength and endurance event, for example, competitors would perform a series of seven different physical tasks such as sandbag throw, sled drag, burpees, and a power lift and carry, for a duration of 15 minutes each, completing the most reps with a half-mile run sandwiched between each task.
“I came in just trying to do my best,” Bendele said. “The competition was a blast. It exposed some weaknesses, so I know what I need to work on now. It was awesome to be around a bunch of motivated Soldiers who were pushing themselves for their respective states, and I’ve made some pretty good friends,” Bendele said.
In addition to physical fitness challenges, common Soldier tasks were implemented to test the knowledge and endurance of each competitor. In addition to a standard M4 qualification, they faced unconventional shooting lanes, such as a pistol qualification that required competitors to perform burpees between each target, pushing the competitors to their limits.
Other events included land navigation, an 18-mile ruck march, a written exam, and a military board.
“The board was fun,” Chambers said. “I did not expect for The Adjutant General of Arizona and two command senior enlisted leaders to be on the board. It was a really cool experience, being able to talk about my game and my people and get some perspective from them.”
The competition’s final event, the biathlon, was also unique in that competitors ran two miles to the range while carrying their M4, then firing their weapon at a series of targets, running to another range, firing again, then running three miles to the finish line.
“They get to build some partnerships; it gives good camaraderie,” Wayts said of the competitors. “They get exposure to things they may not have, like our biathlon event and going through these ESB (Expert Soldier Badge) lanes. If they ever want to go through their ESB badges, these are the lanes they would be exposed to.”
When the events concluded and the scores were tallied, Chambers finished in the middle of the non-commissioned officer pack and Bendele finished second to Arizona’s competitor in the lower enlisted group. As the runner up, Bendele could have the opportunity to compete at nationals if for any reason the winner is unable to attend.
“I was fortunate to have some really good mentors on the civilian side,” Bendele said. For the next Soldier that wants to compete: “fully commit and do your best. The more competent you are, the more confident you will be during the competition. The hours you put in prior will definitely pay off.”
“Overall, I’d say it was a really good experience. I met a lot of cool people, we did a lot of stuff I’ve never done before, and I got exposed to some new things,” Chambers said. “My favorite thing was being around a bunch of folks who were motivated to do this stuff, trying to push themselves to go the extra mile. It’s a cool culture to be a part of.”
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Competition photos available on Flickr.