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Josue Stephens talks about his new role(s) with Spartan and invites us all to take on an adventure of a lifetime in Namibia, Africa.
Todays Podcast is sponsored by:
2019 Rugged Maniac – New obstacles, and new tech tee finisher shirts!
Show Notes:
Listen using the player below or the iTunes/Stitcher links at the top of this page.
I’m not going to claim to be an expert, however I have participated in plenty of endurance events such as multiple BFX events, Spartan Hurricane Heat, Spartan Agoge Class 002, multiple road races and an ultramarathon. If you are interested in testing the waters or pushing your mind and body to the limits, you want to be as prepared as you possibly can for anything that might happen. Here are a few of my basic tips on how to prepare for an endurance event:
My 7th pee stop on a 7 hour drive :/
Good luck and I hope to see you at a future endurance event! Next stop for me is the Spartan Agoge in China!!
Photo Courtesy of Michelle Stone Stairs Roy
On April 25th, Team Believe 923 received the exciting news that the 1st ever Agoge 60 endurance event was opening its roles for amputees and other Adaptive Athletes (AA). As an Agoge 48 (Class 000) participant I understood that; a) hell’a miles and labor would be waiting for us in the Green Mountains of Vermont and b) with only 24hrs to commit to participating, there was no way I could mentally prepare our team and paralyzed athletes for the hell’a miles and labor that would be waiting for us in the Green Mountains of Vermont so we reluctantly declined the invitation. However, I did ask to be assigned to another Adaptive team in case I could be of any assistance…access granted!
Stardate 94062.71 (June 17, 2016 5:30am)
Enter stage left: team Operation Enduring Warrior (OEW) consisting of U.S. Army Veterans Earl Granville and Justin Shellhammer (each with 1 prosthetic leg) and Norbie Lara (with 1 arm) at the ready who were supported by Andi Marie, Eric Schmitz, and Erica Walker.
Enter stage right: team More Hearts Than Scars (MHTS) consisting of U.S. Army Veteran Billy Costello (with a prosthetic leg), U.S. Navy Veteran Greg Bullock (on crutches), U.S. Marine Veteran Matthew Pietro (an amputee on crutches and wheelchair), Blind Pete Cossaboon (no explanation needed), and Zackary Paben, who were supported by Joey McGlamory, Wendy Paben, and me.
Photo Courtesy of Nelson Runaway Diaz
We were 14 in total who were mostly greeted with silent nods for showing up but not given much hope to make it beyond the first 12 hours. After all, this event was created by the core of Spartan Staff that produced the DNF-friendly Death Race in this very same environment.
The day began with registration from 5:30am-8am where we received an Agoge Passport Card in exchange for our car keys and Drivers Licenses; a necessary precaution for participant safety especially for those who would endure 2.5 days of undisclosed training and torture. Next came medical evaluation followed by the barking orders for mandatory gear to be splayed on the required 8’x8’ tarps. Penalties for missing gear included disqualification while food other than the required MRE’s (Military Meals Ready to Eat) and Backpacker’s Pantry were confiscated. Reward for early registration included hauling lumber and other weighty objects to and fro Riverside Farm aka base camp until the registration process was complete.
Erica and I were tasked with a running assessment of the Adaptive Athletes for the duration of their participation. I was told that when they dropped out I could continue the Agoge with the rest of the participants but understood that I would not be a “finisher” if they indeed quit. Spartan leadership (aka Krypteia) had a look of concern and slight agitation as they said they didn’t even know what to do with AA’s, they didn’t know any would actually show up, they felt this was another one of Joe’s (DeSena) crazy ideas, and that this was NOT the right venue for the Adaptive Athletes. Well, it took less than 60 hours to prove them right. And wrong.
After a brief welcome and introduction to the Agoge format, both able-bodied and adaptive participants were split into larger teams tasked with carrying 80lb. bags of concrete and 5gal. buckets of water to reinforce the famous steps on Joe’s Mountain which was built and expanded on with manpower provided by several years of Death Races. It became instantly clear to the Krypteia that the veterans of OEW would need little assistance while we of MHTS had a different set of challenges in front of us that would require teamwork of epic proportions to overcome so when asked if we were capable of participating in this “beautification” project…a silent nod was my answer and that’s all that was needed for them to send us up the mountain to join the renovation. A single file of Spartans snaked up and around Joe’s Mountain like an ant trail with the adaptive athletes melting into the numbers pulling their weight and assisting others along the way. We were joined by Michelle ‘Stone Stairs” Roy who was assigned field communications for OEW and MHTS. She is intimately familiar with this terrain from years of Death Races and for writing the names of those battling cancer on stones that she would then personally add to this landscape.
Following this 3 hour effort we were reassembled at the Farm and divided into 3 large groups consisting of 3 smaller groups. MHTS now became Team 3 Division A aka Team 3-Adaptive. We understood that our goal to complete this 60 hour event required us to NOT interfere with the experience of any other athlete and that anyone who chose to assist us could potentially miss out on portions of the event that could cost them a DQ as the event progressed. With fair warning, we accepted 4 Spartans to join our ranks for an experience of a lifetime that, if fulfilled, may never be duplicated. Enter Brian Lynch, Matt Rex, Anthony Schena, and the bearded Mexican in a skirt Fernando Casanova. We were now equipped with 5 adaptive athletes, 4 work horses, Wendy to keep Zack in check, Joey who served as Blind Pete’s guide & 1 Puerto Rican Reindeer.
Photo Courtesy of Nelson Runaway Diaz
Teams were assigned a slosh pipe and a kayak filled with 25 gallons of water that would later serve as our source for hydration. Team 3 however, was assigned (2) kayaks, a slosh pipe, plus Matt’s wheelchair which has been in heavy use since he lost his right leg in a motorcycle accident after returning from combat with PTSD. Another team was assigned a wooden handled fence post hole digger and wooden 4×4’s which would serve as the structure that held the metal Spartan helmet bell to be rung as the final act of those who would later succumb to the rigors of the Agoge training.
Photo Courtesy of Nelson Runaway Diaz
As we completed several uphill miles to the Log Landing, we were given instructions to eat and hydrate quickly just as the Spartan Helmet Bell of submission first broke silence reminding us that we would all reach a point where tapping out would become a real option. Several participants withdrew due to equipment failure and medical complications while Lora Cesuga from Spain sacrificed herself for the sake of the team in light of her slower pace coupled with hearing the fate of those who chose to travel through the night into the famous Bloodroot and not make the time hacks. Lora also loaned me equipment that enabled me to keep working alongside OEW an MHTS teams.
12 hours into the Agoge and the 8 Adaptive Athletes were still in!! The toughest part at this moment was convincing the AA’s to follow a different path to the new base camp called ‘Area 51’ while the other participants trekked up Bloodroot to the same location. Fact is that only logistics prevented our teams from pressing on into Bloodroot but at the same time there were only 8 people trudging through with missing or disfigured limbs which kept the scales well balanced. This alternate path enabled Justin to stick around as he contemplated an early exit concerned whether a lengthier stay would cause him further injury and derail the limited summer time scheduled with his children.
We trekked back to Riverside Farm as everyone else powered through the night for their rest at Area 51. Before we were reunited with the rest of the Spartans, we were greeted in the morning by Michelle, cups of coffee, and Joe DeSena giving us limited time to gear up and transport building materials back up Joe’s Mountain to Muddy’s Hut, which is a rentable retreat built out of nature and recycled materials by Matt Batz.
At Area 51, another favorite destination for Death Racers, we began Physical Training and noticed for the 1st time that there was another adaptive athlete among us. It was virtually impossible to detect that Amy Palmiero Winters was an adaptive athlete until we saw her pant leg rolled up revealing her prosthetic leg. Amy would outperform many in this event even while tasked by Joe to personally assume responsibility for the fate of Spartan Editorial Content Manager David Deluca (you must read the 1st hand account of his Agoge60 experience!). The bell continued to be rung for different reasons. One international participant complained of boredom with little learned not realizing that shortly after quitting the real teaching would begin which would make the previous days torture worth it. After PT, DeSena interrupted the silence to advise that going forward NO ONE would be considered a finisher if ANYONE quits for non-medical reasons.
It was at this new base camp where our Agoge passports would be stamped as we completed evolutions including Drown Proofing in a leech filled pond (yes, blood everywhere), Raft Building, Survival Information (eating meal and earthworms), Litter Building (Stretcher), and Rolling 700lb bales of hay (through a swamp…I’m still confused about this one). Failure to complete an evolution sealed your name on the growing list of DQ’s and DNF’ers. At some point, Zack and I were asked to accompany Blind Pete to The Abyss for a 200’ repel followed by a 60-70 degree single track climb up a rock face with unstable footing as a way to assess this evolution for the other AA’s. Many faced and conquered their crippling fear of heights but to hear Pete who has been totally blind since April 2015 laughing as he stepped backwards off of the cliff to begin his descent was truly remarkable and inspiring for those that followed. Does it help not being able to see the dangers around you or does it help knowing that you are alive and thriving in spite of them? Another answered question for most of us this weekend.
Photo Courtesy of Nelson Runaway Diaz
The verdict was in, Norbie and Earl of OEW were more than prepared for The Abyss while Justin stayed behind to be checked out by medics due to a fall. Also Billy of MHTS who lost his leg in a roadside bombing in Afghanistan ran against daylight to make it to this location before nightfall. The inspiration continued as Norbie began his one armed repel since his right arm was severed by an RPG in Iraq, 2004. The climb continued to challenge able bodied Spartans alike but to hear the pounding metal of Earl’s prosthetic left leg as he sometimes crawled up the stone proved that a missing limb at the hands of a roadside bomb in 2008 would not deny him victory in 2016 (nor would the cast on his left hand from a recent cycling incident…this boy has issues :).
Upon our return to Area 51, we were told that Justin was removed from Agoge due to medical issues and we couldn’t be any prouder for him since he was forced out after fighting through 32 hours of Agoge training. A fellow Spartan ensured that Justin’s green military issued sun hat made it to the Agoge graduation ceremony in his honor. That was the least that could’ve been done for this soldier who lost his leg to a land mine in Afghanistan, 2005.
Prior to the repel, OEW was the 1st team to literally hack through the uncleared woods with Andi Marie on the litter but after the repel MHTS was the last team to perform the several miles of Litter Carry. The best Krypteia Eric Roman could offer us was to be partnered up with another team should we need help carrying one of our heaviest teammates, Matt, on the litter for an undisclosed distance. As both teams set off for the carry, we found a comfortable rhythm of resting and rotating positions every 100 steps…then every 50. Zack mentioned how the friction on his hands and the pain on his wrists and fingertips was akin to what he felt at the age of 10 when he had to tear off his fingertips in a horrific accident. Watching him persevere was a fresh reminder that even the crippling hurts of our past can be reduced to inconsequential memories when you choose to fight on! This includes physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual hurts as well.
At the end of the carry Krypteia Eric told us of how the team that went with us raved about our efforts. One of them helped us with Matt’s backpack while we managed without additional assistance. It was said that they mimicked our cadence, tempo, and methods of transport. We knew that inspiration would present itself as the AA’s fought to stay in the Agoge but this bit of news demonstrated our significant value which could benefit the able-bodied Spartans experience as a whole. We had Grit and it was contagious!
About that 700lb. bale of hay…even though the swamp route was now closed it still sucked to navigate it up and down several hills around the perimeter of Area 51. A funny thing happens when all participants are allowed to sleep for a few hours and your team of AA’s still has to deal with this 6-foot tall circular bale of hay, you get it done anyway.
A few hours of sleep later, we were woken up by the commotion of a Spartan who rang the bell late night but was not allowed to leave. You ring, you leave, and try again another time was the norm but this was different. This distraught Spaniard nicknamed Hunter was brought out into the circle of the 98 remaining Spartans because he worked harder than most in every evolution but due to language barriers he was under the impression that he had to manage the 700lb. bale on his own since his team completed it prior to his return from The Abyss. Only 1 question was asked “Should he be allowed to stay?” and only 1 resounding answer was given “YES!” And just like that many cheers, hugs, and tears were shared. The language of hard work and integrity was understood and well appreciated by these Spartans.
The language of flatulence during morning yoga stretching was also understood by all. We had plenty of time to interact with others while waiting to begin the “final” 1-mile hike that would conclude the event. Turns out many had gone without eating for hours and even days since their meals were confiscated. Every ounce of shared carbs were gratefully accepted by the Spaniards and other international participants who did not have MRE’s nor Backpacker’s Pantry to purchase in their country.
We began the hike without Matt’s wheelchair since he should be able to crutch his way for a mile…then 2…then we realized we would be back in these mountains for a long time. Someone suggested we make a litter to carry Matt once his wrists had enough. Four of us were allowed to continue while the procession stopped to make the litter. It was Matt and Greg, who fell 40 feet from a helicopter during practice jumps before is second deployment, on crutches, the Mexican in a skirt, and the Puerto Rican Reindeer moving as fast as possible to avoid using that stretcher. At one point, Agoge staff caught up and mentioned taking an alternate route for evacuation which caused Matt to crutch for his life. He would accept nothing less than crossing the finish line on his foot (if there ever was a finish line). So off we continued alternating crutching with piggy-back carries up the mountain over and over again. A mile or so later Krypteia Eric caught up to us and ordered us to stop and wait for the others since we had no radio communication. Matt was convinced to use the stretcher for a short while so the rest of us would have litter carry experience in this real environment. Although this was not the most popular moment of the journey, once again things got done and Matt was back on his foot in no time.
Photo Courtesy of Nelson Runaway Diaz
The last few miles were marched in silence and, with the help of many Spartans, we piggybacked Matt as needed with the Adaptive Athletes leading the way. After a pit stop for a refreshing river dunk, we marched the “final” mile back to Riverside where the graduation ceremony was set to commence.
We were met with applause and cheers from families and friends in attendance as well as several participants who rang out. This premature celebration was short-lived as Joe found someone whose medical exit seemed questionable to him and therefore rewarded our 60-hour efforts with disqualifications FOR ALL. However, a deal was struck where able-bodied teams had to run timed laps up and down Joe’s mountain while the adaptive teams ran timed laps through the woods around Riverside. It was chaos, it was confusing, but after 60 hours it was over.
Photo Courtesy of Spartan Race
Several hundred registered, 139 showed up and, in the end, the Agoge 60 produced the 99 graduating Spartans of Class 002! Closing ceremony was officiated by US Marine Corps Retired Veteran, 40 years of service Massachusetts State Police hostage negotiator, Gilbert Bernard, who prompted each team to nominate 2 Spartans to receive the coveted Spartan Coin for being the most inspirational, the most motivational, and for being the reason why many were able to complete this feat. And when the dust settled, 3 adaptive athlete’s were counted among them! Congratulations Blind Pete, Earl, and Norbie!!!
While there may still be confusion on how to pronounce AGOGE, I defy you to prove that AGOGE stands for anything less than Adaptive Grit Overcomes Grim Expectations. Are you adapting?
FOOTNOTES:
Spartan Endurance‘s 12 Hour Hurricane Heat, or HH12HR, is a 12-hour endurance event that combines team exercises and challenges with individual competition and time hacks to push physical limits and test participant’s True North.
One of the draws of the HH12HR is the originality of each event. This is due, in part, to Spartan’s Director of Endurance, Tony Matesi, allowing his Spartan Krypteia (“krypteia” is “teacher/leader” or “advisor”) to determine his/her event’s theme and gear list that has one or two specialty items included. These items range from three peanuts attached to a green stick to a bath towel to a sandbag.
For Seattle, the gear list included two polypropylene sandbags and one dodge ball. Planning doesn’t mean that it’s going to go exactly as you envision; it just means that out of the ether, you have managed to take your creative vision and apply a structure to it so that it can exist. The greatest gift is when others take your structure and build upon it, to have it grow organically and to create something unique and awe-inspiring that you may not have ever dreamed of. Seattle HH12HR-018 was one of those events.
Tony had a vision and expectation of the event, and it was my job to help him realize that vision. I was also brought on to provide my specialized brand of teamwork and crew cohesion exercises that I routinely implement with some sort of innocuous household item. Typically, it becomes a quiet debate among the participants about how I’m going to use that item, which is good; teamwork starts here.
Wednesday before the event, Tony outlined the event structure to me and we discussed logistics. Much of the first day is on site scouting, and Tony had a grueling event laid out for Seattle. Anytime you bring two sandbags into play, you know that people are going to have to dig incredibly deep, and with the Cliff Climb as the centerpiece of his masterwork, we expected a high fail rate. His format was a checkpoint challenge. Five separate item locations dispersed among the Spartan Seattle Super course: three separate locations had additional sandbags as items and the last two were going to be straight up sprinting to get a punch card stamped at their respective locations. Each item had to be brought back to Home Base to be numbered, valued and counted in the record sheet by Tony or myself, and the punch card had to have the corresponding hole punch for each location on it. Lose your card, you’re DQ’d. Don’t get the right hole punch, you’re DQ’d. Lose any sand from your sandbags or they get destroyed, you’re DQ’d. Paying attention is vital.
Friday night arrives and Class 018 is the first class in the history of the HH12HR to have 100% of the registrants show up and participate. After the standard check in process, gear check, and introductions, the class began its warm up with three games of Spartan Dodgeball.
With rucks on, participants had to bear crawl to the center line to get the balls and crab walk back to the back line before standing up and beginning to throw. Slow crab walkers were easy targets. Losers did exercises, winners rested. From dodge ball, the class retrieved Tony’s “Caterpillar”: a series of five GoRuck sandbags ranging from 20 pounds to 120 pounds that were connected end to end by carabiners. The class was instructed to take the Caterpillar with them as we continued the warm up. I liked this carry because unlike a log that has no give and allows shorter people to escape the load, connected sandbags have a ton of give and shift and move.
A little over a mile later, the Caterpillar was set to rest on the side of the trail and Balls of Fun began. A set of exercises that promotes teamwork using the dodge balls. I learned long ago while training firefighters that the best way to CREATE an atmosphere of teamwork is to provide exercises that REQUIRE teamwork, and it doesn’t have to be soul crushing to get the job done. It can be challenging and fun and still be effective.
At this point, Tony brought the class to the quarry and gave the instructions to fill the gear list sandbags up to the 3/4 mark, secure them so no sand escaped, make sure that they remained intact for the rest of the event, and that it would be in their individual team’s best interest to arrive back at Home Base first.
Things did not go according to our original plan, and as one, the class decided to tackle the Cliff Climb as a single unit, melding “I will always place the mission first” with “I will never leave a fallen comrade”. This is what it looks like when everyone is invested in the success of everyone and not just everyone out for themselves. The individual truly becomes an integral part of something greater than self. And I was inspired.
We have the Warrior’s Ethos for a reason, and it is within those four ethics that an individual may choose what he/she finds to most resonate with himself/herself, and if one implements the entire ethos, one will find success. For those who have done a HH12HR that I have been involved in, you all know that there are a few things that I continuously, sonorously, maddeningly recite over and over again. Maybe you drown it out; maybe you listen, 0r maybe you listen, and as a class, implement everything with an understanding of the end objective and the message that I am trying to convey.
I have never seen an entire class take ownership of their responsibilities as teammates and objectives like I saw Class 018. Their actions were a true representation of 24 individuals on the same mission, same objectives and goals, and with a clear vision as to how they were all going to achieve success: self-sacrifice, individual motivations, partnership, teamwork to ensure personal successes. No one can accurately describe that two sandbag ascent up sheer cliffs by using ropes and creating footing in the hard slick mud, or having run 14 of the 20 total miles of the event under additional weight. The body language of nearly every participant told a story as each came limping, walking, stumbling back to Home Base with first, second, and third sandbags.
Finishing everything off with two separate run challenges with stoking the fire interspersed between everything else. Yes, forgot to mention that. We had a campfire that had to be kept lit throughout the night and it was the class’ responsibility to make that happen. PT, hacks, challenges, whatever. They had to forage for dry wood and run back and forth from wherever they were to Home Base to keep the fire lit. Had that fire gone out, I’m confident that the finish rate would have been very close to zero.
And this is not the first time that a finish rate for a class has been higher than 40%. Just as there have been classes that have dropped to nearly single digit percentages. High and low percentages are anomalous, as there is a general 40% finish that is stated quite clearly from the outset. It’s not a secret, but it’s not set in stone, either. Be less concerned with percentages and more concerned with the tasks and challenges that must be endured to finish, and Tony made sure that this event was, pardon my language, fucking miserably difficult. 
At the 11th hour, we had our finishers, and we were satisfied knowing that we had provided a tough event. We had one final time hack, a volunteer one, and after a brief discussion, we decided to present it to our finishers: as a team, retrieve the Caterpillar and return back to Home Base before time expires.
Success would provide their lagging teammates with a precious few minutes. Failure would, quite possibly, mean no one would finish. Two more miles of running and hiking after they had given their all for 11 hours, and they loudly rose up to the task and took off, only to return carrying the Caterpillar and chanting the Warrior’s Ethos with time to spare, thus extending the final time hack, which saw the rest of the participants check in. For one of the grittiest, toughest HH12HRs, the finisher count belies the heavy difficulty of the event, but in the manner of how it all shaped up from the very beginning, it seems only fitting that this class had the finish that they worked so hard to earn.
As one, I am an individual with limitations. As one, we are invincible.
Photo Credits: Ben Greenfield, Jessica Renon
The Final GORUCK NOGOA: NOGOA WEST
From the eyes of a relatively new OCR/Endurance Event Junkie
“Team Leader, explain your plan!”. I was probably visibly frazzled to everyone, trying to rationalize my Gold and Black EXFIL (exfiltration or escape) plans that I had just hurriedly created in a few minutes with compass, military protractor, and a USGS area map of Warner Springs, CA. This was mere hours after a short but informative class on land navigation, led by a U.S. Army Green Beret. I thought he was aware that I was the Assistant Team Leader and that I was just trying to get our navigational plans in place for my Team Leader. I am a U.S. Navy Submarine veteran, and though confident with charts and plotting, I had never done land navigation. I paid attention during our course and thought I could best serve my team by helping with some navigation. I wanted to step up, but not too much. I attempted to correct our Cadre about my role, but that did not work out the way I thought it would.
This was a major GORUCK (GR) event, and the last of the NOGOA (No One Gets Out Alive) events, a “Custom Heavy” that two people, Scott Roberts and Mike Grobelch, poured a ton of time and energy into making a reality. People had flown in from all over the country to participate in this 24-hour plus Endurance Event. I was the “greenest” of the 40 GRT’s (GR Tough Athletes) that were in attendance and was reluctant to lead any of them during the event. As a TL (Team leader), the fear of messing something up and getting my team smoked (physical training, or PT, at a high level) is a real thing. So much for that, I was now the Team Leader, and the Cadre “did not love but accepted” my EXFIL plan. Then it began. Damn near immediately. Headlights hit our campsite, people started yelling, shots started firing, and my team of 39 seasoned GRT’s and myself started hauling ass on azimuth 300 for “one click” while taking incoming fire. Welcome to NOGOA West!
Your standard GR Heavy event will involve around 24 hours of some pretty intense PT and involves plenty of “rucking”. Simply put, rucking is moving with weight in your rucksack, or pack. The military has used rucking for many years to condition its soldiers for battle. Strap weight on your back, move out for a planned distance, often not a quick or short evolution, move heavy things or “casualties” while doing so, and then go home and repeat tomorrow. Ever wonder why so many Army and Marine service members are incredibly fit? This is why. Rucking was named the Men’s Fitness #1 Fitness Trend of 2015.
NOGOA participants got to learn invaluable skills from Green Berets and then implement them in a real world scenario while rucking together, having fun, and becoming more physically fit with every step. This was all accomplished while forging new friendships with amazing people, truly what makes any GORUCK event a special thing. Cadre Kevin and Doug of GR are both fit and seasoned soldiers. They are each skilled and qualified to teach us in the real world application of what we were about to learn. They went to work fast. The event began on Saturday morning at 0800 with instructions to “not be late”. The Cadre instructed us to unpack our racks and then began to check our gear, The packing list specifically instructed us to “bring enough food for the event”. Of course, all food was then immediately confiscated at commencement of the event. This was not done to torture the attendees, but to begin the process of truly feeling what it’s like to be hungry. After identifying our food source for the evening, we began our Land Navigation Course. The most amazing thing that I learned was that one can measure distance traveled simply by counting their own steps. The method of counting pace is done by first seeing how many steps it takes for one to walk 100 meters. For me, 73 steps, on average was how many steps it took for me to travel 100 meters. The count can be measured with “Ranger Beads”, where one moves a bead down for every 100 meters traveled to help keep track of distance while navigating in the pitch black of night.
The class then got to fashion weapons and tools. In the wild, you may need hand fashioned weapons and tools to survive. We also brought fire starting tools (magnesium stick or something to that effect) and were then told to find a safe place at camp and start a fire with a partner. My partner Chris and I had a bit of a difficult time getting our fire lit, but eventually were able to get it up and running with the help of a fellow GRT, Liz (don’t laugh at us out their fellas, GRT women are no joke). Once all fires were up and running, we spent time searching for firewood as we were going to need to keep these going for a while as we were starving at this point and would be cooking our meat on them. We learned how to field dress wild game, prepare the meat for cooking and then we roasted our dinner on the fire. That was pretty special for me as I am a bow hunter who has only harvested two animals my whole life, but I had never actually prepared game, cooked and had my meal around a fire of my own making, in the same day, ever. While dinner was cooking over all of our fires, I was tasked to start digging a hole about a 1.5 feet deep as we would be having a class on making a “solar still”. This skill could be used in the event that we were stuck somewhere that water was scarce. Once dinner was wrapped and our fires all snuffed in a responsible manner, we all gathered around the table to start the planning of an exit route in the event we needed one, and as previously explained, we did.
The next 13 or so hours were spent rucking. Once the attack on our unit occurred, and we were safely away from the incoming shots, we moved deliberately and quietly through the terrain as our pace keepers coordinated with the navigators to ensure that we were on track. After some time, we made it to what we thought was our destination and formed a security watch with all eyes looking out in 360 degrees to ensure that we could see any incoming contacts and move appropriately. While awaiting further tasking, Cadre Kevin asked if he thought we had to made it to our destination. We had. We were informed to make it up to the road, head North and wait in the field for further tasking there. At that point, we were excited that we were dialed in and when the Cadres got to the field, we did a brief assessment and I was promptly fired as Team Leader. Something to not take personal during a GR event, as they regularly change this role to put people in the position to challenge them. Setting a TL magnifies one’s leadership strengths and weaknesses. The Cadre fire, and repeat through the event to get the most out of people. This is both a team and individual learning opportunity. GR seeks to build better Americans with every event and every activity has a purpose. Usually. We learned some “Ranger Movements” and signaling techniques in that field that we could implement during the event on our movements from Cadre Kevin. The new TL discussed the next plan with Cadre Doug. I was still unrelieved by the incoming Team Leader, and upon hearing that we had two incoming contacts while assembled in our security circle, I gave the order to move out of the field. We hid the unit under a tree, in the shade of the full moon using evasion techniques and tactics that we had just learned. I then felt quite silly for having 40 GRT’s rush across a field to hide under trees while the Cadre wondered what the hell was wrong with us, as there was nothing there but the trees. Well, we did what we were taught to do, despite the fact people were starting to see things.
We worked as a team and spent the entire night slowly moving towards our secondary objective, which was a cache of weapons, food and water that we were meant to utilize for further evolutions. The class made it to the top of the ridgeline that was the highest point and we took a few nice class pictures in the middle of the night. We screamed all at once at the top of our lungs for the role players (RP’s) to “come get us” in challenge from the mountain top. The team stopped before moving again to use the “resection method” of locating our position by recording some bearings from off the mountain. We located a few known points on the map that were visible, recorded and converted the bearings to our map, and were able to locate our position where the lines intersected. Suffice it to say, we had a long way to go to hit our target.
I could spend time talking about our movements until the sun came up, but the only thing truly worth noting is that Mike, one of our event planners, suffered a real world injury to his knee on the way down the mountain. We pulled together as a unit, determined to get our team member to the end of the exercise, come hell or high water. These were not your average civilians, but they are your average GRT’s. You can expect that from someone at your side during one of these events, you can expect it from them in friendship, and you can expect it from them in the workplace. “I will never leave a fallen comrade”.
Suddenly a car came speeding down the road at first light and we scrambled for the tree line, running for cover and lying prone to avoid being seen. It was Cadre Doug, and after a brief conversation, we were told to fall in by Cadre Kevin. Good news! We were about to have some fun and turn the tables on our attackers. Cadre Doug came back a few minutes but this time he was in character. He pretended to be a foreign shyster who was out for money and hoping to make a quick buck from an American unit in a hostile territory. He sold us some munitions and supplies (paintball guns, and water) for a handful of Euros (toilet paper, I believe) and drove off after giving us intel on the hostiles (RP’s) . They were back at camp, relaxing and getting ready to come out and find us. We armed a few of our GRT’s and formed a plan to ambush them with our whole unit. We came in hot, armed with paintball grenades and a few loaded paintball guns and rushed the camp. The RP’s were ready for action with weapons close and an epic firefight for the ages ensued. All participants, role players, Cadres and cars were left covered in paint. It was an epic and fitting end to the event. As usual, our GRT’s had managed to get themselves killed, again.
I have a laminated picture of the late SFC Jonathan Michael Downing, a Green Beret, zip tied to my ruck with an American Flag bandana framing the picture. Our Cadre’s allowed me a moment to speak about who Jon was and we took a few pictures with him front and center for the Downing family to have. Jon was a hell of a soldier, father and friend. He is survived by his wife Vanessa and their three children, Dylan, McKayla, and JJ. Honoring the fallen, another important piece of what GORUCK is.
In closing, NOGOA West was well planned and executed. It was fun, educational and I got to meet and spend time with some pretty fine Americans. I’m confident that I came out of this experience a bit more prepared to take on the Spartan Agoge for 60 hours this June in Pittsfield, VT. Hopefully, we get to ruck with you soon!
to learn more and/or donate to BRAVO Co., visit our page on FB, IG, or go to bravocoteam.org
Much like the other events I’ve done this past year, the Spartan Endurance Agoge wasn’t something I planned on doing months in advance. It was another last minute decision – similar to my introduction into the Spartan Race world late in the summer of 2015. Although, like then, I didn’t necessarily feel that I wasn’t prepared, just uncertain of what to expect. 
I was confident I would succeed based off grit and my ability to endure pain rather than being the strongest or fastest guy in the field. Although, that wasn’t the case for the Spartan Race staff; they prepared for and executed an extremely challenging event successfully while maintaining the right amount of enjoyment. And if you’re reading this recap, it’s more likely that your definition of “enjoyment” is slightly different from the everyday person’s interpretation. Hopefully, my experience will help you to be more prepared than I was, because Agoge is far from a walk in the park.
With 12 years of military experience, I have completed numerous schools where my physical and mental capabilities were tested to the limit, and you would think that would be enough. What I experienced as a PFC at Calvary Scout Basic training, a year being a Knob at the Citadel, 61 plus days at Ranger School, a 12 month combat deployment to Iraq, and almost two years at the Special Forces Qualification course certainly had me questioning the experience I could gain by partaking in the 2016 48-hour Winter Agoge. However, looking back at some of the greatest lessons I’ve learned, they were at a time when I wasn’t fully prepared or knew what was coming my way. It’s in those moments when you have to dig deep, think outside the box, understand your environment, and make a plan using only the resources you have available. Despite all my past experiences and knowledge of survival tactics, I was solely focused on Agoge 001. I knew it was going to be difficult, and it was about to be game on.
An important factor to realize about the military and team building events like Agoge is the process of making standards difficult to appropriately select the type of person you want to be working or fighting alongside you. Being a strong individual makes all the difference when being a part of a team. I would not feel comfortable going to war with someone who couldn’t carry his/her own weight and who always requires the assistance of others. The purpose of a team is to work together, but when you are holding the team back because you aren’t individually carrying your weight or doing the right thing, you often put others on your team at risk.
Initially signing up for Agoge 001, all I could think about were the stressful situations I was subjected to under extreme sleep deprivation during Ranger school, and that I could probably expect to have somewhat of a similar experience during the 48-hour challenge. 
After doing a bit of online research about the trial run of Agoge 000 and Death Race, I was starting to question why I wanted to or should put myself through yet another cut you down to bring you up event. However, as part of the Agoge experience, you must first complete the Spartan X training program online. I started the modules thinking that the information being taught was already implemented into the way I live my life. The principles of setting and accomplishing goals, doing the right thing, and being committed were instilled in me not only when I was raised by my uncle, but also during college at The Citadel and through my military career. But what I failed to do in the past, and what I was learning from the Spartan X program, is not how I have successfully implemented finding true north in my life, but rather how I could use my knowledge and experience to help others on that quest.
Going into the Winter Agoge 48 during the coldest temperatures Vermont has seen in decades seemed fitting since 10 years ago, Feb 2006 is when I graduated Ranger school during one of the coldest classes mountain phase has seen. As a Special Forces detachment commander one of our main tasks is to train forces in remote rural areas while living off the land and surviving in the elements. I set a goal to help my team during Agoge in any way possible and to share my experiences with them.
0600 – RACE REGISTRATION:
I arrive at Riverside Farm on time, with my equipment packed and ready to go. I used a mix of civilian gear and issued military equipment to meet requirements set forth in the packing list. There wasn’t a known or set schedule for the next 48 hours and you could tell by the looks on everyone’s faces that no one was sure what to expect. The frigid air and initial silence set the tone until the krypteia (Spartan cadre) started to address us and give guidance. Right from the start, there was a sense of commitment as each person walked through the barn doors one by one to start Agoge 001. There were people from all different walks of life: military, fitness trainers, death race veterans, pilots, teachers, Spartan staff, and even one person all the way from Singapore. To even be standing at those doors ready to face the challenge that lied ahead, each candidate who applied and was accepted into Agoge had to successfully complete some type of vigorous endurance event in the past.
The event officially started at 0800 so, during the first two hours, everyone registered, received a medical screening, conducted equipment checks, and started numerous physical activities. Some participants arrived late or without the proper gear, which at a normal military school they would have been dropped right there on the spot. These “candidates,” as the krypteia called us, lucked out, but everyone didn’t get a second chance. To my surprise there was one individual who didn’t bring everything on the packing list; he was immediately sent home. The key take away – adhere to the packing list and come prepared knowing how to use your equipment. The items are for you to use and are what you need to physically survive during Agoge. I would tell you exactly what I brought and recommend, but, to be honest, it wouldn’t work for everyone so my best advice is to find what works for you.
TEAM BUILDING:
After the packing list layout was complete, the krypteia kept us warm by conducting some physical training. The events included numerous iterations of suicides, 500 jumping jacks, roll overs, and burpee long jumps over a distance of about 400m. Once everyone completed those tasks, we started the first team building event in which we had to roll over each other in a long line and give introductions. A few people threw up during this process from the repetitive rolling around, but all-in-all it was designed to have a purpose, not just to mess with us. That was one of the immediate things I started to realize; the krypteia didn’t tell us to do anything without also explaining the purpose behind it. They said time and time again, “This is not Death Race,” which I think the endurance veterans in the group were expecting, and you could kind of tell that by their actions as well. During the hours of breaking us down, I could tell how some were actually working hard while others were just trying to survive and play the game of beating the clock, since eventually we would have to move on to another task.
TEAM ASSIGNMENTS AND OUR FIRST TASK:
Each team included eight Spartan candidates (our group members included Amy, Albert, Tyler, Mitch, Brandon, David, Derek, and me), and we were immediately given our first task – to build an apparatus from two round table tops and the one inch tubular rope from the packing list. The apparatus not only had to carry all of our equipment on top of it, but also our heaviest team member, and it had to be lifted off the ground to be moved. Our team quickly worked together and decided it best not to build something as fast as possible, but to make sure it wouldn’t fall apart half-way to our objective. Some members worked on putting handles on the rope, others fed the rope through the holes in the table, and the rest tied knots for the carrying handles. We certainly weren’t the first ones out the gate to begin movement to our objective, but it quickly showed that the extra time spent building a solid apparatus was worth it. Our solid construction combined with our rotation plan working as a team paid off when we quickly started to pass other teams. For this reason we earned the group name of “Team Ferrari”.
All the groups moved as a team moving their apparatuses around the perimeter of Riverside Farms stopping at five stations along the way. At each station, a different skill was taught that would be used later during Agoge. Most of the classes were focused on winter survival given the season and weather we would be subjected to during the 48 hours (-20 deg temperatures). These classes were very professionally given and provided us with the knowledge needed to get through the weekend using not only our gear, but the environmental resources around us as well. The stations focused on: frostbite/hypothermia, fire making, shelter building, true north and commitment. I thought it was important to see that the staff hit the nail right on the head with their craw, walk, and run method of teaching us. Although, this came as no surprise to me knowing that former members of the military like Spartan VP CSM (R) Frank Grippe were not only part of the planning but were also on ground with us. With other key staff members like Tony Matesi, Charles Piso, and Peter Borden working hard behind the scenes as well, the first 12-hour period was already coming to a successful end.
If the first 12 hours were any indication, Agoge 001 was going to test us all…
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