WASHINGTON (EETV)- A group of 8 cadets from Auburn University's Army ROTC program traveled to Washington, DC to compete in the national Army Ten-Miler race on October 7.
The Army Ten-Miler is an annual event that started in 1985 and attracts over 400,000 civilian and military runners every year. The ten-mile course explores the terrain and sights around the city, running by museums, memorials, and government buildings.
The first to finish from the Auburn team was sophomore Joel Burke, who completed the ten-mile route in 1:17:11.
Coming in right behind Burke was team captain, senior Cody Bristol, at 1:19:06. According to Bristol, "this was Auburn's very first time sending a team, so we were really excited to send our cadets and engage them with what the Army actually is and the spirit that it encompasses."
Bristol expressed his pride for his team and their accomplishments, stating that "doing things that challenge you... makes you a better person, and there is nothing more humbling than running pretty far, so at the end of the day I think we accomplished the mission. Each cadet found their limit or exceeded it and found a new limit, which was exciting."
All runners from the Auburn team completed the ten-mile course in under 2 hours.
As well as the race, there was an Army Ten-Miler Expo in which visitors had the opportunity to explore different military career opportunities and network with military personnel in their fields of interest.
In addition to accomplishing goals, Bristol said the event allowed the cadets to "see what the Army is all about" and interact with "several very, very high ranking officers and non-commissioned officers who were overly excited to see young cadets just like us that were out there getting after it, that we're excited to be in a military career, so it was very fulfilling just to have the recognition of older officers that were very excited to see the next generation coming up."
Bristol expressed intentions to make this trip a tradition and send a team from Auburn's Army ROTC program every year.
