{"id":171933,"date":"2024-05-08T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-05-08T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=171933"},"modified":"2024-05-09T07:41:56","modified_gmt":"2024-05-09T07:41:56","slug":"new-hampshire-army-national-guard-hosts-norwegian-foot-march","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=171933","title":{"rendered":"New Hampshire Army National Guard Hosts Norwegian Foot March"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n Sgt. 1st Class Rick Frost, 195th Regional Training Institute, New Hampshire Army National Guard, dashes from the starting point of a Norwegian Foot March May 4, 2024, in Concord, New Hampshire. Of 61 competitors, Frost was one of 39 to successfully complete the 18.6-mile event in time allotments that varied by competitor age and gender. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Master Sgt. Charles Johnston)
\n (Photo Credit: Master Sgt. Charles Johnston)<\/span>
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\n VIEW ORIGINAL<\/a>
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CONCORD, N.H. – Sixty-one New Hampshire Guardsmen braved the Scandinavian crucible known as the Norwegian Foot March May 4 in Concord.<\/p>\n

Soldiers and Airmen clad in camouflage, combat boots and 25-pound packs navigated a timed 18.6-mile course around the state military reservation for a chance to earn a foreign military badge.<\/p>\n

Thirty-nine competitors emerged victorious. Of the 22 who did not qualify in the allotted time, 14 failed to finish.<\/p>\n

The origins of the march, known as the Marsjmerket, dates to 1915 when the Norwegian military used it to gauge combat readiness. Guard organizers coordinated the event through the Consulate of Norway in Boston to adhere to traditional rules and guidelines.<\/p>\n

Participants earn a bronze badge for completing their first march, silver for a second time and gold if they successfully finish five marches.<\/p>\n

Besides the allure of a shiny new uniform bauble, competitor motivations varied. Sgt. 1st Class Rick Frost of the 195th Regional Training Institute was looking for a new challenge.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want to do something that I\u2019ve never done before,\u201d said the 53-year-old as he adjusted gear, packed snacks, and drank water near the starting line. \u201cI\u2019m not trying to compete. I like these types of events where it\u2019s just you against you. My goal is to try to finish. I\u2019m not trying to hack with the younger Soldiers.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of those youngsters was Pfc. Xavier Glidden of Bravo Battery, 197th Field Artillery Brigade.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just want to challenge myself, push myself and see what I can do,\u201d Glidden said. \u201cAnd honestly, I like rucking.\u201d<\/p>\n

Maj. Heath Huffman of the 157th Air Refueling Wing was enticed to compete by the joint Army-Air nature of the contest. An accomplished marathoner and biathlete, he finished first with a time of just under three and a half hours.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a beautiful day,\u201d Huffman said after crossing the finish. \u201cSmooth sailing.\u201d<\/p>\n

But many encountered troubled waters along the 30-kilometer course. They endured blisters, pain and dehydration, resulting in a 36% competitor attrition.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt wasn\u2019t bad until about halfway through the third lap,\u201d said 1st Sgt. Kenneth Boff of Joint Force Headquarters. \u201cThe last two or three miles, really good cramping going on. I dehydrated and stopped sweating.\u201d<\/p>\n

Frost battled sore calves and hip flexors.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a little bit harder than I thought it was going to be, that\u2019s for sure,\u201d Frost said.<\/p>\n

The 2024 finishers are as follows:<\/p>\n

New Hampshire Air National Guard<\/p>\n

Maj. Heath Huffman, 157th Air Refueling Wing (1st place)<\/p>\n

Senior Master Sgt. Timm Huffman, 157th Air Refueling Wing<\/p>\n

Master Sgt. Charles Johnston, Joint Force Headquarters<\/p>\n

New Hampshire Army National Guard<\/p>\n

Spc. Andrew Blanchard, 197th Field Artillery Brigade<\/p>\n

Master Sgt. Kenneth Boff, Joint Force Headquarters<\/p>\n

Sgt. Jared Booth, 54th Troop Command<\/p>\n

Spc. Christopher Brown, 197th Field Artillery Brigade<\/p>\n

Maj. Robert Burnham, Joint Force Headquarters<\/p>\n

Spc. Alexander Cancelada, 54th Troop Command<\/p>\n

Spc. Chase Cotnoir, 54th Troop Command<\/p>\n

Sgt. 1st Class David Day, 54th Troop Command<\/p>\n

Spc. Jillian Douzanis, 54th Troop Command<\/p>\n

Sgt. Cordell Drabble, 197th Field Artillery Brigade<\/p>\n

Spc. Patrick Elder, 54th Troop Command<\/p>\n

Sgt. 1st Class Rick Frost, 54th Troop Command<\/p>\n

Sgt. Ryan Gray, 197th Field Artillery Brigade<\/p>\n

Capt. Brent Hallenbeck, Medical Detachment<\/p>\n

Sgt. Erik Hauck, 197th Field Artillery Brigade<\/p>\n

Cadet Cyrus Hull, 54th Troop Command<\/p>\n

Spc. Tristan Mayville, 54th Troop Command<\/p>\n

Maj. Gen. David Mikolaities , Joint Force Headquarters<\/p>\n

Staff Sgt. Kevin Miller, 54th Troop Command<\/p>\n

Staff Sgt. Nathan Monroe, Recruiting and Retention Battalion<\/p>\n

Pfc. Jacob Morris, 54th Troop Command<\/p>\n

Spc. Christian Nepa, 54th Troop Command<\/p>\n

Staff Sgt. Brendon Norton, 54th Troop Command<\/p>\n

Sgt. Patrick Ogarr, 197th Field Artillery Brigade<\/p>\n

Master Sgt. Rachel Robak, 54th Troop Command<\/p>\n

Lt. Col. Joshua Roberts, Joint Force Headquarters<\/p>\n

Staff Sgt. Stephen Rondeau, 197th Field Artillery Brigade<\/p>\n

Capt. Harrison Schwartzman, Joint Force Headquarters<\/p>\n

Pfc. Stephen St. Laurent, 54th Troop Command<\/p>\n

Sgt. Stephen Tewksbury, 197th Field Artillery Brigade<\/p>\n

Sgt. Nicholas Theberge, 197th Field Artillery Brigade<\/p>\n

Pfc. Decian Ulricson, Recruiting and Retention Battalion (3rd place)<\/p>\n

1st Lt. Christian Urrutia, Joint Force Headquarters (2nd place)<\/p>\n

Capt. Miguel Velez, Medical Detachment<\/p>\n

Pfc. Huynh Vo, 54th Troop Command<\/p>\n

Sgt. Tyler Whiting, 197th Field Artillery Brigade<\/p>\n

For more National Guard news<\/a><\/p>\n

National Guard Facebook<\/a><\/p>\n

National Guard X<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Sgt. 1st Class Rick Frost, 195th Regional Training Institute, New Hampshire Army National Guard, dashes from the starting point of a Norwegian Foot March May 4, 2024, in Concord, New Hampshire. Of 61 competitors, Frost was one of 39 to successfully complete the 18.6-mile event in time allotments that varied by competitor age and gender. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":171935,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-171933","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/171933","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=171933"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/171933\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":171936,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/171933\/revisions\/171936"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/171935"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=171933"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=171933"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=171933"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}