MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. -- Seven teams from Camp Pendleton’s School of Infantry – West came together to compete man-to-man, section-to-section in a seven mile race known as the “Axe Challenge,” April 1. The trophy? Bragging rights for the next quarter along with the coveted "Axe" award, a three-foot long battle axe.
The event began with teams carrying a fellow Marine within their five-to-seven-man team on a stretcher followed by the assembly and disassembly of a 240G machine gun, a combat memory game and a call-for-emergency support.
“Events like this really boost morale...It’s about the challenge, that inner-unit competition,” said Lt. Col. David Edson, battalion commander, Headquarters and Support Battalion, SOI-W. “It’s really hard to develop a sense of unit identity. Being at headquarters, we’re all going in different directions trying to support the School of Infantry and this is one of the events I am trying to sustain to combat that. “
The timed event lasted more than two hours and included nearly 60 Marines.
“It’s a motivational piece and gives all the sections within the battalion a chance to show off their battle axe and basically have the bragging rights to say they’re the best,“ said Master Sgt. Leopoldo Lechuga, motor transportation chief, SOI –W.
Seven miles of running the hills of Camp Horno, Camp Pendleton can easily test even the most hardcore of Marines.
“The men look back on the obstacles they’ve overcome and are surprised by abilities they didn’t think they had,” said Sgt. Steven Davis, a member of the winning team, motor transportation squad leader, Headquarters and Support Battalion, SOI - W. “More importantly is the unit cohesion amongst the teams.“
Events like the Axe Challenge show Davis what his Marines are truly made of outside of an office setting, and evoke the true warrior ethos between peers.
“These are guys that may work in the same shop but are not always working side-by-side,” Davis said. “So they get put on a team like this and by the end they become a pretty tight-knit group.”
Davis said he uses the axe challenge to build camaraderie within his unit.
“I think the exposure to an event like this is really essential to showing display of esprit de corps and what the Marine Corps is all about,” Davis said. “[The Marine Corps] is about taking individuals from all walks of life, giving them a common starting point and putting them on a mission that may be challenging but with their peers, they can overcome.”
Although motor transportation went home with the prize this round, next quarter will bring a new victor and a new chance at earning the battle axe along with the bragging rights that come with it.