JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-RANDOLPH, Texas –
Five active-duty members and two civilians from Air Education and Training Command's Computer Systems Squadron at Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph joined 5,800 contestants in the 24th annual Bataan Memorial Death March at White Sands Missile Range, N.M., March 17.
The course honors the thousands of American and Filipino soldiers surrendered to Japanese forces after the Battle of Bataan in 1942, who were forced to march more than 60 miles with little to no food while being tortured along the way.
The Randolph participants - Lt. Col. Robert Bonner, 1st Lt. Michael Fitisemanu, Chief Master Sgt. Thomas Pfeffer, Master Sgt. Lynn Mortimer, Tech. Sgt. Joseph Trevino, Enrique Garcia and Don Wright - entered the marathon portion.
The 26.2-mile stretch peppered with asphalt, gravel, rocks and sand "was one of the most challenging events physically and mentally undertaken by any of us," Fitisemanu said.
Each member also opted to compete in the "heavy" category, requiring him to carry a ruck sack weighing at least 35 pounds, with active-duty members in full airman battle uniforms.
"If we were going to do this, I wanted it to be a significant challenge," Bonner said, who was the only member to compete in the memorial march once before.
Bonner brought up the idea of participating in the marathon to his squadron in October, and by November he assembled a group that met for practice sessions, mostly to build foot callouses, whenever they could find time.
Twenty-five percent of people who participate in the memorial march every year do not finish, but attrition rates for military members in the heavy category March 17 were estimated at 40 percent, Pfeffer said.
With an altitude range from 4,100 to 5,300 feet, "just breathing was something we had to get used to," Fitisemanu said.
Weather conditions included 35-mph winds and occasional gusts surpassing 40 mph spraying dust and sand, affecting the members' ability to see.
The CSS team started the marathon together, but dissipated when they reached their fifth mile.
With each passing mile, contestants fell out by the dozen, Bonner said.
"At mile 14, there were stretchers, tents and people laid out everywhere," Pfeffer said. "I felt like I was walking on a waterbed at that point. There's not a bruise I didn't have."
The marathon was as psychologically straining as it was physically battering, he said.
"There was a mental aspect I wasn't ready for," Wright said.
"It's not meant as a fun run at all, it's tough," Trevino said.
For Fitisemanu, the memorial march was punishing for a reason.
"It was not enjoyable, I hated it, but it has to be that way for people to understand why they're there," he said.
Twelve Bataan Death March survivors attended March 17.
Survivor Ben Skardon, age 95, walked eight miles at the event, a White Sands Missile Range public affairs official said.
"It was a galvanizing experience to see all the military and civilians show their support and listen to the survivors' stories," Bonner said.