USARAK teams make good showing at Army Ten-Miler

by Mary M. Rall
U.S. Army Alaska Public

10/20/2014 - JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska -- U.S. Army Alaska fielded its most diverse Army Ten-Miler teams Oct. 12 in Washington, D.C., and is setting its sights on even more variety in the future with one goal in mind - to win.

The 13 competitors who represented USARAK on the command's men's and mixed teams included males and females who ranged in age from 20 to 40, from private first class to lieutenant colonel and included Army, Air Force and Army National Guard service members.

Team members came from Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson and Fort Wainwright, said Army Maj. Brian Mayer, the team's officer-in-charge and signal officer for JBER's 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division.

"It's just representative of how we train every day," Mayer said, noting the Army and Air Force will combine efforts to form running clubs at JBER and Fort Wainwright in preparation for the Oct. 11, 2015, Army Ten-Miler.

"Next year's team starts today," he said.

The pursuit of forming the most competitive teams possible will begin by examining Army and Air Force physical fitness test results from JBER, Fort Wainwright and Eielson Air Force Base.

Leaders will identify runners capable of running a seven-minute mile, who have strong health and wellness standards and who won't be separating from the military or experiencing a permanent change of station before Oct. 30, 2015.

"We're looking for people who can run a 70-minute ten-miler or better," said Mayer, who ran his third Army Ten-Miler for USARAK this year and has competed in four overall.

The Oct. 12 event was a first for Pfc. Chelsea Scheuerman, though.
The immunization technician with Medical Department Activity-Alaska on JBER said she had little doubt she would make the team when she ran the qualifier in May.
"There weren't very many females there, and I felt I could run fast enough to make it," Scheuerman said.

The 20-year-old said she sees competition coming, though.

Increased participation in the qualifiers by the Air Force and the forming of running clubs will create a larger pool of athletes to compete against in the future -which may make qualifying for the 2015 event more of a challenge.

"I'm going to have to train a lot harder before the qualifier, rather than after to make the team.

"Hopefully, it will make me a better runner," Scheuerman said. "It's so much easier to run with other people. I have a really hard time running by myself. I'd run much faster if I had a team."

Air Force Maj. Ronald Oliver, the Detachment 1, 3rd Air Support Operations Squadron commander from Fort Wainwright, was the first-ever Airman to compete on a USARAK Army Ten-Miler team.

He said he participated in the 2014 qualifier for the fun of it, never imagining he would make the team.

"I like to run, and it was an area run on Fort Wainwright," Oliver said.

He noted training with Fort Wainwright Soldiers positively impacted his performance at the race in the capital.

"I cut a little over two minutes from my qualifier time," he said.

It's those kind of results USARAK Commander Maj. Gen. Michael Shields said he wants to see as the command looks toward developing its 2015 teams.

"I encouraged them to start the running clubs now," Shields said, stressing a joint team will make service members more competitive and will help them perform better.

"It's great we're opening up the aperture and making it a joint team. That's the way it should be."
The examination of physical fitness test running times will begin next month, Mayer said.

Invitations to participate in and train with the clubs will be sent through chains of command at all three installations.

Both clubs will start in January and will include a 13-week training plan to help competitors prepare for the May qualifiers.

According to Mayer, it's impossible to foresee the capabilities of every service member who may participate in the qualifiers, which means training with the clubs won't ensure anyone will make the 2015 teams.

The teams will be composed of runners with the 10 to 14 fastest combined times from the qualifiers, Mayer said. He predicts the formation of the running clubs will visibly impact speed and participation.

"I anticipate next year's team will be phenomenal - probably the best in 10 years," Mayer said.