ROTC students face desert run

Utah State University cadets will run in the Bataan Memorial Death March marathon Sunday in the desert of New Mexico.

The cadets left Thursday to the White Sands Missile Range.

The marathon takes place in memory of American and Filipino soldiers who were taken as prisoners of war by the Japanese during World War II in Bataan, Philippines.

Maj. Jonathan Kenworthy, professor of military science at USU who will run with the cadets, said the soldiers were forced to march between 60 to 100 miles through the desert over five days. Only the lucky ones were given small amounts of rice, and they were not allowed bathroom breaks or water.

“Anytime they would reach for water or fall out or collapse, they were killed on the spot by their Japanese captors,” Kenworthy said. “It was a horrendous event.”

The ROTC cadets have worked out five days per week since January. They started with five-mile “ruck” marches, which they do with 50-pound backpacks. They progressively lengthened the distance until recently when they started doing two 15-mile ruck marches each week. They also ran stairs in the Dee Glenn Smith Spectrum for an hour at a time, and they would occasionally work out twice a day.

Kenworthy said on Saturday, the cadets will meet two of the survivors from the original march.

“The sacrifice that these cadets have gone through from January to today, physically and emotionally … just to make it to compete, that’s the first part of it,” Kenworthy said. “But the real pay off is meeting that individual, learning about the history and really realizing what they went through: that you did about a third, if not a fourth, of the total distance.”

James Gardiner, a USU army ROTC cadet who raced last year, said doing the marathon and meeting the people who survived the actual march helped him appreciate what they went through.

“You watch movies, and it’s black and white, and you see them kind of walking along and you’re like, ‘Oh, that probably is bad,'” Gardiner said. “This way, you’re kind of like, ‘Wow, this is horrible, and nobody’s trying to kill me. I just showed up here because I wanted to.'”

Kenworthy said this year, the cadets will run it as individuals, which is different from previous years, when they chose to go as a team. He said they decided to do this because people perform at different rates.

“What we found is that — like any chain — you’re as good as your weakest link,” Kenworthy said. “There were individuals who could have gone faster and competed at a higher level.”

Tanner Smart, USU army ROTC cadet and team captain for the march, said last year when they went as a team, one person got hurt, and everyone had to stay with him.

“You can get really, really bored doing 26 miles at a day by yourself,” Smart said. “But at the same time, it’s nice to kind of be … individuals so if somebody does get hurt, you can keep going.”

Kenworthy said this does not mean the cadets will leave anyone behind in the race. Those who finish will drop their backpacks and go back to help other people finish. He said they also make sure everyone gets to the end of their regularly-scheduled morning runs.

“That gives you an opportunity to stretch yourself and be your own personal best,” Kenworthy said. “And it also gives you an understanding that we don’t just leave and pack our bags and go home, get in our car and go to our class.”

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