The JROTC Raider team competed at their annual competition March 25 at Slippery Rock University.

After six months of waking up at 5 a.m. every Monday and Wednesday, plus Fridays after school, the Raiders were ready to show the other teams, especially Butler their biggest competition, what they were made of.

The bus left at 7 a.m. for the Slippery Rock ski lodge, and the competition began at 9 a.m. with the opening ceremony.

For the Raider competition there are five events in which eight team members of the ten A team members must compete.

Beaver Area only competes in the mixed division which means that in every event there must be at least two female competitors.

“It takes a lot of hard work to compete. The competition was very fun and grueling. I ate a lot of Twinkies after I was done,” freshman Kurt Summerville said.

The first event was the PT test which is a test of how many push-ups and sit-ups a Raider can complete. This event doesn’t go towards the score but goes towards the iron man and woman award at the end of the competition.

Next for the Bobcats was the 3K run which the Beaver Area Raiders dominated. They won this event with the next team having a time two minutes slower—and the Bobcats even passed Albert Gallatin’s which had a three-minute head start!

The Gauntlet, which is a one mile run up a ski slope with weighted backpacks and back down a wooded trail followed the 3K for the Bobcats. Sadly, Beaver Area lost this event by a mere eight seconds to Butler.

“[Raiders is] super fun, and I encourage everyone,” freshman Caleb Kullen explained about his role as the favorite team motivator.

Next there was the One-Rope or Rope Bridge event. Despite practicing for weeks on this event the Bobcats received third place to Albert Gallatin and the event winners, Connellsville.

Fifth for the competition was the Cross Country Rescue (CCR) which is a first aid demonstration, a climb over an eight foot wall, and then a mile run with a stretcher and backpacks. Beaver Area lost to Butler in this event due to equipment malfunctions and injuries among the team.

However, freshman Seth Kullen still said, “I thought it was a challenge and it was a fun experience along the way.”

Finally, the Bobcats had the Obstacle Course and they knew that they had to win this event for even a chance at winning the competition. This event is competed by four teams of two. Beaver Area ended up having the fastest time by a mere five seconds showing Butler that they were not out of the running for the title yet.

This event win meant that Beaver Area and Butler were tied for first place with both teams having two wins.

The tie breaker was the PT test scores.

Butler had higher PT test scores than Beaver Area and cemented their win for the third year in a row.

Team captain junior Klayton Kaunert explained that “It’s very upsetting to see us come in first place but ultimately still lose. I’m very proud of my team, but I’m really bummed out. I’m not going to lose again.”

In the end, Beaver Area took second overall and sophomore Ava Sutter took home the Iron Woman award.