BY ERIC STEINKOPFF
EXTREME OUTFITTERS STAFF

CHARLESTON, S.C. – A cool breeze wafted across the nervous participants gathering at The Citadel Saturday morning for the 15th Annual Bulldog Challenge, a race designed to test the mental and physical toughness of competitors from all walks of life, along a course of roughly six miles over obstacles and challenges along the way.

Under a cloudless blue sky as some old-timers told stories of races past – each time becoming faster and previous competitions more grueling with each retelling. Other less-experienced participants made nervous small talk to fill the time in the hope of alleviating the anxiety caused by their pre-race jitters.

The event was established by The Citadel Chapter of the Semper Fidelis Society to raise money for the Captain Warren A. Frank Memorial Leadership Fund and Extreme Outfitters of Jacksonville, North Carolina was there again this year.

“With the fund we hope to provide leadership development opportunities for students at The Citadel,” Marine officer instructor Capt. Shawn A. Rickrode said. “We would not be able to do this without the help of our wonderful sponsors, like Extreme Outfitters. Through their participation and generosity we are able to put on a first class event that has grown year after year.”

Capt. Frank was a 2004 Citadel graduate who was killed in Baij, Iraq in 2008 and his father was present on race day to help begin the event that included a Marine Corps obstacle course, stadium run, fireman’s carry, a grenade toss, a 300-meter swim & crawl through coastal marsh and mud, a stretcher carry up several levels of a parking garage; all while carrying three 30-lb sand bags.

This means the participants must work together in teams of four to be successful.

“This year’s event was the largest ever, as we saw nearly 700 competitors from all around the country, ranging from ages 18 to 53,” Rickrode said. “We welcomed doctors, nurses, accountants, teachers, firefighters and policemen, retirees, students and active duty military to The Citadel campus in Charleston, South Carolina to participate in this grueling event.”

Competitors traveled to Charleston from 29 different states including Texas, Louisiana, Florida, Virginia, Ohio, New York, Vermont and Maine, California and Washington State. Maybe it was the distance that made some athletes take the competition very seriously, getting in their own zone, chanting or repeating a mantra of loyalty to brave heroes past.

Immediately prior to the staggered start, some of the dedicated teams scuffed their shoes back and forth into the ground like thoroughbred stallions snorting and pawing at the dirt before the Kentucky Derby. But the many military units fielded teams to compete for annual bragging rights they would tout at every opportunity until the next year’s competition.

This year’s winner was a Charleston, South Carolina hometown group of Citadel Marines who finished in a blistering pace of an hour and seven minutes.

Still some, determined to enjoy the experience, were less concerned about the outcome, but more concerned with the journey; so they wore silly costumes and joked to relieve their nervous tension.

The longest time recorded was over three hours and the average was just over two hours.

Organizers were able to donate about $15,000 to the Captain Warren A. Frank Memorial Leadership Fund. “This year was a banner year for the Bulldog Challenge,” Rickrode said. “The money raised will help us to develop the country’s future leaders. The Semper Fidelis Society believes in selfless service and has put in thousands of hours of work to help put on this event.”

Extreme Outfitters of Jacksonville, North Carolina and their new showroom in Columbus, Georgia, donated hundreds of gifts and prizes to participants that included promotional T-shirts, Oakley eyewear, Jetboil cook wear, Blackhawk backpacks, Granite Gear pouches, EoTech hydration carriers, Columbia River knives, Streamlight flashlights and High Gear watches with a retail value well over $10,000.

For more information visit www.tacticaledge.com or call 910-355-2118 or 706-685-3311.

Special thanks to our friends at Extreme Outfitters for providing this report to us. It sounds like it was a great day!

Tags: Extreme Outfitters

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