Sunday, April 22, 2001

By Jeremy Kirk, Seoul bureau chief

Jeremy Kirk / Stars and Stripes Lt. Christopher Harris and Capt. Osvaldo Ortiz were on teams that placed in the top 10 of 60 teams in the Bataan Death March Competition at the White Sands Missile Range.

CAMP CASEY — First Lt. Christopher Harris knew from the start his team had a good chance to win a punishing 26-mile desert marathon in New Mexico.

"I thought we had a chance at first," said Harris, a soldier with 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry at Camp Casey. "We ended up beating last year’s winning time by five minutes."

Five hours and 23 minutes after they started, Harris’ 8th Army team placed second in the Bataan Death March Competition on April 1 at the White Sands Missile Range. A team from 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry at Camp Casey placed eighth.

Competing in the "military heavy" category with 60 other teams, the five-soldier teams had to complete a full 26.2-mile marathon with a 35-pound rucksack. Combine that with dry desert heat, a 2,500-foot elevation and a steep mountain climb.

The soldiers went to White Sands five days before the race to adjust to the altitude. Most of South Korea is around sea level.

"The first day, two miles (of running) felt like six miles," said Capt. Osvaldo Ortiz, who was on the 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry team that placed eighth.

"I didn’t know how in the world I was going to run 26 (miles) when I could barely run a few without dying," Harris said.

The night before the race, Ortiz drank about a gallon of Gatorade to hydrate himself. The next day, the soldiers ate fruit and consumed more fluids.

Harris’ rucksack was filled with coins and a flak jacket to make it 35 pounds. Ortiz used weights.

The rules allowed team members to shift weight around during the race. Ortiz said his team shifted some around to lighten some loads. But the entire weight and all team members had to cross the finish line.

It’s nearly impossible to run the entire race with the sack, so team members paced themselves. At first, Harris and his team ran five minutes and walked one minute.

On the five-mile mountain, they ran one minute and walked one minute. Harris’ legs cramped.

"It (the mountain) never leveled out," Harris said. "It went straight up for five miles."

The team to beat was from England. The British team had placed well in past competitions, Harris said. This time, the British placed third, and Harris’ team beat them by 11 minutes.

"We saw them once they ran past us and then we passed them," Harris said. "That was a feeling of satisfaction."

At mile 9, Harris got cramps and eventually a nosebleed. His teammates talked about taking some of his weight. But by mile 13, he said he felt better.

The camaraderie kept Ortiz going. "I think every individual on the team at a certain stage thought ‘To hell with this,’" he said. "You eventually catch your second or third wind."

Harris and his team received medals for second place. The inscription says "The Battling Bastards of Bataan. No mama. No papa. No Uncle Sam."

The competition memorializes the 60-mile march of American and Filipino soldiers through the jungle after their defeat by the Japanese in April 1942. Hundreds died during the journey, which became known as the Bataan Death March.

"The history is what makes the difference," Harris said. "They (the veterans) are just very humble. These guys did one of the most excruciating things and survived and didn’t ask anything for it."

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