Spc. Matt Corser of the 172nd Separate Infantry Brigade tries on an bomb suit March 31, 2012, during an event sponsored by the 702nd EOD in Grafenwoehr, Germany. As part of the event, two soldiers from the unit apparently set new world records for a one-mile run in a bomb suit, and are now waiting for the results to be certified. (Steven Beardsley/Stars and Stripes)
Spc. Matt Corser of the 172nd Separate Infantry Brigade tries on an bomb suit March 31, 2012, during an event sponsored by the 702nd EOD in Grafenwoehr, Germany. As part of the event, two soldiers from the unit apparently set new world records for a one-mile run in a bomb suit, and are now waiting for the results to be certified. (Steven Beardsley/Stars and Stripes)
Noah Lopez, 7, plays with a rope and pulley during a March 31, 2012, event sponsored by the 702nd EOD in Grafenwoehr, Germany. Two soldiers in the unit apparently set new world records for a one-mile run in a bomb suit as part of the event. They are waiting for the results to be certified. (Steven Beardsley/Stars and Stripes)
Sgt. 1st Class Eric Johnson of the 702nd EOD in Grafenwoehr, Germany, prepares for his attempt March 31, 2012, to break the world record for running one mile in a bomb suit. Johnson would record a time of 8 minutes, 5 seconds, which is faster than the current record held by the World Records Academy, a time of 8:42 set by Johnson himself in 2010. It also appears to be the fastest time within the EOD community, Johnson said, besting a time of 8:30 the Navy said an ensign achieved earlier this year. (Steven Beardsley/Stars and Stripes)
Army Sgt. 1st Class Eric Johnson of the 702nd Explosive Ordnance Detachment in Grafenwoehr, Germany, is joined Saturday by supporters as he nears the finish line in his effort to break the record for a one-mile run in a bomb suit. His time of 8 minutes, 5 seconds on March 31, 2012, which still must be certified, eclipsed the current record held by the World Records Academy, a time of 8:42 set by Johnson himself in 2010. It also appears to be the fastest time within the EOD community, Johnson said, besting a time of 8:30 the Navy said an ensign achieved earlier this year. (Steven Beardsley/Stars and Stripes)
Sgt. 1st Class Eric Johnson of the 702nd EOD in Grafenwoehr, Germany, rests after finishing his bid to break the world record for a one-mile run in a bomb suit as recognized by the World Records Academy. His time of 8 minutes, 5 seconds on March 31, 2012, WHICH STILL HAS TO BE CERTIFIED, eclipses the Academy’s previous record of 8:42, set by Johnson himself in 2010. It also appears to be the fastest time within the EOD community, Johnson said, besting a time of 8:30 the Navy said was achieved by an ensign earlier this year. (Steven Beardsley/Stars and Stripes)
Army Sgt. Stephanie Beachley of the 702nd EOD suits up for her attempt to set a world record for women for a one-mile run in a bomb suit on March 31, 2012, in Grafenwoehr, Germany. Beachley would finish with a time of 13 minutes, 14 seconds, which she expects to be recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records. (Steven Beardsley/Stars and Stripes)
Sgt. Stephanie Beachley of the 702nd EOD suits up for her attempt to set a world record for a one-mile run in a bomb suit on March 31, 2012, in Grafenwoehr, Germany. Beachley would later finish with a time of 13 minutes, 14 seconds, which she expects to be recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records. (Steven Beardsley/Stars and Stripes)
Sgt. Stephanie Beachley of the 702nd EOD attempts to set a world record for women for a one-mile run in a bomb suit. On March 31, 2012, she jogged four laps around the Grafenwoehr track. Beachley will submit her time of 13 minutes, 14 seconds to the Guinness Book of World Records. (Steven Beardsley/Stars and Stripes)
Sgt. Stephanie Beachley of the 702nd EOD is joined by supporters on the final lap of her attempt to set a world record for a one-mile run in a bomb suit at the Grafenwoehr track on March 31, 2012. Beachley will submit her time of 13 minutes, 14 seconds, to the Guinness Book of World Records. (Steven Beardsley/Stars and Stripes)
GRAFENWÖHR, Germany — It’s rarely a good sign when a soldier in an 80-pound bomb disposal suit starts running.
Saturday it was a sight met with cheers and encouragement, as two members of the 702nd Explosive Ordnance Disposal Company attempted record-setting runs in the cumbersome suits, part of a fund-raiser for two charities associated with the unit.
Sgt. First Class Eric Johnson set a tentative best for the World Record Academy, needing 8 minutes, 5 seconds, to cover a one-mile loop outside the Grafenwöhr gymnasium on Saturday morning.
Minutes later, Sgt. Stephanie Beachley appeared to mint the first women’s record for a one-mile run in a bomb suit, hoping to get into the Guinness Book of World Records with a 13 minute, 14 second run around the track. Both attempts still need to be certified by the respective organizations.
Neither effort came easily.
“I just kept telling my legs to go, and they were like, ‘Nah, I don’t think so,’” Johnson said later.
The record attempts anchored fund-raisers for the Wounded EOD Warrior Foundation, a national charity that offers financial relief to families of injured EOD technicians military-wide, and the EOD Memorial Foundation, a non-profit that memorializes slain EOD troops.
“They’re great foundations and it’s held close to our heart because it’s our job and we want other people to know about it,” Beachley said.
Beachley and Johnson said they also wanted to draw attention to the role of the 702nd, scheduled to deploy to Afghanistan later this year. Equipment sat on display at the event, including several robots used to remotely detonate suspicious objects.
Boy Scouts asked for donations for the charities, and the unit’s Family Readiness Group raised money for their organization through a bake sale.
The biggest attractions were the record attempts. Bomb suit runs became popular around 2009, Johnson said, after a deployed EOD technician in Iraq, Lt. Jonathan Kehoe, set a world record as part of a fund-raiser. Others soon sought to beat it.
Johnson set his first record in 2010, when he needed 8 minutes, 42 seconds, to run a mile around the post exchange. This time, he needed to beat a record of 8 minutes, 30 seconds, set by Ensign Daniel Glenn on Feb. 28 on Eglin Air Force Base in Florida, according to a Navy news release, which said that time was being submitted to the Guinness Book of World Records.
Beachley needed to come under 20 minutes, an easier task given her practice best of about 12 minutes.
Both soldiers practiced for weeks before the current attempts, they said, adjusting to the suit’s weight and trimming their times. While the suit isn’t as awkward as it appears, its weight of about 80 pounds is substantial.
“You get winded really, really fast,” Johnson said. “A quarter-mile in, you’re just sitting wondering why you’re doing it in the first place.”
Saturday, even Johnson was surprised at how fast he finished. He thought he started too quickly, and he feared wearing himself out early.
Strong winds proved an annoyance as Beachley made her laps around the track, she said. As fatigue set in, her pace slowed to a shuffle. Members of the small crowd watching then joined her for the final lap, jogging alongside to the finish.
“It was tiring, but it feels great to get out there and actually accomplish something that’s tough to do,” Beachley said. She wants to try it again, she said, in hopes of lowering her time.
She’ll need to set aside practice time — running is rarely required in day-to-day EOD work, she said.
“If I’m ever actually running in a bomb suit, something is wrong.”
The captions on some of the photos have been corrected to clarify that the run time achieved earlier this year by an ensign that Johnson was hoping to beat had not been recognized by the World Records Academy.
