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FORT CARSON, Colo. — Candidates exercise together Oct. 13, 2021, during the Best Sapper Competition held at Fort Carson. Each team consisted of two Soldiers — for a total of 10 teams —who worked together throughout the competition. (Photo by Spc. Scyrrus Corregidor)
By Sgt. Kelsey Simmons
4th Infantry Division Public Affairs Office
FORT CARSON, Colo. — Twenty Soldiers competed in the 36th Engineer Brigade’s Best Sapper Competition from Oct. 12-15, 2021, at Fort Carson.
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FORT CARSON, Colo. — A Best Sapper Competition candidate rappels down a wall Oct. 13, 2021, at Fort Carson. Competitors endured various challenges throughout the four-day competition. (Photo by Pfc. Brenda Salgado)
Soldiers from various installations across the nation made up 10, two-man teams to participate in the four-day competition hosted by the 4th Engineer Battalion, 36th Eng. Bde.
“Best Sapper is about teamwork,” said Col. Anthony Barbina, commander, 36th Eng. Bde. “In the Army, engineers and sappers never do anything alone.”
The competition was designed to challenge the participants physically and mentally, as well as test their tactical proficiency.
“It’s about forming teams and building bonds so we can fight and win our nation’s wars,” Barbina said. “The bond they’ve formed over the last four days is one I hope they’ll keep for the rest of their lives.”
The first day of the competition consisted of a welcome brief and the first event — a demolition test. The second day was comprised of the Army Combat Fitness Test, a round robin challenge and a night land navigation event. On day three, the Soldiers had to complete a poncho raft construction test, swimming challenge, sapper stakes and a 12-mile ruck march. The fourth and final day was filled with a multi-mile run with various events, such as uphill sandbag carries, tire flips, sled drags and more.
Following the final event, competitors ran into their battalion area, where the ceremony announcing the winners was held.
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FORT CARSON, Colo. — A Best Sapper Competition candidate rappels down a rock wall Oct. 13, 2021, at Fort Carson. (Photo by Pfc. Brenda Salgado)
Breathless, sweaty and tired, Capt. Zachary Beavor and 1st Lt. David Sadvary, with Fort Carson’s 4th Engineer Battalion, were announced as the winners of the Best Sapper Competition.
“We’re feeling pretty good,” said Sadvary. “We’re happy to be done, happy to get after it and happy to win for our battalion and our home turf.”
Following this competition, Beavor and Sadvary will be competing alongside other sapper teams in the Lt. Gen. Robert Flowers Best Sapper Competition held at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. The competition will challenge the Army’s best sapper teams in a demanding, continuous and realistic simulated operational environment. The victorious team will claim the title as the Army’s best sapper team for 2022.
“We’re really proud to represent the Vanguard,” Beavor said. “We’re coming to win it.”
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FORT CARSON, Colo. — A candidate performs a demolition test during the Best Sapper Competition Oct. 13, 2021, at Fort Carson. Twenty Soldiers competed in the 36th Engineer Brigade’s competition from Oct. 12-15, 2021, where the competitors were tested on various subjects, such as sapper knowledge and physical fitness. (Photo by Pfc. Brenda Salgado)