By Staff
Annual event draws 14 teams to area
By KEVIN SCOTT CUTLER
Lifestyles &Features Editor
Fourteen JROTC teams from eastern North Carolina high schools, including two in Beaufort County, participated in Drill and Raider competitions Saturday on the Washington High School campus.
Washington and Northside High represented local schools in the annual competition. Air Force and Army JROTC units took part in the day’s events.
During the Raider competition, students were put through their paces during a grueling physical-fitness test. The test was followed by three skill events: first aid, during which teams had to treat and evacuate an injured person; land navigation, during which cadets use a compass to plot points on a map; and rope bridge, during which eight-man teams built and crossed a rope bridge suspended between two trees.
In addition to the Raider events, cadets took part in various Drill competitions. They spin and throw rifles in the weapons category, as well as show off their skills during color-guard and regulation drill events.
Such activities reinforce various qualities obtained through participation in JROTC programs.
One of Tetterton’s favorite activities was the physical training, during which cadets must do two minutes each of push-ups and sit-ups as well as run one mile. He said he was confident that WHS ranked high in that event.
Final results of the JROTC Drill and Raider competitions were not available late Saturday afternoon. They will be announced in an upcoming edition of the Washington Daily News.
Cutline for corresponding photo: Northside High School student Ashley Clayton makes her way along the rope bridge during a JROTC competition Saturday. Assisting her are teammates (from left) Callie Leigh, Will Boyd and Lenny Corbett. (WDN Photo/Kevin Scott Cutler)