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Ready for Rodeo: JB MDL teams prepare for competition

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Bekah Phy
  • 87th Air Base Wing public affairs
JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST --  More than 130 Airmen from JB MDL are preparing to head to McChord Air Force Base, Wash., July 18 for Rodeo 2009 -- Air Mobility Command's premiere mobility competition. 

The international competition focuses on improving worldwide air mobility forces' professional core abilities and features more than 40 aircraft participating in airdrops, aerial refueling and other aerial events. McGuire's C-17s and KC-10s will be featured during the competition. 

"The 305th and 514th Air Mobility Wings will provide C-17 and KC-10 aircrew and maintenance teams and an aerial port team, and the 87th Air Base Wing will provide a security forces team," said Maj. Neil Thomas, 305th Operations Group C-17 chief and JB MDL Rodeo team lead. "The 621st Contingency Response Wing is sending a team to compete in a variety of unique events and members of the 57th Weapons Squadron will be testing their skills as well." 

In addition to competitors, 10 specialists from various fields at JB MDL have been selected as umpires in this year's competition. 

The JB MDL teams will compete against more than 100 teams and 2,500 people from the Air Force, Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard, as well as 25 international partners. 

The week-long competition, from July 19 to 24, will showcase the hard work and training JB MDL Airmen have endured during the last few months. 

"Competing teams began practicing in May -- regulations prohibit practice any earlier than that. All of our teams are focused on the core skills required for the competition and the honing of those abilities," Major Thomas said.

"The aircrews have accomplished their full competition profiles over and over, at least once a week. Maintenance teams have been training for their events while polishing even the smallest imperfections of the two selected aircraft up to the highest possible standard," he said. "The aerial port events mix the need for concentration and attention to detail with grueling physical demands. Likewise, the security forces team has been training to the highest levels of precision, fitness, and combat skills, especially with the addition of a new marksmanship event at this year's Rodeo."

The ultimate goal of the competition is to develop and improve techniques and procedures that enhance air mobility operations around the world.

"Rodeo is about camaraderie -- training to the highest standard possible and testing our skills," Major Thomas said. "But the real foundation of its purpose is to improve procedures, compare notes, enhance standardization and learn from our international partners. Only the best win at Rodeo. The skills and methods demonstrated there by the winners are quickly taken back home by all participants. I fully expect that many bases will be doing lots of things the 'McGuire way' after Rodeo 2009."