Specialist Kevin Gross appeared to be in deep thought as he stood behind a shed located on Range 111. On the other side of the shed another competitor fired an M249 SAW (squad assault weapon) at targets down range.

"I have to stand here; I can't look to see what is going on on the range," Gross yelled, as he put on his eye protection and inserted his hearing protection. "The rules in this competition are strict, and I have to know exactly what I'm doing."

Since 2005, the Washington Army National Guard has provided its soldiers the opportunity to compete in last week's multi-day challenge known as the Best Warrior Competition.

"This competition has pushed me more than anything in my life. It's been hell," commented Sgt. Kevin Chambers. "But this competition serves to determine who is the best warrior in the Guard."

Besides Gross and Chambers, the other competitors were Pfc. Nicholas Pannoni, Spc. Alexander Hartley, Spc. Arbogaste Twizere, and Spc. Robert Levy. From a pool of potential competitors, they were selected by their major subordinate commands and submitted to the state Command Sergeant Major for approval to participate.

During the four-day competition that began last Thursday and ended on Sunday, the six soldiers were scored on a physical fitness test, oral boards, a written essay, a 12-mile road march with 65 pounds of gear, weapons familiarization with the MK-19 grenade launcher and the .50-caliber machine gun, day-and-night land navigation, an obstacle course, and tactical combat casualty care lanes.

Then there was the stress shoot comprised of four different weapons fired from five different stations and a lot of exercise in between shootings.

"Specialist Gross, you're next up!" someone from the front of the shed yelled.

He ran over to the firing line; he presented himself to a non-commissioned officer; he received a detailed set of instructions.

The timed event required Gross to properly and safely use his M4 rifle, a 12-gauge shotgun, an M249 SAW and an M240B machine gun from various shooting points and positions and to hit targets at various distances.

Between every shooting station, Gross would run to the next firing point and be told to do exercises to include burpees, a low crawl, push-ups and a 180-pound skedko (a medical sled) drag.

From start to finish, Gross was in a constant state of scrutiny from the judges.  When not shooting, he was doing exercises.  He soon was covered with dirt and sweat.

"I think I did pretty well," Gross gasped 20 minutes later when he finished and walked to the back of the shed. "It is one tough stress shoot, that's for sure."

At the end of the competition, Chambers and Hartley emerged as the winners. They will next compete in the Guard's regional competition in North Dakota next May.