157 MDG captures Pease Relay best time

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Mark Wyatt
  • 157th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
PEASE AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE, N.H. --  The 157th Medical Group successfully defended its title Sunday during a spirited 6th Annual Pease Relay Race, topping a field of teams from the 157th Air Refueling Wing and a team from the Army National Guard Band.

The winning team posted a time of 2 hours 49 minutes and 37 seconds in the 24.65-mile race that began and finished on base. More than 100 runners competed on 13 teams that ran through Newington before finishing at Mission's End for a post-race awards celebration.

"Events like these are essential for cohesion and camaraderie in an organization," said Col. Shawn "Rob" Burrus, 157th Air Refueling Wing commander.

Senior Master Sgt. Mike Davis, Pease Relay race director and founder, echoed Burrus sentiments.

"Teamwork, esprit de corps, camaraderie and competition ... these are a few of the things that bring out the best in people," said Davis. "I don't care if you are competing for first place or last place, all the competitors this morning ran with their heart and that's all that matters."

Each team included six to nine runners, all of which were either a Defense Department employee or family member of an employee. Each team must include one female and all team members must be 16-years or older.

Davis highlighted the volunteers at the closing ceremonies at Missions End after the race.

"You can't do something this big, this good, without the dedication of volunteers," said Davis. "We had more than 40 volunteers this year stand out in the cold to ensure runners remained safe - my heartfelt thanks to those who volunteered this year."

Rounding out the top three was a team from the 64th Air Refueling Squadron finishing second with a team score of 3 hours 3 minutes and 17 seconds. Finishing third was a team from the 157th Operations Group with a team score of 3 hours 3 minutes and 36 seconds.

To learn more about the race, visit the race website at www.peaserelayrace.com.