SHEPPARD AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --
Date: April 14, 2018.
Mission: Show Texas the true meaning of Air Superiority.
Method: Nine young bucks with a whole lot of hand-eye coordination and a knack for spinning things.
This is… Air Education and Training Command Drill Down 2018.
Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas, sent forth an elite squad of gun twirling gurus to Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, to settle the age old question of which base gets more down at the annual drill down.
The competition took place in San Antonio, the heart of Texas. Teams from Goodfellow, Keesler and Sheppard joined the home teams from Lackland and Fort Sam Houston to compete for supremacy in the noble sport.
The drill down consisted of three parts. The first being an open ranks inspection where the participants were judged on the presentation of their uniform. Next was the regulation inspection to show the judges their ability to march with snap and a sense of pride. Finally the main event: the freestyle exhibition.
In the end, Sheppard was only one J-hook away from taking first place away from Lackland. Instead Sheppard came home with silver, something they were not too mad about.
“Second is good,” said Staff Sgt. Daryl Ackerman, 363rd Training Squadron Military Training Leader and coach. “It’s real cool this year because some of these guys never touched a rifle before now. What these guys do, it’s not easy, but you were there, you know it was all worth it.”
Drill competitions are far from easy but the Sheppard team loves a challenge.
“Teams get to pick their rifle,” said Staff Sgt. Dideon Cooper, a 365th Training Squadron Military Training Leader and coach. “Our rifles are like 12 to 15 pounds, these boys make it look easy. Throwing it up, catching it. The other teams use lighter rifles, easier to throw. That’s our fault though for going old school.”
Although the competition was mania for the Airmen, it became more than just that.
“Despite their different (Air Force specialty codes), despite their different squadrons they still came together as a team to complete a mission,” said Tech. Sgt. Daniel Moore, 82nd Training Wing Military Training Leader supervisor and coach. “For the last three weeks they came together, practicing every day. It taught them accountability. They can’t get ahead if they don’t sacrifice something.”
The Airmen agreed and said after competing they see that they are more focused and self-disciplined. They know how to set goals and how to achieve them.
In the end, the team came back content. They said they will continue practicing drill and hopefully join the Air Force color guard in the future.
Head to the Sheppard Flickr page for a more in depth look at the team and competition.