EOD mile-high PT

PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. -- Explosive ordnance disposal personnel (left to right) Senior Airman David Rediger, 302nd Civil Engineer Squadron Explosive Ordnance Disposal Flight, Staff Sgt. Daniel Jennings, 302nd CES, Master Sgt. Ross Kurashima, 302nd CES, Staff Sgt. Steven Fontana, 302nd CES, Senior Airman Darrell Linkus, 140th CES, Buckley AFB, and Master Sgt. Andrew LeBeau, 140th CES, take part in a grueling physical training session Dec. 13. During the 1.5 mile movement, the team rotated through different carries including sharing a 235-pound litter, a 20-pound medicine ball, a pair of 70-pound kettle bells and a 45-pound duffle bag. The hard work pays off when the EOD technicians are faced with difficult and demanding EOD requirements. (U.S. Air Force photo/Craig Denton)

EOD Safety Day

Airman First Class Darrell Linkus and Master Sgt Andrew "AJ" LeBeau, 140th Explosive Ordnance Disposal Flight, 140th Civil Engineer Squadron, participate in a physical training exercise during their annual EOD Safety Day with members of the 302nd Civil Engineer Squadron's EOD team from Peterson AFB, Colo.The theme of this year's EOD Safety Day was "Balance" with an emphasis on reconstitution of the Airmen's four pillars: Physical-Mental-Social-Spiritual. (US Air Force Photo by Craig Denton)

EOD sets mile-high physical fitness standards

Published Jan. 24, 2014
By Craig Denton
21st Space Wing Public Affairs

PETERSON AFB, Colo. -- As the sun rose over the base Dec. 13, explosive ordnance disposal personnel from Peterson and Buckley Air Force Bases participated in their annual EOD Safety Day.

Master Sgt. Ross Kurashima, 302nd Civil Engineer Squadron Explosive Ordnance Disposal Flight chief, said the career field has a requirement in which all Air Force EOD units take a tactical and operational pause for a day. The day is used to teach EOD operators on support activities available to them and their families including EOD-specific medical support, behavioral health and family support center.

"We also use this opportunity to review lessons learned from the battlefield, not to scrutinize what went wrong, but how we can apply the take away to future operations," Kurashima said.

The theme of this year's EOD Safety Day was "Balance" with an emphasis on reconstitution of the Airmen's four pillars of resiliency: Physical-Mental-Social-Spiritual.

The physical training was geared toward team work and designed to allow individual weaknesses and strengths to be made evident to the individual as well as the group. The group only moved as fast as the slowest person and "on the fly" adjustments were necessary to ensure the team performed as efficiently as possible. During a 1.5 mile movement, the team rotated through different carries including sharing a 235-pound litter, a 20-pound medicine ball, a pair of 70-pound kettle bells and a 45-pound duffle bag.

"EOD members are held to higher physical fitness standards due to our mission," Kurashima said. "We need to have the capacity to operate at a high level, for extended periods of time and often in austere conditions. Our physical training is geared toward ensuring success with any contingency mission and environment."