6/26/2009
By Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class (AW/NAC) Michael Moriatis, Commander, Task Group 73.5 Public Affairs
TERENGGANU, Malaysia (NNS) - U.S. and Malaysian service members gathered June 25 at Awana Kijal Resort for a day of sports and team-building during Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) Malaysia 2009.
Sailors and Marines from Task Group 73.5, consisting of dock landing ship USS Harpers Ferry (LSD 49) and the guided-missile destroyers USS Chafee (DDG 90) and USS Chung-Hoon (DDG 93), arrived ashore for friendly competitions with their counterparts from the Malaysian Armed Forces.
They participated in a variety of sports including tackraw - a Malaysian game similar to hacky-sack - as well as volleyball and beach soccer, with a tug-of-war as the final event of the day.
"Today was really a fun day, and I think the Malaysians even had more fun than we did," said Lt. j.g. Daryl Dawson, assigned to Chung-Hoon. "I think today is important for CARAT because it's good for building relations with the Malaysians."
Teams combined Malaysian and U.S. service members. Malaysians exhibited expertise during beach soccer while U.S. Sailors and Marines had an edge in volleyball.
The most popular event was the tug-of-war, as evidenced by the cheering and boisterous celebrations with each victory.
"This was great for CARAT because it builds good camaraderie and communication with the Malaysians - plus it was a lot of fun," said Fire Controlman 1st Class (SW) Rick Reamer of the Chung-Hoon.
CARAT is a series of bilateral exercises held annually in Malaysia and five other Southeast Asia countries to strengthen relationships and enhance the operational readiness of the participating forces.
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