JUNE 9, 2015, AUSTIN, Texas (NNS) – Navy recruiters, the color guard, Navy Special Operations teams, Navy STEM tour, the U.S. Navy Band, and a social media team made their presence known at the 2015 ESPN Summer X-Games held at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, June 4-7.
Thousands of attendees visited the America’s Navy area and took the opportunity to board a special operations craft, pose with the Navy’s chalk art, operate robotics modules, take the BRAINSTEM Challenge, and participate in the Warrior Challenge Pull-up Competition to win a custom skate deck.
Participants included Sailors from Navy Recruiting District San Antonio, Navy Recruiting Command’s Warrior Challenge Program Office, Explosive Ordnance Disposal Training and Evaluation Unit (EODTEU) 2, Special Boat Unit (SBU) 22, Navy Information Operations Command, Texas, the U.S. Navy Band Southwest group, the Destroyers, and the U.S. Navy parachute demonstration team, the Leap Frogs.
The Warrior Challenge, one of the main events of America’s Navy at X-Games, gave the opportunity for men, women and children to demonstrate their strength and endurance by performing maximum pull-ups.
“X-Games provide the demographics and numbers for which Navy Recruiting Command can spread awareness of its Navy Special Warfare/Navy Special Operations programs,” said Cold Spring, Kentucky, native, Master Chief Diver Ken Willmoth, of NRC’s Warrior Challenge Program Office. “It’s a good thing and it’s good for recruiting.”
According to Willmoth, more than 500 men, women, and children participated in the Warrior Challenge.
During X-Games, the Destroyers entertained the crowds with Top 40 music while the Leap Frogs took to the air, jumping from 6,000 feet, providing a patriotic parachute jump into the MOTO X area.
According to Special Warfare Operator 1st Class T.J. Amdahl, a member of the Leap Frogs, it was a privilege to jump into X-Games and spread Navy awareness.
“I feel honored to represent the Navy and interact with the people here,” said Amdahl, a native of South Dakota. “X-Games provides the Navy with access to the types of potential applicants we are looking for; young people who are active.”
According to Operations Specialist 2nd Class Myranda Young, a recruiter with Navy Recruiting Station South Austin, America’s Navy’s presence at X-Games allows the unique opportunity for recruiters to engage with thousands of people at a single event.
“Most of our engagements with potential applicants are at high schools and walk-ins into a recruiting office,” said Young, a native of Pittsburg, California. “An event like X-Games provides a good environment for recruiters to be approached and for recruiters to initiate contact.”