Forget the hardships of basic training. About 48 men and women from the U.S. Navy, Army, Marines Corps and Coast Guard battled gym-class memories of childhood dodgeball games on Day 2 of LA Fleet Week on Sunday, May 26.
The third-annual dodgeball tournament is a highlight of the multi-day, Memorial Day celebration of America’s Armed Forces. Fleet Week activities include an expo of military and first-responder displays and equipment and tours of active-duty ships.
Shawn Ellison, also known as “Fit Boss,” led his team to back-to-back victories early in the tournament. His group, made up of enlisted and civilian members from the USS Carl Vinson, stood or crouched, poised to bolt in any direction to avoid body shots, and focused on catching speeding dodgeballs thrown with baseball intensity.
“Our game plan is to pair up and make sure we stick together,” said Ellison, a fitness coordinator and a civilian, federal employee on the nuclear aircraft carrier stationed in San Diego. “What do I love most about it? The camaraderie. We’re just hopeful we do well and above all, have fun.”
The Carl Vinson team also made time for other Fleet Week activities, including attending a comedy show, Dodgers and Angels games, “and hanging out here and walking around the Expo,” said Rachel Behymer, a fitness coordinator on the ship.
An early crowd favorite, the Carl Vinson crew later fell to another Navy team. Their boss, Lt. Melissa Gonzales, still cheered loudly for her group.
“We’re here to enjoy ourselves and have fun, show the locals how awesome the Navy is,” Gonzales said. “At the end of the day, we’re all one big team. We’re all part of the Department of Defense.”
Teams sized each other up across the center line and huddled over last-minute strategies: “Just duck,” one player said. Spectators needed some game tips too, such as stay alert, lest they “get one in the face,” as volunteer Rob Rausch of Cypress said.
“You just have to…
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