Memorial Day 2015: Carrying the Load and Remembering America’s Heroes

For many people, Memorial Day means barbecuing with the family or taking advantage of “limited time” sales while not truly understanding the purpose of the day. Memorial Day is a day of remembering the men and women who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces.

Carry the Load

Carry the Load is about remembering just that, with a 20 hour, 15 minute event that has participants walking or running as long or as little as they can in the 20-hour period. Like the service members they honor, participants carry more than they have to, longer than they think they can. Carry The Load extends remembrance of our fallen from America’s Military, Law Enforcement, Firefighters and Rescue Personnel. The purpose is to not only remember but honor and celebrate our nation’s heroes.

ITS is assembling a team for the fourth year in a row and we’re asking for your help to reach our goal of raising $5,000.00 for the charities that Carry The Load is supporting this year. While you can donate here directly, we’d also like you on our ITS Tactical Joint Task Force Team if you’re local to the Dallas/Fort Worth area (or even if you want to make the drive.) The event is free and everyone is invited, regardless of fitness level or ability. It’s also not required that you have a weighted ruck or backpack, yet everyone is encouraged to carry something physical to make the emotional connection.

Join the ITS Team

Head over to the ITS Tactical Join Task Force Team page and join up!

• Sunday, May 24th – Monday, 25th
• Reverchon Park, Dallas

Opening ceremonies for Carry The Load begin at 3:30 pm on Sunday, May 24th and the walk begins at 4 pm. The walk will conclude at 12:15 pm on Monday, May 25th and is followed by closing ceremonies at 12:30 pm.

We’ll also be handing out the ITS Carry The Load patches shown above to all those that can make it out to the event, so be sure to meet up with our ITS Team! Details of where our team will meet up will be sent to you prior to the event, so keep an eye out for correspondence from the team.

Get Prepared

We hope to see you there and your support is very much appreciated! Here are some articles to help get you prepped for the event:

• How to Make a Sandbag Pill for Weighted Ruck Runs
• Taking Care of Your Feet: Preventing Blisters with Leukotape and a Little Common Sense
• Sandbags: Unconventional Tools for Functional Strength
• Still Rucking at 63 – An Interview with Former Delta Force Operator Ed Bugarin