Every year, Wando’s Air Force JROTC programs engages in their annual dine-in promotion ceremony. But this year was different.

On Oct. 28, instead of merely eating a dinner together and attending the ceremony, cadets decked themselves out in as much camo gear as possible, raced in a pop-up obstacle course, and faced off in an epic water gun battle

“[It’s] just kind of a morale booster for everybody, get them more excited than just sitting through a ceremony.” Vice Wing Commander Sarah Sutter said.

The plan worked, with cadet faces lighting up with excitement.

The obstacle course featured groups of four, racing, getting their knees high through a tire obstacle, and carrying teammates on stretchers several hundred feet.

Next, they had to army crawl under a long tarp, then dizzy bat (participants put their head on a bat and spin around several times), followed by attempting to jump over inflatable kiddie pools.

To reach the finish line, teams had to crunch out 20 jumping jacks, run even more, complete the hula hoop pass, and then sprint to the end.

Teamwork in the obstacle course allowed cadets to get their heads in the game.

The water gun battle was also a success. Cadets lined up behind brightly colored, plastic guns before attacking.

“I really liked the water gun fight, I wasn’t expecting it to be that fun.” senior Adam Russell said.

In the future, AFJROTC intends to smooth out any imperfections the event faced for next year.

“There’s nooks and crannies we gotta work out still,” Russell continued. “But, it was a lot of fun.”

The Combat Dine-In hopes to become a tradition in the years to come. For now, they can rest easy knowing that the cadets certainly enjoyed themselves.