A group of Airmen pull a Humvee during the Pete Ganci’s Inaugural First Responder’s Challenge at the Transit Center at Manas, Kyrgyzstan, Sept. 10, 2011. Participants had to pull, then push, the Humvee approximately 80 feet each way. The challenge was one of many 9/11 memorial events here. Most of the events were named after service members who were killed in action supporting Operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom. (U.S. Air Force photo/Tech. Sgt. Hank Hoegen)

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A group of Airmen push a Humvee during the Pete Ganci’s Inaugural First Responder’s Challenge at the Transit Center at Manas, Kyrgyzstan, Sept. 10, 2011. Participants had to pull, then push, the Humvee approximately 80 feet each way. The challenge was one of many 9/11 memorial events here. Most of the events were named after service members who were killed in action supporting Operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom. (U.S. Air Force photo/Tech. Sgt. Hank Hoegen)

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Senior Master Sgt. James Wadas, 376th Expeditionary Mission Support Group first sergeant, passes a competitor during a water jug relay race at the Transit Center at Manas, Kyrgyzstan, Sept. 10, 2011. The race was part of the Pete Ganci’s Inaugural 1st Responder’s Challenge. The challenge was one of many 9/11 memorial events here. Most of the events were named after service members who were killed in action supporting Operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom. Wadas is deployed from the 17th Force Support Squadron at Goodfellow Air Force Base, Texas. (U.S. Air Force photo/Tech. Sgt. Hank Hoegen)

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Tech. Sgt. Suzanne Bell, 376th Expeditionary Medical Group bioenvironmental engineering NCO in charge, runs with a fully charged fire hose during a relay race at the Transit Center at Manas, Kyrgyzstan, Sept. 10, 2011. The race was part of the Pete Ganci’s Inaugural First Responder’s Challenge. The challenge was one of many 9/11 memorial events here. Most of the events were named after service members who were killed in action supporting Operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom. Bell is deployed from the U.S. Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. (U.S. Air Force photo/Tech. Sgt. Hank Hoegen)

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Airman 1st Class Daniel Fiuza, 376th Expeditionary Maintenance Group structural repair specialist, uses a firehose to knock down a target during a relay race at the Transit Center at Manas, Kyrgyzstan, Sept. 10, 2011. The race was part of the Pete Ganci’s Inaugural First Responder’s Challenge. The challenge was one of many 9/11 memorial events here. Most of the events were named after service members who were killed in action supporting Operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom. Fiuza is deployed from the 92nd Maintenance Group at Fairchild Air Force Base, Wash. (U.S. Air Force photo/Tech. Sgt. Hank Hoegen)

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Staff Sgt. Brandon Knutson, left, and Airman 1st Class Sean Vojvodich, both 376th Expeditionary Maintenance Group structural repair specialists, give everything they’ve got during a tug of war event at the Transit Center at Manas, Kyrgyzstan, Sept. 10, 2011. The event was part of the Pete Ganci’s Inaugural First Responder’s Challenge, one of many 9/11 memorial events at the Transit Center. Knutson is deployed from the 141st Maintenance Squadron and Vojvodich is deployed from the 92nd Maintenance Group, both at Fairchild Air Force Base, Wash. (U.S. Air Force photo/Tech. Sgt. Hank Hoegen)

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Staff Sgt. Brandon Knutson, 376th Expeditionary Maintenance Group structural repair specialist, pulls a rope with all his might during a tug of war event at the Transit Center at Manas, Kyrgyzstan, Sept. 10, 2011. The event was part of the Pete Ganci’s Inaugural First Responder’s Challenge, one of many 9/11 memorial events at the Transit Center. Knutson is deployed from the 141st Maintenance Squadron at Fairchild Air Force Base, Wash. (U.S. Air Force photo/Tech. Sgt. Hank Hoegen)

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Photo essay: 9/11 First Responders Challenge

Published Sept. 11, 2011