CPT Ivan Castro
 

Capt. Ivan Castro, a 7th SFG(A) Soldier, is promoted by Adm. Eric Olson, USSOCOM commander, April 10 at Fort Bragg, N.C. Castro, a former Special Forces weapons sergeant with 7th SFG(A), lost his sight during combat operations in September 2006 while serving in Iraq with the 82nd Airborne Div.

Some more info on Captain Castro.
 

http://www.stripes.com/article.asp?s...1&archive=true

By Lisa Burgess, Stars and Stripes
Mideast edition, Monday, October 8, 2007

ARLINGTON, Va. — Running the Army Ten-Miler in 1 hour, 25 minutes is a solid, respectable time, particularly for a 40-year-old man. That’s a pace of 8:50, or just under 9-minute miles, certainly faster and longer than the average Joe can move. Not bad. Not bad at all.

For 1st Lt. Ivan Castro, running the Army Ten-Miler in 1:25 is pretty incredible.

Running it at all is a miracle.

To begin with, Castro, a former weapons sergeant in the 7th Special Forces Group with 17 years of military service, is totally blind.

He suffered multiple wounds, including the loss of his right eye, the loss of sight in his left eye, and his right index finger, in Iraq in September 2006, after a mortar hit the rooftop where he was providing fire support during a battle with insurgents.

Only 12 months ago, doctors questioned whether Castro would make it through another week, much less back into the Army, he said.

“This time last year, I was in bed in a hospital,” said Castro, who had tubes everywhere, a filter in his heart, monitors hooked up to anything that could be monitored, and a nerve block surgically installed to control pain so severe, the drugs necessary to control it would have left the soldier close to a coma.

But Castro himself had no questions.

There, in that hospital bed, he said, he set himself two goals to achieve within a year: run the Ten-Miler and the Marine Corps Marathon.

Castro traveled to the Washington, D.C., Ten-Miler from Fort Bragg, N.C., where he remains on active duty.

At Bragg, Castro trained for his two races with Maj. Phil Young, who was Castro’s team leader in the Special Forces.

Castro runs tethered to Young using two white shoelaces tied together. Young calls “audibles” as they move, warning Castro of possible hazards. But most of the guiding is done with the string, the men said.

“He was trained [in the Special Forces] to improvise, adapt and overcome,” his wife, Evelyn Galvis, said. “That’s what he’s done, and what he’s going to keep doing.”

With one race down, Castro said he is now focused on running the Marine Corps Marathon on Oct. 29.

Meanwhile, he also has a new goal for the Ten-Miler: To come back next year, “and make [my time] even faster.”

Good story to add to the topic; thanks for posting it CoLawman.

Admiral Olson also took time to run with CPT Castro the day of the promotion.

A buddy of mine rides a bike with Ivan.

He puts him on the back of a tandem, and makes him the pusher. He said that Ivan never quits, and asked the other day when he could drive. According to the friend, the best thing is that Ivan pedals strongly enough to carry him as well, so he can take breaks whenever he wants. :D

They did a ride/run last year, I think from Atlanta to Tampa, where Ivan met ADM Olsen.

Good man, has a lot of heart.

TR

That guy has iron will. Is he still on active duty because he's waiting for the med board to make a PDRL determination?

Capt. Ivan Castro (left), 7th Special Forces Group, runs tethered in the 112th Boston Marathon. Castro, who lost his eyesight after an IED explosion in Iraq, finished the race in 4 hours, 9 minutes. (U.S. Army photo by Gillian M. Albro, USASOC PAO)

He is an Outstanding Individual and an Inspiration to all.

True inspiration......any whiners out there still.

AMEN!
 

Good job CPT!:lifter

Stay safe.

Next MFer I hear sniveling about how hard training is, I'm punching in the neck.

DOL

LMAO!
 

I have a former "construction" foremen in the pipeline; you know why he does NOT post here?

I'LL KILL HIM! He should be contacting TS in the next couple of weeks for shooting instructions since he just graduated 68W course and his moving too AZ....:eek:

Stay safe.

So tell us what you really think of him:munchin
I think you are holding back a little.:rolleyes:

He's GTG!
 

He actually told me...he got more sleep in training than he did working for me.:D

Stay safe.

He might need a little special attention when he gets his training....:munchin

I've already issued him a WARNORD about TS!:eek:

I'll see if he makes contact!

DRIVE ON CPT!:lifter

Stay safe.