Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek, Virginia - The Navy command responsible for testing bomb-disposal tactics and equipment for the entire U.S. military recently hosted its first annual "Explosive Ordnance Disposal Top Tech Challenge," a three-day slate of competitions for Navy bomb squads.

EOD Training and Evaluation Unit Two, part of Naval Expeditionary Combat Command headquartered at this facility near Virginia Beach in southern Virginia, in November welcomed five two-man teams from Navy bases around the world, according to the unit's skipper, Commander Tom Smith, 42.

"It's an absolute uber-challenge," Smith says of the competition, going on to describe grueling events including booby-trap defusing, rappelling, land navigation and a "limpet mine" challenge where bomb technicians must dive into a "cold lake on a cold morning" to find and disable a replica of the kinds of mines terrorists might attach to the bottom of a ship.

"We threw the kitchen sink at them," Smith laughs.

This year, an EOD team from Sigonella, Italy took top honors. Calling the competition a success, Smith adds that his unit is already planning for next years. He says the 2007 Challenge will involve as many as a dozen teams.

While invigorating for participants, the Challenge is not all fun and games. It's one way Unit Two accomplishes its mission of preparing bomb squads for tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, where roadside explosives are the biggest killers of U.S. troops.

This year the unit has trained 24 eight-man detachments, and most have done stints in Iraq, Smith says. While praising his trainers and students, Smith laments a shortage of experienced Navy bomb technicians. High demand combined with the difficulty of the training means the Navy is looking at a 25-percent shortfall in EOD chiefs.

Being part of the new Expeditionary Command has alleviated some of the stress of commanding such a high-stakes operation, Smith says. NECC combines EOD, Seabees and coastal and riverine forces into one organization with common funding and equipment. "It provides us an unparalleled 'neighborhood council,'" Smith says.

One example of the benefits of consolidation is the new bomb-proof truck that both the Seabees and EOD are buying to protect their forces in Iraq. Combining the purchases helped the Navy get a better deal on the Joint EOD Reconnaissance Vehicle, built by Force Protection based in South Carolina.

JERV is just one technology Unit Two is pushing out to the operational bomb squads. Before they can take ownership of their new trucks, EOD teams must train on them with Unit Two.

Unit Two gets feedback from its trainees after their tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. Their most common recommendation is a surprising one. "They say, 'Be tougher,'" Smith says. "And our training is already pretty tough."