By Gilbert Bustillos
The 37th Annual Bataan Memorial Death March will be taking place at White Sands Missile Range (WSMR) Saturday, March 21, 2026.
The Bataan Memorial Death March is a desert-marathon held at WSMR, honoring the roughly 75,000 U.S. and Filipino soldiers forced to march across the Philippines.
“This year, we’re expecting record heat in the lower 90s,” said WSMR Garrison Commander Col. Donyeill Mozer, who oversees the event. “This is probably going to be one of the hottest Bataans.”
Because of the weather, this year’s run will be shortened.
On Wednesday, March 17, the Garrison announced the 26.2-mile marathon will be canceled due to the heat and safety concerns for the thousands of participants. While the marathon has been shut down, the 15.6-mile Honorary Route will still take place on Saturday for all the runners.
This year’s Bataan March will begin at 6:30 a.m. with the opening ceremony at the start line in front of the McAfee Army Health Clinic. After the singing of the Filipino and American national anthems, the race will begin at 7 a.m.
The Bataan Death March dates back to April 9, 1942. After their victory in the Battle of Bataan, the soldiers of the Imperial Japanese Army forced American and Filipino prisoners of war to march 65 miles north from the Bataan Peninsula. Reports revealed between 5,000 to 18,500 soldiers died during the torturous nine-day trek.
During the Battle of Bataan, the U.S. and Philippine Army were assisted with the 1,800 National Guardsmen from New Mexico’s 200th and 515th Coast Artillery regiments. Of those National Guardsmen, 829 members either died or went missing during the march. The remaining survivors were liberated in 1945 after the end of World War II.
NMSU’s Cadet Class of 1988 wanted to honor the National Guardsmen, the American and Filipino soldiers that passed away from the march. Thus, they created the Bataan Memorial Death March in April 1988. The university’s ROTC began their march from the Horseshoe at NMSU to Baylor Canyon Pass on the Organ Mountains. The following year, the marathon took place at WSMR, marking the First Annual Bataan Memorial Death March.
Col. Mozer will oversee his second Bataan March this Saturday. Col. Mozer has dedicated over 30 years in the U.S. Army, completing deployments in Iraq, Kuwait, South Korea, teaching at the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, New York, and since has been stationed at Fort Bliss and now at WSMR. While at Fort Bliss, Col. Mozer participated in the Bataan March in 2017.
The Bataan Memorial Death March is organized by the Garrison at WSMR. The base receives support from regional services like the Las Cruces Police Department, the William Beaumont Army Medical Center, Fort Bliss, and Holloman Air Force Base.
The Bataan Memorial Death March isn’t just another event for Col. Mozer; it’s a day for Americans to appreciate and honor the soldiers who gave the ultimate sacrifice on their treacherous journey through the Philippines.
“Anytime that we can recognize our veterans, I think that’s a good thing,” Col. Mozer said. “I think it means a lot that I have the opportunity to give them their flowers and celebrate what they did for us to have the freedoms we have.”
Registration for running in the Bataan Memorial Death March took place from October 2025 to March 2, 2026, on the website bataanmarch.com. Volunteers can still sign up right now at the same website.
When registration began, the price to enter the marathon was $125. After the first month of registration, the price increased to $150 and then increased one last time to $175 at the start of 2026. This is a common practice amongst marathons and other runs nationwide. The most important point to note about the race fees is that all the money from Bataan is funneled back into the WSMR community. The money is used to fund the Morale, Welfare, and Recreation (MWR) facilities for soldiers on base. MWR facilities include the food court, bowling alley, movie theater, swimming pool, Child & Youth Services (CYS), and more.
For this year’s Bataan, about 5,700 participants are expected to run Saturday. The average number of Bataan runners’ pre-Covid was between 6,000-7,000 people. Year after year, WSMR has been replenishing their numbers back to that average since.
Of the 5,700 runners, 200 of those are virtual runners. The virtual running began during the Covid-19 shutdown and has been part of the Bataan March since. Virtual runners complete their 26.2-mile run and receive their medal in the mail.
The Bataan Memorial Death March originally offered two distance options for runners when signing up: the 26.2-mile marathon and the 15.6-mile Honorary Route.
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