Fort Stewart Soldier looks to Honor Fallen Friend by Running 100 miles in Gas mask

The soldier in the gas mask goes by “Unbreakable.”

He’s been seen along Ga. 144 on Saturday mornings, determined and steady as he runs, oxygen intake dramatically reduced and heat building between the black plastic and his face. The black Special Operations gas mask doesn’t leave his head until he gets to his unit’s Fort Stewart compound — 18 miles later.

That’s nothing compared to what the 3rd Infantry Division soldier, Sgt. 1st Class Augusto “Tito” Pineiro, plans to do Friday. The 37-year-old aims to run for 100 miles straight in Greenville, S.C., while wearing the oxygen-restricting device. If Pineiro succeeds, he will, by default, surpass the 41-mile world record for distance run in a gas mask.

“I’m not doing it to break the record,” he said Friday before donning the mask at Fort Stewart for a sweltering 3.2-mile lap. “I just want to run 100 miles with the mask on and say I did it.”

It’s partly a tribute to a friend, a Navy SEAL who was killed in action but whom he won’t identify. The two pledged to one day run 100 miles together wearing gas masks.

And he’s also doing it to raise awareness of Operation Enduring Warrior, a nonprofit that seeks to “empower and motivate” wounded veterans.

Spokeswoman Kelly Farmer says Enduring Warrior offers athletic courses, certificates in skydiving and scuba diving and just pushes wounded veterans to realize “they have many reasons to keep going and the support to keep living active and prosperous lives.”

Farmer said many Enduring Warrior volunteers plan to attend the race in Greenville and post live updates on Pineiro’s progress to the nonprofit’s Facebook page — especially when he breaks the record, something Guinness World Records has been invited to verify.

Pineiro is a member of Enduring Warrior’s Masked Athlete Team — athletes that compete wearing gas masks to stay anonymous while drawing attention to the recuperating veterans.

When wearing the masks, the team members use code names.

“When we put the mask on, that’s what we go by,” Pineiro said. “I go by ‘Unbreakable.’ They won’t be calling me Tito.”