NASCAR truck driver Jon Wood, who recently completed the Ford 200 season finale for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, will be the grand marshal of the Army-Navy Game Pep Rally and Parade scheduled for Dec. 6. at 3:30 p.m. Wood and the No. 50 Navy Ford finished the race in 14th place, which put him in the 12th spot in the final truck series point standings.

Wood’s visit will add to the festivities as employees here show off their Blue and Gold spirit during Pax River’s third annual event celebrating the Army-Navy Game. The Midshipmen of the Naval Academy take on the Black Knights of the Military Academy at West Point Dec. 7 at noon, in the 103rd meeting of these historic rivals.

First prize for the team with the best float is $300. Second place winners will receive $100 in “Bay Bucks,” which can be used at any Patuxent River MWR facility. Third place winners will receive a one-day free rental of the station’s Beach House. MWR will reimburse commands up to $50 for supplies used to create floats.

This year’s parade will begin at 3:30 p.m. behind Air Station Headquarters (Building 409), turn left onto Cedar Point Road and then turn right onto Buse Road. The procession will then turn off at NAVAIR Headquarters onto Liljencrantz Road and end at the Flight Deck Lounge. Spectators can view the parade from anywhere along the route, though motor vehicle access will be limited once the parade is underway.

Immediately following the parade, everyone is encouraged to attend the pep rally, float contest and Army/Navy cheering competition outside the Flight Deck Lounge. The party will then move inside the Flight Deck for music and free refreshments complements of the Navy League, which also provided generous support for last year's event.

The Seabees and Public Works department took first prize in last year's float competition with an aircraft carrier built atop a flatbed truck. The carrier even launched aircraft - balsa wood gliders for the kids. This was the second year the Seabees and PW took first place.

The Lexington Park office of the Army's Baltimore Recruiting Battalion won second place with their black and gold Humvee. Third place went to the Southern Maryland Mustang Association, who also picked up the aircraft carrier theme with a realistic looking flight deck mock-up.