U.S. Naval Academy plebes cap their first year with greasy, grueling Herndon Climb

BALTIMORE -- Dozens of U.S. Naval Academy freshmen, known as plebes, gathered around a 21-foot-tall obelisk covered in lard Wednesday morning in Annapolis.

Their objective: climb the slippery monument and place a hat on top to mark the end of their first year at the institution.

The Herndon Climb is a Naval Academy tradition that dates back to 1950, the academy says. The monument is named after Commander William Lewis Herndon, who went down with his ship in a hurricane in 1857.

The plebes work together in the event to remove the "dixie cup" hat from atop the obelisk and replace it with an upperclassman's hat. But 200 pounds of lard make the climb a bit difficult.

This year, Midshipman Fourth Class Chris Paris, of Kentucky, lead the class to the top in 2 hours, 31 minutes and 51 seconds.   

The Midshipmen said the accomplishment was because of teamwork.

"I had like both hands around the monument and just trying not to fall off," Paris said.

Alumni, family and onlookers surrounding the 21-foot-tall Herndon Monument covered in 50 pounds of vegetable shortening.

Their mission was to replace the plebe Dixie cup atop the monument with a Midshipman's cap as fast as possible

"I'm not sure, it was mostly terrifying, just trying not to fall because it's super slippery up there," Paris said.

The plebes said their efforts demonstrated the teamwork and perseverance they have learned during their first year at the Naval Academy.

"Just getting up there, there might not be much of a view but it's a great feeling," Paris said.

Last year, it took the class 3 hours and 37 minutes to complete their objective.

The fasted recorded Herndon Climb time was a minute and 30 seconds in 1972, when no grease was used. The longest recorded time was in four hours and five minutes in 1998, when the dixie cup was glued and taped.

The freshmen will now have the hard-earned title of fourth class midshipmen.