Ironhorse Troopers head to JRTC
By Sgt. Jon Cupp
June 13, 2006
FORT HOOD, Texas (Army News Service, June 13, 2006) – More than 4,500 Soldiers from the 1st Cavalry Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team will soon experience what has been described as “the most realistic, stressful training troops will ever face” at the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk, La.
The Ironhorse Brigade departed this week on the heels of their Ironhorse Rampage exercise, which prepped them for JRTC and a potential deployment to Iraq.
“We want to give our Soldiers confidence not only in individual skills, but collective skills as well,” said Maj. Pete Andrysiak, 1st BCT deputy commander.
“This event will put stresses on them unlike any they have experienced in previous exercise,” added Andrysiak. “The goal is to ensure they can handle stressful situations that will come their way while operating in the wartime environment.”
Along with standard training events, Soldiers will participate in scenarios involving role-players representing Iraqi forces, the civilian media, protesting crowds and insurgents. Soldier will also be challenged in tackling the threats of terrorism, evading and detecting improvised explosive devices, crowd control, aiding in the training of Iraqi forces, humanitarian aid, community projects for the “Iraqi” people and rebuilding Iraq’s infrastructure.
The training will culminate with a brigade sized force-on-force exercise that models the deployment environment and simulates experiences Soldiers can expect in a deployment to Iraq or Afghanistan.
JRTC training will also give the brigade staff and senior leaders the tools they need to make better decisions and have better command and control while fighting the Global War on Terrorism in Iraq, according to Andrysiak.
Many soldiers said they look forward to the types of training they will experience during their one-month long deployment to JRTC.
Sgt. Rodolfo Rojas, a heavy wheeled vehicle operator for Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 115th Brigade Support Battalion, has already deployed to Iraq once. He said he understands the importance of training Soldiers through such venues as JRTC.
“Young Soldiers involved in this need to see it as an opportunity to take advantage of all the training they can, especially if they find themselves being deployed to Iraq the near future,” said Rojas. “The best pieces of advice I can give them is to pay attention to your surroundings, and don’t get complacent. That’s one of the reasons this training is so important.”
Pvt. 2 Stephen Caudle, a fueler for Company A (Distribution), 115th BSB, has never been in combat, but sees JRTC as the opportunity to hone necessary skills.
“It will definitely give me a better understanding of what I’ll do when I’m deployed, and how my platoon will work together if we go to war,” said Caudle. “Any opportunity I can get to learn better ways to do my job means a lot to me.”
Capt. Amada Gerding, the brigade’s provost marshal, will work detention facility operations, which include the detainment and proper treatment of captured insurgents during JRTC scenarios. She will also work on Iraqi police and security force training assessments.
“As we transition, Iraqi security forces are taking charge of more areas and responsibility in Iraq. A lot of what we’ll be doing at JRTC will be gearing up for that,” said Gerding.
Following JRTC, Andrysiak said 1BCT Soldiers will have the knowledge they need to tackle and avoid any crises that can arise in Iraq.
“We want our Soldiers to know they’re well-equipped, prepared and trained,” said Andrysiak. “The last thing you want is for the Soldier to question whether he has everything he needs to be successful out there.”
(Editor's note: Sgt. Jon Cupp writes for the 1st Brigade Combat Team Public Affairs Office.)
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|
|
