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Golden Coyote

The multi-component annual exercise "Golden Coyote" tests the ability of engineering and support units to mobilize equipment, deploy to a battle zone, coordinate combat and service support missions and re-deploy back to home station.

In May 1995 the National Guard, mostly Army battalions, moved in for "Operation Golden Coyote"; a statewide deployment and training exercise in which many projects were accomplished at Lewis and Clark Scout Camp. These included: rebuilt camp entrance road, rebuilt steel bridge (volunteers and staff), new parking lot "up top", construction of the health lodge, work on the camp "lake-side" roads, new field sports activity shelter and several miscellaneous projects.

During FY99, South Dakota hosted its 15th annual Golden Coyote exercise in the Black Hills. The two-week annual training mission involved about 1,500 soldiers. Camp Rapid is responsible for ordering enough food to feed the Guard during its annual training exercise called Golden Coyote.

Golden Coyote 2000, hosted by the South Dakota National Guard, involved nearly 3,000 Army and Air National Guardsmen and Reservists and active-duty servicemembers from 11 states. The units participating in the exercise focused on training and improving unit readiness in a realistic combined arms environment centered around a European scenario. The Black Hills training areas have terrain similar to southern Germany, greatly enhancing the realism of the exercise. The other touch of realism on the Black Hills was the large number of civilian tourists.

Missouri Army National Guard units participating in Golden Coyote 2000 were the 135th Signal Battalion (Headquarters and Headquarters Company and Companies A, B and C), Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment, 175th Military Police Company, 1139th Military Police Company and Company A, 735th Support Battalion (Petroleum, Oil, Lubricants Platoon). The Missouri Guard units supported the overall exercise while developing individual and squad level soldier skills through lanes training. The 135th Signal Battalion provided communications coverage and support for the elements of the exercise centered in the area surrounding the town of Custer, S.D. Specific locations ranged from mountain tops at Bear Mountain to valleys near the Custer City Airport.

With daytime temperatures in the low to mid 90s, very little humidity and afternoon thunderstorms, all soldiers appeared to be in good spirits and very much engaged in the tasks at hand. Many soldiers said Golden Coyote 2000 was one of the best annual training periods they had experienced.