2008 Woodie Awards
Success at Camp Shelby for ROTC
Cadets along with an embedded Voyager staff writer conducted their annual field training exercise at Camp Shelby Mississippi
Wendy Wills/ Staff Writer
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While many students at the University of West Florida normally spend their weekends doing "whatever" --- dozens of Army ROTC cadets, with majors ranging from psychology to physics, went on a mission recently: their annual Field Training Exercise.
As some UWF students quaffed beer and others worked or studied, these brave souls trekked through snake-infested woods, blasted their way through paintball ambushes, and sweated through obstacles that would send most weekend warriors back to the shower.
The mission for 55 UWF Army ROTC cadets began Nov. 6. Cadets wore camouflaged fatigues and carried rucksacks that were filled to capacity with supplies including extra uniforms, boots and ponchos. They left four hour ride to Camp Shelby, Miss. on a bus and a van.
The 135,000-acre camp is known for its firing ranges and maneuver training areas.
"Camp Shelby was previously used for Army and National Guard operations for training," said Capt. Juan Zapata, military science instructor.
He said the camp provides mobilization training for troops before they go to foreign posts such as Kuwait or Iraq.
"Every piece of real estate - has a purpose," he said.
Once at Camp Shelby, Zapata told the UWF students that the weekend exercise would help each become a better cadet and to become excellent future officers in the Army.
As sophomore Jared Warthen, an electrical engineering major, wiped the sweat off of his forehead, he said the effort put forth by each cadet is essential.
"The more we sweat in training the less we'll bleed in combat," Warthen said.
Once they arrived at their destination, the cadets set up two-man tents in an open field. Lucky seniors encamped in a spacious main tent for approximately 30 people.
Maj. Stephen Duckworth, a military science instructor, said the primary focus of the operation was to improve the juniors' leadership skills.
On a clear, starlit night, the seniors briefed the cadets about their mission for the next few days. Inside the main tent, seniors Andrew Gonzalez and Gregory McKenzie sat behind a table while the juniors sat in front of them, rapidly jotting down notes.
Senior cadet Naomi Caudle, a communications arts major, said that information is passed down a chain of command before it gets to a cadet.
"It begins with the Battalion Company, then platoon leaders to squad leaders and to the squad," Caudle said. She said the leadership roles change daily so the juniors have the opportunity to experience each role.
The juniors were in charge of waking their troops at 5:30 a.m., marching their troops to missions, making sure they had weather gear, extra fatigues, boots, and issuing protractors and compasses for land navigation.
If something went wrong during the mission, someone would have to answer to the Cadet Executive Officer Mario Malpica, or the highest ranking non-commissioned officer Comm. Sgt. Maj. Eric North.
"I wrote the operation order and I have to make sure things happen," said Malpica, a legal studies major.
The troops were up at the crack of dawn, folded their sleeping bags and gathered Meals Ready to Eat (M.R.E.) in preparation for a long and strenuous day.
The cadets lined up in formation where platoon leader Rishi Ramsooksingh commanded everyone by bellowing, "Attention: Giggity giggity!"
The troops yelled the strange phrase back: "Giggity giggity!" The cadets also shouted out an infamous line taken from the disturbing 1972 film "Deliverance."
"You got a perty mouth!" they shouted.
After that performance, the troops hopped onto the bus sitting two to a seat, still attached to their enormous rucksacks. The bus headed out to the "field leadership reaction course," which is military lingo for a three-hour hellish ordeal designed to push a cadet's physical and mental strength to the limit.
Squads were divided into groups containing six to eight people.
Each team member was instructed by Zapata to "overcome your fears" rather than to completely focus on how they were being judged on effort.
"Do your job and your evaluations will write themselves," Zapata said.
Malpica said the teams had 25 minutes of execution and evaluation. The evaluation was called an After Action Report. It tells the cadets how they did. They are also given an E, S or N grade for particular aspects of their performance and then are told why they received what they got.
The course contained several lanes of obstacles that required the squads to incorporate their skills and knowledge as a team.
"When the squad leader is not in control, the team falls apart," Duckworth said.
The next lane was perhaps the most challenging of all. Cadets had to use two barrels, a piece of rope and a three foot long board to cross water, climb over two parallel medal poles, and jump to the other side.
North, a psychology major, who was also in charge of the course, laughed hysterically as cadets fell between barrels into "shark-infested water." He said it was "so hard to watch them" and to not tell them exactly how to get to the other side.
"You know, there is an easier way," North joked to himself.
After time for a lane was up, North checked to see that every lane was up and ready. He then blasted a small but deafening horn to signal the teams to start.
In one group, Edgar Brown, a professional studies major, had already plunged into the water, so he was the guinea pig for the rest of the water missions.
Squad leader Samuel Siegal's team finished every lane with success.
"I have a rockin' team," Siegal said. "I couldn't have done it without them."
During the exercise, Caudle emphasized the importance of an officer's duty.
"As an officer you always have to look ahead and into the future," Caudle said. "Accountability is key in anything that you do."
After the field leadership reaction course, cadets had enough time to chow down on M.R.E.s and changed into dry fatigues. When lunch was over, the cadets lined up in formation and marched 1.1 miles in cadence to where they would learn land navigation.
Zapata briefed them on the rules of engagement and instructed the platoons to attend a round robin, or different areas instructed by each senior. In one instance, Caudle gave instructions on negotiating an obstacle.
"You find a point on the other side of the obstacle that has a distinguishable or noticeable feature and find the easiest way to get to it," Caudle said. She said the next action to take is to count one's steps, turn right or left, whichever way is best, and then count back the number of steps originally taken.
Once the cadets finished the round robin they were ready for the ultimate challenge: finding their way in the woods through entangled vines while ducking under snagging branches, with only the aid of a compass. The cadets traveled in groups of six to eight people in order to find three points spread across the woods.
Junior Jordan Cox, a criminal justice major, said that the tasks she was assigned were not overly difficult.
"I did basic training before I came into ROTC," Cox said. "It's (ROTC) a good program. If you get lost (in the woods) it's pretty much your own fault. The two essential things for land navigation are distance and direction."
After the strenuous exercise, Kendra Gamble, an English/Liberal Arts major, said that ROTC's training helps one to almost act on instinct.
"Your brain shuts down and your body just takes over," Gamble said.
Not only did the squadron have the success of their mission to celebrate, but they were rewarded with what an M.R.E. could not begin to compare with. Cadets scarffed down ordered pizza and Pepsi from Pizza Hut. The reason for the delicious treat was to energize the squad for nighttime navigation
Each cadet closely studied his or her compass with a flashlight. Points were pinned to trees and accompanied by a blue glow stick. In order for a cadet to have an accomplished mission, a piece of paper carried with the cadet had to be stamped by a clacker. In one instance, juniors John Wilson and Jennifer Ramos attempted different routes in search of their third point.
When Caudle asked if she was ready to give up, she was determined in finishing her assignment.
"Well, we've come this far," Ramos said. "We might as well keep going."
After displays of perseverance, the two cadets found the tree to stamp their paper. The troops returned to their instructors and presented their success to Zapata.
Once the night journey was achieved, the worn-out troops went back to the bus that headed to their tents. Everyone groggily brushed their teeth and then exhaustedly crashed into their sleeping bags and caught some shut-eye.
Part Two of the ROTC story will be published in the last edition of "The Voyager."