Humvees and HOCKEY

  • Published
  • By Sgt. 1st Class Jeffrey Smith
  • 4-25 IBCT Public Affairs
JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska --  High school students don't often have an opportunity to hang out with Soldiers, unless they're in junior ROTC programs.

But paratroopers with the 1st Battalion (Airborne), 501st Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, paired up with hockey players from Eagle River High School for a day of leadership development Oct. 25 at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson.

The day's events started with team-building, cross-fit exercises at Hangar 5 on JBER-Elmendorf.

The high-school hockey players and paratroopers flipped tires, ran the perimeter carrying weights, and worked together as they completed team events.

From there, they went to the Wilderness Inn dining facility to replenish their energy for the rigorous afternoon filled with more physical tests of endurance and teamwork.
The first event of the afternoon was the Humvee push.

The hockey players and paratroopers teamed up again to push a Humvee for about 100 meters to an equipment-donning area.

There, the teams put on ballistic armor vests, protective masks, and carried "dummy" weapons as they started off on
a run to the base of the hill on Otter Lake Road.

At that point, they donned the protective masks for a gut-busting run up the hill. At the top, everybody was able to turn in their equipment, but their run was not over.

They continued running to the railroad crossing where a litter bearing a simulated injured Soldier awaited. The team picked up the litter, and continued for another mile or so where they found the simulated evacuation point.

From there, they picked up a railroad tie and ran yet another mile - to the finishing point at the Arctic Warrior Combatives Academy.

At the academy, the teams learned some techniques in Army combatives, and finished up the day wrestling on the mats.

It was a really good leadership development and team-building event, according to many involved in the day's activities.

"We thought it'd be a good idea to just get them out here early like this," said Bill Comer, the ERHS hockey head coach. "Just to get them together and do some team bonding."

Army 1st Lt. Michael Vansickle, from the 1-501st Infantry, said the event was all about team building.

"This is fun and rewarding for us," Vansickle said. "We can show them what we do a little bit, and hopefully we can help them be a little more cohesive as a team."

Vansickle said events like this are important because the local community is small and is intricately integrated into the military community.
"We're pretty committed to our school partnership program," Vansickle said.

The high school players and paratroopers both seemed to enjoy the day, and were able to learn from each other about the importance of working together as a team to get things accomplished.

"It was fun. We had a good time," said Pfc. John Wendling from Comanche Company, 1-501st Infantry. "As much as they learned from us, we definitely learned from them - just how team work and team play can be effective for both our jobs and their team."

Jesse Johnson, ERHS hockey varsity team captain, said the event will benefit his team by helping them work together.

"We all need to work as a team, and if we work as a team, we're going to win," Johnson said.

He said he was also happy about being able to come to JBER for the event.

"I hope we can do this again some time," Johnson said. "I think it's awesome to work with the Soldiers."

Comer said he too was glad to spend the day with JBER paratroopers.

"Soldiers are great," said Comer. "It's amazing how disciplined they are, and how accommodating they are for our players, and they really are great role models for our boys to see. This a great event for the kids. I think they'll remember this for a long time."

The leadership development day at JBER was one of the first things on this year's agenda for the ERHS hockey team, and the coaches and players look to use their experiences working together as a team as a solid base for a successful upcoming season.