FORT CARSON, Colo. — 1st Sgt. Derek Leonhardt, Headquarters Troop, 2nd Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment, 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, addresses spur candidates Oct. 14, 2021, as they go through what is known as the spur ride. One of the oldest traditions known to the cavalry scout, the spur ride tested the candidate’s knowledge along with their physical and mental resilience. (Photo by Spc. Tyler Brock)
By Spc. Tyler Brock
2nd Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment, 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division
FORT CARSON, Colo. — Spur candidates completed their last ruck Oct. 14-15, 2021, during the Order of the Spur. The journey is a challenging one with many obstacles along the way; however, the training the candidates have received has better prepared them for the modern-day battlefield while staying true to one of the oldest traditions known to the cavalry scout.
FORT CARSON, Colo. — Sgt. Alex Zuidema, Charlie Troop, 2nd Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment, 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, helps pull security Oct. 14, 2021, as he waits for his team on top of a hill during a spur ride at Fort Carson, Colorado. (Photo by Spc. Tyler Brock)
If successful, the contenders’ names will be added to the Order of the Spur and reserve the right to wear their spurs with pride.
Throughout the endeavor, Soldiers, NCOs and officers have been subjected to almost 30 hours of vigorous activities, ranging from a modified Army Combat Fitness Test to depravity of sleep. And while the participants were tired, they were far from finished. Even though the experience is only two days, the planning process for such an extensive event requires more people operating behind the scenes than the number of Soldiers participating.
After earning his Ranger tab in July 2021, at Fort Benning, Georgia, 1st Lt. Steven Pierce, a chemical and planning operations officer with 2nd Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment, 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, was tasked with organizing the event. Pierce quickly discovered that if he was to plan a successful event with a high success rate, he needed a teammate.
FORT CARSON, Colo. — A CH-47 Chinook helicopter comes in low as it makes its way to the landing zone Oct.15, 2021, at Fort Carson during the 2nd Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment, 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, Order of the Spur. (Photo by Spc. Tyler Brock)
“The people who I could rely on were limited because they have to be a spur holder for me to get their advice,” Pierce said. “We don’t want the opinions of someone who doesn’t have their spurs because if they are going through the event, it takes away from the luster of doing the event.”
Pierce chose 1st Lt. Thomas Schaffer, 2nd Sqdn., 1st Cav. Reg., 1st SBCT, who recently graduated Ranger School with Pierce, and the two decided to tag-team the planning, meeting the guidelines laid out by Command Sgt. Maj. Kevin Burg, senior enlisted adviser, 2nd Sqdn., 1st Cav. Reg., 1st SBCT.
Knowledge-based Order of the Spur is a relatively new concept to the cavalry. The Order of the Spur is a physically demanding task and the training they received helped mold them into better Soldiers and leaders.
“We wanted to produce an event that was physically (and) mentally challenging and required some endurance … (an event that) taught and assessed Soldiers, but also provided an avenue for NCO leaders within the squadron who have already earned their spurs to actually be subject matter experts and train,” said Schaffer.
When it comes to tasks such as setting up and operating a high-frequency radio or building and using an observation post, Soldiers can expect to learn the standard, regardless of their military occupational specialty (MOS).
“Our overall intent at the end of the day is that you have a better understanding, and that you’re better trained on these individual tasks,” Pierce said.
FORT CARSON, Colo. — Command Sgt. Maj. Kevin Berg, 2nd Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment, 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, senior enlisted adviser, address spur candidates Oct. 15, 2021, during the Order of the Spur ceremony at Fort Carson, Colorado. (Photo by Spc. Tyler Brock)
At the culminating ceremony, candidates found themselves in the front leaning rest position as their sponsors donned their coveted spurs.
“It’s a very proud moment. I was a sponsor for a couple people. I was extremely proud to see those individuals who chose to stick with it,” Pierce said.
Even though the silver spurs are a notch in one’s pride, this event is much more than the right to be called a spur holder, as some Soldiers came to realize — it’s about teamwork and unity.
“I think the whole idea behind the spur ride or spurs is not really to earn the spurs. It’s your unit cohesion,” said Pfc. Elliott Drake, 1st SBCT. “It’s working with other people who are doing the same thing that you’re doing and learning how to work as a teammate.”
“Being ‘cav’ is not an MOS; it’s a state of mind,” Burg said.
All in all, 42 troopers earned their spurs, which was an 80% success rate, said Pierce. “Nonetheless, we are very proud of all those who assisted and participated,” he added.
FORT CARSON, Colo. — Soldiers depart the 2nd Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment, 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, motor pool for the start of a rigorous ruck march Oct. 14, 2021, for the Order of the Spur. Soldiers, NCOs and officers were subjected to almost 30 hours of vigorous activities during the two-day Spur Ride. (Photo by Spc. Tyler Brock)