By 1st Lt. Amanda Wood
52nd Brigade Engineer Battalion, 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division
FORT CARSON, Colo. — Troops with the 52nd Brigade Engineer Battalion, 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, begin the ruck march event of the brigade’s Best Sapper Competition Oct. 3-4, 2018, on post. (Photo by 1st Lt. Amanda Wood)
FORT CARSON, Colo. — The 52nd Brigade Engineer Battalion, 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, is full of various jobs, about 42, but on Oct. 3-4, 2018, the troops were out in force demonstrating their ‘engineer’ strengths.
The Best Sapper Competition occurs at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, annually, usually during Engineer Regimental Week in the spring. The competition focuses on subjects covered and tested at Sapper Leader Course, such as an Army physical fitness test (APFT), land navigation and a ruck march, to name a few. The sapper instructors create the competition each year, devoting a tremendous amount of time and effort to ensure the events are conducted by doctrine and graded fairly.
While the planning of the event is underway, the competitors are preparing themselves. The 52nd BEB competed to earn the right of representing the battalion in the spring.
The battalion conducted its own Best Sapper Competition, where troops were tested on 12 individual series events over two days at Fort Carson to assess who would compete in future competitions.
FORT CARSON, Colo. — Sgt. 1st Class Chad Beeson, battalion operations sergeant major, 52nd Brigade Engineer Battalion, 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry division, completes the ruck march event of the brigade’s Best Sapper Competition Oct. 3-4, 2018. (Photo by 1st Lt. Amanda Wood)
“Becoming a sapper leader requires extreme physical readiness and expertise in all aspects of mobility, countermobility and survivability,” said Capt. Cory Plymel, battalion plans officer, who helped plan the event and also competed. “The Soldiers who volunteered for this competition are a cut above the rest and are motivated to lead from the front no matter the cost. They are the standard bearers for the Engineer Regiment.”
The first event tackled was a nonstandard APFT where the Soldiers were fatigued by pullups before moving to a round-robin event. The round-robin event tested both physical and mental agility, including assembling field antenna and running a half mile with gear in between tasks.
After the competitors were exhausted, they headed to the Iron Horse pool, where they conducted laps, treaded water and jumped off of the high dive before making a hasty life vest with their trousers.
Changing up the tasks from physically to mentally challenging, the competitors began the demolition exam. The questions awoke some dormant knowledge in the Soldiers. Competitors were also tested with a hands-on modern demolition initiators deficiency lane.
After lunch and down time, sappers prepared for the 15-mile ruck march. The competitors were moved from the Iron Horse Sports and Fitness Complex to a training area in southern Fort Carson.
The walk was long and arduous along the tank trails in 80-degree weather, proving to be an obstacle difficult to overcome. While the top competitors in the front were bouncing back and forth, it came down to a few Soldiers: 1st Lt. Matthew Tamburri, rear detachment leader of Bravo Company; Capt. Justin Dermond, battalion supply; Staff Sgt. Brandon McNulty, platoon sergeant with Alpha Company; and 1st Lt. Brandon Crossett, reconnaissance platoon leader; challenging each other in the last few miles.
While the weather made the ruck march much more difficult, McNulty said it was definitely a challenge.
“The heat was definitely a huge factor into how hard I could push myself,” McNulty said. “I had to slow down until the sun went down a little. You actually had to plan and think about how hard you could go.”
FORT CARSON, Colo. — 1st Lt. Benjamin Graham, maintenance platoon leader, 52nd Brigade Engineer Battalion, 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, steps off the diving board, blindfolded, for the pool swim test events during the brigade’s Best Sapper Competition Oct. 3-4, 2018, at the Iron Horse pool. (Photo by 1st Lt. Amanda Wood)
The following day began with a land navigation course and was a challenge due to the late sunrise. Knowing that Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, will be a greater challenge due to the forested area it contains; the late sunrise certainly enhanced the difficulty level. Dermond; Sgt. 1st Class Chad Beeson, battalion operations sergeant major; and 1st Lt. Michael Killian, executive officer, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, conquered the course with the best times.
“I was proud of myself for finding all of the points and coming in quickly,” Killian said. “We were all smoked from the previous day’s events including the ruck march. I wasn’t surprised to see sappers — Dermond and Beeson already waiting for me at the finish line though, finding all of their points as well.”
The “X-Mile Run” was the last event and included a 5-mile run with water jugs and sand bags carried along the way. The competitors took to challenging each other in the last event to make it through.
“The X-Mile Run, being the last event of the Best Sapper Competition, was a grind,” Tamburri said. “Especially (with) all we have been through, it was a challenge to be the first to come across the finish line as the rest of our peers were in a crowd as we ran in.”
On the final day of the competition and all 12 events behind them, Dermond; Sgt. Ryan Foskitt, team leader, Alpha Company; and Beeson, took first, second and third place, respectively.
“If you’re not first, you’re last. Sappers lead the way,” Beeson said.