Outside the Wire is hearing a lot of chatter about TRADOC expanding the 2012 Drill Sergeant of the Year competition to include a representative from each brigade. We’re not sure how that would affect the local DSOY competitions, but it certainly would catapult this close competition to a whole new level. We’ll keep you posted …
Author Lance Bacon
Lance Bacon
A Navy brat who spent eight years in the Marines (two years aboard the carrier Independence). Worked in journalism in Eastern North Carolina through the latter part of the 90s, then became editor of Air Force Times in 2000. Stayed there five years, then took a break to finish some school. Now back in the game with Navy Times.
FORT JACKSON, S.C. – Think your Monday was tough? Try being a competitor in the Drill Sergeant of the Year competition. Six competitors started the day at 0330 by running a couple of miles. Next, they hammered out some combatives, conducted drill with a gaggle of new recruits, were thrown dozens of curve balls such as range malfunctions, rucked 60 pounds of gear across 10 miles of scorching hot pavement … and then broke for lunch. “It took a lot of heart; a lot of mind over matter,” said Staff Sgt. Benjamin Facio, Fort Leonard Wood’s Drill Sergeant of the…
FORT JACKSON, S.C. – Seven minutes to find 25 uniform errors. But you have to do it after a punishing day that has tested your physical and mental capacities. And you have to do it in the heavy heat of the Carolina woodlands as sand fleas fight mosquitos for every square inch of your body. That’s just one of 30 events tackled today by six competitors vying to be the Army’s Drill Sergeant of the Year. The 25 uniform errors included five on the ACU and 10 each on a male and female ASU. The competitors were confident they found…
Outside the Wire will feature profiles (in alphabetical order) of the six Drill Sergeant of the Year contenders this week. The competitors, which include four active-duty soldiers and two reservists, will be evaluated as they tackle 50 physically and emotionally challenging events. The winners will be announced Friday. Staff Sgt. Felicia Frailey is Fort Sill’s Drill Sergeant of the Year – and the first female to hold that title. The Altus, Okla., native joined the Army in 2004. “It is an honor and a privilege to represent my post,” she said. “And being here with drill sergeants of the year…
Outside the Wire will feature profiles (in alphabetical order) of the six Drill Sergeant of the Year contenders this week. The competitors, which include four active-duty soldiers and two reservists, will be evaluated as they tackle 50 physically and emotionally challenging events. The winners will be announced Friday. Staff Sgt. Benjamin Facio is Fort Leonard Wood’s Drill Sergeant of the Year. The California native joined the Army in 2004 as a military policeman. “It definitely is an honor to be at this level competing with these drill sergeants – the best of the best from all the installations,” said Facio,…
FORT JACKSON, S.C. — Up in the morning with the rising sun? Not if you are one of the six contenders for Drill Sergeant of the Year. They hit the pavement at 0400 to kick off the 2011 competition. Fittingly, the competitors were first graded in their abilities to form ranks for and lead PT. A special emphasis was given on the time-honored tradition of calling cadence. Many classics echoed through the darkness, such as the C-130s rolling down the strip. Good ‘ole “Jody” went some places he has never been. One drill sergeant even shouted his desire to…
Chief of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey knows how to rock a house. On some occasions, he belts out a powerful rendition of “New York, New York.” But when putting music to presentation videos, he likes to reach the younger audience. Earlier this week, he asked via Facebook for some song suggestions. The responses were pretty varied. A few Rogaine rockers voted for “Every Rose Has Its Thorn” (Poison) and “Thunderstruck” (AC/DC). The country crooners opted for “Find Out Who Your Friends Are” (Tracy Lawrence), “American Soldier” (Toby Keith), “Where the Stars and Stripes and the Eagles Fly” (Aaron Tippin) and…
If you’re looking for NRA coaching credentials, there’s no better place to start than with the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit. The unit just let us know it will host beginning and intermediate-level coach’s course for the rifle, pistol and high-power rifle at Fort Benning this fall. The Rifle Coach’s course will be Sept. 10-11. The Pistol Course will be Sept. 17-18 and the High-Power Rifle Coach’s course will be Oct. 1-2. Classes run from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily. Each course costs $125. Transportation, lodging and meals are on you. But the courses make you eligible for the NRA…
Rep. Roscoe Bartlett, R-Md., at a Thursday hearing on Soldier and Marine Equipment for Dismounted Operations, voiced his concern about the amount of weight soldiers are required to carry. And his concern certainly is justified. Nearing the end of the meeting, Bartlett warned military leaders against “getting in a rut.” His warning started with a very strong example of supplies in the South Pole, then took an somewhat unexpected turn … “As a senior member of the Science Committee I’ve now been twice to the South Pole,” Bartlett said. “I just want to use this as an example of how…
It’s no secret that military programs are under close scrutiny as spending is cut. The inevitable power struggle has left a presidential budget seeking one thing, think-tanks and pundits demanding something else, winded lobbyists arguing their cases and Congress adding to the quagmire. So who has final say as to what military programs are a “go” or “no go?” When a panel testifying before the House Armed Services Committee said that power resides with the president, Rep. Roscoe Bartlett, R-Md., did something unheard of. At a House Armed Services Subcommittee hearing Thursday, he pulled out the Constitution. Here’s what he…
