Leader's Training Course

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After initial uncertainty, graduates leaving LTC better physically, mentally

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Delta Company Cadets from third platoon cheer on Cadet Brian Parry after he won a marksmanship competition. Cadets in each of LTC's four companies said camaraderie was something that will stay with them. Photo by Sammy Jo Hester/LTC PAO

By Thomas Gounley
Staff writer

As they shuffled through the Louisville International Airport on their way to Fort Knox in June, the hundreds of Cadets didn’t know what to expect of their upcoming stint at the Leader’s Training Course. Some knew a little about the training they would go through on account of knowing past graduates, but others didn’t have that knowledge – some finding out they were coming just days before.

As the fourth and final company prepares to graduate later this week, marking the official end of LTC for 2011, Cadets reflected upon how the course has impacted them.

In some ways, the challenges were physical.

“LTC pushed me to my limit and more,” said Bravo Cadet Timothy Michael Murphy, of the University of Texas – Brownsville.

Throughout the 29-day course, and particularly in its first three weeks, Cadets were shuffled from one event to the next, testing skills from water survival to land navigation. Combined with early wake-up calls and long days in the sun, the training was unrelenting.

“At times I felt like I wanted to give up because I felt like my body couldn’t possibly do anything more, but I found strength deep inside and pushed through it,” said Bravo Cadet Erika Lackey, of the University of New Hampshire.

But the challenges were also mental. Training exercises were selected so as to test and challenge Cadets’ fears, such as a fear of heights at the Where Eagles Dare ropes course.

“Mentally, I was challenged in that I had to convince myself that I could do anything I set my mind to,” Lackey said. “Also, since I had never done ROTC before, I had to learn a lot more about the military aspects of some events, like STX (squad tactical exercise) lanes.”

While the physical rewards of the course could be easily recorded, from the first PT test to the last, the mental and emotional rewards were less obvious.

“My personality changed a lot,” said Charlie Cadet Justin Delph, of Georgia Military College. “I’m more confident; I have many new abilities. There are a lot of things I can do now that I couldn’t do.”

“It has had a really good impact on me as far as knowing who I am, and my self-esteem and leadership as well,” said Charlie Cadet Jamie Morrison, of Elizabeth City State University in North Carolina.

Throughout the course, Cadets were given opportunities to lead their fellow Cadets, as well as observe others in action.

“I learned that you need to have faith in yourself before you can lead others,” said Lackey, who hopes to become a physical therapist for the Army. “If you aren’t confident in your abilities, then your squad or platoon will question you as leader and might not trust your abilities to lead as well. Confidence is key.”

In the end, however, it was less the training that Cadets said would stick with them, but rather the camaraderie that developed.

“You become real tight-knit, like a family,” said Alpha Cadet Joe Didonato, of the University of Central Florida.

Cadets spent nearly a month as part of a squad and a platoon, and all their activities revolved around that unit.

“The main thing is you have to stay together as a platoon,” Murphy said. “Third platoon became a family. We worked hard and did the best we could. The payoff was when we won the 10k streamer.”

In some cases, what started out as intimidating, such as the drill sergeants, turned into an advantage by the end.

“Getting smoked all the time by drill sergeants helped improve my PT scores, and having them in our faces all the time made me more mentally tough,” said Bravo Cadet Austin Brackeen, of New Mexico State University.

Cadets will have the opportunity to contract with the Army when they return to their home institutions. Completing LTC allows them to enter as third-year ROTC students.

“And as of right now, I hope to make a career out of the military,” Brackeen said. “I love the military life and everything it has to offer.”

Leading from the front, even with stitches in his side

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Cadet Culberson gives a thumbs-up on the slide for life at the Forrest Hills Climbing Complex on his first day after being cleared from his appendix surgery. Photo by Sammy Jo Hester/ LTC PAO

By Caitlin VanOverberghe
Staff writer

Homesickness can cause bellyaches.

When Cadet William Culberson arrived at the Leader’s Training Course with Charlie Company June 24, Cadre members warned of the sudden illnesses that seem to overcome Cadets their first nights away from home.

So when Culberson started complaining about stomach pains around bedtime, his drill sergeants told him to do some stretches to make sure he didn’t have any pulled muscles and sent him back to bed.

“My entire abdomen hurt, and I thought that didn’t seem normal,” Culberson said. “I just told them, ‘I’m not faking it, I promise.’ ”

When the pain continued, Culberson was taken to the emergency room at Ireland Army Community Hospital. His symptoms corresponded with appendicitis, and even though his X-ray and CT scan both came up negative, he was scheduled for surgery the next morning.

Culberson, who will be attending Marion Military Institute in the fall, needed to complete LTC to contract at the junior military college. Lt. Col. Sean Ryan, the professor of military science at Marion and Delta Company tactical officer, arranged for Culberson to join Delta Company, which would begin training five days later.

Culberson was released into his mother’s care the day after surgery after a full day in the hospital, and stayed with her at a local hotel. The following day, Delta Company nurse 2nd Lt. Melanie Zack brought Culberson back to post to stay with a holding company until Delta’s arrival June 29.

It takes about a month for someone to return to everyday activities after an appendectomy, Culberson said doctors told him. Since Culberson’s procedure was done laparoscopically, his recovery time was set at two weeks.

During that time, he couldn’t get in water and couldn’t carry more than 10 pounds. No push-ups, no sit-ups, no running. He woke up with his platoon and sat, watching as they trained.

He admitted that time “sucked,” and he even considered returning home.

“Some of the drill sergeants and officers came up and said to me, ‘The fact that you’re willing to sit here and learn, even though you can’t participate, shows that you have the capability to be a leader, and you’ll stick with it,’ ” Culberson said.

After a check-up July 7, he was given permission to start training, under the watchful eye of cadre, as long as he didn’t push himself too far.

“The second my drill sergeant found out I was better, he made me drop and do push-ups,” Culberson said with a laugh.

Zack said she and Delta’s drill sergeants watched Culberson “like a hawk” as he started training. They wanted to make sure he didn’t pop any sutures or develop any kind of infection. He was able to join another platoon to complete the Where Eagles Dare climbing complex, the same day of his release by his doctors.

Zack said she believes Delta’s squad tactical officers won’t let the training time Culberson missed affect his final scores because they know how dedicated he was to training.

“He’s a very highly motivated Cadet, and it killed him not to be able to do the training for the first 10 days,” she said. “If we would have let him he would have trained the whole time, he wouldn’t have taken any recovery time.”

 

Live streams give friends, families an ‘i’ into training

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Alex Aspacher, an intern with the LTC public affairs office, filmed training events throughout the course using an iPad2. He captured Delta Company going through the obstacle course last week. Photo by Sammy Jo Hester/LTC PAO

By Rebecca Grapsy
Staff writer 

While Cadets are at the Leader’s Training Course, they can go days, if not weeks, without any contact with their families.

But unlike basic training, where family members can also go long stretches of time without any contact from their loved ones, leaderstrainingcourse.com provides articles, photographs and videos covering the training Cadets are going through at Fort Knox.

This year, there is a new addition to the coverage: live streaming video.

“This is a recruiting mission, and we’re always looking for opportunities to show people what we do and how we do it,” LTC Public Affairs Officer Steve Arel said. “Cadets are influenced by people — particularly their parents — outside the course. We’re trying to give them more information, so they can make informed decisions.”

Cadets at LTC are still being recruited, and once they return to school from the course, they have 30 days to decide to contract with the Army and continue in the Army ROTC program.

The idea of live broadcasting was implemented last year at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington, streaming graduation from the Leader Development and Assessment Course, the senior leadership course all Cadets attend between their third and fourth years of ROTC.

The first test stream at LTC, using a Canon XL2 camera attached to a laptop and a Verizon hotspot, didn’t work. Not only was the set-up bulky, but in an area dominated by AT&T wireless coverage, the stream was unacceptably slow.

“We really wanted to get in the middle of the action, so people can feel what it’s like to be part of  the training,” Arel said. “That’s something that would have been difficult to do carrying a camera and a laptop.”

The idea for the ultra-portable live stream was initially tested with an iPhone 4, proving the concept was doable. But the small iPhone 4 can be hard to handle in the field and comes with a lengthy contract and steep fees for a device only needed a few months out of the year.

Enter the iPad 2.

“I don’t own an iPad — I’d never actually used an iPad,” said Alex Aspacher, the Bowling Green State University student who manages all of the iPad broadcasts in addition to his regular reporter duties.

The iPad 2, which has a fixed-distance camera, forces its videographer to get right down with the Cadets.

“When I want to shoot something close up, I have to get as close as I can get,” Aspacher said. For events like combat water survival training, held at an indoor pool, this means keeping a close grip and being particularly careful around the edges.

The stream, done through a uStream app, has rotated among the training events, aiming to showcase the entire experience of LTC rather than portray a specific company.

The broadcasts, which are linked on the LTC website and promoted event-by-event on the course’s Facebook page, have been well-received: more than 800 unique viewers this summer alone, with as many as 175 at a single show and almost 300 on a single archived video.

“Watched (today’s) live stream … really cool. I think (it’s) pretty awesome that you can do live feeds to the Internet,” Steven Blue commented on one of the live stream Facebook posts.

However, the first year of the program isn’t without its problems.

“People want a concrete schedule,” Aspacher said, explaining that a more consistent schedule could lead to more regular followers.

But because training schedules can change based on weather, platoon size and a variety of other factors, set schedules are nearly impossible. It’s not unusual for training streams to be cancelled because of safety or just bad timing.

“The uStream app likes to play tricks … and there can be small, technical kinks,” Aspacher said.

Even in an AT&T area with an AT&T device, there can be signal problems in the rural area in which Fort Knox sits. More than once, a stream has had to be cancelled because of patchy or no connectivity at a training site.

The original plan for the iPad streaming had been to have two devices to allow more streaming opportunities. When LTC was scaled back to only four companies from its original seven, so was the broadcasting.

If LTC remains at full-scale next year, with seven companies of Cadets attending throughout the summer, the iPad streaming program will be doubled.

“With the way technology is going, it will certainly be a permanent part of our program,” Arel said.

Charlie charges toward future, graduates LTC

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By Sara Nahrwold
Staff writer

After 29 days of forming close friendships, enduring tough training and the shouts of drill sergeants, Charlie Company Cadets said their goodbyes Saturday to friends and training officers and hello to their families at graduation.
The company graduated 190 Cadets, who now have earned the opportunity to work toward a commission in the United States Army.

“You hung together strong, supporting your newfound brothers and sisters as a family,” said Col. Eric Winkie, the Leader’s Training Course commander. “You never quit, and you never gave up. You pulled each other through.”

Charlie Company Cadets present the colors during their graduation ceremony Saturday. Photo by Heather Cortright/LTC PAO

With the four platoon flags blowing in the wind, the company marched across Brooks Field, coming to rest directly in front of the crowd of families gathered for the occasion.

Parents said they were impressed by the discipline shown after their month of training.

“Most of you stepped off the bus four weeks ago with little to no idea what Army life was like,” said Maj. Gen. Mark
McDonald, commanding general for U.S. Army Cadet Command and the graduation’s guest speaker. “You must learn to crawl before you can walk, and you have to walk well before you can start running. You need to learn how to follow before you can be a great leader.”

Cadets formed strong bonds with each other from being together throughout their training, helping new friends overcome their fears.

“I had a fear of heights, but I did the 50-foot rappel tower twice,” said Stephen Bradley, of Georgia Military College. “They pushed me to get down that tower.”

Away from their families, Cadets formed new ones.

“We really didn’t know each other when we came here, and now we are all close and like family,” said Silimusa Miscoi, of the University of Hawaii-Manoa.

After a long month of separation, Cadets and families were able to see each other on family day Friday, but the moment when they could take their son or daughter home finally arrived Saturday.

“The opportunity exceeds the distance,” said Ted Keith, father of Cadet Alan Keith. “It’s an opportunity he wouldn’t have gotten any other way except through this. I’m very proud of him.”

Cadets were changed by LTC in many ways, including being physically and mentally strengthened.

“He’s normally a person who is very quiet and keeps to himself,” said Johenie Bradley, mother of Cadet Stephen Bradley. “He’s getting more manly, more disciplined and more of a go-getter.”

McDonald encouraged Cadets to do some thinking in four areas before heading back to school in the fall: Cadets need to have what it takes to lead American Soldiers, continue to push themselves in body, mind and spirit, demonstrate the Warrior Ethos and live the Army Values.

He said if the answer is yes, they should contract with the Army.

The company, as well as McDonald, thanked the families for their never-ending support of their Cadets while at LTC.

“It takes somebody special to raise a Soldier, and it takes somebody special to support and love a Soldier,” he said.

While Cadets reunited with their loved ones, they recognized that their summer at LTC has changed them. Many of them look forward to completing college and commissioning as second lieutenants, a feat that was unrecognizable just a month ago.

“Each of you walks off this field today better than when you arrived,” McDonald said. “You’re prouder, you’re more confident and you’re stronger.”

Recovery poses challenges of a different kind

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By Alex Aspacher
Staff writer

When Cadets return from one of the most action-packed events at the Leader’s Training Course, they go through a period known as recovery that often ends up being anything but a relief.

During the situational training exercise, Cadets put to work many of the skills they’ve learned during the past several weeks. After three days in the field, they find themselves spending much of their remaining time at Fort Knox — in what is called LTC’s Future Leader phase — confined to the barracks, cleaning equipment such as rucksacks, canteens, uniforms and other items they were issued shortly after their arrival.

“It’s really boring,” Cadet Carlos Moreno, from the University of Puerto Rico, said with a smile. “Sincerely, we feel like we’re in a prison right now.”

Cadre members must stay on top of the Cadets because, although grueling, recovery is an essential part of completing the course.

Brent Paul, of the Georgia Military College, cleans the inside of his helmet during Charlie Company's recovery period. Charlie Cadets graduate Saturday. Photo by Bobby Ellis/LTC PAO

“(STX) and the road march are pretty much the most physically exhausting (activities) they go through, so it’s time for them to cool down and relax their bodies,” said Staff Sgt. Chad Shoenfelder, a drill sergeant for Charlie Company’s first platoon. “It’s also when they get the most use out of their equipment, and they need to get ready to turn it in. There are pretty high standards for (cleaning) that stuff. It has to be as close to brand-new as they can get it.”

Cadets start paperwork to fix damaged or defective equipment, as well as prepare for their departure and practice for an awards ceremony. Recovery also includes exit interviews with the LTC commander and sergeant major that involves “getting their feelings out,” Shoenfelder said.

“It lets them get any gripes out, anything that went wrong and anything that can be improved,” he said.

As family day and graduation approach, some Cadets need frequent reminders they are still living in a military training environment.

Recovery is “kind of a relief because they’re getting ready to go, but it kind of fluctuates their motivation level,” Shoenfeld said. “It’s kind of tough to deal with them at this point because their mentality shifts toward going home as opposed to being here, so they kind of lose their discipline. It’s kind of a back-off period for (drill sergeants), but we have to remind them a lot that they’re still here.”

In addition to cleaning their equipment and barracks, Charlie Company has been working this week on “just staying awake,” Moreno said.

Many Cadets would much rather be out training. So when they’re not cleaning, they do unscheduled physical training on their own, as well as play pranks on each other and practice imitations of some of their drill sergeants.

“Anything to keep busy,” said Cadet Sean Armstrong of Central Michigan University. “Whoever falls asleep, they get woken-up in some way.”

Armstrong and Moreno said they have both impersonated drill sergeants and kicked the bay doors open “just to mess with” sleeping Cadets.

“I kick the door open, and (another Cadet) springs out of bed and everyone starts laughing,” Armstrong said. “We have it on camera; his reaction was pretty funny.”

As they complete tedious tasks while remaining lighthearted, Cadets can look forward to a change of pace the closer they get to family day, graduation and departure later today.

“For the first few days, it was nice,” he said. “Now it’s just getting old. We’re just sitting up here stir-crazy.”

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