Success through teamwork

On a cold and snowy Saturday afternoon in the hills of Camp Williams, Utah, cadets of Utah State University’s Jim Bridger Detachment huddled together in preparation for their next obstacle. In front of them was a 10-foot wall. The cadets were tasked with getting their team of five over the wall and across the 10-feet of minefield on the other side.

The cadets were equipped with an aluminum ladder, 50-feet of rope and their combined minds.

In this case it wasn’t life or death, and the minefield was simply black rubber. The exercise was designed to teach cadets to think quickly and show leadership in a constantly changing environment.

One of the cadet teams to go through the exercise was led by Rachel Westcott, a junior. The team struggled to figure out a way to get the ladder over the top of the minefield.

In the end the team couldn’t reach an agreement on a way to accomplish the mission and ran out of time. “Some cadets just want to be the head honcho and take command,” said Westcott. “You’ve got to keep your influence over them.”

Nick Celaya, a senior and prior enlisted Soldier, was there to supervise the safety of his under-classman cadets. Celaya had gone through the course in prior years and knew the proper way to accomplish the mission. Celeya stood underneath the wall, saying nothing to the cadets who asked him questions. “It’s good it’s snowing,” said Celeya. “It gets them exposed to the harsh conditions.

Another group of cadets worked together, with one person taking charge. They successfully completed the mission in the required time. They were debriefed and asked the things that worked and what didn’t. The successful cadets left their obstacle debrief in high spirits. “It builds their egos and gives them confidence about who they are,” Celeya said.

While some cadets were busy outside on the icy obstacle, others were inside the warm confines of the Virtual Convoy Operations Trainer, or VCOT.

The VCOT is a program used to simulate convoys. The cadets strap themselves into seats that resemble the inside of a military Humvee, a 4x4 vehicle the military uses for many of their vehicle operations. There are four vehicles in the VCOT and each has room for a driver, vehicle commander and a gunner.

The VCOT gives the cadets a chance to experience the environment of urban warfare and the constant threat of roadside bombs or small arms fire. “It gives cadets good training that translates well and at a much lower cost,” said Kevin Moultrie, a senior, who had trained with the VCOT the previous year.

SFC Robert Roberts, 53, a soldier with 24 years in the service, was tasked with training the cadets on the VCOT. “You’ve got to be up and talking,” Roberts told the cadets. “If you can master mounted, dismounted is a whole lot easier.”

The cadets were faced with an eye opening experience as the first roadside bomb hit their lead vehicle. Maneuvering vehicles to go around the downed vehicle the second vehicle was ambushed by an insurgent gun truck. “You have to learn this now,” Roberts yelled to the vehicle commanders, “before you have to pull your soldiers out of a burning truck.”

C.Robinson