Photo By Staff Sgt. Patrick Caldwell | Capt. Noah Siple (left), the commander of Alpha Company, 3rd Battalion, 116th Cavalry...... read more read more
JOINT BASE BALAD, Iraq – He never thought to count the seconds, and he realized the effort would be a wasted one. There was no feasible way to measure time between the ignition of an improvised explosive device and the blast. All Capt. Noah Siple, the commander of Alpha Company, 3rd Battalion, 116th Cavalry Regiment, 77th Sustainment Brigade, 310th Expeditionary Sustainment Command and a native of Caldwell, Idaho, can really say about his brush with mortality is it was a surprise.
Often in war, words prove to be inadequate and Siple said explaining the moments inside an IED strike more than four months ago is impossible.
The milliseconds, though, that surround the blast that impacted his Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicle in January on a roadway in Iraq, are remembered only as the price of doing business, not a defining moment in the career of a modern-day company commander.
The IED attack is not the only hard-earned lesson Siple learned during his tour in Iraq. He admitted his experience as a company commander delivered challenges and triumphs that together converted into a unique kind of education.
“[I’ve learned] how to influence people, to get them to do things they may not necessarily want to do,” he said.
When Siple took command of A Co., he understood he was suddenly in charge of a unit with a storied history. Headquartered in The Dalles, Ore., the company boasts a long, vaunted tradition that stretches back to the pre-Civil War pioneer days.
“The Dalles was founded to protect the Oregon Trail,” he said. “It was the cavalry that protected the wagon trains.”
Fast-forward more than 160 years later and the soldiers from The Dalles are still in the business of protection. But this time they defend logistical convoys across central Iraq.
“We are being true to our history. We escort commodities from point A to point B. The same thing the cavalry did 150 years ago,” he said.
When Siple became the commander of A Co., he said he understood he inherited all that was good, and bad, about his unit.
“The day I took the guidon, I was immediately in command of more than 100 people I loved unconditionally,” he said. “I’m responsible for everything they do or fail to do. But that’s the agreement, that’s command.”
Siple understands the weight of decisions. The decisions he makes are important and the consequences could prove dangerous.
“The most complex decision is the one where individual lives are impacted,” he said.
Siple said his tour of duty as a company commander has been valuable.
“It focused me to make better decisions faster,” he said. “My leadership skills have never been tested the way they have been here. I will return to Idaho a better officer.”
A single day as a company commander consists of an array of different elements all merging, seemingly, at once. Judgments are made every hour of the day and at least some of those decisions involve lives. Then as the next day starts, the process begins again.
“You are on 24/7,” he said. “You have to balance that with the ability to make good decisions and motivating. And, you are constantly planning for the next mission.”
Siple said his command style is straight-forward.
“I delegate to the point [where] I’m uncomfortable and then reach down to the lowest level. I subscribe to the adage, ‘trust but verify,’” he said.
The intangibles to Siple are easy to quantify: trust and accountability.
“You can requisition boots, but you can’t requisition trust,” Siple said.
Siple said he does looks back on the IED ambush in January, but does not let the incident occupy much of his time.
“It doesn’t do any good to dwell on it,” he said.
| Date Taken: | 06.20.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 06.26.2011 03:02 |
| Story ID: | 72757 |
| Location: | JOINT BASE BALAD, IQ |
| Web Views: | 386 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
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