“Bandits” host spur ride for troops, USMA cadets

Courtesy Photo | Lt. Col. Nathan Springer, commander of 1st Squadron, 32nd Cavalry Regiment “Bandits”, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division, awards the Order of the Spur to a newly commissioned lieutenant from the United States Military Academy class of 2015 at the top of Popolopen Torne July 8, 2015. More than 100 Soldiers from Fort Campbell and the U. S. Military Academy, including four newly commissioned second lieutenants, took part in the 2015 Task Force Bandit spur ride at West Point, N.Y. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Mike Diehl, 1-32 CAV Unit Public Affairs Representative)  

WEST POINT, NY, UNITED STATES

07.07.2015

Story by Sgt. Samantha Stoffregen 

1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (AA) Public Affairs

WEST POINT, N.Y. - Nothing is as symbolic to the cavalry Soldier as earning spurs. When a Soldier earns his spurs, he has proven to his leaders and peers to have a level of expertise beyond that of the average cavalrymen.

Continuing the long tradition, 120 Soldiers from 1st Brigade Combat Team “Bastogne”, 101st Airborne Division, 1st Squadron, 32nd Cavalry Regiment “Bandits”, and the U. S. Military Academy, including four newly commissioned second lieutenants, took part in a spur ride at West Point, N.Y.

The event tested physical prowess and knowledge of common Soldier skills from July 7th through the 8th.

“The tradition of ‘earning your spurs’ goes back to the very beginning of cavalry,” explained Lt. Col. Nathan Springer, “Bandits” squadron commander. “When soldiers arrived at their cavalry squadron, they were assigned a horse with a shaved tail, signifying they were newly assigned. When the new horsemen proved their skills and ability to perform with the horse, they were awarded their spurs.”

Historically, new cavalry troops required extensive horsemanship training when they arrived at a unit. Only after they had proven to be proficient atop a horse could the cavalrymen wear spurs.

Currently, soldiers can earn silver spurs for completing a spur ride and gold spurs for serving in combat with a cavalry unit. Although soldiers today do not need to prove their horsemanship skills, they do need to show that they have what it takes to ride with the cavalry, and for modern cavalrymen, this means being part of a team.

"Being new to the Squadron, it was a great opportunity to gain a better understanding of the tradition of Cavalry and meet many of the Soldiers and Officers I will be working with," said Chaplain Capt. Ryan Lewis, squadron chaplain.

Participants were split up into 14 teams so there was representation from Fort Campbell and USMA on every team, Springer said.

“This allowed us to mold new friendships, strengths and weaknesses, and most important create an unforgettable training event that Bastogne soldiers will remember,” he explained.

Operating with little to no sleep, the 14 eight to nine-man teams of spur candidates navigated through nine stations, where they demonstrated their cavalry knowledge and skills.

Some of the task the Soldiers had to perform during the spur ride included the Marne (dry obstacles) Confidence course, the Water Confidence course, a Leadership Reaction Course, adjust indirect fire, disassemble and reassemble various weapons, and evaluate a causality.

“The spur ride was not only an event that measured the intestinal fortitude of soldiers from this task force, it also showed that we are soldiers that can come together and accomplish a mission as a team, regardless of your job," said Spc. Michael Padrazo, a “Bandit” spur candidate.

The Spur Ride ended with a walk to the top of Popolopen Torne (officially called "The Torne"). The “Torne” is a mountain with a relatively sharp and bald peak, with a summit 942 feet above sea level.

“I was honored to award the spurs on top of Popolopen Torne near West Point,” Springer said. “It is the culmination of a mentally and physically exhausting 24 hours. The soldiers who completed the spur ride are authorized to wear their silver spurs at any formal cavalry event. Those spurs announce that individual soldiers volunteered and conquered a spur ride.”
Springer explained they did this at the academy to introduce an important tradition in the armor and cavalry community, to the cadets and Army staff at West Point, and to their Soldier within the task force from the “Bastogne” brigade.

• Date Taken: 07.07.2015
• Date Posted: 12.02.2015 13:16
• Story ID: 183273
• Location: WEST POINT, NY, US