Photo By Madison Simms | Seminar 13 "Pirates" for the second year running won the 2026 Boatyard Wars held at...... read more read more
As the U.S. Army War College Class of 2027 wrapped up their orientation week, the Carlisle Barracks community hosted one of its most anticipated and unorthodox traditions: the chaotic naval proving ground of the annual Boatyard Wars.
While the event features plenty of splashing, sinking, and laughter, Boatyard Wars is designed to strengthen the seminar by team-building. By placing senior leaders into an environment where they must embrace the unconventional, the exercise requires students to collaborate under tight time constraints, testing how they communicate, innovate, and organize when confronted with an unfamiliar challenge.
The mechanics of Boatyard Wars are straightforward yet demanding. Seminar teams receive a deliberately constrained supply of cardboard and duct tape. With only these basic materials, seminars must rapidly conceptualize, engineer, and construct a functional watercraft.
"I leaned on my background as an architect to draft the initial design and plan for the boat," said Department of the Army civilian Katrina Cameron. "We planned and built as a team, gathered extra materials during the mini-games, and adapted the design on the fly."
Once the construction phase concludes, designated seminar pilots must navigate their precarious vessels across the Carlisle Barracks pool. While many of the watercraft experience rapid structural failure at the start of the race, providing a humorous, low-stakes environment for handling setbacks, Seminar 13 came out on top by engineering a dominant, seaworthy design.
"The entire 'Pirates' team was determined to win the race and defend our title of 'Boatyard Wars Champions,'" said Ukrainian Lt. Col. Roman Bilobriukhov, one of the vessel's pilots. "I can say with confidence that our victory is the result of unprecedented teamwork under effective leadership, both during the strategy development phase and in its practical execution."
Bilobriukhov added that the victory sets a tone for the academic year: "Every Pirate played an invaluable role in this event. We have made a great start and intend to maintain this momentum throughout the year."
"Seeing my students work together to tackle a problem like boat building reminds me what an incredible pool of talent there is here at the War College," said faculty instructor Prof. Jadwiga Biskupska. "As a civilian academic, I see how competition fosters cooperation as a key strength of military institutions. My students have bonded as Pirates, and that was clearly key to their triumph; they were already a functional team when the competition started. We can't wait to see our second trophy installed where it belongs in Seminar 13!"
Cameron echoed the value of the shared experience: "Watching our seminar work together as a high-performing unit to produce a winning team was the highlight of this event. Boatyard Wars is an incredible icebreaker, and working together to defend our title set a very high bar for how we’ll continue to collaborate through the rest of the year," she said.
“Boatyard Wars is a fun and effective team-building event early in the academic year,” said Col. Anthony Davis, USAWC assistant principal. “Students are tasked to work together to solve a problem outside of their comfort zone with minimal resources. The bonus is that it is also a good time and families get to watch the chaos ensue,” said Davis.
Spouses and children gather at the pool to cheer on their respective seminars, creating instant social bonds. For the International Fellows who have just relocated their families across the globe, this welcoming environment is an essential first step into the American military community.
| Date Taken: | 08.31.2026 |
| Date Posted: | 08.31.2026 13:34 |
| Story ID: | 573589 |
| Location: | CARLISLE BARRACKS, PENNSYLVANIA, US |
| Web Views: | 19 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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