The Red Warrior Path (MAY-JUL 13)

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    TheRedW

    arriorPath

    The

    RedW

    arriorPath

    1STB

    ATTALIO

    N

    12TH

    IN

    FANTRY

    REGI

    M

    ENT

    (LIGHT)

    On The Red Warrior Path 2-3

    Iron Horse Festivities 4-5

    Unit News 6-17

    History of the 1-12 Infantry Coat of Arms 9

    The Life of Christopher Kit Carson 18-19

    Inside this issue:

    Volume2,

    Issue2

    Summer2013

    http://www.facebook.com/

    one.twelve.infantry/info

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    I write this article as thebattalion is enjoying some well-deserved Summer Block Leave.

    Preceding our leave period, ourunit has been running hard:Team Live -Fires Exercises,Squad Training and Live Fires,Iron-Horse Week and an ad-ministration surge to account forleave cycle -- and field time afterwe get back from leave. All thiswas done during the BrigadesRed Cycle; whereby we sup-ported 4th Infantry Divisionroutine taskings.

    We also saw Bravo Com-

    pany deployed to NTC as OP-FOR (Opposing Force) to sup-port 2ndBrigades NTC Rotationthere. We have tasked them asthe PTDO Company (PrepareTo Deploy/Onward Movement)Company for next year and wetook this opportunity to exercisetheir ability to deploy on a no-notice mission: a task CPT Yunand his Blackfoot Soldiers per-formed superbly.

    The Red Warriors arelethally certified through squadlevel, we exercised the PTDOmission, hosted a successfulBattalion Pool Party and pre-pared our Soldiers and familiesfor block leave.

    Lastly, 1-12 IN was recog-nized by the Fort Carson Garri-son Commander as one of thetop 3 AER contributors in the4th Infantry Division Soldiershelping Soldiers! I am so veryproud of our Soldiers and lead-

    ers to achieve excellence duringthis very busy and turbulenttime!

    The next couple monthswill be packed with a lot of fieldand recovery time. The battal-ion will deploy to the field on 29July to execute Operation Chey-enne Thunder: our Platoon levellive-fire and certification pro-gram.

    The Red Warriors will con-duct a Platoon Attack live fireexercise with mortars and attackaviation assets day and night.They will also qualify to shoot

    heavy machine guns off of MAT-V vehicles and then conduct aplatoon mounted urban assaultlive fire.

    The remaining training sce-nario during Operation Chey-enne Thunder will be CounterIED training and an Urban Sce-nario Lane where our platoonswill role play a Security Forceconducting missions in an Af-ghan town.

    After a short break from 10

    -14 August, we will redeploy tothe field to execute the brigadescertification program: OperationMountain Strike. From 16 Au-gust to 27 August, the battalionwill support and execute mis-sions in a mock Afghan environ-ment as a SECFOR and Adviseand Assist Force.

    Companies will be trainedand certified in mission com-mand and security force assis-tance tasks for our upcoming

    National Training Center Rota-tion in October.

    The brigade will hostSquared Away Training forour Military spouses: a compre-hensive and self-empoweringtraining session focused onbuilding resilient families andinformed families. For everyspouse that attends this valuabletraining, their Soldier gets a four-day pass.

    The month of Septemberwill be a big Recovery monthand reintegration time withfamilies. Simultaneously, I and

    the brigades leadership will takea short trip to RC-South, Kan-dahar, Afghanistan in Septemberto recon our future missionthere. Truly a busy time for aswe execute our training path.

    We continue to transitionkey leaders from Squad Leadersup to battalion level. Since thelast publication, we have bidfarewell to CPT Brian Sbertoli,C/1-12 IN CDR and 1SGDavid Ralston, B/1-12 IN 1SG.

    Both Comanche 6 and Black-foot 7 were great leaders andtheir presence will be missed.

    Filling 1SG Ralstons shoesas First Sergeant is SFC RusselOdonnell and the Red Warriorswelcome CPT Jason Kruck andfamily to the team as the newComanche 6.

    Our long-serving BigXO, LTC Jim Pangelinan willbe departing with Susannah to

    (Continued on page 3)

    On the Red Warrior Path

    by LTC Dave Voorhies

    For every spouse

    that attends this

    valuable [Squared

    Away] training,

    their Soldier gets

    a four-day pass.

    Page 2 THE RED WARRI OR PATH

    THE RED WARRIOR PATHis published by 1st Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment (Light) for the families and friends of RedWarrior Soldiers. 1-12 Infantry (L) is part of 4 IBCT, 4 ID. The battalion is currently training at Fort Carson, Colorado in preparationto support ongoing contingency operations. Contents ofTHE RED WARRIOR PATH are not necessarily the official view of, orendorsed by, the U.S. government or the Department of Defense. Please send all questions or comments about THE RED WAR-RIOR PATH to CH (CPT) A. Lamont Risner at [email protected].

    ON THE FRONT AND BACK COVERS: SPC Darnells team from Dog Companys 4th Platoon not only won the Top Dog Com-petition on June 25th, they also volunteered to carry the Company Guidon for the entire event.

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    Page 3VOLUME 2, ISSUE 2

    We are committed

    to training our team,

    enforcing Army

    standards, and in

    doing so, taking

    care of Soldiers and

    families in the

    process.

    On the Red Warrior Path (continued)

    take command at Ft Benning,

    Georgia.MAJ Drew Conover is both

    excited and ready to fill Jims bigshoes as the new Battalion XO.We welcome two new MasterSergeants: MSG ONeill andMSG Thomas. MSG Thomas isserving as our interim Opera-tions SGM and 1SG ONeill willtransition with 1SG Andersen inA/1-12 IN.

    We also welcome MAJMike Starz, CPT JB Brown,

    CPT Joe Dancur, and CPTAdam Menzel they and their

    (Continued from page 2) families will be key players onthe team in the key battalionstaff roles of Battalion S3, Bat-

    talion S4 and Battalion AS3.I hope everyone had a great

    leave period and enjoyed theirvacations. We now get re-focused on our mission throughsome high impact upcomingtraining. We are committed totraining our team, enforcingArmy standards, and in doingso, taking care of Soldiers andfamilies in the process. We arefocused. We are resolute. Weare attacking!

    Led by Love of Country.

    LTC Pangelinan, LTC Voorhies, and members of the 1-12 Infantry Staff pause to recover from a morning run at Cheyenne Mountain State Park.

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    Iron Horse Festivities

    by SPC Jullian Reed

    Iron Horse is a

    nickname for the

    4th Infantry

    Division, adopted to

    underscore the

    speed and power of

    the Division...

    Page 4 THE RED WARRI OR PATH

    A sunny day at Fort Carsonkicked off Iron Horse Week,during the month of June. 1-12

    Infantry Soldiers have beensteadily preparing themselves tocompete in this annual event puton by the 4th Infantry Division.Iron Horse Week promotesteamwork and unity among theSoldiers, as well as improves themorale of Fort Carson Soldiers.The events occurring during thisweek of competition comprisevarious sports and tournamentsranging from flag football andsand volleyball to combatives

    and tug of war.Iron Horse is a nicknamefor the 4th Infantry Division,adopted to underscore the speedand power of the division and itsSoldiers. The term Iron Horsewas first use in the early 1800swhen most machines were stillpowered by real horses. It was acomplimentary term, indicatingstrength and power, used whencomparing early road and rail-way engines.

    At one time the term IronHorse was used to name every-

    (Continued on page 5)

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    Iron Horse Festivities (continued)

    Iron Horse Week

    was a five day

    athletic competition

    for 1-12 Soldiers

    and units across

    Fort Carson.

    Page 5VOLUME 2, ISSUE 2

    thing from hotels to bicycletournaments. This is evidenteven in the realm of sports. LouGehrig, a NY Yankee (duringBabe Ruth's time in the 1920sand 1930s) was known as "theIron Horse" because he estab-lished the record for consecutivegames played by a professionalbaseball player - 2130 games, arecord held for almost 60 years.

    Iron Horse Week was a fiveday athletic competition for 1-12Soldiers and units across FortCarson. The turnout is always

    (Continued from page 4) large. Soldiers, their families andthe nearby communities enjoythis fun and lively competition.Iron Horse Week always bringsmuch excitement and comraderywhether Soldiers are participat-ing in the competition or cheer-ing on their comrades. Thisevent is an opportunity for RedWarrior Soldiers to take a breakfrom the rigorous training andday to day work of the armylifestyle in order to enjoy familyand friends.

    In this annual competitioninvolving multiple events, thetotal point winners at battalion

    and company level are recog-nized with the CommandersCup at the end of the week.These winning battalions, pre-sented with the Commander'sCups, maintain the Cup until thenext competition. The Combat-ives winner receives the FightHouse Cup and the Boxing win-ner receives the WCAP Belt. 1-12 Soldiers will continue to lookforward to participating andcompeting in this athletic com-petition for many years to come.

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    Arrowhead Company

    by CPT Erik Anderson

    We kicked off June

    with Fire Team STX,

    which led into Fire

    Team Live Fire

    Exercise.

    Page 6 THE RED WARRI OR PATH

    world aspect to the training likeweapons malfunctions and ratesof fire control. Last was the livefire iteration. As the name indi-cates, live rounds are used tosimulate a real scenario and trainSoldiers to focus on the small,yet critical details.

    With the first three itera-tions of day training over, theFire Teams transitioned to nightfire. The same three sequencesapplied: dry, blank, and live.

    With the added element of dark-ness, the teams were taxed withlimited visibility, which theyovercame by employing NightVision Devices. NVDs bringtheir own set of challenges, butArrowhead Soldiers quicklyadapted to their night visiondevices and tackled the nightiterations with the same energyand tenacity as the day training.

    With the conclusion ofTeam Live Fire, Iron HorseWeek became the main focus of

    the Company. Iron Horse Weekis a series of seventeen differentevents that Soldiers from everyunit across post participated in.Arrowhead Company demon-strated its dedication to compe-tition by committing soldiers tonearly every event. Notable fin-ishes included: 1LT Scott andSSG McGonigle who took 2nd

    (Continued on page 7)

    May closed out the finalstages of Red Cycle Tasking, butbrought with it a slew of new

    activities and training events thatforced Soldiers to combine theirskills, patience, and stamina tomeet a new set of challenges.We kicked off June with FireTeam STX, which led into FireTeam Live Fire Exercise.

    There was then a one weekrespite from Fire Team trainingto focus on Iron Horse Week.That week consisted of variousactivities and sporting eventsSoldiers could participate in,

    ranging from bowling and paint-ball to boxing and speed climb-ing. After Iron Horse week, theSoldiers moved back into thefield to focus on Squad STX andSquad Live Fire Exercises.

    With Red Cycle Taskingover, the Company consolidatedand began preparing for smallunit operations at the Fire Teamand Squad level. To eventuallyoperate on a large scale, theCompany starts with the FireTeam and builds, adding thecomplexity of a larger elementand different tactical problemsets throughout the training.

    Arr owhead Companyheaded to the field to begin pre-paring for Team STX. Each ofthe teams trained to work as a

    cohesive unit and kept an eyefocused on the larger eventsahead. Fire Team Live Fire oc-curred about one hour south ofthe Company training area, nearCamp Red Devil. For one week,Fire Teams from each Platoontook turns maneuvering andreacting to contact during bothday and night.

    The live fire event was bro-ken down into six phases: threeoccurring during the day, and

    three at night. The day iterationsstarted with a dry fire exercise,where the Fire Teams focusedon bounding and operating to-gether without ammunition.

    Next was the blank itera-tion, where the Fire Teams usedblank rounds, which added a real

    Arrowhead Soldiers Line up in preparation for their training lane.

    A Team Leader issues sectors of fire and completes his LACE report.

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    Arrowhead Company (continued)

    SGT Ivan, originally

    a Team Leader,

    stepped up his game

    to take charge of a

    Squad and

    ultimately garnered

    the title of Best

    Squad.

    Page 7VOLUME 2, ISSUE 2

    place in bowling! At the termina-tion of Iron Horse Week, Ar-rowhead Soldiers moved back tothe field for more training.

    Squad STX and Squad LiveFire Exercises ensued. Muchlike Team STX and Team LFX,Squad STX and Squad LFXinvolved both day and nighttraining. At the Squad level,however, the maneuvering, con-trol, and operations become farmore complex. At the Fire Teamlevel, there are three to five Sol-diers per Fire Team; whereas,

    (Continued from page 6) approximately seven to nineSoldiers form a Squad.

    Furthermore, the SquadLive Fire incorporated casualtyevacuation and required the

    coordination of multiple forcesarrayed across the battle space.At the conclusion of the fourday exercise, 1SG Andersendeclared the Best Squad. Thecompetition was intense, withonly a few points separating thetop four places. SGT Ivan, origi-nally a Team Leader, stepped uphis game to take charge of aSquad (a position normally ledby a Staff Sergeant), and ulti-

    mately garnered the title ofBest Squad. As declared win-ner of SQD LFX, SGT Ivanearned his platoon the covetedwooden placard, which nowhangs proudly outside 3rd Pla-toons door.

    As you can tell ArrowheadSoldiers have been extremelybusy honing their Fire Team andSquad level Skills. By the end ofJune, everyone was looking for-ward to well deserved blockleave in July followed by somemore intense Platoon level train-ing in August..

    (LEFT) Team Leaders SGT Parrilla (left) and

    SPC King (right) stand with their Squad

    Leader, SGT Ivan (center), under their newly

    earned Best SQD placard.

    (BELOW) SGT Barnett (Left) and SSG Lohse

    watch their soldiers maneuver down the lane.

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    Page 8 THE RED WARRI OR PATH

    (FROM TOP LEFT, CLOCKWISE) Moving out for Squad Live Fires.

    The mighty Executive Officer, 1LT Blanchard.

    Employing NODs

    Treating Rescue Randy

    SFC Weaver and 1LT Cline enjoying the heat during Squad Live Fires.

    Rescue Randy gets a ride in the FLA.

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    Page 9VOLUME 2, ISSUE 2

    History of the 1-12 Infantry Coat of Arms

    The 12th Infantry Regimentis one of the oldest and mostdecorated regiments of the

    United States Army. The 12thInfantry has fought in sevenwars from the Civil War to theGlobal War on Terrorism. The12th Infantry Regiment has beenawarded numerous awards andcitations. Their Coat of Armsserves as a physical representa-tion of all their struggles andaccomplishments.

    The field is bluethe colorof the Infantry. This regimenttook part in the Civil War; its

    greatest achievement was its firstengagement at Gaines' Mills,Virginia, where it lost nearly50% of its personnel. This isrepresented by the Molinecrosses which symbolize theiron fastening of a mill stone.They are paired to serve as areminder of the staggering lossesthe regiment received.

    A wigwam with five polessits directly between the twocrosses. It is there to symbolizethe 12th Regiments involve-ment in the Indian Wars.Throughout the many cam-paigns, six Warriors won theCongressional Medal of Honor.

    The chief is for the Spanishand Philippine Wars, yellow andred being the Spanish colors, redand blue the Katipunan colors.During the SpanishAmericanWar, the 12th Infantry was sentto Cuba, in June 1898, and par-ticipated in the storming of theSpanish fortress in the Battle of

    El Caney, where the 12th hadthe distinction of capturing theSpanish colors. This too is sym-bolized on the crest with theembattled partition line. The redsea lion is from the arms of thePhilippine Islands. At the con-clusion of the War with Spain,the regiment was immediatelydeployed in February 1899 tothe Philippine Islands to rein-force other Army units fighting

    elements of the Filipino Armythat resisted the United Statesafter they defeated the Spanishat the Battle of Manila. There,the regiment participated inthree campaigns (Malolos, Tar-lac, and Luzon 1899) of whatwas to be known as the Philip-pine-American War and thenserved as garrison troops, not

    returning to the United Statesuntil 1912.

    Since the Spanish and Phil-ippine Wars, the 12th Regimenthas served in World War II,

    where it saw its first action ofthe war when, as part of the 4thInfantry Division, it spearheadedthe assault landing on UtahBeach under the command ofColonel Russell "Red" Reeder.In Vietnam, three of the 12thInfantry Battalions deployed toVietnam with the 4th Divisionfrom August through October1966. The 3rd Brigade, 4th Divi-sion, to which the 2nd Battalion,12th Infantry was assigned, set

    up base camp at Dau Tieng inIII Corps while the rest of the4th Division was assigned to theVietnamese Highlands in IICorps alongside the 3rd Brigadeof the 25th Division which hadarrived in December 1965. The4th Battalion, 12th Infantry wasactivated and assigned to the199th Light Infantry Brigade inJune 1966 and went with theBrigade to Vietnam where it wasbased at Long Binh near Saigon.In November 1967, the 5th Bat-

    talion, 12th Infantry was acti-vated at Fort Lewis, WA andsent to Vietnam to join the199th Brigade.

    Recently, the 12th InfantryRegiment has been involved inOperation Iraqi Freedom andOperation Enduring Freedom,having most recently returnedfrom Afghanistan in support ofOperation Enduring FreedomXIII. Though the 12th InfantryRegiment crest does not repre-

    sent all of the many successes ofregiment has achieved, it servesas a symbol of the regimentsmany accomplishments and allthe sacrifices its heroes havemade over the generations ofconflict.

    Ducti Amore Patriae

    Led by Love ofCountry

    ...it serves as a

    symbol of the

    regiments manyaccomplishments

    and all the sacrifices

    its heroes have made

    over the generations

    of conflict.

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    Page 10 THE RED WARRI OR PATH

    For Blackfoot Company,June started out quietly withimpressive participation in the

    various competitions for thedivisions Ironhorse Week.Blackfoot Soldiers competed ona variety of teams, includingmarksmanship, basketball, soft-ball, tug-of-war and many oth-ers. The company also boastedthe second-place finisher in theheavy-weight class of the com-batives tournament, SPC Nill-son.

    In the midst of these excel-lent morale building events, the

    training plan was also rapidlychanging. What was supposedto be a month of Squad levelfield training and live fire exer-cises was replaced by the mis-sion to support a brother bri-gade in providing OppositionForces for their National Train-ing Center rotation.

    75 Soldiers were neededimmediately in order to providecritical support for the deploying2nd Brigade. Blackfoot Soldiersstepped up, quickly reorganizingtheir plans and expectations tomeet this new mission. In atestament to their resiliency,flexibility and dedication, those66 Blackfoot Soldiers and 9scouts from Hatchet Company,went from receiving the missionto being on a plane to Californiain a mere six days.

    Upon arriving at NTC, theforward deployed component ofBlackfoot company kept them-selves extremely busy, complet-

    ing all of the required OPFORtraining while still finding timeto build the skills that will benecessary in the Battalion fieldexercise immediately followingblock leave.

    After all of the specializedtraining, Blackfoot Soldiersbraved the desert heat and con-ducted their primary task as OP-FOR: thoroughly testing the

    Blackfoot Company

    by 1LT Hayden Reich

    Blackfoot Soldiers

    braved the desert

    heat and conducted

    their primary task

    as OPFOR...

    end of June, it was certainly arelief for Blackfoot Families andSoldiers.

    The training opportunitiesand challenges of June, however,have undoubtedly strengthenedthe individuals and the whole,preparing us for the road ahead.A road that intersected withsome well deserved leave in Julybefore resuming more trainingat the end of the summermonths.

    forces of 2nd Brigade and ensur-ing that they are in top form forthat Brigades upcoming deploy-

    ment.Meanwhile in the rear, the

    remainder of the company wasnot idle, supporting the Battal-ion in preparing for upcomingfield exercises, conducting in-depth Sexual Harassment/Sexual Assault Prevention train-ing, and improving on basicSoldier tasks and drills at everyopportunity. After the companywas reunited in the final week-

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    Page 13VOLUME 2, ISSUE 2

    Comanche Company

    by 2LT Michael Norberg

    The month of May was veryhectic for Comanche Company,which successfully completedteam and squad live fire exer-cises. Despite a very tightschedule, both field problemswere executed flawlessly.

    Comanche Company beganteam live fires in earnest, havingalready solidified its individualmovement techniques andbuddy team maneuvers. Work-ing in fire teams provided theopportunity for young leaders to

    gain critical experience in a real-istic training environment.

    The actual live fire laneswere preceded by dry fire runs,both during the day and at night.It was essential for the men ofthe fire teams to mesh and be-come comfortable and trustingwith one another to be able toeffectively integrate themselvesinto squad-level operations.

    It was apparent that theirhard work had paid off by thetime the squad live fire exercisekicked off. Though having onlyweeks to prepare, an outsideobserver of the exercise

    wouldve believed that the Co-manche Soldiers had been work-ing at it for months. The squadsmade it look easy as they con-ducted movements to contactagainst enemy fighting positions.

    Actions on the objective,the most critical aspect of any

    exercise of this kind, were thor-oughly rehearsed prior to theirexecution, and there was nohesitation when the time cameto perform. Special teams rolledinto action and everybody knewwhat they were supposed to do.

    The training was loud, fast-paced and motivating. Whileits not [as intense as real com-bat], 1SG Burciaga com-

    mented, this is some prettyrealistic training, and getting theguys moving around in this typeof atmosphere and maintaining akicking ass and taking namesRanger attitude is seriously go-ing to prepare them for the de-ployment to Kandahar nextyear.

    After a seemingly endlesscycle of hard work, ComancheCompany looked forward toenjoying their time off duringblock leave. Now that block

    leave is over, theyve hit theground running again to prepareto conduct platoon live fires andOperation Mountain Strike un-der their new commander.

    1st Platoon Comanche Company proud of the bunker they built for SQD STX

    Now that block leave

    is over, [Comanche

    Company] has hit the

    ground running

    again to prepare to

    conduct platoon live

    fires...

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    Page 14 THE RED WARRI OR PATH

    (ABOVE) SFC Paullus and 1LT Tallman conducting Air Ground Inte-

    gration (AGI) Simulator Training. The training was very realistic for

    teaching the capabilities of our aviation assets.

    (LEFT) PFC Zimmerman engaging targets with his M249!!

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    Dog Company

    By CPT Gabriel C. Manis

    The winning team

    came from 4th

    Platoon and

    consisted of SPC

    Darnell, SPC ONeil, ,

    SPC Scott, PFC Badia,

    and PFC Valtierra.

    Page 15VOLUME 2, ISSUE 2

    Since taking command sixweeks ago, I have been thor-oughly impressed with every-

    thing Dog Company has accom-plished both in and out of thefield. I talked about a lot ofthese accomplishments at theJune 19th FRG Meeting atThunder Alley Bowling lanesbut wanted to reiterate them inwriting.

    Dog Company spent threeweeks in June training in thefield. As a result of this training,we promoted and awarded nu-merous Dog Company Soldiers.

    Two examples come to mind.SPC Kyle Baldwin was pro-moted to Corporal based on hisperformance at team live firesand SGT Kristopher Gomezreceived an Army AchievementMedal after our squad live firesfor his superior performance asa Team Leader. This is a trendthat will endure as we continueto train.

    Big thanks to all the Fami-lies and Soldiers that came outto my first FRG meeting. We

    had over 100 Soldiers and Fam-ily members show up at thismeeting on June 19th at Thun-der Alley which was a great op-portunity to meet many of thewives and children of Dog Com-pany. I was able to recognizeMonique Stockard for her out-standing service in her role asthe FRG Treasurer. I also dis-seminated the training calendarto everyone that came. In thefuture, you can expect that I will

    continue to pass out useful in-formation in the form of bro-chures and minimize the amountof time talking to the group as awhole.

    One final highlight is thesuccess of our Top Dog compe-tition. Seven Dog Companyteams participated in this twomile course up Agony Hill (thelongest and steepest piece of

    land we could find on post).Soldiers were tested on severalindividual tasks to include ma-

    chine gun skills, communica-tions equipment tests, casualtycare, and a memory keep-in-mind game. The winning teamcame from 4th Platoon and con-sisted of SPC Darnell (teamleader), SPC ONeil, , SPC Scott,PFC Badia, and PFC Valtierra.SPC Darnell, the team leader,received an impact ArmyAchievement Medal and all Sol-diers on the winning team re-ceived two days off of work (to

    be taken in September).If you have not done soalready, please take the time tointroduce yourself to our FRGCo-Leaders, Kerri Manis andMichele Edling, through theD o g C o m p a n y F R Ge - m a i l a d d r e s s a [email protected].

    (LEFT) SPC Michell Archer, a rifleman in 4th PLT, Dog Company, uses a VS-17 panel to mark a simulated Helicopter Landing Zone during the Dog Company SQD

    LFX on 12 June 2013.

    (RIGHT) Over one hundred Soldiers and Families from Dog Company relaxed and enjoyed bowling after the FRG Meeting on June 19th at Thunder Alley Bowl-

    ing Lane.

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    Just prior to the end of Junewe were knee-deep in the ad-ministrative preparations for our

    summer block leave. Consider-ing the title above, this wouldclassify as one of these weeks

    with crazy dayscertainly noroom for laziness right now!

    Those 4 weeks in June,actually, were almost exclusivelycrazy days! We spent that lastweek of May in the field execut-ing our Team Live Fire Exercise.Your loved ones were on-pointas they prepared for and exe-cuted this event. We then took

    a week off from the field andparticipated in what is calledIron Horse Week a week ofsports and competitions hostedby the Division to promoteteambuilding, camaraderie andfriendly competition. Despitethe fact that we thought IronHorse Week would be lazy it

    wasnt! There was still plenty todo, despite all the fun andgames!

    The following 2 weeks werespent in the field on the 10thof June we deployed to range

    TA8 for some serious training.Again, NOT a lazy week, thisweek turned out to be quite aHAZY week, as we quickly sawthe effects of the Black Forestand Royal Gorge fires late Tues-day evening into Thursday,when we re-deployed. Despitethe haze and the heat, the Sol-diers of Eagle Company trainedhard, all in preparation for themain event the Squad LiveFire Exercise.

    On the 17th of June wedeployed to RG 127A. TheSquad Live Fire was the culmi-nating exercise for all of the fieldtime and arduous preparationwe had completed. We certainlyhad another hazy week, with theHuerfano county fires affectingthe sky beginning Tuesday eve-ning. Regardless and without adoubt, The Soldiers executedflawlessly and garnered valuablelessons from this effective train-ing event. The Thursday, June

    20th, we redeployed and hosteda Company BBQ to celebratemission completion.

    Next, as mentioned above,we reset our equipment from allof that field time, as well as pre-pared our ranks for the fabulous2-week block leave knew wasapproaching in July. It was nota busy week as we completedservices and maintenance, per-formed regular administrativeactions, and inspected all of thenecessary plans to ensure safeblock leave trips.

    We have seen crazywe

    have certainly seen hazy(unfortunately prayers to allthose affected by the fire)andnow that July is coming to anend weve also seen lazy. Be-cause GUESS WHAT?! That iswhat block leave was for! Wewere all excited to take a breakfrom the CRAZY schedule wehave had. Leave was well de-served by all and hopefullywas safely enjoyed by all!!

    Regards to all the families

    enjoy the final days of summer!!!

    Eagle CompanyThose Lazy, Hazy, Crazy Days of Summer

    by CPT Alex Bonilla

    Page 16 THE RED WARRI OR PATH

    The Soldiers

    executed flawlesslyand garnered

    valuable lessons

    from this effective

    training event.

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    Page 17VOLUME 2, ISSUE 2

    First, let me begin by sayingwhat a very great honor andprivilege it is for me to serve as

    Hatchet 6 in 1-12IN. I am con-sistently impressed with the hardwork and level of professional-ism demonstrated by your Sol-diers every day.

    Immediately following mychange of command, May 16th,the company deployed, and bydeployed I mean marched thetwelve (12) miles, to the field toconduct Fire Team Live Fires.While there, your Soldiers exe-cuted a myriad of tasks ranging

    from Individual MovementTechniques, Situational Reports,and fire commands to name afew.

    The men of the Scouts andMortars conducted both daytime live fires as well as nightfires, resulting in ten (10) fireteams certified and ready tomove on to squad live fires.The medics of Hatchet Com-pany also performed a plethoraof combat life saving exercisesto include the establishment of a

    Hatchet CompanyThe Beginning of Collective Training

    by CPT Benjamin J. Hooker

    I am consistently

    impressed with the

    hard work and level

    of professionalism

    demonstrated by

    your Soldiers every

    day.

    Forward Aid Station (FAS).

    We were not even back formore than a weekend whenHatchet Company deployedagain to the field and again wemarched out to our range. Thesquads wasted no time and im-mediately began training squadlevel operations- patrol baseactivities, movement techniques,and standard operation proce-dures.

    On the final day and nightof training, the squads encoun-tered scenarios to test theirtraining. The two challenges

    with which the squads were pre-sented were a machine gun bun-ker and enemy contact while onthe move. Again, the Scoutsand Mortars completed all mis-sions presented them.

    At the same time, the med-ics provided medical support tothe entire battalion all acrossFort Carson while simultane-ously establishing the BattalionAid Station (BAS)- a much morerobust medical facility than its

    counterpart the FAS.

    After completing our twoweeks of ranges, Hatchet com-pany participated in the Division

    sponsored IronHorse Week.There the men and women ofHHC competed in a variety ofsporting events like softball,volleyball, football, rock climb-ing, golf, and a 10K race. Allthis while still accomplishing adeliberate recovery, or intensecleaning and accountability, ofall Hatchet equipment that wasout in the field.

    Once IronHorse week wascompleted, the battalion staff

    and medics deployed to the fieldonce more. The battalion staffworked diligently to start syn-chronizing battalion operationsin the field, and the medicsworked to integrate within thebattalion footprint.

    A week later, Hatchet Com-pany deployed to the field toconduct Squad Live Fire exer-cises. The Mortarmen of HHCexecuted a challenging scenarioof battling an enemy locationthat was both up hill and in-cluded a bunker, but the Soldiersmet the challenge head-on,learned from each iteration(both day and night), and com-pleted the difficult task withferocity.

    Next, as the Soldiers ofHatchet Company prepared fora much deserved leave, I wasonce again reminded of the greatprivilege I am afforded and wantto thank family members andfriends of HHC, 1-12IN.

    It is with the support offamily and friends that thesegreat Soldiers are capable ofeven greater deeds. I am confi-dent that the men and womenof Hatchet Company will re-soundingly succeed in the up-coming battalion Field Trainingexercise in August.

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    Page 18 THE RED WARRI OR PATH

    The Life of Christopher Kit Carson

    by SPC Daniel Pelzel

    Kit Carson played an activerole in expanding United Statesboundaries westward to the sizeit is today. From his early years,Kit lead excursions out of NewMexico into California andColorado for fur. Later in hislife, he played an important rolein the Mexican-American war inCalifornia. He also commandedforces under U.S. General Kear-ney from New Mexico into Cali-fornia. In 1865 Kit was com-missioned as a Brigadier Generaland took command of Fort Gar-

    land in Colorado. The followingyear due to health issues he re-signed his position and movedto Boggsville, Colorado. He diedin nearby Fort Lyons, Coloradoon May 23, 1868.

    Kit Carson was born inMadison County, Kentucky onDecember 24, 1809, the sixth often children. His father, LindseyCarson, fought in the AmericanRevolution and became a farmer

    after his time in the Army. Hismother was Rebecca Robinson,who married Lindsey in 1797.

    The family moved from Ken-tucky and settled in HowardCounty, Missouri where his fa-ther continued to farm.

    Kits father passed away in1818, which forced him to dropout of school to help his motherraise the children and tend tothe familys farm lands. In 1823,Kit moved from HowardCounty to Franklin, Missouri,where he became an apprenticeto a saddle maker. Two years

    later in 1826, Kit left the saddlemaker and headed west on theSante Fe trail where he workedas a laborer on a wagon caravan.Shortly after arriving in SantaFe, Kit left the group andheaded north to Taos, NewMexico. He worked as a cook,an errand boy, and he repairedharnesses. In 1828, when he was19 years old, Kit was hired for afur trapping expedition intoCalifornia where he proved him-self as able to learn the trade.

    From 1828 to 1840, Kitcontinued to go on fur trappingexpeditions from the CaliforniaSierra Nevada Moutains into theRocky Moutains. He continuedto utilize Taos, New Mexico asthe base for his expeditions. Hiswork led him to become familiarwith the local Indian populationin the areas he hunted for furs.He became integrated into theIndian world, traveling and liv-ing among the Indian popula-

    tion. His first two wives wereAra pa ho e and Che yennewomen. In 1836, his Arapahoefirst wife, Waa-Nibe, bore Kit adaughter; however she diedshortly after giving birth to hisdaughter. His second wife, aCheyenne woman, left shortlyafter the wedding to follow hertribe's migration. Kit continuedto hunt for furs until 1840.

    By 1840 Kit was employed

    as a hunter for the garrison atBents Fort, Colorado. Shortlyafter being hired he was named

    the Chief Hunter. In 1842 Kitmet John C. Fremont on a Mis-souri Riverboat during a tripback to Colorado. Fremonthired Carson as guide for hisexpedition to map and describeWestern Trails to the PacificOcean. Over the next severalyears, Kit helped guide Fremontthroughout California and intoOregon. During the expeditionFremont wrote of Carsonsknowledge of the areas they

    were exploring. The publica-tions, which were widely-read,quickly made Kit Carson a na-tional hero. In 1843, once theexpedition was complete, Car-son returned to Taos from Cali-fornia, where he married histhird wife Maria Jaramillothen.

    Carsons publicity contin-ued to grow as more publica-tions were released after theexpedition was complete. Thepublication told of Carson guid-ing Fremont through California.

    Additionally, the publicationsrevealed that Carson and Fre-mont joined the Bear-Flag rebel-lion near the beginning of theMexican-American War, assist-ing in the conquest of California.

    After the expedition, Car-son began aiding the Americanoccupation of Los Angeles byguiding General Stephen Kear-ney from Socorro, New Mexicointo California. Later in theyear, the forces that Carson

    helped guide into Los Angeleswere attacked by Mexicans atSan Pasqual, 30 Miles to thenorth of San Diego. Carson andtwo others snuck behind enemylines and made their way to SanDiego, where they were able tobring help for Kearneys forces.At the end of the war, Carsonreturned back to Taos, New

    (Continued on page 19)

    Carson and two

    others snuck behind

    enemy lines and

    made their way to

    San Diego, where

    they were able to

    bring help for

    Kearneys forces.

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    Page 19VOLUME 2, ISSUE 2

    Mexico and began ranching.In 1853, Carson and hisranching partner Lucien Max-well began to drive large groupsof sheep from New Mexico toCalifornia. He sold the sheepnear mines during the gold rushand was able to make a largeprofit. The next year he wasappointed as a liaison agent forthe Ute and Apache Indianslocated in Taos, New Mexico.He maintained this position untilthe Civil War in 1861. During

    the Civil War, he aided in orga-nizing the New Mexican Volun-teer Calvary, who saw action atValverde.

    Carson was given new or-ders in 1863 from his com-mander in the U.S. Army. He

    (Continued from page 18)

    The Life of Christopher Kit Carson (continued)

    was to wage an economic waragainst the Navajo in an attemptto relocate the tribe to a desig-

    nated territory. The Navajo con-tinued to fight against Carson,who had made allies with Ute,Pueblo, Hopi, and Zuni Indianawho were all prey to the NavajoIndians. Shortly after in 1864,the Navajo surrendered to Car-son. They were treated well butwere forced to walk 300 milesfrom Arizona to Fort Sumner,New Mexico, later called theLong Walk.

    In 1865, Carson was com-

    missioned as a Brigadier Generaland cited for gallantry and dis-tinguished service for his actionsprior to his commissioning. In1866, he moved to Coloradoand took command of Fort Gar-land. A year later ill healthforced him to resign his com-

    mand. He moved his family toBoggsville, which is near presentday La Junta, Colorado. Christo-

    pher Kit Carson died May 23,1868 in La Junta, and the fol-lowing year his remains weremoved to a cemetery near Taos,New Mexico.

    Christopher Kit Carson isstill remembered daily in Colo-rado. Fort Carson, formerlyCamp Carson, was named afterCarson in honor of his explora-tion of the West. Kit Carson laidthe frame work for the NewMexican Volunteer Calvary to

    join federal service in 1898. The1ST New Mexican VolunteerCalvary entered Federal serviceas the 2nd Squadron, 1st U.S.Volunteer Calvary, better knownas the Rough Riders.

    Christopher Kit

    Carson is stillremembered daily in

    Colorado. Fort

    Carson, formerly

    Camp Carson, was

    named after Carson

    in honor of his

    exploration of the

    West.

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    THE BACK PAGE

    (top) A view from the summit of Pikes Peak.

    (bottom) Soldiers of Arrowhead Company enjoy a photo opportunity with their friends from the sky.