On Sept. 2, Soldiers from Company C, 123rd Brigade Support Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division, conducted the Fort Bliss Obstacle and Leaders Reaction Course.

The purpose of the traUP AND OVERining event was to challenge Soldiers physically and mentally while helping to strengthen the unit’s team building. The obstacle course started with the Soldiers racing up through parallel bars, then moving over a chain ladder, next climbing over three short walls and four log post steps, maneuvering over a rolling log bridge, log hurdles, and then hanging across long steel supported beams to cross to the other side.

Next Soldiers had to bear crawl under barbed wire, climb a twenty-foot high rope, scale a ten-foot high wall, and climb over a three-log fence.

The end of the course consisted of hopping across log stumps without touching the ground, running up and down a fifteen-foot high ramp, crossing monkey bars and a rope-laddered fence, and finally crawling through a tunnel to the finish line.

The company established eight teams and each team competed to get the fastest time through the obstacle course from start to finish.

Afterwards, individual competitions began, and Sgt. Nickolas Powell, a laboratory technician, was the winner with an overall time of 7 minutes, 4 seconds.

Soldiers enjoyed the opportunity to challenge themselves and their fellow Soldiers in a physical obstacle.

“The course was mentally challenging.  The equipment was functional.  The Soldiers enjoyed the water portion as the fear of getting wet made them think twice about the choice of method.  I feel like the course needs a hefty risk assessment.  Great team building tool,” said Sgt. Kenyon Elder, a pharmacy technician.

After the company completed the obstacle course they moved over to the Leaders Reaction Course (LRC). The Leaders Reaction Course is a team event that requires Soldiers to negotiate a specific obstacle in a certain amount of time. At the beginning of each obstacle the observer controllers appoint a team leader and provide him or her with a variety of items and specific instructions on how to complete the event. The Team Leader will then assemble his or her team to discuss a plan to move tactically across the obstacle.

The overall goal was not only to navigate the obstacles but also to help one another out to ensure that no one was left behind at the completion of the obstacle, something that the culture of Company C., and all Soldiers within the 123rd Brigade Support Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division emphasize every day.  

In order to be an effective fighting force, every Soldier needs to be disciplined and confident that they can count on the Soldier to their left and right.  

Pfc. Tenia Smallwood, a patient administration specialist said, “I thought the Leaders Reaction Course was great training.  Not only did we get physical and mental training, we also learned to trust one another.  A lot of training we do teaches teamwork, but not too many require the trust that we needed for the LRC.”

The obstacle course and the Leaders Reaction Course was definitely a training event that got Soldiers out of their comfort zone but taught the Soldiers of Company C., 123rd BSB, something about themselves and each other. 

At the conclusion of the day, Sgt. Dorothy Walker, a medic and treatment platoon sergeant said, “Great team building tool, it was fun and challenging.  It seemed impossible at first, but with some thought and teamwork, it came together fairly well.  Critical thinking skills had to be utilized.  It was an awesome live training event.”