Denali cavalrymen take rite of passage during spur ride

by Sgt. 1st Class Jeffrey Smith
4-25th IBCT Public Affairs

6/6/2014 - JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska -- Paratroopers with the 1st Squadron (Airborne), 40th Cavalry Regiment, earned their "Order of the Spur" certificates as they tested endurance and knowledge in cavalry history during the squadron's spur ride May 28 and 29 at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson.

The event started in the early morning hours May 28 and culminated with nearly a hundred paratroopers earning their silver spurs at the spur dinner barbecue the following morning.
The purpose of the Denali squadron's spur ride was to enhance the unit's esprit de corps while building on cavalry traditions and promoting knowledge in both unit and cavalry history.

Physically demanding foot marches, boat movements, airmobile operations, and other various physical fitness performance measures were coupled with individual tasks such as weapons knowledge, call for fire, communications and combat casualty
care.

The final test was a grueling march to the top of the mountain where the Site Summit finish point awaited.

The proud tradition of the Army cavalry was honored and upheld during the event, said Command Sgt Maj. Shane Pospisil.

"It's all about the tradition," he said. "and it's important because of the tradition."
"You're not a true cavalryman until you get your spurs, and going through all of the cavalry tasks and challenges of a spur ride," Pospisil said. "It validates a cavalryman's individual tasks and [collective] tasks."

He said that due to the constant rotations in and out of the theaters of war, the Army has decreased in the number of spur holders within its ranks.

This holds true for the Denali squadron. The majority of the participants in this spur ride were made up of the squadron's leadership. The intent is to get these leaders certified to help facilitate more spur rides in the near future.

Sgt. Maj. Aaron Arzamarski, the squadron's operations sergeant major, said spur rides are a great way to learn both unit and cavalry history, but the physically demanding course impedes the brain's ability to quickly react to challenging questions.

"It forces people to study up and learn cavalry history, but you may be good at reciting a historical fact at zero-four-thirty (4:30 a.m.), but come noon, after you've been moving constantly to include a boat movement, a forced march, suicide sprints and a bunch of pushups, then it's not as clear, and it's much more difficult to remember."

Sgt. 1st Class Daniel Hoefler, a cavalry scout who has been a spur holder since 2004, ran the waterborne lane where cavalry troopers had to traverse a lake using an F470 Zodiac Combat Rubber Raiding Craft.

"They had to organize their team, load all of their equipment and team members, and navigate the lake from the north end to the south end," Hoefler said.

"Most of it was about just having the heart to go the distance all the way through, and be able to answer questions that were associated with cavalry history," Hoefler said.

Hoefler said it's a proud tradition of the cavalry to earn The Order of the Spur.

"It's important to me, because it shows that I'm the best at my job," he said. "It shows that I'm able to go the distance and I'm not going to give up, that I'm one of those leaders that my guys can come to, and they know that I'm never going to give up on them, and I'm never going to give up on the mission."

Hoefler said the day was grueling, but the final test was the hardest for the cavalry troopers.

"The toughest part was the last leg," he said. "It was like six miles straight up to the top of the mountain."

At the top of that mountain awaited their prize; dinner and the awarding of their spurs in time-honored tradition.