Hasty Craters | Dodgeville Army unit to compete in Sapper Stakes at Fort McCoy

From the 416th Theater Engineer Command Public Affairs Office just south of the (Wisconsin-Illinois) border:

Seven Army Reserve combat engineers belonging to the 469th Engineer Company, headquartered in Dodgeville, Wis., will compete in the first ever theater-level Sapper Stakes competition in May.
Sapper Stakes will take place at Fort McCoy, Wis., from May 5-8 to select the three best combat engineer teams in the Army Reserve.
Sapper Stakes events have been held before, but never of this size and at this command level in the Reserve.
The 416th Theater Engineer Command, headquartered in Darien, Ill., and the 412th TEC, headquartered in Vicksburg, Miss., are responsible for all of the engineer Soldiers in the Army Reserve, and a combined total of 26,000 Soldiers of various job specialties across the continental U.S.
Approximately 26 teams are expected, with five to seven members each, representing six brigades.
The participating Soldiers are assigned to mobility augmentation companies, route clearance companies, area clearance platoons and engineer battalion headquarters. Sapper Stakes focuses on team cohesion while testing mental and physical stamina of each team member, as well as their tactical and technical skills.
The goal is to include National Guard and Active Duty teams in the future and run the competition annually.
Each team will be tested in the area of physical fitness, ruck marching, knot tying, demolition, hasty road crater, landing zone, in-stride breaching, improvised explosive investigation, reconnaissance, weapon assembly, casualty evacuation, Army warrior skills and rifle marksmanship.

UW grad | Derek Adametz of McFarland, Wi, takes Fighting Tigers helm

From Navy Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Clay M. Whaley:


BAHRAIN --  Patrol Squadron (VP) 8 and Commander Task Group (CTG) 57.2 and 47.1, will conduct a Change of Command in Bahrain on April 1.  Cmdr. Derek Adametz, will relieve Cmdr. Todd Libby, as the 66th Commanding Officer of VP-8.

Cmdr. Adametz earned his Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Wisconsin, was commissioned through the Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps program in May 1996, and was designated a Naval Aviator in February 1998.

Cmdr. Adametz’ previous squadrons include the ‘Pelicans’ of VP-45 and the ‘Mad Foxes’ of VP-5, both located at Naval Air Station Jacksonville, FL, and the ‘Grey Knights’ of VP-46 located at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, WA. He was also assigned to the Naval Historical Center at the Washington Navy Yard, USS NIMITZ (CVN 68), and the Naval Postgraduate School at Monterey, CA where he earned a Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering, with Distinction, and a minor in Applied Physics.

Before reporting to Patrol Squadron 8, Cmdr. Adametz was the Military Assistant to the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Global Strategic Affairs where he assisted in policy development and execution in the areas of countering Weapons of Mass Destruction, Nuclear and Missile Defense Policy, DoD Cyber Security and Space. Cmdr. Adametz will be the 66th Commanding Officer of Patrol Squadron 8.

VP-8 is currently deployed to the United States Navy’s FOURTH and FIFTH Fleet Areas of Responsibility conducting Maritime Security Operations, supporting Operation ENDURING FREEDOM and Countering Transnational Organized Crime.

The event will mark the end of Cmdr. Libby’s second tour as a “Fighting Tiger,” where he previously served as Legal, Readiness and Naval Flight Officer (NFO) Training Officer from 1997 to 2000.  As Commanding Officer, Cmdr. Libby successfully led the “Fighting Tigers” through a challenging Inter-Deployment Readiness Cycle while preparing for a multi-site deployment to Bahrain and El Salvador and various detachment sites.  During his tenure as the Commanding Officer, the “Fighting Tigers” have flown 432 sorties and 3,336 mishap-free flight hours. Following the Change of Command, Cmdr. Libby will transfer to the United States Northern Command in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

For more information about VP-8’s mission, history and biographies, visit our official homepage at: http://www.public.navy.mil/airfor/vp8/Pages/default.aspx
To stay up to date with VP-8, follow our Facebook page at:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Patrol-Squadron-EIGHT-VP-8/335177721864?ref=hl

Paper dolls tell military tales

This is not a follow-up to the previous post on the Cruise-Wahlberg dispute.

Thanks to the The Paper Collector for pointing out this illustration from Thursday's New York Times; You can read the Times story here.

Celluloid warriors sound off: Wahlberg slams Cruise over military comments

MILblogging.com reports:

Tom Cruise is not going to get off easy after comments he made about the military were revealed last week, provoking a social media frenzy.

TMZ had reported that the Hollywood actor claimed his job as a professional actor was as grueling as fighting the war in Afghanistan.

How appropriate…

Well, the timing couldn't have been worse for Cruise --- not only were the comments insulting to the men and women serving overseas, but Veterans Day was right around the corner.

Critics chimed in on social media. Mark Wahlberg, who stars as Marcus Luttrell in the action drama war film Lone Survivor, chimed in publicly.

During the premier of Lone Survivor on Tuesday night, Wahlberg had something to say to Hollywood.

Here’s a transcript of what was said on stage via Entertainment Weekly: 

“For actors to sit there and talk about ‘oh I went to SEAL training’? I don’t give a  ...

Read more.

Soldier song and dance at Fort McCoy

From Fort McCoy Public Affairs Office: The stage will be set for 22 soldiers from across the country to entertain the public at Fort McCoy with a 75-minute song and dance production themed "Ready and Resilient."

The free performance is July 11 at 6 p.m. at the Rumpel Fitness Center. Doors open an hour before the show, and seating is on a first-come basis. Please be prepared to show a photo ID when at the main gate.

"Ready and Resilient" is a high-energy live musical production that showcases the talents of active-duty Soldiers selected by audition from throughout the Army. Soldiers first, they are artists who have a passion for music, dance and performing, with specialties ranging from information technology to combat medicine. The show is assembled and rehearsed five weeks for a four-month tour of military installations across the nation.

"Every American, military-affiliated or not, will be able to see themselves in the show," said Army Soldier Show Artistic Director Victor Hurtado. "The fact that the show is entertaining someone is already taking them away (from their mindset), but the messaging is going to inspire. We know they are coming to be entertained, but further, the content in the show is designed to hopefully be a time-released pool of inspiration."

For more information about the show, please call 877-864-4969 or visit www.mccoymwr.com.

PHOTO CAPTION: A performance scene from the 2013 U.S. Army Soldier Show (U.S. Army photograph)

Facelifts OK'd for 15 Wis Guard armories

From the governor's office: The State of Wisconsin Building Commission today approved several key projects across the state including renovations to the Department of Military Affairs armory locations in

• Abbotsford
• Antigo
• Beloit
• Clintonville
• Fond du Lac
• Fort Atkinson
• Janesville
• Merrill
• Neillsville
• New Richmond
• Tomah
• Watertown
• Waupaca
• Kenosha and
• Sussex

Guard soldiers named best in Wisconsin

From the 112th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment:


After a tiring three-day competition, the Wisconsin Army National Guard announced its 2013 State Soldier and Noncommissioned Officer of the Year, April 21.

Spc. Brandon Byrne of  Oak Creek, with Company B, 257th Brigade Support Battalion, won State Soldier of the Year and Sgt. Edward Schmitt of Lake Mills, Wis., with the 54th Civil Support Team, 64th Troop Command, won State Noncommissioned Officer of the Year. Both soldiers will move on to represent Wisconsin May 13-16 in Marseilles, Ill., for the regional competition.

"It was an intense competition, and everyone did really well," Schmitt said. "I found it surprising that even though we're competing, everyone still looks out for each other. For example, I didn't have a lamp for one event, but then another soldier gave me an extra one they had, which just shows that even though we're competing, we're still all in this together."

Read more by clicking here.


About the photo: Spc. Brandon Byrne of Company B, 2nd Battalion, 127th Infantry fires at pop-up targets with a M9 pistol during sidearm qualifications of the 2013 State Soldier and Noncommissioned Officer of the Year competition at Fort McCoy, April 19. Five soldiers and eight noncommissioned officers from the Wisconsin Army National Guard are competing for the honor to serve as a state representative at the regional competition in May. (112th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment photo by Sgt. Megan Burnham)