Fight in the Shade

In 2006 the movie 300 debuted to wild acclaim, especially amongst Servicemembers. The film tells the story of 300 Spartan warriors who repelled an invasion of 300,000 Persian soldiers at the Battle of Thermopylae – the “Hot Gates” – of ancient Greece. The tale is one of unwavering patriotism, extraordinary courage, unbreakable camaraderie, and above all else, the willingness to persevere against all probability. It is a must-see for any warfighter! 

On a crisp, sunny morning in March 2011 I assumed command of Bravo (B) Battery (BTRY), 3RD Battalion (BN), 319TH Airborne Field Artillery Regiment (AFAR), 1ST Brigade Combat Team (BCT), 82ND Airborne (ABN) Division (DIV). That evening at the headquarters (HQ), after releasing our Paratroopers for the day, I approached my First Sergeant (1SG) and issued him a deliberately cryptic directive. 

“First Sergeant, tomorrow at COB (close of business), before turning the formation over to me, I need you to call forward everyone who scored 300 or higher on the last APFT (Army Physical Fitness Test)”. (300 was the maximum recordable score on the APFT.)

“Why?” he said curiously. 

“Don’t worry about it” I smirked.

“Roger, Sir” he agreed, still somewhat wary of my intentions. 

The next day at COB formation my First Sergeant dutifully, if skeptically, called forward everyone who had scored 300 or higher on the last APFT. Three Paratroopers promptly broke ranks and hastened to the front of the formation. My First Sergeant then performed an about-face and turned the formation over to me. One-by-one I sized-up each of the Paratroopers standing at the front of the formation, then I walked over to a box that I had placed off to the side, pulled out three items, and headed back to the front of the formation. “AT EASE!”, I ordered the battery, then proceeded to hand each of the three Paratroopers one of the soft black and red plastic-wrapped items that I was holding. Bewildered, the Troops stood there holding the parcels and I told them, “Well, open ‘em up!”. As they unwrapped their bundles a “Hell Yeah!” expression washed over each of their faces and cries arose from within the formation, “What is it?! Hold it up!”. The troops then held up their new official 300 movie t-shirts – solid black t-shirts with a bloody 300 emblazoned across the chest – just like all the movie art. The entire battery erupted into cheers and murmurs of admiration as I announced, “From now on, if you score 300 or higher on the APFT, you get a shirt!”. The Troops were ecstatic, and when I looked over, even my First Sergeant was smiling. NAILED IT! 

A few months later, we conducted another record APFT, and this time myself and five more of my Paratroopers scored 300 or higher! That was a big deal, I thought, and I wanted my Paratroopers to feel like they had achieved something special. So, the following week we conducted a 300-shirt ceremony at the battery HQ. We kicked off the ceremony with the movie’s theme song, To Victory, blasting through a public address (PA) system, and I invited the Brigade Commander (BDE CDR) and Brigade Sergeant Major (BDE CSM) to attend and hand out the t-shirts, an invitation which they gladly accepted! After handing out the t-shirts, the BDE CDR authorized the awardees to wear their shirts around the battery area for the rest of the day, and we all celebrated with some snacks and refreshments. I also struck a deal with the BDE CDR that if 75% of the battery scored 300 or higher on the APFT, he would personally lead us on a run along Ardennes Street one morning! (Ardennes Street was the main running route on Fort Bragg.) 

By years end, 17 Paratrooper in my battery had scored 300 or higher on the APFT and the overall average score within the battery had increased significantly. So much so that B-BTRY ended up having one of the highest average APFT scores in the entire BCT! And while we didn’t get to run down Ardennes Street in our 300 swag, in fact we achieved something greater. The 300 shirts became an enormous source of pride within B-BTRY and helped to create that elusive “culture of excellence” that leaders seek to foment within their formations. The shirts were not merely a superficial display of individual achievement but were in fact a physical representation of the values that B-BTRY held dear! Moreover, while each Paratrooper who earned the shirt wore it with great pride, even those who hadn’t yet earned one felt a little prouder to be in a unit that espoused such high expectations and visibly recognized those who attained them, which in turn deepened the camaraderie and esprit de corps throughout the battery. VICTORY!  War fighting is a tough profession, but tough doesn’t have to mean miserable, and a little creativity can often transform otherwise perfunctory training events into exciting and memorable experiences. So, get inspired, put your imagination to work, and find ways to have some fun while preparing your formations for the serious business ahead. Indeed, sometimes the best way to prepare for the heat of battle is to fight in the shade!

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