FORT WALKER, Va. –
Ten teams of Virginia National Guard Soldiers assigned to the Winchester-based 3rd Battalion, 116th Infantry Regiment, 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team competed in the battalion’s 3rd annual Carl “Chubby” Proffitt Jr. Squad Competition Sept. 7, 2024, at Fort Walker, Virginia.
The competition consisted of a series of events meant to test their mental and physical abilities as well as their ability to work as a team. Each squad represented one of the battalion’s five companies. This year, a team from the battalion’s Alpha Company took home the “Chubby Cup.”
Proffitt, the competition’s namesake, was a Virginia National Guard Soldier who served with 3rd Battalion during World War II, including the D-Day invasion of Normandy. Proffitt was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for his actions in Normandy, and later received a battlefield commission to second lieutenant. He passed away in 2015 at the age of 96.
To honor his legacy, the St. Lo Battalion continues their annual squad competition, which was first held in 2022.
“This competition is a great way to build esprit de corps while honoring Chubby Proffitt’s memory,” said Lt. Col. Kevin Hoffman, commander of 3rd Battalion. “It allows our Soldiers to build camaraderie while instilling in them the warrior ethos.”
“I couldn’t be more impressed or proud of our team right here," said 1st Sgt. Wesley Runion, Alpha Company first sergeant. “They came out here to do what we’ve been training for and this right here shows that it has paid off.”
Beginning the competition is the “Black Mile,” an event,named in honor of the tough physical training the 29th Ranger Battalion, 29th Infantry Division endured during the unit's brief existence during World War II. It's a physical training race requiring each team to complete a 3/4-mile team run in full kit with weapon, spring-drag-carry in kit and then another 3/4-mile run in kit.
After the race, they moved on to the next part of the “Black Mile”, where teams were required to assemble four different weapons from a mixed pile of parts. Once each weapon was assembled, they conducted a functions check. From there, it was on to the Humvee push. Each team, consisting of five members, had to push a Humvee 100 meters across a gravel lot. Points were awarded to each team based on the amount of time taken to complete the entire event.
Following the Black Mile, teams competed in the “Swamp Fox” marksmanship challenge, named in honor of Francis Marion, a Revolutionary War militia leader who engaged the British forces using guerrilla tactics. Teams fired at targets using the M-4 carbine, M17 pistol, and M500 shotgun. The event tested not only each individual Soldier’s marksmanship skills, but also their ability to communicate successfully together as a team to ensure each target was successfully taken out within the allowed time.
The next event was the “Major of St. Lo,” a two-and-a-half mile ruck march named for Maj. Thomas Howie, a VaARNG officer and commander of 3rd Battalion, who was killed in action in Normandy, France, in July 1944. Howie was tasked with leading his battalion to liberate the town of St. Lo. He famously told Maj. Gen. Charles Gerhardt, commanding general of the 29th Infantry Division, “See you in St. Lo!” before being mortally wounded by an enemy mortar. At Gerhardt’s direction, Howie’s body was placed on the hood of a truck so he would be the first to enter the town, and a photo of his flag-covered body on the rubble was published world-wide and he was coined “The Major of St. Lo.”
Along the ruck march route, each team was required to react to contact by an enemy force, with a member from each team becoming a simulated casualty. The team then had to call for a medical evacuation and carry their wounded team-member approximately 100 meters, where they recovered by a Humvee ambulance. The remaining team-members then completed the ruck march.
Next, the teams came to their final event, “Redoubt 10,” which consisted of multiple rounds of pugil stick matches. The first Soldier to score three successful “hits” on their opponent was declared the winner of the match, with bouts continuing in round-robin fashion until all competitors had participated in at least one match. Redoubt 10 was named for the location of a clash between American and British troops at the battle of Yorktown during the Revolutionary War, involving hand-to-hand fighting, which helped secure a decisive American victory.
Hoffman said all of the squads should be proud of themselves for the hard work and great effort each committed to the competition.
“When planning for today’s competition, we looked at past plans that had been successful to give us traction for a competition that was both challenging physically and also mentally,” said 1st. Lt. Allen Rogers, with Headquarters and Headquarters Company.
For the Soldiers competing, the competition served as a chance to put their fitness, knowledge and teamwork to the test.
“Each competitor out here has put in a lot of time and effort training up until this event and being able to see all of that play out today has definitely raised morale and encouraged us all to keep improving," said Spc. Andrew Rucker, assigned to the Bravo Company.
Read more about 3rd Battalion at https://bit.ly/3Mzedlk.