{"id":1334,"date":"2024-06-12T00:14:05","date_gmt":"2024-06-12T00:14:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/?p=1334"},"modified":"2024-06-12T00:14:06","modified_gmt":"2024-06-12T00:14:06","slug":"trainers-rescuers-meet-dods-main-mountaineering-school-experts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/?p=1334","title":{"rendered":"Trainers & Rescuers: Meet DOD’s Main Mountaineering School Experts"},"content":{"rendered":"
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From the harsh ridgelines in Italy during World War II and the frigid peaks of Korea during the 1950s, to the Hindu Kush in Afghanistan, mountaineering has long been a necessary skill for U.S. service members in battle. To deter conflicts and defeat aggression, service members need to be prepared to operate in mountainous terrain.<\/p>\n

While the Defense Department has a few schools that train students on mountaineering, its main training center for the past 20 years is the Army Mountain Warfare School near Jericho, Vermont.<\/p>\n

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Operated by the Vermont National Guard, the school trains service members from all branches, as well as foreign militaries and civilian teams looking to learn the latest techniques for rescues and other missions. Training runs from basic to advanced for winter and summer conditions, and some courses focus specifically on training for marksmen and operational planners.<\/p>\n

When it comes to the Army Mountain Warfare School\u2019s instructors, students are learning from some of the best mountaineers in the world.<\/p>\n

The school has 21 full-time Active Guard Reserve members, 14 of whom are instructors. About three dozen other members of the unit are Guard members and reservists who drill and do their annual training there. Many of those who work at the school have also worked with the 86th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Mountain), which is headquartered down the hill from the schoolhouse.<\/p>\n

The instructors have been through most of the school\u2019s courses themselves, but more importantly, they have years of real-life experience. All of them have civilian mountaineering certifications, and since their military status lets them stay in Vermont long-term, they\u2019re able to constantly hone their skills.<\/p>\n

Training Students at Home & Abroad<\/strong><\/p>\n

Outside of the courses they teach to U.S. service members, these instructors are also called upon by partner nations to train foreign special forces units. Army 1st Sgt. Max Rooney said the school has sent teams to Kosovo to train security forces on mountaineering skills. They\u2019ve also exchanged tactics and training with other experts in Austria, Switzerland, Senegal, Italy and other countries, often through the State Partnership Program.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThat\u2019s been a huge part of our training here,\u201d said Army Master Sgt. Bert Severin, the school\u2019s training division noncommissioned officer in charge. \u201cName a mountainous country and we\u2019ve sent a Mobile Training Team there, either to work with their mountaineering instructors or to teach there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Army Maj. Brad Patnaude, the school\u2019s operations officer in charge, said their instructors get invited to more mountain-related exercises than they have the time and funds in which to participate. The courses they teach at the schoolhouse are their major focus.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe instructors here are amazing. They\u2019ve given us plenty of knowledge,\u201d said Army Staff Sgt. Stephen Vigo, a recruiter with the Connecticut National Guard who took the basic military mountaineer course in March.<\/p>\n

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Just like their students, the instructors themselves are always learning because mountaineering techniques, strategies and equipment are constantly evolving, as are the terrain, weather and students. For many of the instructors, that\u2019s what makes it exciting.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a constant struggle to try to manage risk while at the same time putting out the best possible product for the students,\u201d said Army Sgt. 1st Class Dustin Dearborn. \u201cThat requires us to be pretty dynamic in our approach. I think that challenge is what really draws me to working here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Resident Experts, Local Heroes\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Perhaps no one is as experienced or qualified in the DOD mountaineering community than Dearborn \u2014 at least, that\u2019s according to his fellow instructors, who all put him at the top of the heap when it comes to mountaineering expertise.<\/p>\n

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Dearborn grew up as an avid outdoorsman not far from the school\u2019s training site, which made for a natural transition to him joining the school as an instructor in 2001. Since then, his experience has been called upon numerous times to help with local rescue operations over the years.<\/p>\n

One involved the rescue of two skiers in 2020 who had ventured into the backcountry near Stowe Mountain Resort. The brothers got lost at night in deteriorating weather and ended up at the top of an ice climbing route. One of them fell off the 220-foot cliff. The second remained stranded at the cliff\u2019s plateau but couldn\u2019t make his way back to safety due to the deep snow, so he called for help. Local rescuers who responded couldn\u2019t access the victims, so they called Dearborn, who led a team of five National Guard soldiers on a mission to reach them.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe know the terrain pretty well. It\u2019s our backyard,\u201d Dearborn said. \u201cWe know the little places to sneak through.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The rescue required Dearborn to conduct multiple risky climbs at night, including a climb up 200-feet of sheer ice. Eventually he reached the skiers, and he and his team were able to lower both victims to a recoverable position.<\/p>\n

In June 2021, Dearborn was honored for his efforts with the Soldier\u2019s Medal, the highest award a soldier can receive outside of combat. When asked about the accolade, Dearborn minimized it, saying he was just doing what he was trained to do.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Army has invested a ridiculous amount of time and money to send me to courses and to give me the training and experience to be able to do that,\u201d he said. \u201cIt would be ridiculous, I think, if \u2014 at this point I couldn\u2019t help in that way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dearborn said rescues are something school instructors help with quite often, especially in areas like Smugglers\u2019 Notch, a narrow pass through the Green Mountains that sits between two local ski resorts.<\/p>\n

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\u201cWe\u2019ve [rescued] lots of snowboarders and skiers that have hit trees or tweaked knees and legs,\u201d Dearborn said. \u201cConveniently, we\u2019re there, and we have the equipment and the personnel and the training, so it\u2019s easy for us to snatch them up before other folks have to get involved.\u201d<\/p>\n

Army Staff Sgt. Andrea Okrasinski is one of the few instructors not native to Vermont. Originally from Illinois, the outdoor enthusiast signed up for the Army Reserve at 18 and spent more than a decade serving as a construction engineer and in civil affairs. But when she attended the AMWS in August 2021, she realized that teaching mountaineering was her true passion. She began the process of transferring over, and in June 2022, arrived at the school to start her new career as a full-time instructor.<\/p>\n

Okrasinski said that, aside from having the physical mountaineering skills, instructors need to be able to know how to drive, motivate and mentor students.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIt\u2019s very selective here, which I think is a good thing for the Mountain Warfare School to have \u2014that need to bring a specific skill set and a specific demeanor,\u201d she said. \u201cSafety is a huge [priority] and having that attention to detail for it is really important.\u201d<\/p>\n

Why Vermont?<\/strong><\/p>\n

The school\u2019s instructors said they often get asked why they\u2019re based in Vermont and not, say, Colorado\u2019s Rocky Mountains or some other well-known mountainous region. They said the answer is pretty straightforward \u2014 their Vermont location is compact, offering a microcosm of everything a mountaineer in training might need to learn in a two-week span.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have every training site within 2\u00a0miles or 3\u00a0miles from here. We have cliffs. We have low elevation as far as altitude \u2026 so there\u2019s no climatization needed, whereas in Colorado, that might be an issue. Same thing with the Marine Corps school. They\u2019re at what\u2019s considered a medium altitude, so you have to acclimatize when you get there. Here, you don\u2019t have to,\u201d Severin said. \u201cEverything\u2019s right here \u2014 a one-stop shop.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Those who pass the basic military mountaineer course earn the coveted Ram\u2019s Head Device and the military mountaineer additional skill identifier known as the echo identifier. Two other mountaineering schools also grant the echo identifier \u2014 the Northern Warfare Training Center in Delta Junction, Alaska, and the Fort Moore Troops School at the 5th Ranger Training Battalion in Dahlonega, Georgia.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

But, according to Severin, the AMWS is more involved in writing the course\u2019s\u00a0program of instruction, also known as POI, and the material to teach the course. Severin said Alaska\u2019s students are mainly stationed in that state and train on terrain that\u2019s more glaciated, with a focus on tactics for the Arctic as opposed to Vermont\u2019s alpine-style environment.<\/p>\n

The Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Training Center near Bridgeport, California, also teaches mountaineering; however, Severin said its students focus more on tactics performed as a unit instead of individually.<\/p>\n

The AMWS sees a lot more students come through its doors as well. Officials said they train about 600 students a year, whereas the other schools see up to about 100 for certain specialties.<\/p>\n

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Keeping Busy<\/strong><\/p>\n

When courses are in session at the AMWS, instructors tend to work 10-12 hours per day, so finding the right work-life balance is sometimes the hardest part of the job.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re here a lot. We have a lot of courses. We don\u2019t have a ton of time between courses to take our leave, so the amount of laundry that\u2019s piling up right now is getting a little ridiculous,\u201d Okrasinksi joked.<\/p>\n

For most of the instructors, it\u2019s the close-knit community they\u2019ve formed that keeps them all coming back day after day.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe trust each other. We respect each other. We work together and play together and fight with each other and, you know, we listen to each other,\u201d Dearborn said. \u201cAnd I think it\u2019s a rarity in or outside of the military to have that kind of situation.\u201d<\/p>\n

By Katie Lange, DOD News<\/em><\/p>\n

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From the harsh ridgelines in Italy during World War II and the frigid peaks of Korea during the 1950s, to the Hindu Kush in Afghanistan, mountaineering has long been a necessary skill for U.S. service members in battle. To deter conflicts and defeat aggression, service members need to be prepared to operate in mountainous terrain. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1335,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-1334","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-army"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1334","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1334"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1334\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1336,"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1334\/revisions\/1336"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1335"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1334"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1334"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/daily-bullet.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1334"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}