SF Trains for Terrain
By Sgt 1st Class Tony Sailer, 122nd Public Affairs Operations Center - Posted Dec, 2007
(((Editor’s Note: For operational security reasons, some individuals chose not to reveal their names and will be referred to by their job title.)))
Soldiers from Operational Detachment Alpha 9113, Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 19th Special Forces Group (Airborne) gathered in Leavenworth, Washington to practice and/or certify on mountain sustainment skills during their annual training conducted the last two weeks of June. They rehearsed mountain survival tactics including vertical assaults, injured personnel rescues, and multiple pitch climbs.
The training was part of the SF Mountain Survival certification process required every year to ensure that they keep sharp on critical skills and to certify U. S. Army Special Operations Command Level 2 climbers. “The basic purpose of training our troops to operate in alpine and mountainous environments is to ensure they are able to cross and avoid dangers of such terrain,” ODA’s team sergeant said.
Many of the participants were re-familiarizing themselves with tasks learned on previous ATs while others were learning them for the first time. New members of the ODA were introduced to weather observation techniques, mountain first aid, and advanced climbing techniques. “These skills will be useful if the state ever calls upon us for some sort of alpine or mountain rescue,” the team sergeant said.
Sergeant 1st Class Pete Gold, Master Mountain Trainer from 1st / 19th SFG Headquarters in Riverton, Utah, was invited to oversee the course and to ensure the training met the USASOC standard. Gold’s main mission 
during this event was to evaluate the quality and accuracy of the training and to certify those of ODA who had progressed to USASOC Level 2. Once trained, a Level 2 climber can conduct further sustainment training and also pass on skills to regular unit soldiers who may not be familiar with mountain operations. Gold also used his decades of climbing experience to teach advanced skills and special-circumstance techniques such as pendulum traversing and aid climbing.
Gold related Army mountaineering to the construction field. “This is just like engineering, but instead of steel girders, rivets and wood, we use ropes, carabineers, and knots.” With these tools, a competent mountain Soldier can construct a rope bridge, a vertical equipment-hauling system, or a fixed rope course to help large groups cross hazardous terrain safely.
ODA 9113 concluded the two-week event with a two-day assault scenario designed to test their skills in a simulated combat situation. During the test, a reconnaissance team scouted approach routes while an escort team set up a fixed rope and rappel station to assist follow-on forces to more easily traverse the terrain. Instructors from Alpha Company’s Operational Detachment Bravo represented local civilians who were lead through the rope course to evaluate its effectiveness.
“Our wartime mission might include training indigenous personnel, regular army soldiers, or others to survive in the mountains. Many of today’s hot spots would put us right there, such as Afghanistan or the Balkans,” ODA’s team leader said.
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