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Victory Tower on Fort Jackson is one of many required training
events that new Soldiers have to pass in order to graduate basic
training. Victory Tower is also the first of many trying tasks that
will test Soldiers endurance, will, and courage. The privates of
Foxtrot Company 1st Battalion, 34th Infantry Regiment faced Victory
Tower, Aug. 23, 2016, as part of their journey to become the next
batch of Soldiers ready to serve in United States Army.
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August 23, 2016 - Soldiers of Foxtrot Company, 1st Battalion
34th Infantry Regiment prepare to descend the 40 foot wall known as
Victory Tower at Fort Jackson, SC. The Soldiers of Foxtrot Company
are being trained by both U.S. Army Reserve and active duty drill
sergeants. (U.S. Army Reserve photo by Sgt. Michael Adetula, 206th
Broadcast Operations Detachment)
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Foxtrot Company 1-34 Infantry Regiment serves a unique purpose in
the Army. The drill sergeants that train the Soldiers there are a
mixture of Active Duty and Reserve Soldiers. That fact does not
change the training that the Soldiers receive.
The purpose of
Victory Tower is two-fold. First, it shows the Soldiers that they
can overcome their fears and start to live the Army Values,
specifically personal courage. Second, it is the first time that the
drill sergeants get to see the Soldiers deal with stress and fear
and how they react to it. This allows the drill sergeants to see
that the Soldiers are committed and willing to continue with their
training.
Army drill sergeant, Staff Sgt. Desirae Delarosa
said, “It's something that they probably would not have done if they
didn't join the Army.”
Victory Tower is not without its
failures. Many Soldiers freeze when they step over the ledge of the
40 foot tower. There are those that are visibly shaken as they start
their decent, others that are timid and unsure of their footing, and
finally those that fall. For every failure, however, there is a
success story that follows. All the Soldiers of Foxtrot Company,
through stumbles and falls were able to make it down the wall and
succeed like every Soldier that had come before them.
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August 23, 2016 - Soldiers of Foxtrot Company, 1st Battalion
34th Infantry Regiment conduct the rope bridge obstacles at the
Victory Tower complex. Foxtrot Company has a unique mission in the
Army, it uses both active duty and reserve drill sergeants to train
Soldiers going through Basic Combat Training on Fort Jackson, SC.
(U.S. Army Reserve photo by Sgt. Michael Adetula, 206th Broadcast
Operations Detachment)
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Victory Tower is an excellent training event, according
to 1st Sgt. Anthony Childs, a U.S. Army Reserve drill
sergeant from Asheville, N.C. “Part of it is motivational,
part of it's to make sure they are following the Army
Values, it's a graduation requirement, it's about building
confidence. At the end of the day it's about building
confidence.”
By U.S. Army 1st Lt. Troy Preston
Provided
through DVIDS
Copyright 2016
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