Photo By 1st Sgt. John Etheridge | Spc. Jordan Thomas, with 1st Cavalry Division’s command group protocol office,...... read more read more
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KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan – Each round started with the safety saying “Puncher ready. Clincher ready. Go!” What followed was a quick barrage of punches by a gloved assailant directed at a combatives student. The goal was for the student to get the clinch by wrapping their arms around the assailant’s upper body so no more punches could be thrown.
The fists were flying at the Morale, Welfare and Recreation center during the final exercise of a level one Army Combatives class on Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan, held July 31, 2014.
“Elbows up! Elbows up! You get in there in you don’t let go!” bellowed the lead instructor, Staff Sgt. Jeffrey Yurk, to the student who struggled to get the proper clinch on his adversary.
“Listen up you guys, stop getting blood all over my gloves,” joked Yurk, who sounds like part motivational speaker and part comedian to his students.
Although it was serious business in the ring, there was a lighthearted and fun atmosphere in the musty room. The 40 students were all gathered around in a circle, making a human ring for the fighters to maneuver in. From the sidelines, they coached out loud to their comrades as they whirled about the ring. Each time one of the students put their opponent in the clinch, they cheered their classmate as he or she exited the ring and was replaced by a new clincher and puncher.
The exercise used to be called the clinch drill, but it’s called the option 3 drill now. It is the culmination of a 40-hour Army Combatives course designed to teach 21 core tasks in reacting to man-to-man contact. Each student has to go four rounds with a puncher and use one of the clinch techniques taught to them to stop their attacker.
“The great thing about the option 3 drill is it gives every Soldier in the course the opportunity to choose to close the distance with the enemy or to quit,” said Yurk, a platoon sergeant with Alpha Company, 2nd Battalion, 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division. “It is a microcosm of what it means to be a Soldier. We put on the uniform each day and we’re part of the warrior caste system: It’s our job to close with the enemy.”
Before being put in the ring, Yurk gave a lengthy safety brief to reassure his students who were nervous before the bouts.
“This is a controlled environment. I far exceed the safety standards that the Army puts forward,” he said to his pupils. “I promise that if you follow what I taught you, your best will be good enough.”
Not all the students were completely comforted or confident about the upcoming drill.
“I’m pretty nervous. They are some big guys, ” said Sgt. Pia Dozo-Rodriguez, about the punchers. “I’m pretty intimidated but I’m going to take what I’ve learned, and hopefully I won’t get knocked out.”
Dozo-Rodriguez, with Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2/504th, also said that she signed up for the combatives course because she likes to challenge herself to see how far she can push herself. She said that it would be a huge confidence boost for her because she was one of only three females in a class with 37 males.
After two rounds, the humidity in the room was dripping off of the ceiling. The initial nervousness in the atmosphere of the students had calmed a little and was being replaced slowly by confidence.
“I’m doing a little better than I thought I would,” said Spc. Jordan Thomas, with the 1st Cavalry Division command group protocol office, who had a piece of bloody paper towel shoved in his nose from training earlier in the day. “They’re not holding back at all. I’ve had a ringing in my ear for about an hour. It’s pretty good training though.”
Rodriguez also echoed a similar sentiment.
“I think I did pretty well. I’m holding up,” she said, although she still admitted her nervousness. “That will happen until after round four.”
During the fourth round, the anticipation of the successful end to the clinch drill energized the circle of Soldiers. Their coaching and cheering of their fellow students in the ring grew louder until the last Soldier made a successful clinch and the drill ended. All had chosen to close the distance with the enemy.
As the drill came to an end, the students were invigorated by a new confidence as they circled on the floor in front of their instructor as he gave closing remarks for the drill.
Thomas said that he was somewhat confident going into the exercise, but the drill taught him a lesson in patience.
“I learned that getting punched in the face hurts a lot, but more than anything, I learned patience and how to be calm in a stressful situation. You have to calm yourself down and get your bearing,” he said.
After being knocked down in the drill, Dozo-Rodriguez said she learned something about perseverance.
“I took a couple of blows, but all in all it’s a really good feeling to have completed this,” said Dozo-Rodriguez. “Perseverance and never giving up always wins.”
Yurk summed up the importance of the option 3 drill and of the Army combatives program: “It is an opportunity for us to instill the warrior ethos in every Soldier; the willingness and ability to close with the enemy. There is nothing more powerful.”
| Date Taken: | 08.01.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 08.02.2014 12:53 |
| Story ID: | 138099 |
| Location: | KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, AF |
| Hometown: | FORT CAVAZOS, TEXAS, US |
| Hometown: | FORT LIBERTY, NORTH CAROLINA, US |
| Web Views: | 398 |
| Downloads: | 2 |
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