Photo By Staff Sgt. Edward Siguenza | Spc. Nathan Seguritan, right, a member of the 115th Regional Support Group, California...... read more read more
ROSEVILLE, Calif.—Thirty-one additional California Army National Guardsmen are now vowed to the military transportation's unofficial adage: If nothing moves, nothing happens.
The soldiers received operator certifications Dec. 9 after completing a six-day Driver’s Training Course sponsored by the 115th Regional Support Group, California Army National Guard. This means that the participants are capable of operating some of the California National Guard's big-boy toys, such as light medium tactical vehicles (LMTVs), five-ton tractor trucks (M-931 series vehicles) and 36-passenger buses.
"Majority of the class is new or have never sat behind the steering wheel of a bus," said Staff Sgt. Larry Milam, one of four instructors. "Some of them are already ‘88-mikes’ (heavy vehicle operators) so they were here as a refresher course."
"A lot were intimidated when they first saw the size of these vehicles," added instructor Staff Sgt. Jason Frahn. "But they got through it and they all did pretty good."
The course's key intent was to prepare drivers for the upcoming Emergency Disaster Relief Exercise (EDRE), according to Sgt. 1st Class Richard Palmer, 115th readiness non-commissioned officer in charge. They'll be moving the bulk of troops, supplies and equipment to various locations, Palmer explained.
“We’re responsible for moving 530 people to hot spots,” he added. "We have to make sure we have drivers and vehicles. There will be four different staging areas and they got to get Solders to those locations safely and on time."
The exercise will prep the 115th on how it responds to an emergency and how it'll interact with state, local and federal responders as well.
There was plenty of hands-on training to go with regular vehicle preventive maintenance, said Staff Sgt. Charles Robles, instructor. The course mirrored that of a military occupational specialty (MOS) school for transportation.
"They know that PMCS (preventive maintenance checks and service) is the make or break of a mission," Robles said. "They had to know everything about the vehicle before they operated it. They had to check everything; tire pressure, oil pressure, everything."
Soldiers residing as far as Monterey and Merced, Calif., participated. Every day consisted of PMCS, road driving and other safety lessons. There were a few hours of night driving as well. More time was spent out on the road and in the maintenance yard than inside classrooms, which students preferred. Oakdale, Calif., resident Spc. Theresa Gentry credited the class for “giving more opportunities to drive.”
“That was the biggest thing. We did so much driving,” said Gentry, a mechanic in the 118th Maintenance Company out of Stockton, Calif. “We had a lot of hands-on training in PMCS, which is more important than driving.”
Spc. Nathan Seguritan, a Lincoln, Calif., resident, earned Honor Graduate after exceeding the course's requirements.
"There's a mission coming up and we need more drivers," said Seguritan, a member of the 115th. "We needed to qualify drivers to get troops to their destinations, and get them on time."
The commander of the 115th, Col. Rene Horton, commended the soldiers prior to handing out their certificates. She cautioned them upon their importance not just for the upcoming exercise, but for future events.
“Every minute we wait and don’t get there, someone could die,” Horton said. “You are all very critical, now and in the future. When that fire hits, or when that flood hits, you’re going to save people.”
| Date Taken: | 12.09.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 12.29.2011 17:42 |
| Story ID: | 81875 |
| Location: | ROSEVILLE, CALIFORNIA, US |
| Web Views: | 494 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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