Inside this

issue

Combatives Finals

continued

2

Joint Training 3

Culinary Arts 4

UFC Visit 5

Promotions 9

The Rail Gunner

Monthly Staff

Commander

COL John C. Thomson, III

Command Sgt. Maj.

CSM Kelvin A. Hughes

Rail Gunner PAO

NCOIC

SSG Kyle Richardson

Rail Gunner Journalists

SPC Dalinda Hanna

41st Fires Brigade

“Rail Gunners!!”

FORT HOOD, Texas—Four Soldiers on the 41st Fires Brigade com-batives team advanced to the finals and won their final matches after fighting through three days of elimi-nation rounds during the Fort Hood combatives tournament hosted at

Abrams Field House, Fort Hood, Texas, Jan. 25-28. The Rail Gunner team started off with 38 members and three trainers. Sixteen Soldiers, two in each weight category, fought for the brigade‟s team with the rest fighting individual-ly under the 41st Fires Bde. banner. The Rail Gunner Soldiers prac-ticed and conditioned their bodies

Story and photos by

Spc. Dalinda Hanna

41st Fires Brigade, PAO

VOLUME 2 THE RAIL GUNNER MONTHLY ISSUE 6

Photo by Spc. Dalinda Hanna, 41st Fires Brigade PAO

See TOURNEY on Page 3

Sgt. 1st Class Ryan Hunt, originally from San Diego, and a platoon sergeant for Company B, 589th Brigade Support Battalion,

gets on top of his opponent during the 2011 Fort Hood Combatives Tournament held at Abrams Field House, Fort Hood, Texas,

Jan. 25-28. Hunt competed in the finals after three days of eliminations and won third place in the Welterweight division.

improve his fighting techniques. In addition, combatives training has helped him control his breathing which has improved his running ability. “We practiced flow rolls, take downs, submissions, kicks, punches, strikes and condition-ing,” said Barela. “I always eat right, condition myself, and go online to check out different moves that am unfamiliar with in order to educate myself toward situations that I can get into. This has helped me to better prepare for the tournament.” In addition to practice, Sol-diers of the team have moves they like to do that put their com-petitor at a disadvantage. “I like to use straight arm bars or the guillotine choke. It is quick and easy to disable my opponent,” said Spc. Troy Northrup, a native of Traverse City, Mich., and a MLRS gunner for Btry. C, 1st Bat., 21st FA Regt. The 41st Fires Bde. Soldiers fought hard against their oppo-nents throughout the tourna-ment. In the end, the Rail Gun-ners combatives team took the second place team trophy and the second overall highest team points for the tournament.

TOURNEY cont. from Page 1

VOLUME 2, ISSUE 6 THE RAIL GUNNER MONTHLY MARCH 2011

daily to better withstand the rig-orous and physically exhausting aspects of combatives. “A warrior is only as good as his training and how he uses the skills he learned in a fight,” said 1st Sgt. Edgar Fuentes a native of Brooklyn and head trainer of the 41st Fires Bde. combatives team. The Rail Gunner team has practiced various techniques for the last few weeks in prepara-tion for the tournament and Fuentes said that teaching ba-sics and fundamentals is what helps during a fight. Spc. Brandon Minor, a native of Indianapolis, and the brigade assistant commandant for Head-quarters and Headquarters Bat-tery, 41st Fires Bde., took first place in the Heavyweight divi-sion after squeezing a submis-sion from his opponent. Minor said that his training has helped him with the physical and mental aspects of his life, which has made him healthier and more focused on what he needs to

learn. “Combatives has helped me a lot because I am a person who is honest with myself. I knew I

was weak at Brazili-an Jujitsu, so I had the chance to learn it,” said Minor. “I am in better shape and I now know how to choke someone with his own cloth-ing, when before I started, I didn‟t know how to do that. I have learned a lot.” Spc. Simon Flo-res Pequeno, origi-nally from Abilene, Texas and a supply specialist for Battery B, 2nd Battalion, 20th Field Artillery Regiment, took first place in the Bantamweight division after overpowering his opponent and getting a submission. Sgt. 1st Class Ryan Hunt, a na-tive of San Diego and a platoon sergeant for Company B, 589th Brigade Support Battalion, took control of his opponent to win third place in the Welterweight division. Pfc. Jimmy Chavez, from

Prague, Okla., and a forward observer for HHB, 41st Fires Bde., fought his way to win third place in the Light-Heavyweight division. Pvt. Eric Barela, an Oceanside, Calif. native and a Multiple Launch Rocket System can-

non crew member for Btry. C, 1st Bat., 21st FA Regt., said the team practices have helped him

Spc. Brandon “The Wolfman” Minor gets on top of his opponent to subdue him during

the 2011 Fort Hood Combatives Tournament. Minor competed in the finals and won

first place in the Heavyweight division and a spot on the Fort Hood Combatives Team.

Pfc. Jimmy “The Diablo Blanco” Chavez puts his opponent in a choke. Chavez

competed in the finals and won third place in the Light-Heavyweight division.

VOLUME 2, ISSUE 6 THE RAIL GUNNER MONTHLY PAGE 3

Army artillery, naval training: 41st Fires takes on joint training mission

SAN DIEGO—Today‟s military leaders are constantly seeking ways to improve training pro-grams for Soldiers, Sailors, Air-men, and Marines, utilizing the most current and emerging tech-nology. In January 2011, Soldiers from the 41st Fires Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division traveled to Na-val Amphibious Base Coronado, Calif., where they participated in Fleet Synthetic Training—Joint 11-3 with the U.S.S. Ronald Reagan Strike Group as it pre-pared for its deployment in the Pacific. The program, known as FST-J, is the US Navy‟s latest train-ing program using technology to train and prepare leaders and their staff to deploy in support of joint operations. The program started in De-cember 2005 as a means to pre-pare a ship‟s staff for deploy-ment. In the beginning, the training exercises focused specifically on naval operations. As the train-ing program continued to devel-op, in 2008 FST became a joint exercise, adding participants from both the Army and Air Force. The FST-J 11-3 scenario is set in the Pacific North-West and revolves around the King-dom of Purple invading the King-dom of Black, a key U.S. ally. A combined task force de-ployed to the theater of opera-tions initially as a show of force. After negotiations failed, and the

See FST-J 11-3 on Page 5

Kingdom of Purple refused to withdraw, the task force transi-

tioned into full spectrum opera-tions in an attempt to remove the hostile forces from Black land. As a part of the combined task force, Soldiers of the 41st Fires Bde. took responsibility for providing indirect fire sup-port to coalition forces land component command opera-tions (CFLCC).

“As a member of CFLCC, the 41st Fires Bde. is responsible for providing time sensitive tar-gets and deep fires in support of joint operations,” said Maj. James Schwartz, a native of

Kentwood, La, bri-gade fire support coordinator for the 41st Fires Bde. “The FST-J exercise provides an oppor-tunity for Soldiers and planners on the brigade staff to train in a joint setting uti-lizing our battle com-mand systems equipment. Soldiers are required to coor-dinate and integrate joint fires utilizing AFATDS (advance field artillery tactical data system), JA-DOCS (joint auto-mated deep opera-tions coordination system), and CPOF (command post of the future). To-day‟s battlefield is a joint environment and Soldiers must understand how to operate in it to be successful.” During FST-J 11-3, Soldiers from the

41st Fires Bde. had the oppor-tunity to not only train with mem-bers of the strike group, but also tour several of the ships, to in-clude the U.S.S. Ronald Reagan and U.S.S. Preble, and observe the exercise from their location. While on the guided missile destroyer, U.S.S. Preble, Chief Warrant Officer Shane Terrell, the brigade targeting officer for

41st Fires Brigade, PAO

Chief Warrant Officer Shane Terrell (left), from San Antonio, a targeting

officer for Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 41st Fires Brigade,

conducts coordination with Navy Lt. j.g Randy Reichenbach, of Dallas, a strike

officer for the guided missile destroyer.

FORT HOOD, Texas—Just like clockwork with their attention to details and precision timing, the Fort Hood Culinary Arts team served up a five-star meal to the 41st Fires Brigade at the Culi-nary Arts Center located on Fort Hood, Texas, Jan. 20. As Team Hood prepares for the 36th Annual U.S. Army Culi-nary Arts Tournament this month, the culinary chefs hosted a luncheon for the command teams, as well as the senior en-listed Rail Gunners. “Every time we get a chance to prepare a meal for anyone, we‟re honored,” said Staff Sgt. Kyral Hayward, a Jacksonville, Fla. native and team executive for Team Hood. “We take pride in the meals that we prepare be-

VOLUME 2, ISSUE 6 THE RAIL GUNNER MONTHLY MARCH 2011

Story and photos by

Staff Sgt. Kyle Richardson

41st Fires Brigade, PAO

41st Fires Bde., along with Sgt. 1st Class James Cookman, a native of Rosebud, Mont., bri-gade FECC operations sergeant for HHB, 41st Fires Bde., were able to observe the fire mission processing and simulated exe-cution of both TLAM (Tomahawk land attack missile) and 127mm naval gun fire. “The Navy‟s naval fire control system is very similar to the Army‟s AFATDS,” Cookman said. “Having an understanding of how the Navy‟s fire mission processing occurs allows me to see the similarities in mission processing between the Army and the Navy, while gaining an appreciation of the inherent diffi-culty in maintaining accuracy while firing from a moving ship.” “The FST-J program contin-ues to grow,” said Keith Evans, director for the Joint Expedition-ary Warfare Laboratory (JEWL). “In 2010 we held two exercises. For (fiscal year) 2011, we cur-rently have five exercises sched-uled. The cost of holding a syn-thetic exercise is just a fraction of what it costs to deploy the en-tire strike group to sea for just one day. As we continue to strive for fiscal responsibility with reduced budgets, exercises such as these will only expand.” “FST-J is an excellent oppor-tunity for the Army to train in a joint environment.” said Chief Warrant Officer Sean Schmitt, a native of Grant, Ala., FECC tar-geting officer for HHB, 41st Fires Bde., “The FST-J has served as a great exercise for fires bri-gades, and it may also be bene-ficial for a maneuver unit‟s staff to develop their war fighting functions as well.”

FST-J 11-3 cont. from Page 4

Serving up 5-star meals

cause our creations will eventu-ally cross a line from a main course to a work of art.”

The lunch consisted of a house salad tossed with a vinaigrette dressing, fol-lowed by the main course of Texas sirloin, Kansas style rice, and broccoli and cauli-flower medley. The carefully planned meal was finished off with chocolate cake cov-ered with a blackberry sauce and a scoop of vanil-la bean ice cream. The 20 chefs with Team Hood will head out for the week-long tournament held at Fort Lee, Va. Last year, the team won 38 medals and the judges‟ award for Best Overall Table. This year the team will compete for the desired Installation of the Year Award. For the highest culinary honors, the

Pfc. Delano Taylor carries out the dessert tray of chocolate cake

covered with a blackberry sauce and a scoop of vanilla ice cream

during a luncheon. Taylor is planning to compete for the Junior

Chef of the Year Award as well as the live cooking award.

Spc. Katrina Guillen works on creating ballot slip-

pers and bows for one of her pettifor projects at the

Fort Hood Culinary Arts Center. A pettifor is a tiny

cake that is less than an inch and a half tall and

weighs less than an ounce.

See MEAL on Page 6

MEAL cont. from Page 5

VOLUME 2, ISSUE 6 THE RAIL GUNNER MONTHLY PAGE 5

team will face other culinary teams from all branches of service throughout Europe, Korea and the U.S. “This is big for us,” said Spc. Diego Ortiz-Carrillo, from Mexico City, Mexico, a field team member with Team Hood Culinary Arts Team. “Being on the team is kind of challenging because you won‟t find yourself preparing the same meals over again. You‟re constantly expanding your food knowledge and pushing your creativity to new limits. I think we are the best and being the largest installa-tion, I think we‟re naturally front-runners for the Installa-tion of the Year Award.” The team is also compet-ing for several individual awards like top Senior and Junior Armed Forces Chefs of the Year. The two newest members to the team, Pfc.

Delano Taylor and Pfc. Alex-ander Long, competing for Top Junior Chef, came from within the ranks of the Rail Gunners. “I can‟t down play the work at a regular dining facility be-cause it‟s strenuous; however, I like the culinary arts team be-cause I get a chance to prefect a craft instead of worrying about making meals for the masses,” said Taylor, a Chica-go native from 2nd Battalion, 20th Field Artillery Regiment. “Being with Team Hood has definitely improved my chanc-es of bringing back the Junior Chef Award this year. Plus, I make a mean pork tenderloin.” When the team is not pre-paring for competitions, they spend their time planning meals, putting on shows at the Culinary Arts Center, and teaching classes at local schools and Fort Hood dining facilities.

See VISIT on Page 7

FORT HOOD, Texas—The Sol-diers were engaged in their dai-ly duties inside the motorpool when they received a surprise visit from six of the Ultimate Fighting Championship fighters prior to their televised event “Fight for the Troop 2,” Jan. 21. The UFC fighters made some revisions to their sched-ules and took the time to see some of the Soldiers at work with the 1st Battalion, 21st Field Artillery Regiment, 41st Fires Brigade.

“Sgt. Reyes took the lead on setting this visit up for us,” said Command Sgt. Maj. Mark Brin-ton, native of Panama City, Fla., the battalion command sergeant major. “He competed in last year‟s tournament and is this year‟s head referee. He told the UFC fighters about his unit and what we did. The UFC fighters were excited to check out and learn a little about one of our multiple launch rocket systems.” Just before the Soldiers were released for lunch, two passenger vans pulled into the motorpool and Chuck Liddell,

Frankie Edgar, Matt Serra, Dominick Cruz, Brian Stann, and Jim Miller stepped out into First Strike territory. “It‟s an honor to know that these gentlemen changed their schedules to accommodate us,” said Brinton. “These guys truly made some Soldiers hap-py today, and to top it all off, they‟re raising money for chari-ties throughout the Army and Fort Hood.” The Soldiers and fighters mixed it up within seconds by shaking hands, engaging in photo opportunities, and con-versation.

Spc. Diego Ortiz-Carrillo slices Texas sirloin for the main course

at the Culinary Arts Center. Team Hood is preparing for the

36th Annual U.S. Army Culinary Arts Tournament held at Fort

Lee, Va. at the end of February.

UFC fighters step into First Strike’s ring Story and photos by

Staff Sgt. Kyle Richardson

41st Fires Brigade, PAO

VOLUME 2, ISSUE 6 THE RAIL GUNNER MONTHLY MARCH 2011

“I‟m glad Chuck Liddell made it out here today, he is one of my favorite fighters,” said Pfc. Spencer Daily, of Edgewood, Ky., an MLRS driv-er. “This is a good opportunity to meet the fighters and they‟re raising money for traumatic brain injuries; something that effects a lot of Soldiers these days.” The UFC fighters also jumped at the first opportunity to grapple with the M270-A1 MLRS that was on display. The fighters received a quick safety briefing and a description of the M270-A1, known as “Cash Money,” before they could get

inside. “Today is one of those days that stay with you throughout your Army career,” said Spc. Trevor Radeke, of Rocky Ford, Colo., an MLRS crewmem-ber. “Coming to hang out with the Soldiers and not just fighting made their visit more exciting. And now „Cash Money‟ not only fires in all live fires, but it has celebrity status.” The UFC fighters enjoyed the First Strike hospitality and the firsthand experience with the massive weapon system. “I‟m glad we got a chance to meet these Soldiers today and that we get the

Dominick Cruz, Ultimate Fighting Championship first Bantamweight title

holder shows his injured hand to Soldiers. Cruz injured his hand recently

during training and had to be replaced on the fight card for the UFC event

“Fight for the Troops 2.”

chance to entertain them,” said Cruz, UFCs first Bantamweight title holder. “The Soldiers are the true heroes in today‟s world. I like doing my part to help keep them going.”

VISIT cont. from Page 6

The Soldiers with the 1st Battalion, 21st Field Artillery Regiment, 41st Fires Brigade was visited by six Ultimate

Fighting Championship fighters in their motorpool before the televised UFC event “Fight for the Troops.” From left

to right: Frankie Edgar, Chuck Liddell, Dominick Cruz, Brian Stann, Jim Miller, and Matt Serra pose with the

First Strike Soldiers.

Chuck Liddell, Ultimate Fighting Championship

fighter, is getting familiar with the controls of a M270-

A1 MLRS during a visit to the First Strike’s motor

pool. Liddell joined with Frankie Edgar, Matt Serra,

Dominick Cruz, Brian Stann, and Jim Miller made the

trip to the 1st Battalion, 21st Field Artillery Regi-

ment’s motor pool.

VOLUME 2, ISSUE 6 THE RAIL GUNNER MONTHLY PAGE 7

VOLUME 2, ISSUE 6 THE RAIL GUNNER MONTHLY MARCH 2011

The “Rail Gunner Monthly” is an authorized publication for members of the U.S. Army. Contents of the

“Rail Gunner Monthly” are not necessarily official views of or endorsed by the U.S. Government, Depart-

ment of Defense, Department of the Army or the 41st Fires Brigade. All editorial content of this publication

is prepared, edited, provided and approved by the 41st Fires Brigade Public Affairs Office. If you have any

questions, comments, concerns or suggestions contact the 41st Fires Brigade PAO office at 254-287-0739 or

email kyle.richardson@conus.army.mil. Check out the unit’s Website at http://www.hood.army.mil/41stFires.

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VOLUME 2 THE RAIL GUNNER MONTHLY ISSUE 6

To SSG

SSG Jonathan Hood

To SFC

SFC Randell Evans

SFC Sheena Ferrell

SFC William Lett Jr.

SFC Joseph Rhodes

To CW2

CW2 Kevin Brown

CW2 Nicholas Burt

589th BSB

SPC Steven P. Gibson

SGT Alexander Avila

SGT Kissea Lester

1-21 FA

SPC Monte D. Brown

575th FSC

1SG Robert Jarzynkowski

A/26 TAB

SPC Alexander Perez