All-women team of soldiers make history on arduous military test in Wales An all-female team has made history after winning a medal at this year’s Exercise Cambrian Patrol. The annual event is organised and run by 160 (Wales) Brigade. It is both physically and mentally demanding and is a highlight in the British Army’s training calendar. All-female patrols are a rarity and those actually completing the exercise even rarer. No team has ever completed it. But this year a patrol of eight women representing London University Officer Training Corps made history by winning a bronze medal. Speaking in the assembly area (a secluded forestry block in Sennybridge where patrols receive their orders and cut and design a map into the ground before setting off) Officer Cadet Tara Parks, 21, from Blandford in Dorset, said: “We’ve heard this is one of the toughest, if not the toughest, patrolling exercises there is. “We came down to Brecon a month ago to prepare, doing things like the Fan Dance (a notorious 16-mile march with weight over the hills and slopes of Pen-y-Fan – southern Britain’s highest point).” “There’s definitely a fear of some of the stands we’ll come up against and I struggle with my feet, so such a long distance is a worry,” said Tara, who is in the final year of a four-year Chinese degree at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London. “But the fact we’re an all-female team drives us on to do well. We know some other patrols look at us and think, yeah, right oh, good luck with that.” Some foreign entrants had to claim the right to take part in the event by winning through their own domestic competition months before. This year five overseas teams took part for the first time with soldiers from Brazil, Kazakhstan, The Royal Army of Oman, Georgia and Nepal having their first crack at completing the patrol, navigating their way through some of the harshest terrain in Wales. In addition, troops from Norway, New Zealand, Poland, Pakistan, Czech Republic, France, Denmark, Australia, Italy, Holland, Ireland, India, Canada and Estonia took part and of the 19 international patrols who started, 17 completed. Puma and Merlin helicopters airlifted troops from the assembly area to a drop-off point in mid-Wales where teams had to begin. Speaking in the assembly area, Officer Cadet Fatima Islam, 24, from Stepney Green in east London the second-in-command for the all-female patrol, said the women were determined to do well. “The friends that you make and the training you get is something you could never get anywhere else,” said Fatima, who is studying for a master’s degree in war and psychiatry at King’s College London. “We did the Fan Dance with day sacks, webbing and rifle. That was a confidence boost for us getting to the top and gave us some good miles in the legs. A lot of people, when they hear about the all-girls team entering the exercise, it’s, ‘oh my gosh, it’s never been done before’. “That makes us more determined. I want every single member to complete, right through to the end, and I don’t anyone to pull out for anything other and injury. We’ve become very close as a team and we don’t want to let each other down. “Obviously, we’re not as naturally strong as the boys and the things that they’ll find easy, like lugging on a bergen when it’s wet and adds another 5kg, will mean we have to dig in and help each other. “To finish will mean so much. It will show that those couple of months hard work has paid off and will give us enormous pride.” A record number of teams (119) were cleared to enter this year and will included a mixed Regular and Reserve team for the first time in the event’s 55-year history. Exercise Cambrian Patrol itself began in 1959, when a group of Welsh Territorial Army soldiers designed a weekend training event, featuring long distance marching over the Cambrian Mountains, culminating in a shooting match on the Sennybridge training area. Navigating both by day and night, the patrols faced many testing and specialist challenges, including observation and reconnaissance of enemy forces, cold river crossings in full kit without access to boats, first-aid and an attack. At the completion of the exercise each patrol faces a comprehensive debriefing session on their mission. Military skills, stamina and dedication are constantly evaluated during the patrol and marked with a system of points. Teams that successfully completed their mission are awarded a gold, silver or bronze medal or certificate of merit, depending on the total number of points they have gained. After the final debrief the all-female patrol gathered in the presentation area back at Sennybridge Main Camp, exhausted, hungry and unsure of their result. However, when the announcement of a bronze medal was made, there was a rapturous show of appreciation in a room packed with organisers who have decades’ worth of Cambrian Patrol experience. Tara, with teeth glowing in a smile surrounded with camouflage cream and dirt, said: “We’re delighted. That was so, so difficult. We got to the river crossing at 3am because we were a bit late on our timings. “Dropping down into swamps in muddy fields was emotional. It’s such cliché, but it was the team spirit which got us through. We were sat on the bus, looking at each other, saying, ‘we did it’. Brigadier Martyn Gamble, Commander of 160 (Wales) Brigade and head of the Army in Wales, said: “This is the 55th year since the event started and every time we try and incorporate challenges that will test soldiers’ ability to navigate through tough and rangy terrain with an emphasis on bringing the best out of people. “As we’ve seen this year, completing the patrol is perfectly achievable with the right amount of preparation and training. “I’m entirely comfortable that only about four per cent of all teams achieved gold. Those people who have achieved a finish or a medal should be applauded. “About a third of teams failed to finish and is again testament to how much of a challenge this is.” Five teams won the elusive gold medal – 1st Battalion The Duke of Lancaster’s Regiment on phase one; Gurkha Sittang Company on phase four; 2nd Battalion The Royal Gurkha Rifles; on phase four; the 8th Battalion Garwhal Rifles team from India on phase six; and the 1WW Infantry School Ireland.
Posted on: Mon, 27 Oct 2014 15:24:25 +0000
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