Unit Life: Bulford Garrison St Eligius Day

Bulford Garrison St Eligius Day

Scribe: SSgt Meikle

Due to deployments and the impact of COVID 19 it has been a few years since 5 RIFLES LAD has been able to fully celebrate St Eligius Day in true REME style. Therefore, in 2021 we decided to make the most of being in barracks with reduced COVID restrictions and a relatively clear FOE. We also realised that local units would be in a similar situation and that this presented a unique opportunity to bring together the various 1st line units in Bulford to celebrate together and bring back our Esprit de Corps! SSgt Meikle was tasked with designing a day with an event involving some physical competitions and an engineering challenge that would be competitive and rewarding but also enjoyable for all those taking part. Invites swiftly followed that were accepted by HCR, 1 MERCIAN and 3 Div Sig Regt (3 DSR) LADs.

The day started with the physical events where competitors were split between either a cross country race on Salisbury Plain or a British Army Warrior Fitness (BAWF) event in Bulford Garrison gym. Both events were fiercely competitive with a high standard on display; 5 RIFLES LAD proving to be too much for the other LADs and romped to victory in both, taking a commanding lead in the overall competition. After a short break for lunch, everyone reconvened for a few readings before the eagerly awaited engineering challenge which was of course build and race a go-kart. This was won by 3 DSR LAD with 5 RIFLES being dropped to 4th place after a clear violation of the rules – making the final scores for the overall competition extremely tight. It was then on to 5 RIFLES Cpls mess for the evening social function and prize giving. The night started off with one of Cpl Gurung’s famous Nepalese curries before the highly anticipated prize giving. It was a close run in the end, but 5 RIFLES LAD secured the first win of the Bulford St Eligius Day Shield.

The Top Prize – The Annual Bulford St Eligius Day shield

BAWF row to victory

British Army Warrior Fitness Competition

Scribe: Cpl Cash

For the St Eligius Day BAWF event, each LAD entered two teams of 4. The BAWF was split down into 3 separate events. The first event was 1 rep max deadlift as a team combined, this produced a great start to the event with some impressive lifts. The highest weight that was recorded was 215kg by LCpl Easton of 5 RIFLES LAD. The second event was a 5km row as a team, which proved a very difficult but close event with only 10 seconds between 1st and 2nd place. The last event was a 20-minute As Many Rounds As Possible (AMRAP) circuit which involved 20 reps of box over jumps, burpees, 20k Calories ski and 4 rope climbs as a team, once complete you would

Deadlift Champions from 5 RIFLES LAD 5 RIFLES LAD go-kart took the opportunity to improve on HCR’s AJAX that they share a hangar with

go back to the start and go again until the 20 minutes was up. A very tough circuit with the rope climbs being the biggest burden technically. The gym staff did an excellent job organising and running the BAWF event which was fiercely competitive with great efforts from all participants. The overall team results were: 1st – 5 RIFLES LAD 2nd – 1 MERCIAN LAD 3rd – HCR LAD 4th – 3 DSR LAD

Go-Kart Build & Race

Scribe: Sgt Stokes

After the obligatory speeches from the unit’s most junior Cfn, the stage was set for the Go-Kart race. After initial plans for a destruction derby were rejected due to H&S and obvious risk assessment concerns, we had to settle on a large lap around the vehicle hangers with a slalom weave to the finish line to test manoeuvrability. The judging panel (attending units’ EMEs and ASMs) started by scoring the vehicles on appearance, initiative and build quality before unleashing them for their best effort lap time. The admin order stipulated the kart must be propelled by human power only, and that it must also always have a Driver and a Commander on the kart. The first team up were 3 DSR who had attached a pushbike to the back of the kart for the Commander to sit on and pedal. They got off to a flying start, making it around safely in short time. Following on next was HCR LAD, they made it around to the slalom where they flattened 5 cones before finally making it across the line with a bent wheel. The hosts 5 RIFLES went next, on their “AJAX 2”. Despite a slight detour they made it around the lap smoothly. 1 MERCIAN were set off last on their creation (I’m sure it looked familiar?) although a navigational error took them across the grass and over the kerb narrowly avoiding disaster. After the dust had settled, it was pointed out to the judging staff that 5 RIFLES didn’t have a Commander on the kart during their lap. So, despite SSgt Kyle Davies jumping on for the photo at the end, the decision was made to move them down to last place. Overall team results from this competition were: 1st – 3 DSR LAD 2nd – HCR LAD 3rd – MERCIAN LAD 4th – 5 RIFLES LAD

The Engineering Challenge entries for 2021

1 MERCIAN LAD late entry Go-Kart looked vaguely familiar 3 DSR pedal power

1 MERCIAN LAD neglecting style and ingenuity…but not safety

Cross-Country Race

Scribe: LCpl Brum

The Prize Table

On the 1st December, 5 RIFLES LAD played host to a competitive 7.5km cross country event between ourselves and the HCR, 1 MERCIAN and 3 DSR LADs. The route consisted of a ferocious head wind, 8,000ft mountain, shark infested custard, and an entire battlegroup deployed on Ex IRON VIPER, challenging the finest runners the REME has to offer. 5 RIFLES had a clean sweep claiming 1st, 2nd and 3rd, proving themselves to the be fittest LAD out of what was an extremely competitive and determined field of soldiers hunting for glory. Battling a constant head wind for the first 4km along Salisbury Plain’s steepest peaks, every athlete dug in deep and powered on to the finish line. Guided by the Marshals giving up their time to make sure the event ran smoothly, and the route was as clear as it could be. Medals for cross country were presented to the top 3 male runners, Capt Hardman (5 RIFLES LAD), SSgt Durkin (5 RIFLES LAD) and LCpl Brum (5 RIFLES LAD). LCpl McKinley (5 RIFLES LAD) stole the show for the 5 RIFLES LAD Female team, winning 1st, 2nd and 3rd since no other female participants took part. Overall team results were: 1st – 5 RIFLES LAD 2nd – HCR LAD 3rd – 3 DSR LAD 4th – 1 MERCIAN LAD

Summary

Overall, it was a thoroughly enjoyable day even if it was extremely challenging at times with all competitors giving 100% during the physical events in particular. It was an excellent way for each LAD to show off their engineering prowess but more importantly, the day was perfect for building cohesion between the LADs within Bulford Garrison through friendly competition and a well spirited social event in the evening. We plan to make this an annual event with HCR LAD taking the lead for the 2022 celebrations. 5 RIFLES will be aiming to repeat their win and add a second engraving to the annually presented Bulford St Eligius Day Shield.

Overall Results:

LAD X-Country Points BAWF Points Go-Kart Points Total Points Position

5 RIFLES 294 340 0 634 1st

HCR 3 DSR 1 MERCIAN 161 83 92 220 150 250 80 160 40 461 393 382 2nd 3rd 4th