Pounding Pavement, Building Bonds: Dallas Composite Squadron's Ruck March

What better way to promote physical fitness and build unit camaraderie on a warm spring evening than completing a ruck march on an urban nature trail?

Twenty-six cadets and four senior members from the Texas Wing’s Dallas Composite Squadron completed a three-and-one-half-mile roundtrip hike with weighted packs on Northaven Trail in Dallas during a recent meeting.

The cadets remained upbeat throughout, even with a break for pushups. Cadet NCOs worked with their elements to ensure no one fell behind, and they even broke out a jodie or two to help stay on pace. The cadets didn’t go unnoticed – several people stopped to watch them pass by with the unit guidon, and one cyclist even called out, “Go Civil Air Patrol!” as he pedaled by.   

“The cadet leadership team, including myself, C/Maj William Neylon and C/CMSgt Anders Howard, have been planning this ruck march for a while. We thought it would be a great alternative to our normal PT day where we just do the CPFT requirements. It was a lot of fun, and the cadets really came together as a group, proudly representing Civil Air Patrol in our community,” said C/Lt Col Colin Agor, the squadron’s cadet commander.

Does the Dallas Composite Squadron's ruck march inspire you to find a new way to explore physical fitness?  We invite you to share your own success stories and best practices for promoting physical fitness, character, aerospace, and leadership in fun and challening ways.  Send submissions to jlee@capnhq.gov.