DCA Update - Extracurricular Clubs

Competitive Clubs

Triathlon:

• The West Point Triathlon team sent CDT Dylan Morgan (‘16) to Punta Guilarte Arroyo Puerto Rice to compete in the Pan American Cup International Triathlon Union race; Coach Amy Maxwell accompanied Dylan to the race
• CDT Morgan earned his USA Triathlon professional license in the Clermont Elite Developmental race in the spring of 2014 in Clermont, FL
• Punta Guilarte was CDT Morgan’s first race as a professional triathlete in an all-pro field
• CDT Morgan finished 15th place against an all-professional division, beating many seasoned full-time athletes and finishing the run leg with a strong 32 minute 10K
• The ITU triathlon race is a unique draft-legal discipline that uses the same format and rules used in Olympic competitions
• Specific to ITU, athletes are allowed to draft on the bicycle and each of the swim, bike and run courses consist of multiple legs; if an athlete is lapped at any point during the race, they are not allowed to finish
• Dylan and several other draft-legal West Point men and women will return to Clermont in March to compete in the Clermont Challenge against the best young athletes in the country, to include those from Navy
• The Clermont race will be a lead up to the USA Triathlon Collegiate Nationals in Clemson, SC at the end of April where the entire team will look to once again stand on the podium and beat Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard

Climbing (Mountaineering):

• On 31 Jan., the Army Rock Climbing Team traveled to the Gravity Vault indoor rock climbing facility in Upper Saddle River, NJ
• The competition was hosted by West Point and involved 177 competitors from teams including Rutgers, Yale, Princeton, Columbia, Cornell, RIT and Navy
• The competition lasted for four hours in which each climber completed their five most difficult boulder problems and/or three hardest rope climbs (top-rope and/or lead climbing) as well as the better of two speed climbs
• The West Point Climbing Team did very well; CDT Zhaina Myrzakhoanova took first place for women in speed and third place in ropes; CDT Julian Barker took third place for men in both ropes and bouldering
• The rest of the team performed admirably with numerous personal records contributing to an impressive team score
• Team scores have yet to be officially published, but we do know for certain that we absolutely annihilated the Navy Climbing Team and are off to a very strong start for this season

Team Handball (Women’s):

• On 31 Jan., the West Point Black Handball team competed in the NE Team Handball Tournament hosted in NYC
• West Point Black finished with a 1-1 on the day, losing by six to DC, and pulling with a win by 7 to Ocean, NJ
• Top performers included CDTs Cora Moody and Dana Roberston, who scored the majority of the teams goals
• DC Handball played very aggressive offense with a high level of physical contact against West Point’s defense, allowing them to score more points than West Point Black
• After the loss, the team had to regroup and play a high-pace, high-intensity game against Ocean, NJ Handball
• They fed off of each other’s energy and outscored Ocean to walk away with a 1-1 record for the day

Hobby Clubs

Paintball:

• On 24 –25 Jan., 27 members of the USMA CCT at-tended MSATO’s Operation DEFCON in East Shoreham, NJ
• The purpose of this trip was for IOT practice and to validate MOUT and woodland training acquired during the summer and academic year
• MSATO’s Operation DEFCON is a simulation event in which USMA CCT participated as Coalition forces
• The Area of Operation was an abandoned nuclear power plant full of large and complex rooms and hallways
• This event was honored to have as one of its comanders former Delta Force operator, Dale Com-stock
• On 31 Jan., the Tournament Paintball Team practiced at Hardcore Paintball in Bound Brook, NJ
• The purpose of the practice was to ensure that the gear was in working order, to refresh paintball skills, play as a team, and positively represent USMA in New Jersey
• The team practiced for approximately five hours; practice consisted of scrimmages against local tournament paintball teams
• The paintball team is preparing for the upcoming spring paintball season, which includes PSP, conference, and national collegiate paintball, so it is imperative that practice continues throughout the season
• Scrimmaging against local tournament paintball teams provides an outlook of different approaches to playing different layouts, as well as working on skill sets not seen before in collegiate play

Alpine Skiing:

• On the weekend of 31 Jan. - 1 Feb., the West Point Alpine Ski team competed in a two-day Mideast Conference collegiate ski race at Greek Peak, NY, hosted by Cornell University
• Six members of the team participated in both the Slalom and Giant Slalom, taking third place overall in the Giant Slalom out of nine teams in the competition (just seconds in combined time behind Cornell and RPI)
• CDT Sawyer Harkins (‘18) finished in the top ten in both events, earning fifth place in the Slalom out of over 40 competitors

Nordic Skiing:

• On the weekend of 30 Jan. - 1 Feb., the Nordic Ski Team had five male and two female racers compete in the Clarkson Invitational held at the Mt. Van Hovenbery facility in Lake Placid, NY
• Notable race results include a 5th of 45 finish for CDT Josh Bassett in the Men’s Skiathlon, and an 8th of 16 finish for the team in the Men’s Sprint Relay
• It was a cold weekend with below zero temperatures when racing started on Saturday, and temperatures in the single digits for the racing on Sunday

Academic Clubs

Domestic Affairs Forum:

• On 25 – 28 Jan., the USMA Domestic Affairs Forum participated in the 2015 West Point Military and Defense Study Tour in Ottawa and Kingston, Ontario, Canada
• This trip provides DAF members with an intense introduction to relevant policy issues for one of our closest allies and largest trading partners
• As part of the itinerary, cadets received policy briefings from officials in the Canadian departments of foreign affairs, trade, and development, immigration, natural resources, energy, and the privy council office
• Additionally, the cadets toured Parliament Hill; attended a reception with the U.S. Ambassador to Canada, Bruce Heyman, at his official residence; visited the Canadian War Museum, and received briefings at the Royal Military College
• During the tour of Parliament, the cadets visited Canadian Minister of National Defense, Robert Nicholson
• The Consulate General of Canada in New York coordinated this ambitious and rewarding itinerary

Debate Forum:

• This past weekend, the Army Debate team traveled to the 5th Annual Jersey Shore Invitational at Monmouth University
• The trip was a strong showing for the Army team with Open Debater Michael Barlow and JV Debater Veronica Bryant walking away with speaker awards
• Also, Novice Team Army GM, CDTs Matlack and Gould, advanced to out-rounds in their first ever tournament together
• JV Team Army BS advanced to semi-finals in debater Bryan Silverman’s first tournament in about a year after re-turning from a semester abroad
• Finally, Open Team Army BC, CDTs Barlow and Caston, continued their win streak going unbeaten at Mon-mouth; it was a great weekend for the Army team

Military Clubs

Tactics (Law Enforcement):

• On 26 Jan., the Law Enforcement and Tactics Club participated in low light pistol training at the Rockland County Police Academy urban training range
• Mr. Steve Heubeck, head trainer for the Rockland Police Academy, facilitated the instruction
• Cadets learned valuable lessons on officer safety, weapon and light placement as well as clearing operations under low light conditions
• Eleven Cadets participated in the training that included scenarios on barricade suspects, search and seizures, and armed threats
• Cadets learned about K9 (military working dog) integration and culminated the day with what they gained from Mr. Heubeck’s instruction

Religious Clubs

Catholic Chapel Choir:

• This past weekend, fifteen cadets from the West Point Catholic Chapel Choir traveled to Martins Creek, PA
• The trip was an excellent developmental experience for the Cadets, especially the CIC who is a 3rd Class Cadet
• CDT Sommervold performed admirably during his first trip section in a leadership position, and by all accounts the trip was a resounding success
• At St. Rocco’s parish, the cadets sang the musical liturgy of one service on Saturday, and two on Sunday with a total congregation of approximately 1,000 people

DCA Happenings

Upcoming Cadet Bookstore Events

• 6 February : Sean Parnell, author of Outlaw Platoon, from 1345-1430 outside of Robinson Auditorium
• The Class of 2016 Ring Show - 9—12 February from 0900 - 1800 in Eisenhower Hall
• The reading for the Commandant’s Book Club on 21 April, Lions of Kandahar, is now available at the Academy Stores for $22.95