Page 42 - The Chapka 2016
P. 42

40 REGIMENTAL JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL LANCERS (QUEEN ELIZABETHS’ OWN)
  2016 provided the Royal Lancers LAD with a challenging year full of opportunities. With a change in EME and ASM, sta- bility was key, as the LAD embarked on numerous exercises, support to RAAT taskings and trawls, all of which kept the work tempo high. However, work hard, play hard is the motto of the LAD and there were plenty of occasions for fun.
August to October was a testing time for B Squadron Fitter Sec- tion as they deployed to Canada after the majority of the Royal Lancer Battlegroup returned home. Having only a small team of six meant the team needed to hit the ground running. De- spite the vehicles being handed over in great condition the usual mayhem ensued to bring the fleet up ready for D-Day. Every tradesman including B Squadron personnel ‘dug deep’ in order to deploy with 100% vehicle availability. The pace continued throughout both exercises, but the gap between Exercises PRAI- RIE STORM 3 and IRON STRIKE did give the opportunity for some ‘down time’. Whilst Craftsman Allison and Craftsman Porter-king decided they wanted to ‘explore’ Canada (they only visited Calgary!), the remainder of the REME team headed off to Trails End Camp to explore the Rockies by horse and boat. November saw the deployment of A Squadron Fitter Section to Exercise WESSEX STORM. The ground, operating at night and fast-paced nature of the exercise meant that a lot was learnt and invaluable preparation for next year.
2016 also witnessed the re-forming of the LAD football team, which was met with great optimism from everyone involved. The LAD began training towards a friendly against 4 SCOTS LAD, which would be our first match for over a year. Unfortu- nately, due to a number of key players missing through injury, we lost 5-4. Although the result was disappointing, there were plenty of positives to take forward into our next game. This was the first round of the Craftsman’s Cup match against 1st Battal- ion Scots Guards LAD; back to an almost full strength squad the team performed excellently. 6-1 was the final score and the team celebrated getting through the first round with goals from Lance Corporal Franks (3), Craftsman Briddock (2) and the team cap- tain Lance Corporal Jackson (1). The LAD has also proven an integral part of the Regimental football team, with several of the LAD players representing the Regiment at Hodson’s Horse.
In March and September, Corporal Hart represented the Royal Lancers on the winter and summer Army Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) Championships in Aldershot, taking gold in the winter and just missing out on bronze in the summer. To train and pre- pare for these, he has spent countless hours training at his local BJJ and mixed martial arts clubs in South Yorkshire. He also medalled at local and nationwide competitions, where he fought in submission only tournaments. He hopes to take this success forward into 2017 by winning gold at the Army Championships in March – the LAD wishes him every success.
As well as sporting events, members of the LAD took part in a multi-activity day that consisted of a woodland trek on quad bikes and mud-buggy racing. After a quick tutorial on the quad bikes and a practice on the coned mud track, everyone (...!) had the confidence and skills required for the woodland trek. We were let loose to hone our skills on the winding dirt tracks between trees, up steep inclines and even the odd jump over wa- ter filled ditches. Next was the mud-buggy racing, which had a competitive edge to it, but was equally as fun. The day was a great success and the LAD all came back with tales to tell and a imbued sense of teamwork
As the wind and rain descended on Catterick, nine members of the Royal Lancers LAD departed for the Stubai Glacier, Austria, to attend the REME winter sports camp, Exercise SUPREME GLACIER. The exercise, aimed at developing soldiers skiing skills in order to compete at the REME Winter Sports Cham- pionships, was a great success. The Exercise catered for novices all the way up to experienced skiers. All members of the Royal Lancers LAD that attended achieved a good rate of progression, with a few of the soldiers catching the selectors’ eyes for the Winter Sports Championships in 2017.
2016 has produced a full spectrum of emotions from all those in- volved in The Royal Lancers LAD. Whilst the year conducting training support has been busy, the team have gelled well, learnt a lot and still found time for fun. Everyone is now focusing on 2017 and the fresh challenge that awaits us in the ‘Training Year’.
DM
The Light Aid Detachment

























































































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