Category Archives: Public Affairs Program

USAR Marksmanship Public Affairs Program

Helmut Hein

by John M. Buol Jr.

Helmut’s funeral:

Helmut J. Hein, soldier and friend, left us on 23 March. With his passing, soldiers lost a passionate small arms combat readiness advocate. Funeral information is:
Visitation:
Friday 6 April, from 5:00 to 7:30 PM with Rosary at 7 PM at:
Northside Chapel Funeral Directors & Crematory
12050 Crabapple Road, Roswell, GA,
Funeral Mass:
Saturday 7 April at 10:30 AM at:
St Michael’s Church715 Hardscrabble Rd, Roswell, GA.
Burial will be in the cemetery on the church property after the Mass.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made in Helmut’s name to either La Salette Academyhttp://www.lasalette.net/donate
or St. Thomas Aquinas Seminary
http://stas.org/en/donations
Funeral & Visitation directions & detail are found at:
http://www.northsidechapel.com/obituaries/Helmut-Hein/#!/Obituary

Obituary for Mr. Helmut J. Hein

Helmut J. Hein, age 65, passed away on 23 March 2018. Helmut was born and raised in Rockford, Illinois, the son and brother of immigrants from Germany.

Helmut enlisted in the Army in 1973 and served in Special Forces as a light weapons sergeant in 10th, 7th, and 12th Groups, ultimately attaining the rank of First Sergeant. At the time of his death, Helmut was vice president of Chapter 59, Special Forces Association.

After leaving active duty, Helmut served as a police officer in Cherry Valley, Illinois. He eventually left the police department to work for the Department of the Army in the field of small arms training. Helmut was a tireless advocate for military marksmanship and a staunch supporter of the Army Reserve competitive shooting program. Combining these passions, he made significant and innovative improvements to the Army Reserve Small Arms Training Program.

Helmut was received into the Catholic Church in 1996 and became fully involved in the activities at St. Michael’s in Roswell, Georgia, serving as the chapel coordinator.

Helmut was preceded in death by his father Leo and is survived by his mother Lydia, older brother Walt, wife Linda, sons Collin and John, daughter-in-law Pam, and grandchildren Michael, Ryan, and Katie.

From Mike Campbell:

Helmut J. Hein, soldier and friend, left us on 23 March, due to an auto accident. With his passing, soldiers lost a passionate small arms combat readiness advocate.

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Captain Horace Wayman Bivins

by John M. Buol Jr.

Captain Horace Wayman Bivins: America’s First Double Distinguished Marksman

Captain Horace Wayman Bivins

Captain Horace Wayman Bivins

Download an illustrated copy of this article:
Captain Horace Wayman Bivins: America’s First Double Distinguished Marksman

The U.S. Army enacted a Distinguished Marksman program in 1884. In the entire 133-year history of the program, with tens of millions of Soldiers eligible to try, as of 2017 a total of 5,102 Army personnel have earned either Distinguished Rifleman or Distinguished Pistol Shot. Captain Horace Wayman Bivins was the first person to earn both in 1894; a Corporal at the time. Cpt. Bivins was also the first marksman to win three Army marksmanship gold medals in one year.

Cpt. Bivins had a military career that was so varied and full of adventure that early newspapers wrote his life’s account ‘‘reads like fiction from the imagination of a pulp magazine writer.” He was assigned to Troop E of the 10th Cavalry, which took a prominent part in the campaigns against Geronimo, Apache Kid, and other Indian chieftains of the southwest. While serving in Cuba during the Spanish-American War, Bivins was awarded a Silver Star from actions during the famous battle of San Juan Hill. A sergeant by then, Bivins was assigned to a Hotchkiss gun battery. With all other members of his unit killed or wounded, he single-handedly fired 72 shells from a Hotchkiss guns, which recoiled six to eight feet after each shot. His performance was all the more remarkable because early in the battle, he had been knocked out briefly by a slug that passed through an iron-plated hub of a gun carriage and hit him in the temple. President Teddy Roosevelt recalled of the action “I don’t think it an exaggeration to say that but for the timely aid of the 10th Cavalry, the Rough Riders would have been annihilated.”

Cpt. Horace Wayman Bivins, the first Double Distinguished marksman in United States history in 1894, was an African American. It would take more than five decades after this before Jack Roosevelt “Jackie” Robinson was able to receive the same acceptance in baseball, as detailed in the film 42. Lieutenant Colonel Earl Woods, father of pro golfer Tiger Woods, served two tours in Viet Nam as an officer in the Infantry and Special Forces. While in college, Woods once was not allowed to play golf because of his skin color. In fact, the Professional Golfer’s Association of America (PGA) enforced a “Caucasians only” clause in their official published rules until the 1960s.

Army marksmanship programs trace their lineage to when General Philip Sheridan officially created the Distinguished Marksman class, as announced in General Orders Number 24, back in 1884. This was formalized by the War Department (predecessor to the current Department of Defense) in 1887. The original concept has been run continuously ever since. Marksmen participate in Excellence In Competition events and the top ten percent of the eligible, non-distinguished competitors are awarded “Leg” points at the event. Like the leg of stool or chair or the leg of a journey, a number of points have to be accumulated over the shooter’s lifetime for specific awards. The first leg is the EIC Bronze medal. After 20 lifetime points are accumulated, the Silver EIC medal is awarded. Once 30 or more points are earned, the shooter reaches Distinguished status. EIC events are held for rifle and pistol shooting and there are Distinguished Rifleman and Distinguished Pistol Shot badges.

These awards are more prominent than normal qualification badges and eligible for wear on dress uniforms. Like combatives, instead of Level 1-4 to recognize accomplishment, Bronze, Silver and Gold badges are awarded. Army marksmanship programs are published in Army Regulation 350-66 and 140-1, with the awards and their wear detailed in 670-1. While first started by the U.S Army, all branches of the Department of Defense maintain this program, as does the Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) for civilians. Distinguished marksmen come from all walks of life, even outside the military. The CMP maintains all master records dating back to 1884 in their Competition Tracker.

Read more about Cpt. Bivins
https://ct.thecmp.org/app/v1/index.php?do=contactDistinguishedView&distinguished_id=1370

2018 USAR Midwestern

by John M. Buol Jr.

Results

PAO Wrap Up:
https://armyreservemarksman.info/2018-usar-midwestern-wrapup/

This page will host all event information for the 2018 U.S. Army Reserve Midwestern match, including registration, additional information, match results, etc.

The permalink is:
https://armyreservemarksman.info/2018-usar-midwestern/

Registration
All participants need to fill out and submit the following Registration form (.xlsx spreadsheet).
Registration Army Midwest Regional

Send the completed form to the Event Registration Officer:
usarmy.usarc.arcd.list.bn10-ops -at- mail.mil

Note: This form will contain Personally Identifiable Information. Send it from a mail.mil email address.

Event Program and Flyer

2018 USAR Midwestern Small Arms Championship Event Program FINAL

2018 USAR Midwestern Small Arms Championship Event Flyer

Analysis: The Army has a range problem, but it’s not because of the 5.56 round

by John M. Buol Jr.

[G]iving soldiers a more reliable weapon with greater range is kinda pointless if we don’t address one of the Army’s most persistent and glaring faults: its marksmanship program sucks. There’s no one part of the thing we can point to as being problematic. It’s not just the BRM taught at Basic, or the qualification tables. The whole thing, from start to finish, really, really, sucks.

What’s the point of giving soldiers a shiny, new rifle if they can’t hit the broadside of a barn with the one they’ve got?

Now, before you break out the pitchforks and your Expert qualification badges, sit down and think about what I’m saying. Unless your MOS directly involves shooting things in the face, when was the last time you went to the range during the workday for something other than qualification? When was the last time you broke out the rifles for anything other than to qualify, or to clean them for inspection?

For most of you, that answer will be either the last time you deployed, or never. And that’s a huge problem.

Over the last ten-and-a-half years in the North Carolina Army National Guard, I’ve spent more time being told not to kill myself or rape people than how to shoot. I don’t have a problem with qualification myself; I can reliably shoot high sharpshooter to low expert. But I also make a point to shoot recreationally whenever I can. Not everyone has that option, and plenty of folks who do don’t take advantage of it.

For most folks, the entirety of their marksmanship training will consist of three weeks in Basic, the few days out of the year when they go qualify, and maybe a few days or even a week or two of extra training when they mobilize. And that simply isn’t enough.

Nevermind that the Army’s qualification system is stupid and outdated. Shooting static popup targets at ranges between 50-300 meters is a good start, but to rely on that as the sole measure of a soldier’s ability to engage the enemy is insane. According to the Army Times article linked up at the top, one of the driving forces behind looking for a new round is the fact that something like half of all firefights occurred at ranges greater than 300 meters. Meanwhile, your average soldier doesn’t even bother shooting at the 300 meter targets, because they know they can’t hit the damn things.

If the Army’s quest for a new sidearm is any indication, the search for a new rifle will take at least a decade, untold millions of dollars, a half-dozen Congressional inquiries and investigations, and probably a few lawsuits before they settle on the final product. Which means there’s plenty of time to teach soldiers how to shoot before the new gear ever starts filtering its way through the system.

As a starting point, come up with a comprehensive training plan that utilizes Basic Rifle Marksmanship, then build on that foundation throughout the soldier’s career. Get soldiers to the range more often. Update the qualification tables to more accurately represent the threat they’re expected to face. Enforce qualification standards like PT standards, and offer regular remedial training for folks who fail to meet those standards.

Or just carry on before and put a shiny new rifle in the hands of a kid who barely knows which end goes bang. I watched a guy from our battalion’s Forward Support Company shoot a 6 this year. That’s good enough, right?

Full article:
http://www.wearethemighty.com/tactical/analysis-the-army-has-a-range-problem-but-its-not-because-of-the-5-56-round