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Ranger Challenge

Ranger Challenge is the Varsity sport of Army ROTC. A Ranger Challenge Team is made up of nine cadets. They compete against other colleges throughout the nation in events such as: patrolling, marksmanship, weapons assembly, one-rope bridge, grenade assault course, Army Physical Fitness Test, Land navigation, and a ten kilometer road march.

Ranger Challenge started at NGCSU in 1987. The first team at NGCSU was called Spurgeon’s Rangers, their advisor was Sergeant Major Spurgeon. North Georgia has won first place in the brigade competition held at Fort Stewart, Georgia in 1988, 1989, 1990, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2001. They placed first among all other ROTC teams at the United States Military Academy's Sandhurst Competition in 1997 and 2001.

Most recently the Ranger Challenge competed in the 6th Brigade Ranger Challenge Competition. The article below summarizes the training regime and results for the competition:

North Georgia College Credits Training with Remaining Competitive.

-Sara McCleary and Marshall Wish

Early in September, North Georgia College & State University's Ranger Challenge team started to prepare for their 6th Brigade competition in Fort Stewart, GA. They trained for events such as the one-rope bridge, the hand grenade assault course, the Army Physical Fitness Test, the knowledge (consisting of 200 questions), orienteering, the 10K road march, marksmanship, and assembly/reassembly of the M-16 rifle.

The team conducted physical training every morning from 5:45 to 8:00. Every Monday from 3:15 to 5:30 the team trained on the hand grenade assault course as well as the rope bridge at the nearby training facility, Pine Valley. On Wednesdays, the team would conduct knowledge tests and practical applications for the leadership, map reading, and patrolling tests. On various days, on an individual basis, the team would train with the M-16 rifle on assembly/reassembly and marksmanship.

On Oct. 12, the Ranger Challenge team departed for Fort Stewart. With the amount of training and time spent concentrating on the only competition of the semester, the team, as well as the advisers, felt confident of the outcome.

On the first day of the competition, the team competed in the physical fitness test, with member Michael Smolucha placing first overall with a score of 382. The last event for Friday consisted of a 150-question leadership exam. This exam included knowledge from the Ranger Handbook, FM 7-8 Infantry Rifle Platoon and Squad Tactics, and FM 22-100 Army Leadership Manual. After a 15-minute break, the took a 50-question test over land navigation.

Saturday, the team awoke at 5 AM for orienteering. Next was the one-rope bridge, in which they placed third. From the one-rope bridge, they went to basic rifle marksmanship, where they again took third. Next was weapons assembly/reassembly of the M-16 A-2 rifle.

On Sunday morning, they awoke at 4:45 AM to compete in the last competition, the 10K road march. Every member of the team carried a 25-pound ruck sack, with load bearing equipment and a rifle.

The route consisted almost completely of sand, but they still managed to come in with an overall time of 1 hour 11 minutes and 45 seconds, putting them in fourth place. Overall, North Georgia's Ranger Challenge team placed second, coming within four points of the first-place team, Florida State University.

Ranger Challenge is the youngest military organization at NGCSU.

The Ranger Challenge motto is:

"Courage Never Quits!"

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