FEATURE: Do you have what it takes?

Published March 16, 2010
By 1st Lt. Kevin Skindell
72nd Field Artillary Brigade

JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. -- Do you have what it takes to claim the title of "Warrior"? A warrior, as defined by Matt Larson, the father of modern Army Combatives, is having the willingness to close with the enemy. If you're one of the nine 72nd Field Artillery Brigade Modern Army Combatives Program instructors, you certainly have what it takes and so do the 200 recent level-one and two MACP graduates.

Endurance and perseverance are prerequisites.

"This is the most physically demanding training the 72nd Field Artillery Brigade offers," said Lt. Col Peter Mucciarone, commander, 1st Battalion, 309th Regiment.

"Our primary mission is to provide introductory combatives training to units mobilizing through Army Support Activity-Dix," stated Cpl. Sonny Protzman, Level 3 MACP instructor.

MACP trainers from 1-309th forge warriors each month, instilling the three basic principles of modern army combatives program - close the distance, gain a dominant position, and finish the fight.

Closing the distance means controlling the range between fighters to avoid strikes and setting one's self up for a takedown. A dominant position, having an advantage over one's opponent, is the only position in which a fighter should finish the fight. These core principles combined with repeated combatives drills and a rigorous physical training regimen are the foundation of the MACP.

From day one, students find themselves sweating profusely in the newly renovated yet uncomfortably hot "fight house" on Range Road across from the New Jersey state prison. One is at the mercy of Sgt. 1st Class Joshua Beach - Level 4 certified combatives instructor and combatives non-commissioned officer in charge - and his cadres' strenuous physical training plans and drills.

Each plan is crafted to build strength, muscle memory and endurance. The training plans are so extreme some may wonder if the instructors are in competition with each other to create the toughest workout. Sergeant Beach explained the methodology behind the ever-present "smoke sessions" throughout the week-long level-one training.

"We smoke students so that they don't hurt their opponents in sparring and also so they develop the confidence and skill to perform the moves in the fatigue of combat," said Sergeant Beach.

Improved physical fitness is a healthy and sometimes painful byproduct of the program. At times the course may seem like a 40-hour intense workout session. Through persistent drills, level-one combatives principles are learned and reinforced. Having students verbally explain each move simultaneous with performing the action strengthens the skill set.

"Days are long and arduous but each one makes you physically and mentally tougher in the end," said Staff Sgt. See Yong Cheow, Level 4 MACP instructor.

The MACP, as it's known today, is the result of a revamp started in 1995 by the Commander of 2nd Ranger Battalion, then Lt. Col Stanley McChrystal. He found that Soldiers thought the previous martial arts program was inadequate and a waste of valuable training time. Colonel McChrystal enlisted the help of Larsen, a former Marine and established martial artist, who was serving with the 75th Ranger Regiment. Larsen headed a committee that examined various martial arts disciplines around the world in order to develop a superior form of close quarters combat for the Army.

There are currently four certification levels in MACP. The first level consists of a 40-hour block of instruction, tailored for developing the level-one instructor base. This is necessary to get Basic Combatives instruction down to the lowest Soldier level. Level one primarily focuses on ground fighting, gaining dominant body positions, and shows students how to finish the fight with basic submissions such as chokes and arm bars.

"I found the course to be very physically demanding. The instructors push the students to maximize the training effect as well as simulate combat zone fatigue. Through constant repetition and drill, we were able to commit the moves to memory and employ them accordingly. As an MP Officer, this training is very applicable to the missions that our Soldiers are conducting downrange," said 1st Lt. Owen Simpson, assistant analyst and observer controller and trainer, 75th Military Police Brigade and recent level 1 graduate.

Level two is an 80-hour block that builds off of the skills introduced in the Basic course. It teaches more advanced techniques which illuminate why the basic techniques are performed as they are as well as the teaching philosophy/methodology of the program.
Levels three and four are both 160-hour courses that build upon levels one and two and produce battalion level and higher master trainers.

Currently only level one and two are offered here at Army Support Activity-Dix. Both the 72nd FA Battalion, conducting post-mobilization training, and Regional Training Center - East , offering Army Reserve pre-mobilization training, have certified MACP trainers.
In addition to the unit's traditional training duties, Protzman mentioned that 1-309th offers level one and two certification to anyone willing to learn because they believe in the program and want others to learn it.

So, are you ready to become a warrior? If you are up for the challenge classes are open to all branches and are tentatively held once a month. Please contact the MACP NCOIC at joshua.beach@usar.army.mil for information on the next available class.

If you are still not convinced, check out this testimonial.

"I've had seven of my Soldiers complete the course and they told me it was very challenging and rewarding. I figured it would be good to see if I could complete it and I loved every minute of the training, except the EO's and shrimping drills. If you need an explanation of what those are - you need to accept the challenge and just go to the course; I promise you will love it," exclaimed Sgt. 1st Class Adam Bills, Mine Resistant Ambush Protected training NCOIC and recent level 1 graduate.