ARMOR WEEK: Tank and Bradley crews compete in Sullivan Cup
FORT MOORE, Ga. (WRBL) — For the past 12 days, Armor Week has been ongoing at Fort Moore. On May 2, teams were working hard to win it all in the final stretch of events before the “Thunder Run” finale the following morning.
The Sullivan Cup put the best tank- and Bradley crews from across the U.S. Army and it’s allied nations head-to-head to earn winning titles. There are awards for the best Bradley crew and the best Abrams tank crew.
“A strong team I would say is just the overall chemistry. Just spending time with one another outside of just work, just training,” said competitor Staff Sgt. Lake Cuerden. “Get to know – getting to know each other on a personal basis. Understanding the strengths and weaknesses of each other so we know how to pick up the slack.”
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Cuerden was part of team 45-Bravo, representing the 1st Infantry Division, assigned to Fort Reily, Kansas. He competed with teammates Pfc. David Heikes and Pfc. Robert Buchanan as they worked to win the best Bradley crew title.
They were competing alongside competitors from five countries, including the U.S., to earn the best Bradley- and Best tank crew titles. This is only the second year that Bradley teams have taken part in the Sullivan Cup, the last of which was held in 2022.
After taking part in a drone vehicle identification challenge Thursday morning, Cuerden said the team was feeling good.
“We managed to get the most possible points and it went pretty smooth,” he said.
The team boiled it down to one thing:
“Preparation is what did it for us Planning, rehearsing, going over things and just executing what we have to,” Cuerden said.
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This year 62 total competitors took part in the Sullivan Cup. These included 58 men and four women, some serving as tank commanders in competition.
Teams from the 1st Cavalry Division, 3rd Infantry Division, 4th Infantry Division, 1st Armored Division and more competed against crews from Canada, Germany, the Netherlands and Poland.
Winners would be announced after the “Thunder Run” in an awards ceremony on May 3.
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