The 2nd battalion of the 22nd Infantry is currently part of the 10th Mountain Division. The 10th Mountain has a historic place not only in our nations’ wars, but also in the ski industry. When the 10th Mountain veterans came home from World War Two, they got to work building the ski industry in Colorado and across the north east.
When I re-enlisted to come to the 10th Mountain from the 25th Infantry in Hawaii, I thought that the 10th Mountain still trained on skis. Like the Airborne division that train for airborne operations that are not currently used in combat, I thought that same concept came along with the mountain troops. Unfortunately, I was wrong.
When I got to the 10th Mountain and then to the 2-22IN I quickly learned that skiing was not the Army’s priority, we did not even have them. When I asked where the skis where I was met with the response that we do not do that anymore. I was happy to see months later that we were given an inventory of skis and hoped we would do it again.
Though the 10th Mountain has a history in skiing, the question needs to be asked, is there a combat application for skiing? If we were to go to war in an artic environment, would it be practical to use skis? This is the main question I tend to answer here.
The founder of the 10th Mountain Division and the National Ski Patrol is Charles Minnie Dole. After the Russo-Finish War of 1939, which is known as the Winter War, he saw a need for the United States Army to have mountain troops and an organization to patrol our northern border incase of a German invasion from Canada.
The 10th Mountain took applications from citizens who wanted to put their skills in the mountains and on skis to use. This produced the most educated and one of the most physically fit divisions in the Army, due to the fact that much of the skiing exposure was in the colleges of the north east.
The war that inspired the formation of this unit started when Russia invaded Finland. What they thought would be an easy endeavor turned into a nightmare. The Russians thought with their armor ability that they would run over the Finish Army who did not have the same capabilities. But the Fins had skis.
Their skiing soldiers where able to maneuver quickly and set up ambushes quickly over the snow. This hit and run tactic proved to be superior as before the Russians could zero in on them, the Fins hopped on their skis and vanished. They even used ice skates to get across frozen lakes.
The Sniper with the most recorded kills came from this war. Simo Hayha killed 505 Russian soldiers with his M/28-30, a variant of the Mosin–Nagant rifle. He used skis to get in and out of sniper positions with speed and produce a hard target for his enemy. His exploits during this war earned him the nick name, “The White Death”. Simo Hayha was known for his field craft which is why he was so successful.
So skiing in combat is not something new and is a skill that has proven to be effective. In Romania their mountain troops are required to know how to ski, yet I would guess that the majority of our division’s soldiers have never strapped into a pair. I believe this needs to change and we as the 22nd Infantry here at Fort Drum need to lead the way as we have always done in this effort.
Currently we have the skis in our inventory and here at Fort Drum we have lots of snow, those are two of the three things required. Now we need to put our soldiers in those skis and learn how to maneuver in them. This needs to be a crawl walk run effort but if we are to truly be able to deploy anytime, anywhere this is a skill mountain/artic soldiers need to have.
Learning how to cross country ski, is rough and you will fall a lot. But like any of our training, we need to push through any difficulties and learn from them. Once you get the hang of it, through your gear on and see how it feels. As for the veterans of the 22nd that live an area with snow, I encourage you to rent a pair of skis and try it out if you have never tried. It is good exercise and both cross country and downhill skiing are a lot of fun.
As Light Infantry we need to be able to go anywhere, anytime. This mentality needs to instill in us a sense of readiness that fuels all our training. Use these winter months to learn this skill and push yourself and your soldiers physically and tactically.
The Picture is our Scout Platoon (Watchdog) along with the original 10th Mountain, leading the way on skis!
- John Cooper, Afghanistan 2020
