Askew:
“… a great thing
to do”
WEST POINT – The US Military Academy cadets of the Class of 2021 made their final trek through streets lined with cheering families and friends, as they finished their six weeks of basic training, sometimes referred to as “Beast Barracks,” on Monday.
The new cadets were led, this year, by Cadet Simone Askew, 20, the first female African-American First Captain,.
Cadets had spent the last six weeks waking up at 5:00 every morning to do physical training, getting in proper dress and formation for each meal of the day, doing afternoon training sessions such as rifle marksmanship and land navigation, having the evenings to do “mass athletics” and then going to bed, with lights-out at 10:00 each evening.
They were also expected to perform more detailed tasks such as walking 120 paces per-minute in the mess and knowing the answer to, “How’s the cow?” according to a cadet’s blog.
As is the case every year, the cadets who had made it through their training successfully made the 12-mile march, in full gear, back to the campus; finally, passing in front of the superintendent’s residence.
Parents look for sons and daughters among the more than 1,000 cadets who survived
basic training and the 12-mile march, fully loaded with rifles and packs
Askew, who’s function is to lead the entire brigade, said having been through this transformative process herself, then coming back in a leadership capacity, reminded her of the great deal of respect she has for her fellow cadets.
Askew said she sees that her role as First Captain will “stand on the shoulders of giants” before her. “Identifying those giants in my life, who can really propel me forward and teach me what I need to know because I don’t know everything; that’s the reality. I’m pretty young and it’s a pretty big role, but if I can seek out as much wisdom as I can, I think that’s a great thing to do.”
Those Class of 2021 cadets will be officially accepted into the Corps of Cadets next Saturday, knowing that they have completed their transformation from civilian to military life.
