Exercise BLUE PHOENIX Adventure Training package was an ambitious mix of activities and locations designed to get as many Army Officer Cadets of the Oxford University Officer’s Training Corps qualified in foundation level adventure training as possible. The original plan was to spread 100 people across 3 geographically dispersed locations conducting a myriad of activities including summer mountaineering, rock climbing, mountain biking and ocean sailing but, COVID-19 (and an unfortunate gas leak at one location) made sure that the planners (Staff Sergeant Douglas) had plenty to think about as they approached the start date.
The requirement to isolate in the event of an encounter with a potential COVID carrier meant that the vast majority of personnel spent their time at their home locations wishing they were on the mountain, rock face or stretch of water instead of actually being there. Thankfully though, a plucky few managed to evade the requirement to isolate and the planner’s efforts to design an exciting package were not to be in vain.
Four Officer Cadets (out of an original 8) made their way to Plymouth to meet up with their yacht which was to be home for the next week and got on with learning how to become competent crew members onboard and ocean going yacht whilst the rest of the personnel split themselves between Capel Curig (Wales) for the rock climbing and Warcop (Cumbria) for the mountaineers and mountain bikers.
The benefit of reduced numbers was that instruction was more personalised and all participating personnel came away with their foundation qualifications and more experience than they otherwise may have received. The foundation qualifications set personnel up for progressing in their chosen activity and many hope to go on in the near future (and COVID allowing) to complete further, more arduous courses.
Exercise BLUE PHOENIX (all Oxford UOTC exercises include the preceding word BLUE in acknowledgement of their academic heritage) was a success borne out of numerous setbacks and stringent restrictions due to the pandemic gripping the globe. The UK’s step by step relaxation of controls meant that this was the first adventure training outing for the OTC in 18 months and the Officer Cadets and staff were truly grateful for the chance to get out and enjoy arduous activities in the beautiful landscape that the UK can provide. Allowing personnel to participate in such activities at any time is an invaluable tool in the Army’s toolbox to ensure that personnel can test themselves in a safe environment, post pandemic this was even more welcome, and morale was the great benefiter. After months of online training and learning (especially acute when you think that students will have shackled to their computer screens for months on end) the chance to stretch your legs in the hills, or test your hand strength in holing onto rocks or sail ropes must have been a huge relief and release of pent up frustration. The Facebook/Instagram generation have expressed their feelings in the one way they know how (and its back to a screen again!) by posting innumerable photos of daring do (if you count cooking on the side of a mountain as daring do) to their friends and colleagues.
I think the best way to some it up is to pass on the platitudes to the staff that many of the Officer Cadets expressed and that they were ‘hugely grateful to the staff for the level of time and effort that went into the planning to allow them to get out, get away from the desk and enjoy all that the army adventure training has to offer’.
