{"id":14876,"date":"2023-06-12T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-06-12T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=14876"},"modified":"2023-06-13T06:48:32","modified_gmt":"2023-06-13T06:48:32","slug":"virginia-national-guard-nco-earns-expert-infantrymen-badge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=14876","title":{"rendered":"Virginia National Guard NCO Earns Expert Infantrymen Badge"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n Staff Sgt. Alex Miller, assigned to the Virginia National Guard\u2019s Lynchburg-based 1st Battalion, 116th Infantry Regiment, 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, receives his Expert Infantryman Badge.
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RICHMOND, Va. \u2013 Staff Sgt. Alex Miller, assigned to the Virginia National Guard\u2019s 1st Battalion, 116th Infantry Regiment, 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, earned the coveted Expert Infantryman Badge during testing with the 3rd Infantry Regiment, known as the Old Guard at Fort A.P. Hill, Virginia.<\/p>\n

Miller, the only Soldier from the Lynchburg-based 116th IBCT to participate in the testing, said the badge \u201csignifies the mastery of critical tasks that every infantryman should know and be able to accomplish.\u201d<\/p>\n

The EIB was developed in 1944, under the guidance of Gen. George C. Marshall, the chief of staff of the Army, to recognize individual infantrymen who had achieved the pinnacle of proficiency and expertise in infantry tactics while building and maintaining esprit de corps in the infantry community.<\/p>\n

Today, the EIB is awarded to Soldiers holding infantry or special forces military occupational specialties who demonstrate mastery of critical tasks that build on the foundation of individual proficiency, accomplishing the mission of every infantry Soldier: to locate, close with and destroy the enemy.<\/p>\n

Miller attended testing with the Old Guard in March to be part of the cadre team when his unit conducted the EIB during annual training.<\/p>\n

\u201cI made the decision so that, if for some reason, I did not pass, I would have another opportunity in the summer, but if I did pass, I would be able to be a grader for the upcoming Expert Infantryman\/Expert Soldier Badge testing at Fort Barfoot during AT,\u201d Miller said.<\/p>\n

Inspired by his family\u2019s long legacy of service, Miller enlisted in the Virginia Army National Guard as an infantryman in 2013. He said attempting to earn the EIB was not something he went into lightly.<\/p>\n

\u201cEarning the EIB is physically and mentally demanding,\u201d Miller said. \u201cThat is why, when you look around the formation, there are only a small number of people who have accomplished the task, and that is what interested and motivated me to pursue the EIB.\u201d<\/p>\n

For a Soldier to earn the EIB, they must demonstrate not just proficiency but mastery of key infantry skills. Candidates must pass the Army Combat Fitness Test and an expert marksman qualification, followed by months of intense training to prepare for physical, mental and tactical requirements.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe preparation phase of EIB is a very integral part if you want to be successful in getting your EIB,\u201d Miller said. \u201cNot only are you preparing yourself mentally by learning the tasks, but you are preparing yourself physically for the [Expert Physical Fitness Assessment] and 12-mile road march.\u201d<\/p>\n

The EPFA requires candidates to consecutively perform a one-mile run, 30 push-ups, a 100-meter sprint, 16 sandbag lifts onto a 65-inch platform, a 50-meter farmers carry of two five-gallon water cans, a 25-meter high crawl, 25 meters of 3-5 second rushes, and a final 1-mile run \u2014 all in less than 27.5 minutes.<\/p>\n

\u201cDuring the testing, I felt confident,\u201c he said.\u00a0\u201cEIB is all about remembering the sequence and remembering exactly how it is taught. By the time you go through train-up and get to testing, you either know it or you don\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

EIB testing is in four phases: the EPFA; day and night land navigation; weapons, medical and patrolling lanes; and a 12-mile ruck march.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe most challenging part for me was the constant reminder that if you fail one event, then you are going home,\u201d said Miller. \u201cMy biggest advice to anyone going through EIB or [Expert Soldier Badge] is to make sure you pay close attention to the material being taught and take it one day and one task at a time. There is no point in worrying about medical lanes when you are in the middle of patrolling lanes.\u201d<\/p>\n

For more National Guard news<\/a><\/p>\n

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National Guard Twitter<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Staff Sgt. Alex Miller, assigned to the Virginia National Guard\u2019s Lynchburg-based 1st Battalion, 116th Infantry Regiment, 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, receives his Expert Infantryman Badge. (Photo Credit: Courtesy) VIEW ORIGINAL RICHMOND, Va. \u2013 Staff Sgt. Alex Miller, assigned to the Virginia National Guard\u2019s 1st Battalion, 116th Infantry Regiment, 116th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, earned […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":14878,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14876","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14876","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=14876"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14876\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14879,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14876\/revisions\/14879"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/14878"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=14876"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=14876"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=14876"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}