Evening star., 1935-10-24
ARMY MEN TRAIN
FOR WORLD GAMES
ProWeSs in Riding and Other
Olympic Events to Be
Shown Here.
BY ROBERT B. PHILLIPS, JR.

Over at Fort Belvoir in Virginia
there are nine gentlemen who might
have supplied the inspiration for that
famous song, Little Man, You've Had
a Busy Day"
They are the nine young men who
aspire some day to represent the
United States in the grueling modern
pentathIon events of the 1886 Olym-
pic games. and who at the moment
are preparing to give demonstration
of their skill before the crowds at the
Inter American Horse Show in Rock
Creek Park Saturday, Sunday and
Monday.
The fond hope of pentathlon ath-
lete is that he will be able to ride
faster than any competitor. travers-
ing a 5.000-meter course over Olympic
obstacles; that he will hit a bull's-eye
20 times In 90 shots with a revolver;
that he will swim 300 meters faster
than all the others, who are trying TO
beat his score; that he will prove the
best swordsman among all the pen
tathlonites in the world, and that he
will be practically invincible in a
4,000-meter, cross-country run.
Army's Junior Iron Men.
In order to become this combination
Of Pete Bostwick. Annie Oakley, John
ny Weissmuller, D'Artagnan and
Nurmi, the Army's nine junior iron
men have to keep themselves approx
mately as busy as a one-armed man
wrapping cranberries in a roller
coaster.
1t goes something like this:
The day usually begins with bit of
riding. Under the guidance Of their
accomplished instructor, Capt. Marian
Carson Of the Sd Cavalry, the boys
gallop over some moderate sized Jumps
on their practice field. They school
for pace, learning to hit two-and-
one -half-minute lick Chats "a miles
an hour. a three minute clip go
miles per-, etc, and to distinguish
between them. This prepares them
for the day when they will have to go
approximately 312 miles over foreign
territory, negotiate more than q score
Of trick jumps and be rated for time
as well as performance over the route.
After the pace exercises they may
be sent for a trial over an outside
course Of Capt. Carson's own devising
This is intended to prepare them to
jump the Great Wall of China, if
necessary. On it one meets Jumps
going on the down side of As de.
gree hill, jumps jump out at you from
behind trees, from beneath the tall
grass, in front of bitches, on the
other side of bitches, going up other
45 degree hills. When the pen
tathlon horsernan has learned to es-
Innate the pace of his horse as ac-
curately as if it carried a speed
ometer, his next problem is to whip
around this modified nightmare of a
course at, let us say with a slight
shudder). "a miles an hour.
More to Be Done,
II still alive and breathing after
that jaunt, the officer does not i'm
mediately sit back and burst into
reminiscence after the manner of a
fox hunter. Instead he grabs a quick
lunch and rushes down to the target
range. There he stands about 20
PAGES from silhouette target, holding
revolver in his hand. When a voice
says "one" he raises the gun at arms
length. Before the voice says -four"
indicating the elapse of three seconds,
ne must have fired, and, if he hopes
to be an asset to America and a
credit to his parents, he must also
hit the bulls eye at least four times
out Of five.
Target practice is known as the
quiet hour. Thereafter the young men
go their separate ways Those who
are not so fast afoot spend an hour or
so running. Those who are a bit
clumsy with the fencing foil betake
themselves to the gym to f1ex the
wrist and sharpen the eye. The weak
swimmers get into an indoor tank and
swim and swim. At night there NAV
be time for modicum Of sleep before
the breakfast call and the summons
to saddle and spur.
While conditions will not allow them
to shoot, run or swim at the Inter-
American exhibition this week, the
pentathalon squad will appear each
DAY for display of riding skill and
oexterlty with the foil. Their names,
In case you'd like to make a note of
the hardest working junior officers in
the service, are Lieuts. George L. East
man. Alfred D. Starbird, Charles A.
Symorski. Brookner Brady, Richard
v. Mayo. Clayton J. Mansfield, Morris
0. Edwards, Frederick w. Weber and
Charles F. Leonard.
As the late Texas Guinan used to