They had to cross the 30 km way at the appointed time with a backpack weighing 11 kg. Over 300 uniforms from the USA, Croatia, Poland and large Britain took part in the Norwegian ft March organized by US Army soldiers stationed in Bemów Piski. Not everyone was able to meet the challenge, but the Polish squad presented themselves on the best side.
Norwegian ft March (NFM – Norwegian walking march) is simply a conventional test of the endurance of the Norwegian infantry, the beginning of which dates back to 1915. Today, the military of different nationalities and civilians can participate in this initiative, but all authoritative event held in different parts of the planet takes care of Norwegian Armed Forces (Forsvaret). Each associate after reaching the finish line in the designated time limit receives from them an authoritative certificate and badge that he can wear on his uniform.
In mid-October, NFM was held at the Polygon Centre for the Training of Land Forces in Orzysz (Warmia-Masurian Province) on the initiative of US Army soldiers from the Multinational NATO Combat Group. Americans stationed in Bemów Piski They marched together with soldiers from Croatia, large Britain and Poland. – Last year I participated in the "Spur Ride" at the invitation of American bachelors. This is the first time I've had a chance to check out at NFM. It was a large experience – says the soldier Special Military Police Department in Warsaw.
There were thirteen Poles among the more than 300 who competed: 8 soldiers from the Faculty of ŻW in Bemów Piski, 3 from the peculiar Branch of ŻW in Warsaw and 2 soldiers from the 16th Mechanized Division from Ełk and Orzysz. Each participant's backpack was weighed before launch and its weight could not be little than 11 kg. Rigors had to be carefully observed, not including the burden of water for drinking, due to the fact that during the tour it was lost, and at the finish the backpack was... weighed again. The marchers had to cross 30 km at the appointed time, which depended on age and gender. For the majority, it was 4 hours and 30 minutes. All Poles easy fit in their limits, and the fastest of them checked in at the finish line after 3 hours and 33 minutes. In general competition, the fastest turned out to be a British soldier (2 hours 55 minutes), and among women the best was Croatian (4 hours 20 minutes).
The way of the march ran on the forest paths of the Orisky camp. The weather was good, tiny elevations of the area should not be hard, yet only 230 soldiers finished the march. In a fewer months, all those willing will have the chance to effort again to fight for the badge awarded by Forsvaret - a bronze, silver or gold, which is earned after one, five, and 10 NFMs respectively.
– The Americans have already invited us to a spring edition, in which we will gladly participate. This start I treated partially as preparation for Grand Slam of Commandos. In March, a 100 Commandos run is organized, about which we told the Americans and were very curious in it – says a soldier from the peculiar Forces Unit.
The U.S. military stationed in Bemów Piski is the main force of the NATO Multinational Combat Group, operating under the eFP (enhanced Forward Presence) initiative. Currently, the United States' 16th change of the quota under Colonel John Nimmons, commander of the 3rd Battalion of the 8th US Army Cavalry Regiment, which headed Forward Land Forces Battlegroup Poland in September. NFM's main organizers were soldiers 297 Regional Support Group from Alaska. The U.S. Army's rotation occurs all 9 months.
