European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - September 7, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Friday september 7, 1990 the stars and stripes a a a Page 9over Here a amps John Millar sgt. Keith Jackson fires a machine gun atop an armoured personnel Carrier while Driver pfc. James Jackson Waits to move the vehicle to the next firing Range during the 12-Day sapper stakes �?T90 Competition. Grand prix of heavy duty vehicles puts combat engineers to the test by John Millar Wurzburg Bureau Wil Flecken West Germany a like a Chain saw cutting through butter tracks on the armoured personnel Carrier grabbed the wet Earth and Flung big chunks of mud into the air. Sgt. Frank Zaborowski barked commands to his Driver spec. Carl Mann As the two mane Vered the 11-ton vehicle through a slalom course of barrels and mud. A Cut it Cut it a Zaborowski yelled. Mann pulled Back on a control lever Locking one of two tracks and the vehicle spun and cleared another barrel. After the slalom the two co a 54th engr in soldiers thundered up a Short Hill to five More obstacles. The course nicknamed agile sapper was the army a version of a grand prix race with at least one exception instead of race cars soldiers drove armoured personnel carriers 5-ton trucks and hum vees. The event was one of 15 in a combat Engineer squad Competition called sapper stakes �?T90. The 12-Day Competition which ended thursday included 36 teams from across Europe vying for the title of Best combat Engineer squad in the army in Europe. Combat engineers Are the army a builders and destroyers supporting front line units by destroying obstacles in their path and building new ones in the enemy a Way. They also help Friendly forces survive by constructing fighting positions for infantry Armor and cavalry units and by Clearing Landing zones for aviators. Sapper stakes puts an unusual spotlight on combat engineers who Are normally forced to take a Back seat to infantry and Armor units when it comes to training at places such As Grafen Wuhr and Wil Flecken said an official from the 7th engr brigade which played Host to this year s Competition. A we train with the Man Euver units a come sgt. Maj. Dennis Bowers said. A we have to take what we can get when we can get  front line units have Long had their a amps John Millar pfc. James Jackson front and sgt. Keith Jackson of the 3rd army dives 23rd engr in were among 36 teams from across Europe competing in the third annual event. Own Usa eur level competitions such the infantry skills meet and the cavalry cup. While sapper stakes has been held for three years Bowers said this is the first year the army command has recognized the event. A was engineers we do just As much if not More than the infantry and other types a Bowers said. He said sapper stakes includes maintenance physical fitness Road marches and marksmanship just As the cavalry cup and infantry skills competitions. A but we be also got the land mines cratering charges All those other types of things with the engineers that the other Guys done to do a he said. The 15 events in sapper stakes represent a series of Battle drills designed specifically for combat engineers said come sgt. Maj. Edward Lugo of the 9th engr in. His battalion is actually running the Competition. A what this enables us to do is go out and test our squads to see How Well they perform their missions a Lugo said. A every Soldier in a squad has his specific Job and function that he must do in order for the entire squad to accomplish that Mission whatever that Mission May be whether its Clearing obstacles or pm placing a Road Crater a Lugo said. Zaborowski and Mann made Good time through the course and said their two weeks of training for the event helped. Still there were flaws. Zaborowski a squad for example was penalized heavily for maintenance flaws found in a vehicle. However Zaborowski said his squad Learned from the Competition. A a they be Learned the Job quite Well. I know the privates now can take a Bunch of their Peers and run out there a handful of new privates and do these drills. A they that a our Job a to train them and do our  Tara top Overall Winfort of the vont Wero 1at place 3rd squad combat support co 3rd in 325th inf airborne combat Tea Melcenia Italy. 2nd place 2nd squad combat support co 3rd in 325th inf airborne combat Tea Vicenza Italy. 3rd place 58th engr co 11th army Cav regt. General skills category 3rd squad combat support co 3rd in 325th inf airborne combat Tea Vicenza Italy. Mobility category co a 54th engr in. Countermon Bill Ltd category co a 9th engr in. A amps John Millar spec. Henry Quattlebaum keeps a tight Leash on pfc. Kilroy. Despite being in the Doghouse Kilroy was Here Wil Flecken West Germany a despite receiving an article 15 and being busted a Stripe pfc. Kilroy of cob 78th engr in still got to tag along when his unit competed in the annual combat Engineer stakes at Wil Flecken this week. Kilroy a wrinkle faced bulldog almost blew his chances of joining his crack Engineer squad when he went awol about six months ago. As Mascot for the co b a bulldogs a Kilroy lives in the units Barracks in Ettlinger West Germany and goes to the Field with the troops. Besides serving As the company a official Mascot Kilroy a sleeps eats and Waters the Trees regularly a said the unit armorer spec. Henry Quattlebaum. The dog which the unit purchased about five years ago turned up absent without leave during tryouts for the sapper stakes events. While his squad was winning the right to represent the battalion in the Competition Kilroy a got Spring fever and was gone for about a week a Quattlebaum said. He turned up in a dogs equivalent of the stockade a a German animal shelter a and the unit commander Felt a Little non judicial punishment was in order. So he gave Kilroy the article 15 and demoted him from Corporal to private first class Quattlebaum said. Since he is normally a near perfect Pooch Kilroy was still allowed to travel to the sapper stakes with his unit. On tuesday for example he monitored his colleagues Progress at the competitions live fire Range. Quattlebaum said Kilroy also went along to the physical fitness event. A i done to know if he ran or not a Quattlebaum said. A the does no to do much running except for the food  a John Millar