Command Sgt. Maj. Ted Copeland, command sergeant major of the U.S. Army Reserve, talks about the Army Combat Fitness Test (ACFT) which he hosted and performed recently with senior enlisted leaders from across the reserve force at Fort Eustis, Virginia, October 25, 2019, during the Army Reserve Senior Enlisted Council. The council was a three-day event hosted by Copeland. During the workshop the enlisted leaders tackled various topics that affect Soldiers’ readiness, training and professional development. They conducted a practice ACFT as they lead the effort to implement the new test over the next 12 months before it becomes the official fitness test of record across the U.S. Army. The top enlisted leaders who performed the ACFT represented nearly 30 sub-commands, each either specializing in a particular Army function or regionally aligned and responsible for specific geographic areas. Additionally, three international partners from Canada, United Kingdom and Australia attended to represent their Army Reserve forces. (U.S. Army Reserve photo by Master Sgt. Michel Sauret)
Transcript
Well, you know, the senior leadership of the Army Reserve has to know what’s going on, so with all the changes, the finalization of gettin’ ready to go initial operating on the ACFT equipments being shipped, so who better to bring out here than the senior command Sergeant Major of the Army Reserve, so they can experience, understand it, so they can go back and get the word out to our soldiers, say hey, this ain’t life ending, this is okay, it’s not that hard, just put some effort into it. It’s all about effort, you know, it’s like anything in life, what you put into it, gettin’ ready, preppin’, is what you get out of it, so no different than the current APFT. If you practice, put some effort, some sweat, some tears into it, you’re gonna do great, it’s gonna be easy, it’s not that hard. It’s all about what’s goin’ on in the Army Reserve, what’s comin’, and how can we shape it. We have control of our future, we know what our soldiers can and can’t do, and our issues in the Army Reserve, so we need to make sure we can do what’s required. It’s about effort, it’s about motivation, it’s about willing to go the extra step, we can do this.