FORT CARSON BRIGADE READY TO BE DEPLOYED

fort carson» Fort Carson’s 1st Brigade Combat Team trained in the snow last week.

While that may seem mundane, the muddy soldiers and the mortar fire are part of something new — troops who stay ready for combat and remain on call for battle anywhere in the world.

The brigade is the armored first of the Army’s “global response force” — troops and equipment who will be first to fight the next war.

“After this, they are ready to go,” said Lt. Ted Scott as he watched his platoon prepare to fire on Fort Carson’s training range last week.

For a decade and a half, Fort Carson soldiers have trained on a schedule dictated by the demands of Iraq and Afghanistan.

Troops prepared for war, deployed and came home for months of relaxation before they would train again.

Post-war strategy propelled by rising Russian threats has changed that. Army leaders are pushing for troops who are “expeditionary” — a term they use to describe preparedness for unexpected combat across the globe.

The Fort Carson unit is drilling with the Air Force to hone its rapid-deployment skills. BBB