Lakewood City Councilmember, Pierce College teacher and longtime Ranger reporter John Simpson has been training long hours to ready himself for Wednesday night's 25-mile Manchu Mile foot march. He will join roughly 300 soldiers and 50 civilians for one of the 4-2 Stryker Brigade Combat team's final events before the unit's March 14 inactivation.

The 4-2 SBCT Public Affairs office just released the details of the march, as well as another huge event before the inactivation - the Spur Ride.

JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash. - Soldiers of 4-2 Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 7th Infantry Division are slated to participate in two crucible events before the unit's March 14 inactivation.

Soldiers will complete the Manchu Mile, a 25-mile foot march, March 5-6 and a Spur Ride March 4-6.

The history of the Manchu Mile dates back to 1900. Soldiers of the 9th Infantry Regiment marched 85 miles during their assault on Tientsin as part of the Boxer Rebellion and the China Relief Expedition where the regiment earned the nickname "Manchus". During the Battle of Tientsin, the regimental commander, Col. Emerson H. Liscum, was killed by Chinese fire and uttered his dying words which became the regiment's motto: "Keep up the Fire!" Those who complete the foot march will receive a Manchu belt buckle, the only authorized belt buckle in the U.S. Army.

The cavalry squadron will execute a Spur Ride, March 5-6 to validate individual task proficiency of assigned Troopers and to celebrate the history and lineage of the unit.

Soldiers will be tested on the APFT and 18 individual tasks, qualify on the M4 rifle EST and complete a 12-mile tactical road march.

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4-2 Stryker Brigade headed for big changes at Joint Base Lewis-McChord