Moments: Be All You Can Be

In 1972, the U.S. Army wasn’t what you’d call popular. The war in Vietnam was raging. The military draft was still in effect. Morale in the ranks was low. But Major General Edward M. Flanagan, Jr., who served in World War II, the Korean War, and Vietnam, had a plan—it wouldn’t end the war, but maybe it could inspire the troops, burnish the Army with some cool, and goose recruitment. Flanagan’s idea was to create a cadre of “adventure soldiers” who would accomplish a physical feat no one had yet done.

The Army’s 10th Mountain Division was well-known for training on skis, and its veterans went on to build much of the American ski industry after World War II. But this was something else entirely: an audacious goal, an unknown outcome, glory and achievement on the other side of success. Flanagan’s dream? That his soldiers would cover the one hundred miles of the Western States 100-Mile Trail Ride on foot.