The Crucible - The JRTC Experience Podcast
The Joint Readiness Training Center is the premier crucible training experience. We prepare units to fight and win in the most complex environments against world-class opposing forces. We are America’s leadership laboratory. This podcast isn’t an academic review of historical vignettes or political-science analysis of current events. This is a podcast about warfighting and the skillsets necessary for America’s Army to fight and win on the modern battlefield.
Episodes
Wednesday Mar 29, 2023
005 S08 Ep 01 - Rotary-Wing Aviation in LSCO w/LTC Blanton & LTC Fuscellero
Wednesday Mar 29, 2023
Wednesday Mar 29, 2023
The Joint Readiness Training Center is pleased to present the fourth episode to air on ‘The Crucible - The JRTC Experience.’ Hosted by the Commander of Ops Group (COG), COL Matthew Hardman and is joined by LTC Jesse Blanton, the Senior Trainer for Task Force Aviation. Today’s guest is the commander of 2nd Squadron, 17th Cavalry Regiment, 101st Combat Aviation Brigade, 101st Airborne Division, LTC Tony Fuscellero. 2-17 CAV has a long and notable lineage dating back to the train-up for World War I and was one of the first units in the U.S. Army to employ rotary-wing aircraft. 2-17 CAV has the Hollywood call-sign of “Out Front.” In this episode they discuss the employment of rotary-wing aviation in large scale combat operations and the evolution of tactics to be successful on the modern battlefield. Part of S08 “Aviator’s Corner” series. Be sure to follow us on social media to keep up with the latest warfighting TTPs learned through the crucible that is the Joint Readiness Training Center.
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Again, we’d like to thank our guests for participating. Don’t forget to like, subscribe, and review us wherever you listen or watch your podcasts — and be sure to stay tuned for more in the near future.
“The Crucible – The JRTC Experience” is a product of the Joint Readiness Training Center.
Wednesday Mar 22, 2023
004 S02 Ep 02 - Meet the Devil Brigade (1/82 ABN) w/COL Kleisner
Wednesday Mar 22, 2023
Wednesday Mar 22, 2023
JRTC is pleased to present this episode of ‘The Crucible.’ Hosted by the Commander of Ops Group (COG), COL Matthew Hardman. Today’s guest is the commander of 1st IBCT, 82nd ABN, COL Theodore Kleisner. In this episode they discuss some of the things that the Devil BDE would have liked to have known prior to the start of this LTP as well as how the CTCs prepare BCTs to succeed in modern warfare.
Wednesday Mar 15, 2023
003 S02 Ep 01 - Meet Task Force Thunderbolt, 79th IBCT (CA ARNG) w/COL Lau
Wednesday Mar 15, 2023
Wednesday Mar 15, 2023
The JRTC is pleased to present the third episode to air on ‘The Crucible - The JRTC Experience.’ Hosted by the Commander of Ops Group (COG), COL Matthew Hardman. Today’s guest is the commander of 79th IBCT (CA ARNG), COL Randy Lau. In this episode they discuss some of the things that the Thunderbolt Team would've liked to have known prior to the start of their rotation as well as some of the differences between an active duty rotation versus an ARNG rotation.
Friday Mar 10, 2023
Friday Mar 10, 2023
The JRTC is pleased to present the second episode to air on ‘The Crucible.' Hosted by the Commander of Ops Group (COG), COL Matthew Hardman. Today’s guest, LTC Brendan Fitzgerald, is the commander of 1st Battalion (Airborne), 509th Infantry Regiment, the infamous “Geronimo.” In this episode they discuss Geronimo’s primary mission as well as some of the common myths surrounding Geronimo.
Wednesday Mar 01, 2023
001 S01 Ep-01 What is JRTC & The Evolution of Training w/BG David Gardner
Wednesday Mar 01, 2023
Wednesday Mar 01, 2023
The JRTC is pleased to present the first episode to air on ‘The Crucible.’ Hosted by the Commander of Ops Group (COG), COL Matthew Hardman. Today’s guest is the Commanding General & former COG, BG David Gardner. In this episode they lay the foundation for the episodes to come as they talk about the purpose of the Joint Readiness Training Center and the evolution of training requirements in recent history to meet the requirements to win on the battlefield of tomorrow.
Tuesday Feb 14, 2023
The Crucible - The JRTC Experience Teaser
Tuesday Feb 14, 2023
Tuesday Feb 14, 2023
This is a little teaser of what will be coming in the near future from the Joint Readiness Training Center. This podcast isn’t an academic review of historical vignettes or political-science analysis of current events. This is a podcast about warfighting and the skillsets necessary for America’s Army to fight and win on the modern battlefield.

What is JRTC?
The Joint Readiness Training Center is the premier crucible training experience. We prepare units to fight and win in the most complex environments against world-class opposing forces. We are America’s leadership laboratory.

The Crucible
The crucible that is the JRTC experience is an arduous ordeal every unit must go through to certify their readiness. It tests every leader and the unit collectively physically, mentally, and morally and is the defining experience of collective training. The crucible takes place over fourteen days of force-on-force as part of a decisive action training exercise, where leaders and units are continuously food & sleep deprived, harassed by opposition forces, and generally under duress.
The bottom line is this—the crucible at the JRTC is a rite of passage that, through shared sacrifice, leaders and units will never forget. With that memory and the core warfighting skills honed throughout this training exercise, they will be able to face any challenges in their path allowing them to fight and win on the modern battlefield.








