ANSBACH, Germany (December 9, 2019) - The Shipton "We Attack" Fitness Center opened Dec. 9 with a ribbon cutting ceremony on Shipton Kaserne, followed by an open house.
The $354k renovation of the fitness center started more than a year ago and is a top-of-the-line functional fitness package.
"I want to first thank the team, there were a lot of folks involved," said Col. Steven M. Pierce, U.S. Army Garrison Ansbach commander. "We are very excited at the garrison level to help out Soldier readiness and to present this to you, so I hope you get a lot of use out of it."
To present the new fitness center, Pierce handed over the ceremonial key and cut the ribbon with Lt. Col. Todd Daniels, 5th Battalion, 4th Air Defense Artillery Regiment (5-4 ADA) commander.
The 5-4 ADA was very excited about have a 24-hour fitness center geared toward helping Soldiers achieve the readiness required by the new Army Combat Fitness Test (ACFT), Daniels said.
"This fitness center is one of the many efforts USAG Ansbach has done over the past year to support our battalion, and it gives the Soldiers a great opportunity to increase their individual readiness," he said. "All they have to do now is walk 100 meters from their barracks room and they are in the gym."
Daniels thanked not only the garrison, but the Directorate of Public Works and the Directorate of Family & Morale, Welfare and Recreation.
DFMWR's role is to support units in training for the ACFT by providing them with a fitness center where they can train for the new fitness test, said Chris Cornelison, FMWR Sports and Fitness Director for USAG Ansbach.
"You can't train for a power deadlift on a Nautilus machine or any explosive type movement on some of the machines that have been standard over the years," he said. "Now we have this type of equipment for Soldiers to get the training they need."
Cornelison said they would not have been able to provide the new fitness center without the help of Installation Management Command (IMCOM)-Europe G9 Recreation Programs Branch or IMCOM G9 FMWR in San Antonio, Texas.
The ACFT is currently undergoing changes that are locked in for fiscal year 2020 and include the official testing standards for all Soldiers with each one tailored to an individual's military occupational specialty.
The ACFT is expected to be the standard fitness test for all Soldiers by October 2020.
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