FIGHTING FOX COMPANY: The Battling Flank of the Band of Brothers

Josefina Poyser of the afternoon classes just gave birth! Well, her husband published a book chronically intimate WWII detail, which I’m confident is very much like giving birth. A long and arduous process for the married couple, we salute the success. Available on Pre-Order from Amazon, you can learn more about it here. Terry Poyser’s book is one of a handful of current books that revisits World War II.

Easy Company of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 101st Airborne Division has become one of the most famous small units in U.S. history, thanks to Stephen Ambrose’s superb book Band of Brothers, followed by portrayals in film. However, to date little has been heard of Fox Company of that same regiment-the men who fought alongside Easy Company through every step of the war in Europe, and who had their own stories to tell.

Notably this book, over a decade in the making, came about for different reasons than the fame of the “Band of Brothers.” Bill Brown, a WWII vet himself, had decided to research the fate of a childhood friend who had served in Fox Company. Along the way he met Terry Poyser, who was on a similar mission to research the combat death of a Fox Company man from his hometown. Together, the two authors proceeded to locate and interview every surviving Fox Company vet they could find. The result was a wealth of fascinating firsthand accounts of WWII combat as well as new perspectives on Dick Winters and others of the “Band,” who had since become famous.

Told primarily through the words of participants, Fighting Fox Company takes the reader through some of the most horrific close-in fighting of the war, beginning with the chaotic nocturnal paratrooper drop on D-Day. After fighting through Normandy the drop into Holland saw prolonged ferocious combat, and even more casualties; and then during the Battle of the Bulge, Fox Company took its place in line at Bastogne during one of the most heroic against-all-odds stands in U.S. history.

As always in combat, each man’s experience is different, and the nature of the German enemy is seen here in its equally various aspects. From ruthless SS fighters to meek Volkssturm to simply expert modern fighters, the Screaming Eagles encountered the full gamut of the Wehrmacht. The work is also accompanied by rare photos and useful appendices, including rosters and lists of casualties, to give the full look at Fox Company which has long been overdue.

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Thursday’s WOD

Hand-Stands – 15 minutes to practice:
Hand-stand Holds – up to 1 minute per attempt (scale to boxes)
Wall Walks (in and out, side to side, can scale to boxes)
Free Hand-stand Holds (use mats and practice roll-outs)
Hand-stand walks (use mats and practice roll-outs)
Hand-stands on rings (MUST be able to do supported hold on rings for at least 10 seconds)

WOD: 50-50
50 Push-ups (scale up to push-ups on rings and/or weighted push-ups)
50 Kipping Pull-ups