Thompson: The raid on Riva Ridge in 1945
Valley Voices
80 years ago, on February 18, 1945, 700 men of the 10th Mountain Division began one of the most daring raids of World War II.
They had scouted and selected five trails to secretly maneuver their assault force up an Italian mountain range … at night.
The enemy was up top; they held the ridge. The enemy had been attacked twice, and twice had repelled massive Allied forces. The enemy was now entrenched with bunkers and barbed wire and secure that no Allied force could successfully attack them from the valley below. It was 1,700 to 2,000 feet straight up. Nobody could do that, especially in the winter, and especially at night.
Pete Seibert was a 19-year-old platoon sergeant in charge of 40 men of the 86th Regiment of the 10th Mountain Division. This was their first combat mission. At 10 p.m. they silently started uphill. For the next five hours, they “tip-toed” uphill, in full combat gear. When they reached the top, they dug in as a dense fog lay over the mountains.
“Catch your breath boys, then get ready to attack.”
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As the fog lifted, they attacked across the ridge. The Germans awoke, confused and startled when they realized that the Americans were everywhere. By early afternoon on February 19, the Germans had fled. The Americans had secured the entire three-and-a-half-mile ridge: it was Riva Ridge. This daring nighttime maneuver is in the textbooks and is still taught in military schools.
Who were these boys, these men, who so silently “climbed to glory” that night?
Who were these soldiers who during the next 114 days of combat were awarded 449 Silvers Stars, 7,729 Bronze Stars, 4,521 Purple Hearts, and 2 Campaign Ribbons?
Who were these young American mountain troops whom the Army had trained in the snow and mountains of Colorado at nearby Camp Hale?
These men were our fathers and grandfathers, our brothers, our uncles and cousins. These were the Americans who saved and created America’s second century. They are often called The Greatest Generation.
These are also the men who fell in love with the mountains and skiing, especially here in Colorado. When they came home after the war, they created the American ski industry.
Today, in Colorado, the heart and soul of skiing is the 10th Mountain Division. They helped create or operate Arapahoe Basin, Aspen, Buttermilk, Keystone, Breckenridge, Ski Cooper, Snowmass, Fremont Pass, Climax, Ski Broadmoor, Winter Park, Hidden Valley, the National Ski Patrol, the Cold Weather Training Camp at Camp Carson, the Sierra Club, the 10th Mountain Division’s Hut & Trail System, the Eskimo Ski School and so much more.
In fact, that 19-year-old platoon sergeant, Pete Seibert, who in 1945 led his 40-man platoon up to Riva Ridge, is the dreamer who discovered Vail Mountain in 1957, and with other 10th Mountain veterans created a little ski resort called Vail.
Those 10th Mountain veterans added their special spice and changed Colorado forever. They’re the ones who created a ski run at the top of our mountain called Riva Ridge. So yes, they are the men who made America’s second century, America’s ski industry, and our home of Vail Mountain. And here we are, the Americans making the third American century, and as we ski down Riva Ridge tomorrow afternoon, let’s say a prayer and a “Thank You” to those extraordinary soldiers of the 10th Mountain Division, past and present.
Pete Thompson is an American Army veteran who teaches at Colorado Mountain College, Vail Resorts and at Ski Cooper.
