Today is a holiday (Labor Day) so we actually get to relax a little bit. We get to have pizza later and watch a movie. They say it's a centuries old Army tradition. Somehow, I don't believe them.
I know I haven't written an update in a while and for that, I apologize. But, in my defense, I have been really busy. Our training schedule has been hectic with lots of field time and night operations. However, I'll try to recap it all here and now.
Early this week we did US weapons. This is a familiarization with the M-249 squad machine gun, 240-B machine gun and the M-2 .50 caliber. The M-249 and M-240 are very similar. It was pretty cool firing off rounds down the range. But the real one, the one that gets you a little twitterpated is the .50 caliber. Wow. The shells for this weapon are about 5 inches long and it can take out anything short of a heavy tank. Two words: awe-some. If any of you ever have the opportunity to fire one, do it. It really is awe inspiring.
The next major training was simulating urban operations, both at day and night. We had to mimic searching for people, vehicles, etc. I gained a new appreciation for those who do such for hours and days at a time. Knowing that the next vehicle could be a family looking for work or loaded down with enough explosives to destroy the entire checkpoint. That's job stress. We also simulated clearing rooms and buildings. There is a definite technique to it and inattention to detail will get you killed. It's a sobering thought. By far the most overwhelming reality check was an urban mission at night. We were equipped with single-eye night vision goggles (really cool) and were supposed to clear buildings in a compound. There would also be hostile forces that would attack. Granted, we were all using blanks, but it's very overwhelming to be in a small room, pitch black but for one eye, the sound of firing M-16s from multiple directions and trying to identify if it's friend or foe before returning fire. Oh, and not getting killed. Very overwhelming. I know I'm not ready to engage in that kind of operation, but you get substantially more training before you do that anyway.
The only training events left for us are an urban assault course, night infiltration and a 15K road march. The night infiltration is where you low crawl under constantina wire while live rounds with tracers are fired overhead. Should be fun. After that, we're done. Just clean, clean, clean and turn in gear. Then, on Sept. 18, we graduate. I can't believe it's over already. In all seriousness, I'm glad to get to the end. In many ways, I thought it would be harder and in some ways I was challenged beyond what I thought possible. I know I'm not the same as I was 8 weeks ago and I have to believe it's a change for the better.
As I am so close to the end, this will likely be the last entry. I may have one more post for family day and graduation. Thanks for all of the support and good tidings from all who willingly read this hot mess. I may make periodic updates from OCS. It depends on time contraints. Thanks again and hopefully I'll see you all soon.
Hoo-ah!
22 September 2009
31 August 2009
White Phase: Week 3 - Day 4
Today was a very eventful day. It started off in a bad, bad way. During our hours of down time yesterday, a member of our platoon made a comment that we aren't good at drill and ceremony because we spend so much time cleaning. This, of course, made it's way back to our Drill Sgt who has a rule that we do NOT talk about the platoon to anyone outside of the platoon. So, to make a long story short, we start off the day with push ups, yelling, more push ups, drill and ceremony, push ups again and no shower. As you can see, just a fantastic start and it's not even 8 am yet.
Luckily, we had RBT today. RBT is Rifle Bayonet Training. The actual bayonet training is rather boring. It consists of stabbing/smashing at invisible people and whirling. A lot of whirling. But, after that we had the peugil sticks. This is exactly what you would imagine. Man vs. man with a peugil stick, protective gear and 6 weeks of frustration. It was 1st platoon vs. 2nd platoon. I was put in the middle weight division. It uses a 2 out of 3 points wins scoring system with one point per round. I would be going against a guy about my size but younger (of course). We start off about 20m apart, charge one another and engage. To start off, I went with an attempt to run the guy over. He had the same idea. It was a draw. A little skirmish ensued with me losing the point. The 2nd round was judged a draw and we had to start over. At the restart, I got the better of the initial charge and actually got him on the ground. I kept up the attack and wond the point. Score tied. Third round. By this point, I am gassed. It's amazing how 45 seconds of exertion can tire you out when you are simultaneously trying to beat the crap out of someone and trying not to let him beat the crap out of you. I didn't figure to win another brute force exchange. Not much time to think. We face each other and start to close. We both are now glaring down on one another, glaring at each other as though he had slapped our mama. I can see that for at least this moment, he hates me. So I sidestep, turn and knock the ever loving stink off the back of his head. Point - Boatwright. Score one for the old guys. Honestly, I have to say it felt good to win. Mostly, because I didn't want to let the platoon down. Also, because I got my lip busted a little and was mad. Then, the temp hit 105 and we had to shut down training for the day. Back at the bay, Drill gave us a good talking to. We had showers and personal time. Turned out to be a pretty good day, afterall.
Luckily, we had RBT today. RBT is Rifle Bayonet Training. The actual bayonet training is rather boring. It consists of stabbing/smashing at invisible people and whirling. A lot of whirling. But, after that we had the peugil sticks. This is exactly what you would imagine. Man vs. man with a peugil stick, protective gear and 6 weeks of frustration. It was 1st platoon vs. 2nd platoon. I was put in the middle weight division. It uses a 2 out of 3 points wins scoring system with one point per round. I would be going against a guy about my size but younger (of course). We start off about 20m apart, charge one another and engage. To start off, I went with an attempt to run the guy over. He had the same idea. It was a draw. A little skirmish ensued with me losing the point. The 2nd round was judged a draw and we had to start over. At the restart, I got the better of the initial charge and actually got him on the ground. I kept up the attack and wond the point. Score tied. Third round. By this point, I am gassed. It's amazing how 45 seconds of exertion can tire you out when you are simultaneously trying to beat the crap out of someone and trying not to let him beat the crap out of you. I didn't figure to win another brute force exchange. Not much time to think. We face each other and start to close. We both are now glaring down on one another, glaring at each other as though he had slapped our mama. I can see that for at least this moment, he hates me. So I sidestep, turn and knock the ever loving stink off the back of his head. Point - Boatwright. Score one for the old guys. Honestly, I have to say it felt good to win. Mostly, because I didn't want to let the platoon down. Also, because I got my lip busted a little and was mad. Then, the temp hit 105 and we had to shut down training for the day. Back at the bay, Drill gave us a good talking to. We had showers and personal time. Turned out to be a pretty good day, afterall.
29 August 2009
White Phase: Week 2 - Day 7
Today has been a pretty mild day. We had our second full PT test this morning. I was a little nervous as to how, and if, I would improve, but ended up surprising myself. I was able to max the push ups portion with 80 reps. I did 65 sit ups, an improvement of 6 reps. Finally, I ran the 2 mile in 14:36. I was really, really surprised at this since it's about a minute faster than my previous time. I noticed after my second of three laps that I had a chance to run it in 14 minutes. I decided to focus on every reason I was here, every sacrifice and just run the lap. I hit a pace and set a new personal record. It felt great. Thirteen minutes, here I come.
The only other event was of a negative variety. A member of our platoon has been concealing a cell phone the entire cycle. The platoon found out and we had to turn him in. It doesn't help that he's not a team player, immature and selfish. He's probably getting an article 15 ($800 fine and 45 days extra duty) and recycled (starts basic over). The worst punishment might have been standing in front of the platoon and having them tell him how they feel. There were a couple of guys crying because they were so angry. This guy jeopardized our phone privileges. It was a very emotional event. You have so many people here who really don't get it. It disgusts me to wear the same uniform as these guys. I take pride in the decision I've made and measure it by my sacrifice. To be judged by selfish, immature, screw ups angers me. I don't want them in my Army.
The only other event was of a negative variety. A member of our platoon has been concealing a cell phone the entire cycle. The platoon found out and we had to turn him in. It doesn't help that he's not a team player, immature and selfish. He's probably getting an article 15 ($800 fine and 45 days extra duty) and recycled (starts basic over). The worst punishment might have been standing in front of the platoon and having them tell him how they feel. There were a couple of guys crying because they were so angry. This guy jeopardized our phone privileges. It was a very emotional event. You have so many people here who really don't get it. It disgusts me to wear the same uniform as these guys. I take pride in the decision I've made and measure it by my sacrifice. To be judged by selfish, immature, screw ups angers me. I don't want them in my Army.
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