Day 55: The only things we did today was PT, eat and watch movies The DS want us to rest up before Victory Forge. They did not care if we were sleeping, as long as we weren't in our beds. We watched movies like Black Hawk Down and Tears of the Sun.
Day 56: I was able to go to Mass again today. All we did was eat and watch movies, for the second day. I guess we have nothing else to do.
Day 57: Today started off bright & early. We were up at 0200 and were marching by 0330. It took 4 hours to walk 10.5 miles. It was not an easy walk, especially up and down the hills in the woods, walking in the thick sand. We had 2 - 15 minute breaks where we had our feet checked and changed socks. I am so glad my parents mailed me good socks and panty hose because it prevented me from getting blisters. The last 1/2 mile was the hardest because we had to walk up a steep hill in thick sand. I was so glad to make it because I was hurting. After a much deserved breakfast, we settled into tents and walked another mile to where we practiced squad attacks. Each squad had to react to different types of attacks. When we were waiting our turn, which was the majority of the time, we had to pull security. Every so often we would have to react to attackers. The DS enjoyed throwing smoke bombs and land morters. Oh, Victory Forge is apparently an excuse for the DS to smoke us. Every little thing we do wrong, we were smoked! After we got back to the camp, we area and cleaned weapons.
Friday, September 30, 2011
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Day 54
Day 54: After PT, chow, and some personal time, the company had a Drill & Ceremony competition between the 4 platoons. My platoon only practiced a couple of times, unlike the other platoons. We ended up tying in first but lost the competition by a small amount. As a reward, the females in the top 2 platoons were given permission to finally shave after 8 weeks. We also had a trip to the PX to get supplies for Victory Forge. Everybody is ready for the ftx. Our duffles were packed and turned in this morning. Most commonly bough supplies: baby wipes, camel backs, blister/feet treatment and more baby wipes since we won't be able to shower for 4 days.
The day we spent practically all day outside, a cool front moves through. Although it was a welcome relief after such a hot summer, the cold took everyone aside!
The day we spent practically all day outside, a cool front moves through. Although it was a welcome relief after such a hot summer, the cold took everyone aside!
Days 51 - 53
Day 51: Today we had our last day at the range. We were able to shoot machine guns and grenade launchers. The weapons we shot were: M249, M240 Bravo, Dummy AT4 and M203. It was a lot of fun and probably the only time I will get to shoot the weapons since my MOS will not be combat related.
Day 52: Had 0330 wakeup for the final PT test. I am officially finished with all the requirements for BCT. It feels so good to get the PT test over with. We didn't do too much the rest of the day except clean and hang out in our sleep bays.
Day 53: Once again, we did not do too much except hang out in our bays. I guess we are finished with everything except for Victory Forge and they want us to rest up.
Day 52: Had 0330 wakeup for the final PT test. I am officially finished with all the requirements for BCT. It feels so good to get the PT test over with. We didn't do too much the rest of the day except clean and hang out in our sleep bays.
Day 53: Once again, we did not do too much except hang out in our bays. I guess we are finished with everything except for Victory Forge and they want us to rest up.
Day 50
Day 50: After PT (running), we headed to a range called wanat. It was probably one of my favorite things so far at BCT. The information we learned is some of the most important things we will learn here.
We were broken into squads and each squad had 4 humvees. Yes, we finally got to ride in a humvee. We went on a mission where we had to contact & kill the enemy when we approached a village. We practiced the proper way of team/squad maneuvering.
We also attended a class on IED and detecting them which was very informative. We took what we learned and went on a mission in the woods to see if we could detect any IEDs. The instructor would make the IEDs "go off" if we missed them. It really opened my eyes on the importance of really looking for IEDs or things out of the ordinary.
We were broken into squads and each squad had 4 humvees. Yes, we finally got to ride in a humvee. We went on a mission where we had to contact & kill the enemy when we approached a village. We practiced the proper way of team/squad maneuvering.
We also attended a class on IED and detecting them which was very informative. We took what we learned and went on a mission in the woods to see if we could detect any IEDs. The instructor would make the IEDs "go off" if we missed them. It really opened my eyes on the importance of really looking for IEDs or things out of the ordinary.
Friday, September 16, 2011
Days 48 - 49
Day 48: After PT, chow and quickly changing into battle rattle, we headed to a medical simulation. We got into teams and had to react quickly to care under fire. I was 1 of the 2 medics. My team's situation was dealing with the aftermath of a suicide bomber in a marketplace while dealing with the threat of IED and experiencing direct fire. While my team members pulled security, I had to determine the best methods of quickly caring for the injured within a specific time and evacuate the injured. The wounds were realistic with missing body parts, sounds of live rounds, IED explosions and screams. The instructor was impressed with my team since we evacuated everyone within 4 minutes. It's crazy to think how much you remember & do without thinking while under intense and stressful situations.
After lunch chow, we were told that we couldn't go to the concert unless our weapons were spotless. So, I spent another 2 hours cleaning and already cleaned weapon. The concert was actually a lot of fun. It was nice to eat junk food that we haven't eaten in 8 weeks and cut loose. The concert was just for BCT blue phasers and AIT. I didn't realize that there were so many BCT soldiers here. It was a little strange being at a concert with the DS walking through the crowd. The first guy that sang was a lot better than Kelly Pickler.
Day 49: I was able to go to mass again today. Can't believe that I only have 2 Sundays left. Didn't do much the rest of the day except catch up on laundry and sleep.
After lunch chow, we were told that we couldn't go to the concert unless our weapons were spotless. So, I spent another 2 hours cleaning and already cleaned weapon. The concert was actually a lot of fun. It was nice to eat junk food that we haven't eaten in 8 weeks and cut loose. The concert was just for BCT blue phasers and AIT. I didn't realize that there were so many BCT soldiers here. It was a little strange being at a concert with the DS walking through the crowd. The first guy that sang was a lot better than Kelly Pickler.
Day 49: I was able to go to mass again today. Can't believe that I only have 2 Sundays left. Didn't do much the rest of the day except catch up on laundry and sleep.
Days 46 - 47
Day 46: Today we practice buddy firing. The first time was with no rounds and the second time around we had blank rounds. Basically we sat around or stood in line for about 6 hours and actually performed buddy firing for a total of 5 minutes. It was a 300 meter course where we had to patrol and kill the enemy while moving to the different barriers. The point was to cover our battle buddy while he/she moved to the next barrier. When we got to the end of the course, after throwing a grenade, we had to react after indirect fire and sprint the 300 meters back.
Day 47: Today we did the actual buddy firing (Omaha Course). We were told that it was the 2nd most dangerous thing we would do at BCT since we run to the next barrier as our battle buddy covers us, using the rounds. We had a practice run with blanks before we did the course with live rounds. It was not bad at all. The most important things to remember are to be aware of where you are pointing the weapon and making sure your weapon is on safe when you are not shooting it. The DS ran behind us the whole time. I was not nervous since I trusted my battle buddy. After Omaha, we spent about 3 hours cleaning our weapons.
Day 47: Today we did the actual buddy firing (Omaha Course). We were told that it was the 2nd most dangerous thing we would do at BCT since we run to the next barrier as our battle buddy covers us, using the rounds. We had a practice run with blanks before we did the course with live rounds. It was not bad at all. The most important things to remember are to be aware of where you are pointing the weapon and making sure your weapon is on safe when you are not shooting it. The DS ran behind us the whole time. I was not nervous since I trusted my battle buddy. After Omaha, we spent about 3 hours cleaning our weapons.
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Day 45
Day 45: Today was an intense day! A few other females and I decided to volunteer for ammo detail since it's always the males doing it. We had to get up extra early & took a 45 minute LTV ride to the range. We had to prepare the range and put fuses on the practice grenades. Besides putting together the grenades, filling sandbags, and unloading the LTV, we had it easy.
Before we could throw a real grenade, we had a 1 hour safety briefing & had to throw 2 practice grenades in order to get certified to throw a live one. I had no issues throwing the practice ones.
It was quite intense at the live grenade range. We were told that this is the most dangerous thing we would do at BCT. While waiting in line to throw, we stood in tight quarters in a bunker. When it was finally my turn, I ran out on the range to where I was to throw & the NCO's were yelling at me to take cover. Apparently the lane next to mine thought their grenade was a dud and didn't explode. After 20 minutes, the NCO's figured out it was just a pine cone.
Because I was out on the range waiting for an 'all clear', it calmed my nerves. I threw both grenades with no issues. The NCO's on my lane got a kick on how fast I dropped to the ground after the grenade left my hand. Instead of squatting & tucking in my head, I dropped to my elbows and knees in the tornado position. I have bruised knees and elbows but I was able to throw live grenades today. I was kind of disappointed because I couldn't see it explode and it wasn't as loud as I thought it would be!
Before we could throw a real grenade, we had a 1 hour safety briefing & had to throw 2 practice grenades in order to get certified to throw a live one. I had no issues throwing the practice ones.
It was quite intense at the live grenade range. We were told that this is the most dangerous thing we would do at BCT. While waiting in line to throw, we stood in tight quarters in a bunker. When it was finally my turn, I ran out on the range to where I was to throw & the NCO's were yelling at me to take cover. Apparently the lane next to mine thought their grenade was a dud and didn't explode. After 20 minutes, the NCO's figured out it was just a pine cone.
Because I was out on the range waiting for an 'all clear', it calmed my nerves. I threw both grenades with no issues. The NCO's on my lane got a kick on how fast I dropped to the ground after the grenade left my hand. Instead of squatting & tucking in my head, I dropped to my elbows and knees in the tornado position. I have bruised knees and elbows but I was able to throw live grenades today. I was kind of disappointed because I couldn't see it explode and it wasn't as loud as I thought it would be!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)