Long Day.

It's been a long day. It started off with instructional physical training, they walked us through a series of exercises that we will do every morning before we start running. Most of our runs will be quite long from the looks of it. All 3-7 miles, but some of the groups will be quite slow.

We finished the first obstacle course without any major injuries, everyone has new bruises and one candidate got a sprained ankle but should recover soon. I was able to complete all the obstacles on the first try except for the last one where you have to jump off a platform and grab a rope about 4 feet out then climb up (there is more but that is the only hard part). I just couldn't manage to pull my legs up and over at the end. I didn't get a second attempt since we were running short on time and there were many other teams that hadn't tried that one yet. Our team did quite well on all the team oriented ones, and everyone had a great attitude throughout the whole thing. There was a Major and a Command Sgt. Major out there that were just running though the stuff, that was quite impressive for a couple of guys in their early 50's.

Since we had so many people give blood to the Red Cross today we are not doing anything until 7:00am tomorrow so it will be nice to sleep in and not have to get up until 6 or so.

There's a lot that goes on during the day, but only the big stuff seems to stand out now.

Finally ready to start!!

We are finally ready to get to the good stuff, the training. We are done with the inprocessing and ready to get on with the real mission. The fun thing is the last week will be spend outprocessing and turning in the equipment we spent a week picking up. So a 12 week course only really has about 10 1/2 weeks of content.

Tomorrow is the obstacle course, check it out here under obstacle course. This is nice map with all the prominent points of Ft. Benning marked on it.

Map of Ft. Benning


First Losses
We lost at least 2 people from the class today. One from our platoon and another candidate. Both were due to security clearance problems. The one from our platoon was a great guy, he will likely come back in the next class and I know he will do well and be a great asset to his platoon there. They (his recruiter) evidently tried to pass off his old expired security clearance instead of applying for a new one.

We likely lost another to a twisted ankle. He was being carried down the stairs and taken to the hospital when I came back from chow today. Another great candidate that will likely have to recycle through no fault of his own.

Speaking of chow, this weekend if I get time I am going to go out to eat and sit down to taste the food. I remember why Army food is so salty and spicy now. You have to eat so quickly there isn't time to taste it. We have 1/2hr in the chow hall, during that time we have to get 144 people through. That means the last people are likely going to have less than 10mins to eat, or they might have even less if we aren't assembled and ready to go at our alloted time. Unlike most occupations in the Army the boss eats last. The student commanders have to make sure everyone is eating before they are even allowed to start.

I'm hoping for good luck tomorrow, it's not going to be the best day to do the obstacle course since there is a high chance of thunderstorms and temps in the upper 30's all day. It could be a miserable experience but the main thing is to not get injured, each cycle it is common to lose one or more candidates on the obstacle course so safety is the key word.

Classed UP!!

Today we took the 'official' APFT. While I scored well enough to get in easily many did not even pass the test to the minimum standards. They were allowed in anyway after a counseling session with the Company Commander.

Now the real work begins. We have a few more briefings then the real training begins.

Short Update

Well we found out a lot more about how the class is going to be handled now. The class is in fact under booked and all that is required to get in is to pass the PT test (there are even rumors of waivers being possible for those who fail, but I doubt this).

As long as everyone keeps their stuff tight we will all be OK. This is not a bunch of yelling Drill Sgts. but there is much more expected of us. We do get to run everywhere we are not marching.

The CO is coming by at 2200hrs for a walk through of the barracks (they had some problems with the last class not respecting the rules like no food etc..). So as soon as he leaves it's time for sleep since the 5am APFT comes early tomorrow.

Class Starts!!

Class starts in 1.5hrs. Can't wait, finally the anticipation will soon be over. So far the chow is better than reception, and the rumors are flying thicker about the class. I am anticipating that it will be like basic, but if it's not I'll be happy.

They are saying our class is actually under booked, and from the empty rooms in the barracks it would appear this is true. The other rumor is that they will give waivers for failing APFT scores. This would be bad IMHO because it could easily lead to a lot of broken soldiers. If they are not in the minimal shape needed to even pass the APFT there is a higher chance they will injure themselves with the rugged physical requirements of the course.

MADE IT!!

Ok they worked things out so about 5 of us who were not going to be done until Monday are over here ready to start the class. We just have to go across post on Monday and get our PPD shot results at 04:55(am).

The rumors are that the class is 'underbooked' so we only have to pass the weight and pass the APFT (Army Physical Fitness Test). Come Tuesday we will know if we are in the class or not for sure.

I have just a couple more items to pick up for the packing list and then I am going to relax since we now are in 2 man barracks rooms (as opposed to the open bay of 50+ people at the recption area). We signed in and they went over a list of rules with us and let us go for the weekend. Too many of the rules are because of the mixing of males and females in the training. We have a couple of female canidates on the same floor so there a lot of 'nonsense' rules to keep everyone safe so no one will have any excuse.

Rushing Through!!

The few of us that did not start in processing until Wednesday are rushing through now trying to get done. In theory as long as they will give us our second round of shots on Saturday we can be done, but no one seems to care but me (not the other canidates, the Drill Sgt. or the processors).

We got the uniforms issues yesterday, and I must say I'm not a big fan of wearing the ACU's. Velcro everywhere and too many patches, I'm afraid I'm going to forget to put some of the velcro patches, name tapes on in the morning. I will need to purchase enough extra sets to keep some on my uniforms at all times so I can avoid that possiblity.

It is getting down to the wire now, and I really want to push it so I can make it into the proper class.

Reception Stories

Well it's been a few days and I'm stuck in reception. At first the other guy I rode down with got directions that took us to the Headquarters at OCS, I kept saying we needed to go to a place that would issue us our uniforms, boots etc....but he insisted. We got there and were told to head over to 30th AG, the reception battalion. We finally got there at nearly 11pm after getting lost several times (no post map, and we had to leave the main post and get back into a small section "Sand Hill"). We waited around 20 mins while someone took our paperwork, then when the Drill Sgt. came back I asked about the long weekend and the length of the processing time. Bad News... They will not restart in processing people until Wednesday and it will take 4 days. I need to report on Sunday to make it into the class I am scheduled for. That gives me 3 days. As you can see the math won't add up to a positive number. If everything goes exceptionally smoothly we may be able to finish in 3 days so I have spent the weekend getting all the items on my packing list so when the time comes I am ready and any holdup will be on them.

The reception area is not that bad for prior service. We are all stuck in an open bay barracks but so far it is very laid back. We have people from every branch of the service here, Marines, Navy (lots of Navy) and a few Air Force. About 1/2 are going to OCS with the rest doing 18x-ray contracts (guaranteed shot at Special Forces), 11B (Infantry!!), and some people coming here to be stationed (including a very annoying female PFC who just doesn't know how to keep her mouth shut).

Cellular reception is spotty here with Sprint and their high-speed network is not available. Others with Nextel(sold in the PX here for some reason), T-Mobile, and AT&T report the same. I have not seen anyone with Verizion but their map says this area has good coverage. You might have to go outside and stand in a particular area to get good reception. But I have found a program that lets me tether my palm to my laptop for an internet connection with using only the data from my phone avoiding the laborious extra fees that most carriers like to tack on for using a computer.
http://www.junefabrics.com/pdanet/

Back Home

I called my wife from MEPS today and told her I would be home in a couple hours. When she asked why I was awfully tempted to just "I don't want to talk about it on the phone, I'll tell you when I get home" but I decided to tell the truth.

At MEPS I met another Candidate who is prior service Navy who is driving himself down to Ft. Benning. Since I am also prior service he asked me if I wanted to hitch a ride with him down there instead of waiting on the bus. After checking that it was alright with the Army liaison at MEPS I agreed. After the shipping briefing I asked the lady who gave the brief what time we need to report to the in-processing at Ft. Benning, and she told me because of the foul weather she had given us until midnight the following day. After double checking what she said was what I heard we decided to spend the night in our respective homes and leave in the afternoon. So I am now enjoying some family time, hot-wings and a cold beer.

I will know more about what goes on tomorrow when we arrive. I am very glad I didn't have to ride the bus since we would likely not arrive until 2100 tonight at the earliest.

Snow, Special Forces and Lost Medical Records

Well to start off everything backwards, it's snowing in Atlanta tonight. I hope it does not prevent us from going to MEPS and shipping out in the morning. My dad is coming in the morning to watch me swear in (and drop off the shoes I ordered two weeks ago that came in 30mins after I left). It won't be the worst thing if we don't ship tomorrow and spend the long weekend in the hotel, there's lots of good football on this weekend and sitting in reception over a four day weekend isn't going to accomplish much.

I rode up from my recruiter station with a guy who enlisted for the SF option.
He's a really great guy and actually worked for me in one of the labs back at the University. He is a lot like I was in my first enlistment, bored with school and not sure what you want to do with everything. I think he'll do well, he's a smart enough guy and in good shape starting off.

So when I got to MEPS this morning it was a bit of a cluster (understatement). They were not real clear on what to do with all the people who were there a day early. We went in with the people who were shipping that day, but we had nothing to do. They were supposed to do a height/weight check and then release us. Of course my medical records couldn't be found. I helped the lady search through the rows of files and nothing turned up. About 4 hours later I asked another man there and we looked through some Army Reserve folders and sure enough mine had been slipped in with the wrong stack. By then it was too late for me to get my Medical Inspect (height/weight) so I sat around for another few hours until we bribed a shuttle driver to take us back to the hotel.

Tomorrow is a big day, and I hope this nights roommate doesn't snore and keep me up all night.

MEPS Hotel

So someone had the bright idea to start sending recruits up to the hotel a day early. People who are shipping now get sent to the hotel two days early. The first day at MEPS they just do height/weight, drug test and double check the paper work, the second day is swear in and get on the bus. So instead of a full day, you now get two half days.

Now of course I only found out about this yesterday when I CALLED the recruiter to double check that all my paper work was ready. About midway through the conversation he said he needed to check something and that's when he dropped the bomb. It's no big deal though since I was planning on being ready early to double check everything.

It's great though I'm ready and excited to be finally ready to get into the training......

oh wait.....

I will arrive at Ft. Benning just in time for a four day weekend. So now I have an extra day at MEPS and four extra days at reception (30th AG). I hope they have laundry there since none of the other recruits I have been speaking to seem to be aware of this.

SHOES

I ordered two pair of Brooks Trance 6 from http://www.shoebuy.com since my last pair are about worn out and they were the most durable and comfortable running shoe I have used in a while. Unfortunately with ground shipping it took nearly two weeks for them to get to my house, a mere 30mins after I left. Luckily my father is taking someone to the airport near Ft. Gillem so I will have him come in and watch me swear in and drop the shoes off for me. I am still waiting on my glasses to get back from lenses being put in, but I think my wife will just have to mail them to me.

Prepatory Physical Training (PT).

For those who don't know the officer classes are chronically overbooked. To earn a seat you have to beat out the other potential candidates in a PT test. For instance they might have 150 seats and 250 people competing for them. To secure your seat you have to be in the top 150. As long as you meet the minimum ARMY standard you will not be sent home, but you get to spend more time in headquarters which is not to be desired as the moral there is often low and it will throw off your graduation date by weeks.

I've been running and hitting the gym pretty hard but last week pulled a calf muscle in the cold weather. So I've been trying a different program, it's all sit-ups and push-ups and I gotta say I can see the results. It has helped my form and speed in both of the events in addition to adding 6 push-ups and 10 sit-ups to my total after one week. This next week is even more intense and I won't be able to finish it before I ship but I can at least get well into the program.

Here is where I got the workout from: http://filebox.vt.edu/users/jsaria/Hit-the-Deck.xls

I will be strapping on my gps and hrm on Monday and giving myself an assessment on the run and see how I stand. The Garmin 305 is the best running training aid I have ever gotten. I use http://www.zonefivesoftware.com/SportTracks/ as it is much better than the included software.

My main objective now is to be ready to go but not aggravate the pulled calf muscle.

A bit of history

I'm starting this blog to chronicle some of my experiences through the Army Officer Candidate School. I was in the army as an enlisted solider back in the early 90's.

I decided some months ago that I needed to go back in, only this time as an Officer, a leader.

I have a wife and young son, and I am also just finishing up my MS in Computer Science so this is not something normally done by people in my situation. But it is something I feel I need to do.

I guess one can only stand by so long and watch the injustices done to the weak in some countries before you feel the need to do something about it yourself.

I am scheduled to report to the MEPS on the 17th of this month, and my class starts 10 days after that.

Right now I'm busy getting everything set up so when I leave for the next few months my wife will be able to take care of everything. Also I'm spending a lot of time trying to finish up my reading list and memorize the required knowledge for the course.