I'm just out of high school and will be starting college at New Mexico Military Institute (NMMI) this fall on a Falcon Foundation Scholarship. Presumably, this will up my chances on getting into the Air Force Academy next year. We'll see. Anyway, the Air Force recruiter at NMMI told me about a summer activity that would be good for me to get in on. It's the Army ROTC "Camp Challenge" at Fort Knox, Kentucky. He said the 6-week-long camp would be a good introduction to the military, and it would look good on my application for the Air Force Academy. And you get paid to go (only a few hundred dollars, but what the hell). I didn't mull it over too long before coming to the decision that it would be in my best interest to go. Something different to do for the summer, anyway.
Jesus. Not sure I was ready for this. The first few days at Fort Knox were hectic with inprocessing: shots, blood samples, gear issued, head shaved, and the ever-present ass-chewing by the drill sergeants. Yeah, you feared the drill sergeants... mean fuckers looked pissed-off they had to be there. During one particular day of in-processing, we were taking a break outside while waiting for another group to finish. I had my hat cocked back -- I've got big melon of a head and most hats fit tight, giving me raging headaches after a few minutes of wearing them. When it was our turn to go inside, our drill sergeant formed us up then stopped right next to me. "Who the hell are you? Gomer Pyle? Fix that head gear!" Going to be a fun 6 weeks.
Up to this point, I had never been away from home by myself for more than a few days. Coupled with being dropped right in the middle of something completely unfamiliar to me... well, the homesickness was bad. It was so bad, I couldn't bring myself to call home until I had been there over a week. When I finally did, I just about lost it. Even entertained thoughts of saying fuck it and going home. But I pulled my shit together and kept on going.
Every day was filled with activity. After all the in-processing was out of the way, our days started at 5am with physical training (PT), followed by breakfast (which was surprisingly good) and then the rest of the day. We started off with Basic Rifle Maneuvers and got qualified on the M-16 and hand grenades. This was over several days, and at the end there was a weapons demo and Expo. For the demo, anyone who wanted to could fire an M-60, M-203, and claymore mines (seriously). The Expo was a big PR day for the base where they showcased the tanks and armored vehicles stationed there. Interesting, but the god-awful heat and humidity kept most people indoors. Yeah, don't think I'll ever get used the humidity. How the hell do people live here?
Scattered through the days were various classes like radio communications, stream-crossing, and day and night infiltration. We even spent the better part of one day taking some sort SAT/ACT style of test, though it seemed to be more vocational in nature. There was the obstacle course, which was fun but scared the shit out of some people (there were some tall, rickety climbing towers). Water survival was moderately entertaining, as was map reading and navigating. We spent a couple nights bivouacking in the woods, which means we camped out on top of fucking ant hills. Why are there so many ants in Kentucky? I swear, these jackass drill sergeants selected that particular spot on purpose.
One day was nuclear, biological, chemical (NBC) training. No, not how to use them, but what to do when they're used on you. A movie on the subject would have suited me just fine, but noooo... we had to put on gas masks and go into a gas chamber filled with a nasty version of tear gas. Presumably, this was to show us that the gas masks worked and we could trust them. Great, they work, now let us out. Not yet. We had to take off the masks while in the chamber so we could see that it was actually full of tear gas. Aw, fuck. That's an experience I'd rather not repeat.
The rappelling wall was one of my favorites. Aussie-style (running down the wall face-first) was a rush. They tried putting on a bit of a show at the start of the lesson by dragging a scared cadet from the stands, taking him to the top of the tower and throwing him off. The scared cadet was actually an enlisted guy, and they threw a dummy off the tower. Not sure what they were trying to accomplish with the "show," but after that there was a good number of cadets that wouldn't go anywhere near the tower.
One of the things we did throughout the six weeks was rotate leadership positions. I was squad leader a few times, safety officer, and I was one of the few that got to be Company Commander. That was not a good thing. Not for me, anyway. I swear, I must have fucked up every thing possible that day, and we didn't even do much compared to other days.
One of the later days was spent on a string of "tactical" courses. Army officers or NCOs followed us around to "change the scenario" on us and evaluate us. I was doing quite well all day until one psycho Lieutenant found out I was trying to get into the Air Force. He made it seem that my existence was personally offensive to him, and he ripped me so many new assholes, I must have been bleeding shit. He was a bit on the high-strung side... needed a beer or a blowjob. Maybe both.
Entertainment-wise, there wasn't much; not that it mattered since we didn't have a lot of free time. When we did, a lot of cadets went dancing at the Challenger Club (for the cadets) or even the Officers' Club (which surprised the shit out of me they let cadets into). I went to the Challenger Club once, for about five minutes: it was like a high school dance. Went to the Officers' Club once, too. That was a bit better since somehow we were able to get beer. Others went to see movies at one of the theaters on post. Mostly, I read or chatted up the others in my platoon. There were the occasional organized outings, too: baseball game, carnival, and I think there was a rodeo.
For the most part, each platoon hung out together. My platoon was an interesting mix: two characters from Puerto Rico, a few sports jocks, a cowboy, a chunky comic book nerd, twin girls (Susie and Susan, if you can believe it), a couple of goof-balls, an intellectual, a few others, and me. We all got on pretty well, though the cowboy got kicked out about halfway through for shoplifting from the PX.
The end finally came and graduation day was upon us. I found out that I received the Society of American Military Engineers award for getting the highest score on that test we all took. That put me in the distinguished graduation formation (which I'm sure pissed off that psycho Lieutenant to no end). This all led to the Army offering me a full-ride ROTC scholarship. Great, but I'm trying to get into the Air Force Academy. I turned it down, which the officer talking to me about it just couldn't seem to comprehend.
Six weeks of playing Army and what do I have to show for it? Some interesting experiences, a little more insight into the military, and a few hundred dollars. Not bad, but this is only the beginning.
Jesus. Not sure I was ready for this. The first few days at Fort Knox were hectic with inprocessing: shots, blood samples, gear issued, head shaved, and the ever-present ass-chewing by the drill sergeants. Yeah, you feared the drill sergeants... mean fuckers looked pissed-off they had to be there. During one particular day of in-processing, we were taking a break outside while waiting for another group to finish. I had my hat cocked back -- I've got big melon of a head and most hats fit tight, giving me raging headaches after a few minutes of wearing them. When it was our turn to go inside, our drill sergeant formed us up then stopped right next to me. "Who the hell are you? Gomer Pyle? Fix that head gear!" Going to be a fun 6 weeks.
Up to this point, I had never been away from home by myself for more than a few days. Coupled with being dropped right in the middle of something completely unfamiliar to me... well, the homesickness was bad. It was so bad, I couldn't bring myself to call home until I had been there over a week. When I finally did, I just about lost it. Even entertained thoughts of saying fuck it and going home. But I pulled my shit together and kept on going.
Every day was filled with activity. After all the in-processing was out of the way, our days started at 5am with physical training (PT), followed by breakfast (which was surprisingly good) and then the rest of the day. We started off with Basic Rifle Maneuvers and got qualified on the M-16 and hand grenades. This was over several days, and at the end there was a weapons demo and Expo. For the demo, anyone who wanted to could fire an M-60, M-203, and claymore mines (seriously). The Expo was a big PR day for the base where they showcased the tanks and armored vehicles stationed there. Interesting, but the god-awful heat and humidity kept most people indoors. Yeah, don't think I'll ever get used the humidity. How the hell do people live here?
Scattered through the days were various classes like radio communications, stream-crossing, and day and night infiltration. We even spent the better part of one day taking some sort SAT/ACT style of test, though it seemed to be more vocational in nature. There was the obstacle course, which was fun but scared the shit out of some people (there were some tall, rickety climbing towers). Water survival was moderately entertaining, as was map reading and navigating. We spent a couple nights bivouacking in the woods, which means we camped out on top of fucking ant hills. Why are there so many ants in Kentucky? I swear, these jackass drill sergeants selected that particular spot on purpose.
One day was nuclear, biological, chemical (NBC) training. No, not how to use them, but what to do when they're used on you. A movie on the subject would have suited me just fine, but noooo... we had to put on gas masks and go into a gas chamber filled with a nasty version of tear gas. Presumably, this was to show us that the gas masks worked and we could trust them. Great, they work, now let us out. Not yet. We had to take off the masks while in the chamber so we could see that it was actually full of tear gas. Aw, fuck. That's an experience I'd rather not repeat.
The rappelling wall was one of my favorites. Aussie-style (running down the wall face-first) was a rush. They tried putting on a bit of a show at the start of the lesson by dragging a scared cadet from the stands, taking him to the top of the tower and throwing him off. The scared cadet was actually an enlisted guy, and they threw a dummy off the tower. Not sure what they were trying to accomplish with the "show," but after that there was a good number of cadets that wouldn't go anywhere near the tower.
One of the things we did throughout the six weeks was rotate leadership positions. I was squad leader a few times, safety officer, and I was one of the few that got to be Company Commander. That was not a good thing. Not for me, anyway. I swear, I must have fucked up every thing possible that day, and we didn't even do much compared to other days.
One of the later days was spent on a string of "tactical" courses. Army officers or NCOs followed us around to "change the scenario" on us and evaluate us. I was doing quite well all day until one psycho Lieutenant found out I was trying to get into the Air Force. He made it seem that my existence was personally offensive to him, and he ripped me so many new assholes, I must have been bleeding shit. He was a bit on the high-strung side... needed a beer or a blowjob. Maybe both.
Entertainment-wise, there wasn't much; not that it mattered since we didn't have a lot of free time. When we did, a lot of cadets went dancing at the Challenger Club (for the cadets) or even the Officers' Club (which surprised the shit out of me they let cadets into). I went to the Challenger Club once, for about five minutes: it was like a high school dance. Went to the Officers' Club once, too. That was a bit better since somehow we were able to get beer. Others went to see movies at one of the theaters on post. Mostly, I read or chatted up the others in my platoon. There were the occasional organized outings, too: baseball game, carnival, and I think there was a rodeo.
For the most part, each platoon hung out together. My platoon was an interesting mix: two characters from Puerto Rico, a few sports jocks, a cowboy, a chunky comic book nerd, twin girls (Susie and Susan, if you can believe it), a couple of goof-balls, an intellectual, a few others, and me. We all got on pretty well, though the cowboy got kicked out about halfway through for shoplifting from the PX.
The end finally came and graduation day was upon us. I found out that I received the Society of American Military Engineers award for getting the highest score on that test we all took. That put me in the distinguished graduation formation (which I'm sure pissed off that psycho Lieutenant to no end). This all led to the Army offering me a full-ride ROTC scholarship. Great, but I'm trying to get into the Air Force Academy. I turned it down, which the officer talking to me about it just couldn't seem to comprehend.
Six weeks of playing Army and what do I have to show for it? Some interesting experiences, a little more insight into the military, and a few hundred dollars. Not bad, but this is only the beginning.
id card mug shot
platoon motto
barracks
eddies bunk and locker
yes those are real m16s
Comments:
peahayes (July 13, 2008. 11:04pm)
Cool story!
kga245 (July 16, 2008. 01:39pm)
What no picture of the twins?
intrepideddie (July 17, 2008. 02:46am)
Yeah, I've got one, but it's the platoon photo and it's hard to see our faces. Crappy military photographer...