So APFT 5 was today, and the 3 days of rest did wonders for my scores. 49 push ups, 65 sit ups 15:01 2 mile run, for a total score of 221, I passed. No more PT tests for me. This means the only major obstacles left are FTX (starts on Saturday) and the Eagle Run, which is apparently not mandatory anymore, so I'm basically set to graduate baring any serious injuries.
Its crazy to think that in a week and a half we'll be going through the Eagle gates and receiving our crossed rifles. Less than a month now and I'll be home.
Niederhauser left his phone out to charge this morning, so our phones were taken. So much for keeping them.
Today and tomorrow are our phase 3 test days, making sure we know what we need to know to phase. We should officially hit Black Phase this week or during FTX, about time, Blue Phase has lasted almost 5 weeks now.
Gonna wrap this up here, gotta grab some sleep.
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Death and Destruciton from Above - October 14
So I know I promised to write about the movie, but really all that happened is we went to the PX and sucked down some Monsters and pizza, then caught a cab to main post, saw the movie and then came back. The movie itself was quite good, I'll definitely pick it up on DVD when I can.
Monday it was back on the ranges, Mabre 24, the same place we live fired the 60 mm from for our familiarization with the 120 mm, then we rucked 2 miles uphill to Mabre 25 where we made camp and prepped the rounds for the 81 mm night fire that night.
I was one of about 20 that actually got to fire before nearly back to back misfires of the Vietnam era rounds shut us down.
Tuesday was spent prepping the 81 mm HE and 120mm rounds to be fired, then waiting for COD to dispose of the misfire rounds for about 5 hours. Since I qualified Expert, I got to fire the 120mm which was a literal blast. To put it in perspective, an 81mm round weighs about 7 lbs. , a 120 round weighs about 35. Big boom. We had to fire them just under a mile away and we still heard the blast easily, the concussive force of the cannon firing could be felt from 35 meters away.
After all rounds were fired, we caught trans back to the bay to get ready for our 10 mile ruck in the morning.
If your wondering how long it takes to ruck 10 miles, the answer is about 4 hours. That may seem slow, but it's actually a fairly quick pace.
It was only 6 miles to our training location, so we took a nice 4 mile detour. The last mile of the march was pure hell, almost completely uphill and at a very steep grade. Once we finished, everyone was passing out. We ate chow then stood in the rain which had been pouring down all morning waiting for instructions, only to be told we were being pulled out due to flooding. On this ruck, I earned my nickname of Top Gun and got to carry the quidon from the chow point to trans, only a quarter mile but still. We've pretty much just cleaned the bay all day, though DS V gave us a class on squad tactics which we'll be using tomorrow. We were supposed to be in the field, but we're just gonna do a run in the woods here instead. By the way, we finally got Team Leaders. I am one of the two leaders for 1st squad, though whether we keep our spots depends on how we do tomorrow. I'll let you know how that goes when I get a chance.
DS V told us the long awaited Buddy Team Live Fire is on Saturday, we're looking forward to it. Also, we're apparently done with rudimentary, the only one left is FTX and is only 8 miles, possible even shorter depending on what site we're at.
Our final APFT is Monday, and if I pass that and the upcoming Eagle Run, I'm basically cleared to graduate baring any major illness or injury.
Mendoza from 3rd platoon is back, he went AWOL about 3 weeks ago because his 15 year old girlfriend was cheating on him. Apparently he tried to fight the guy (who is also 15) and lost big time so he came back to the Army. He's hanging around until they take him to jail.
8 days until 36 hour pass, everyone is excited. We are so close to the end.
Monday it was back on the ranges, Mabre 24, the same place we live fired the 60 mm from for our familiarization with the 120 mm, then we rucked 2 miles uphill to Mabre 25 where we made camp and prepped the rounds for the 81 mm night fire that night.
I was one of about 20 that actually got to fire before nearly back to back misfires of the Vietnam era rounds shut us down.
Tuesday was spent prepping the 81 mm HE and 120mm rounds to be fired, then waiting for COD to dispose of the misfire rounds for about 5 hours. Since I qualified Expert, I got to fire the 120mm which was a literal blast. To put it in perspective, an 81mm round weighs about 7 lbs. , a 120 round weighs about 35. Big boom. We had to fire them just under a mile away and we still heard the blast easily, the concussive force of the cannon firing could be felt from 35 meters away.
After all rounds were fired, we caught trans back to the bay to get ready for our 10 mile ruck in the morning.
If your wondering how long it takes to ruck 10 miles, the answer is about 4 hours. That may seem slow, but it's actually a fairly quick pace.
It was only 6 miles to our training location, so we took a nice 4 mile detour. The last mile of the march was pure hell, almost completely uphill and at a very steep grade. Once we finished, everyone was passing out. We ate chow then stood in the rain which had been pouring down all morning waiting for instructions, only to be told we were being pulled out due to flooding. On this ruck, I earned my nickname of Top Gun and got to carry the quidon from the chow point to trans, only a quarter mile but still. We've pretty much just cleaned the bay all day, though DS V gave us a class on squad tactics which we'll be using tomorrow. We were supposed to be in the field, but we're just gonna do a run in the woods here instead. By the way, we finally got Team Leaders. I am one of the two leaders for 1st squad, though whether we keep our spots depends on how we do tomorrow. I'll let you know how that goes when I get a chance.
DS V told us the long awaited Buddy Team Live Fire is on Saturday, we're looking forward to it. Also, we're apparently done with rudimentary, the only one left is FTX and is only 8 miles, possible even shorter depending on what site we're at.
Our final APFT is Monday, and if I pass that and the upcoming Eagle Run, I'm basically cleared to graduate baring any major illness or injury.
Mendoza from 3rd platoon is back, he went AWOL about 3 weeks ago because his 15 year old girlfriend was cheating on him. Apparently he tried to fight the guy (who is also 15) and lost big time so he came back to the Army. He's hanging around until they take him to jail.
8 days until 36 hour pass, everyone is excited. We are so close to the end.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
High Angle Hell Oct. 11
So I joined the right MOS apparently. I am the Mortar stud not just of 4th platoon, but of Alpha Company as a whole.
Mortar week was spent entirely in the field with Monday - Thursday spent learning the various tasks that we would be tested on on the gunner's exam.
Monday we spent the entire day learning about the 81mm mortar system and how to place it into action and care for it. My team, gun 17 averaged Expert time so we ended the day very confident about what we learned.
Tuesday was the most important day of our training as we learned how to do small and large deflections and elevation changes. Small deflections are very easy, in fact I set a company record of gun up in 6 seconds during a speed round, and the cadre who had done the demonstration got theirs up in 7. That 6 second time was due to a fluke though but I averaged about 14 seconds, with expert time being 20. Large deflections were a different story though, 95% of us couldn't even get the gun up in 75 seconds for standard 11c time, let alone the 55 seconds for expert, but our cadre reassured us we'd get better as we learned how to move the gun more effectively.
Wednesday involved lots and lots of running, with refer and realign aiming posts and reciprocal lay being canned. Refer and Realign includes basically shifting your aiming poles and the centering the gun and doing a large deflection back onto the poles. I won't go into the finer points. Reciprocal lay is a process I won't go into but ends with the guns all aiming the same way. Reciprocal lay is ridiculously easy, Expert time is 55 seconds, standard 11c time is 115 seconds and I averaged about 30 seconds.
Thursday marked our gunner's exam, the qualification we need to be designated 11cs, mortarmen. Hopes were high and nerves were jumpy as we lined up in out gun crews. I was nominated to go first since I'm the fastest gunner. A word about the gunner's exam first though, it consists of 5 events, small deflection, large deflection, refer and realign aiming posts, reciprocal lay, and place mortar into action. Gunners are graded on a point scale based on time, Expert time and under is always worth 10 points. You perform each event twice so the max score is 100, 70 to qualify and 90 for expert. You also got a practice attempt at each event, and could keep that time if you wish, but you had to take your next time as well.
The first small deflection went out. 23 seconds, 3 away from Expert. I didn't take it. Completed next two both in 19 seconds for a total of 20/90 needed for expert. Everyone was nervous about large deflections, especially after a 59 second first attempt, 1 second away from a no go. Obviously I dropped that time and attempted to shake it off. My next two times surprised even me, 20 and 25 seconds, both company records and well within 35 seconds Expert time. 40/90 points for Expert.
Refer and Realign Aiming Posts was completed with times of 45 seconds and 49 seconds, expert time was 55 seconds. 60/90 points. Reciprocal lay was more free expert points, as the time allotted is ridiculous, 55 seconds for Expert. My times were 30 seconds and 35 seconds. 80/90 points with one event left.
Placing the mortar into action was unique in that if you got Expert on the first attempt, you didn't need to do it again. It counted twice. 55s was Expert time, and led to nerves. I got 55 seconds exactly, for a grade total of 100/100, a perfect score, one of only 8 in the entire company of 218. Friday we live fired the 60mm and will live fire the 81mm and for Experts, the 120mm on Monday and Tuesday.
Saturday we had a company competition on the mortars, with the fastest gun team from each platoon wining a 5 hour Main Post pass to see a movie of their choice. Myself, Arvin, and Triplett were the winning team from 4th platoon and went to see Zombieland. More on that later though.
Mortar week was spent entirely in the field with Monday - Thursday spent learning the various tasks that we would be tested on on the gunner's exam.
Monday we spent the entire day learning about the 81mm mortar system and how to place it into action and care for it. My team, gun 17 averaged Expert time so we ended the day very confident about what we learned.
Tuesday was the most important day of our training as we learned how to do small and large deflections and elevation changes. Small deflections are very easy, in fact I set a company record of gun up in 6 seconds during a speed round, and the cadre who had done the demonstration got theirs up in 7. That 6 second time was due to a fluke though but I averaged about 14 seconds, with expert time being 20. Large deflections were a different story though, 95% of us couldn't even get the gun up in 75 seconds for standard 11c time, let alone the 55 seconds for expert, but our cadre reassured us we'd get better as we learned how to move the gun more effectively.
Wednesday involved lots and lots of running, with refer and realign aiming posts and reciprocal lay being canned. Refer and Realign includes basically shifting your aiming poles and the centering the gun and doing a large deflection back onto the poles. I won't go into the finer points. Reciprocal lay is a process I won't go into but ends with the guns all aiming the same way. Reciprocal lay is ridiculously easy, Expert time is 55 seconds, standard 11c time is 115 seconds and I averaged about 30 seconds.
Thursday marked our gunner's exam, the qualification we need to be designated 11cs, mortarmen. Hopes were high and nerves were jumpy as we lined up in out gun crews. I was nominated to go first since I'm the fastest gunner. A word about the gunner's exam first though, it consists of 5 events, small deflection, large deflection, refer and realign aiming posts, reciprocal lay, and place mortar into action. Gunners are graded on a point scale based on time, Expert time and under is always worth 10 points. You perform each event twice so the max score is 100, 70 to qualify and 90 for expert. You also got a practice attempt at each event, and could keep that time if you wish, but you had to take your next time as well.
The first small deflection went out. 23 seconds, 3 away from Expert. I didn't take it. Completed next two both in 19 seconds for a total of 20/90 needed for expert. Everyone was nervous about large deflections, especially after a 59 second first attempt, 1 second away from a no go. Obviously I dropped that time and attempted to shake it off. My next two times surprised even me, 20 and 25 seconds, both company records and well within 35 seconds Expert time. 40/90 points for Expert.
Refer and Realign Aiming Posts was completed with times of 45 seconds and 49 seconds, expert time was 55 seconds. 60/90 points. Reciprocal lay was more free expert points, as the time allotted is ridiculous, 55 seconds for Expert. My times were 30 seconds and 35 seconds. 80/90 points with one event left.
Placing the mortar into action was unique in that if you got Expert on the first attempt, you didn't need to do it again. It counted twice. 55s was Expert time, and led to nerves. I got 55 seconds exactly, for a grade total of 100/100, a perfect score, one of only 8 in the entire company of 218. Friday we live fired the 60mm and will live fire the 81mm and for Experts, the 120mm on Monday and Tuesday.
Saturday we had a company competition on the mortars, with the fastest gun team from each platoon wining a 5 hour Main Post pass to see a movie of their choice. Myself, Arvin, and Triplett were the winning team from 4th platoon and went to see Zombieland. More on that later though.
So Much to Update so little time Sept. 30
Yes, I know it's been awhile since last I wrote. Blue phase is very, very busy.
Last week was all ARM (advanced Rifle Marksmanship) training, which involves shooting while standing, turning and shooting, barricade fire from various positions and enjoying moving targets out to 300m from a barricade. We also underwent an experimental ARM qualification which was ridiculously easy. Also had a night fire exercise using targeting lasers and night vision. Cool stuff.
The next two weeks are all tactics, we're learning a lot very quickly and getting field time too. Monday and Tuesday were spent in the field learning technique for running in a buddy team from cover to cover while under fire. Involved a lot of running, stopping and dropping. Tiring but fun.
This morning our 8 mile ruck, which was ridiculously easy. I actually led the platoon back after the turnaround point. Also had platoon photos today.
Tomorrow its back to the field for 2 days, this time to learn fire team and squad tactics. Blanks and machine guns will also be incorporated, which will be much more fun than yelling "Bang, Bang, Bang" like last time.
Saturday we are apparently going back to 30th AG to be fitted for our dress uniforms.
Friday night we've got some concert thing we're going to, don't know anything about it thought yet.
Monday is PT test, and a big one since the grade to pass goes to 60% .
All I know about next week is it's more tactics, with a buddy team, live fire exercise, a 4 man team moving down a range from cover to cover shooting at targets with live ammo.
Will try to write again Friday night or Saturday, this is all I have time for now.
Last week was all ARM (advanced Rifle Marksmanship) training, which involves shooting while standing, turning and shooting, barricade fire from various positions and enjoying moving targets out to 300m from a barricade. We also underwent an experimental ARM qualification which was ridiculously easy. Also had a night fire exercise using targeting lasers and night vision. Cool stuff.
The next two weeks are all tactics, we're learning a lot very quickly and getting field time too. Monday and Tuesday were spent in the field learning technique for running in a buddy team from cover to cover while under fire. Involved a lot of running, stopping and dropping. Tiring but fun.
This morning our 8 mile ruck, which was ridiculously easy. I actually led the platoon back after the turnaround point. Also had platoon photos today.
Tomorrow its back to the field for 2 days, this time to learn fire team and squad tactics. Blanks and machine guns will also be incorporated, which will be much more fun than yelling "Bang, Bang, Bang" like last time.
Saturday we are apparently going back to 30th AG to be fitted for our dress uniforms.
Friday night we've got some concert thing we're going to, don't know anything about it thought yet.
Monday is PT test, and a big one since the grade to pass goes to 60% .
All I know about next week is it's more tactics, with a buddy team, live fire exercise, a 4 man team moving down a range from cover to cover shooting at targets with live ammo.
Will try to write again Friday night or Saturday, this is all I have time for now.
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