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Overcoming obstacles
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| H&N photo by Megan Doyle Marine Corps recruits work through obstacles during the confidence course Tuesday at the Marine Corps Recruiting Depot in San Diego. |
Drills, exercises test Marine recruits
By MEGAN DOYLE
H&N Staff Writer
SAN DIEGO, Calif. — A horn sounded across the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in San Diego Tuesday, a signal it was too hot for new recruits to continue intensive exercises.
They haven’t acclimated themselves to the heat and humidity, said drill instructor Staff Sgt. Steven Scott.
A recruit’s training schedule is tight, and most of the time a recruit will continue with the next day’s schedule, unless a required element is missed, he said.
There are several required elements of training that a recruit must successfully complete.
“The warrior and main weapon of the future is a thinking individual on the battlefield,” said Col. Rick Huenefeld.
Recruits learn first aid, Marine Corps history, drill, how to maneuver in water and in combat scenarios with their gear.
Graduation requirements include combat water survival, rifle knowledge, a martial arts program, a practical exam, a physical fitness exam, the Crucible exercise and the Battalion Commander’s Inspection.
Recruits train in a large, heated pool in a humidity-controlled room. The controlled environment allows recruits to be in the water for about three hours at a time without suffering from hypothermia, said Gunnery Sgt. Chris Glocke.
Recruit Adam Wagner of West Bend, Wis., isn’t a strong swimmer, but he passed the required course and is looking forward to graduation Aug. 29. He is, however, worried about an upcoming required challenge – the Crucible.
The week before graduation, recruits must complete the Crucible, a two-day exercise where they practice the skills they have learned with little sleep and a hike up what is called the reaper.
Wagner said he talked with recruits who recently completed the Crucible. “They said, ‘Just take care of your feet,’” he said, noting many came back with blisters and sore feet.
At the end of the Crucible, the recruits will have an emblem ceremony, where they earn the title of Marine.
“In the third phase, they start to treat you like you’re a real Marine,” Wagner said.
After camp, they are required to go to the Marine Corps School of Infantry before being deployed. Typically, it takes at least eight months from when a recruit arrives at the training depot to when he or she is ready for deployment overseas or to war zones in Iraq or Afghanistan.
They haven’t acclimated themselves to the heat and humidity, said drill instructor Staff Sgt. Steven Scott.
A recruit’s training schedule is tight, and most of the time a recruit will continue with the next day’s schedule, unless a required element is missed, he said.
There are several required elements of training that a recruit must successfully complete.
“The warrior and main weapon of the future is a thinking individual on the battlefield,” said Col. Rick Huenefeld.
Recruits learn first aid, Marine Corps history, drill, how to maneuver in water and in combat scenarios with their gear.
Graduation requirements include combat water survival, rifle knowledge, a martial arts program, a practical exam, a physical fitness exam, the Crucible exercise and the Battalion Commander’s Inspection.
Recruits train in a large, heated pool in a humidity-controlled room. The controlled environment allows recruits to be in the water for about three hours at a time without suffering from hypothermia, said Gunnery Sgt. Chris Glocke.
Recruit Adam Wagner of West Bend, Wis., isn’t a strong swimmer, but he passed the required course and is looking forward to graduation Aug. 29. He is, however, worried about an upcoming required challenge – the Crucible.
The week before graduation, recruits must complete the Crucible, a two-day exercise where they practice the skills they have learned with little sleep and a hike up what is called the reaper.
Wagner said he talked with recruits who recently completed the Crucible. “They said, ‘Just take care of your feet,’” he said, noting many came back with blisters and sore feet.
At the end of the Crucible, the recruits will have an emblem ceremony, where they earn the title of Marine.
“In the third phase, they start to treat you like you’re a real Marine,” Wagner said.
After camp, they are required to go to the Marine Corps School of Infantry before being deployed. Typically, it takes at least eight months from when a recruit arrives at the training depot to when he or she is ready for deployment overseas or to war zones in Iraq or Afghanistan.
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Kevin wrote on Aug 7, 2008 6:21 PM: