someone surfaced before the end of the DSâs count we all went under again. This happened several times and I was really starting to get pissed off. Finally the main culprit drew on his last energy reserve and passed the 10-second test.
At last it was over. With water still draining from our clothes and equipment we made our way back across the bottom field to the accommodation totally exhausted and feeling very sorry for ourselves. But every man knew there was still work to be done before we could knock off for the dayâweapons as well as stores had to be cleaned and returned; weapons and webbing had to be completely free of mud and grime, as these items would be inspected and no-one wanted a repeat of that dayâs treatment. We ended up taking our gear into the showers with usâprobably not the best thing for the drainage system especially after youâve squashed the build-up of mud and grass down the drain with your toes, but that was the most efficient way to get our kit cleaned.
Finally, work done, we got to knock off; I canât remember what we did that weekend; probably slept for 48 hours straight, a great way to spend my 25th birthday.
On Monday there were a few empty places in the ranks and we were left with the guys who really wanted to be there. The DS reshuffled our three eight-man sections and appointed recruits as section commanders and 2ICs. Each section was then broken into two fire teams of four men, nominated Charlie and Delta fire teams. I was chosen to be a section commanderâa daunting thought as I had never been put in such a position of responsibility before. However, I remained in that position throughout our time at the training centre. It was now week five and we were looking at more weapons training, harder physical training sessions and longer field exercises over the coming weeks.
Week 10 saw the exercise Hunterâs Moon, a survival exercise that started with a 14-kilometre pack walk (yomp) into the training area on Dartmoor. The weather was dismal for the yomp in and everyone got soaked to the skin, but it cleared up in the following days. Early that morning we were searched and stripped of any luxuries then instructed how to make shelters from the natural material found in the surrounding environment and from the contents of our survival gear.
Once they were convinced we had taken all this in, they divided us up into fire teams and showed us to an area where we could begin building our own rudimentary shelters. We organised work parties to gather materials for the construction, and every hour or so stopped work for more lessons on finding and purifying water, making and preserving fire, signalling for help, hunting and trapping, and celestial navigation.
They showed us what we could eat and how to prepare it. To call it âfoodâ was a bit of a stretch. There were dried worms to be crushed and made into a soup, nettle tea and boiled snails. If Napoleon was right and an army marches on its stomach, you wouldnât get far on that menu. It might have been appetising back in the Dark Ages (if you were starving) but I prefer to forage for my tucker in a supermarket. However, we all had to take part in finding this âsurvival foodâ, make a fire to cook it, and then eat it.
Then came the rabbit. One of the corporals from the Mountain and Arctic Warfare training wing gave a demo on how to prepare a freshly caught rabbit. He showed us a very quick and clean way to kill the animal as humanely as possible but half the troop still managed to fuck it up. Some had three or four goes at it; some couldnât do it at all.
After a good feed of rabbit washed down with nettle tea, we got our gear ready for the nightâs activities, but first we checked the snares we had strategically placed to catch an unsuspecting rabbit as it ran under a fence or into some bushes. Empty! At night we conducted navigation to a rendezvous (RV), where we were met by one of
At last it was over. With water still draining from our clothes and equipment we made our way back across the bottom field to the accommodation totally exhausted and feeling very sorry for ourselves. But every man knew there was still work to be done before we could knock off for the dayâweapons as well as stores had to be cleaned and returned; weapons and webbing had to be completely free of mud and grime, as these items would be inspected and no-one wanted a repeat of that dayâs treatment. We ended up taking our gear into the showers with usâprobably not the best thing for the drainage system especially after youâve squashed the build-up of mud and grass down the drain with your toes, but that was the most efficient way to get our kit cleaned.
Finally, work done, we got to knock off; I canât remember what we did that weekend; probably slept for 48 hours straight, a great way to spend my 25th birthday.
On Monday there were a few empty places in the ranks and we were left with the guys who really wanted to be there. The DS reshuffled our three eight-man sections and appointed recruits as section commanders and 2ICs. Each section was then broken into two fire teams of four men, nominated Charlie and Delta fire teams. I was chosen to be a section commanderâa daunting thought as I had never been put in such a position of responsibility before. However, I remained in that position throughout our time at the training centre. It was now week five and we were looking at more weapons training, harder physical training sessions and longer field exercises over the coming weeks.
Week 10 saw the exercise Hunterâs Moon, a survival exercise that started with a 14-kilometre pack walk (yomp) into the training area on Dartmoor. The weather was dismal for the yomp in and everyone got soaked to the skin, but it cleared up in the following days. Early that morning we were searched and stripped of any luxuries then instructed how to make shelters from the natural material found in the surrounding environment and from the contents of our survival gear.
Once they were convinced we had taken all this in, they divided us up into fire teams and showed us to an area where we could begin building our own rudimentary shelters. We organised work parties to gather materials for the construction, and every hour or so stopped work for more lessons on finding and purifying water, making and preserving fire, signalling for help, hunting and trapping, and celestial navigation.
They showed us what we could eat and how to prepare it. To call it âfoodâ was a bit of a stretch. There were dried worms to be crushed and made into a soup, nettle tea and boiled snails. If Napoleon was right and an army marches on its stomach, you wouldnât get far on that menu. It might have been appetising back in the Dark Ages (if you were starving) but I prefer to forage for my tucker in a supermarket. However, we all had to take part in finding this âsurvival foodâ, make a fire to cook it, and then eat it.
Then came the rabbit. One of the corporals from the Mountain and Arctic Warfare training wing gave a demo on how to prepare a freshly caught rabbit. He showed us a very quick and clean way to kill the animal as humanely as possible but half the troop still managed to fuck it up. Some had three or four goes at it; some couldnât do it at all.
After a good feed of rabbit washed down with nettle tea, we got our gear ready for the nightâs activities, but first we checked the snares we had strategically placed to catch an unsuspecting rabbit as it ran under a fence or into some bushes. Empty! At night we conducted navigation to a rendezvous (RV), where we were met by one of
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