After basic was fun. For the rest of the year I was stationed around the country and my most important thing was picking up girls. I can't get into much of that here but here is about my basic training.
I know there are a bunch of us here that were in the service, even you staterside guys must have some stories.
I was a smart A__ 19 year old kid tough guy from New York and I thought I was the coolest thing.
I got out of that in a few minutes.
The tough guys don't look tough with no hair and your big ears sticking out, especially when you all are wearing the same outfit that does not fit very well.
My first day of basic we were all loaded on a cattle truck made for about 20 cows, there were about 100 of us in there, my feet didn't even touch the floor. When we stopped and they threw us out, there were a dozen drill instructors in very good shape screaming in our faces so loud I thought they were going to eat us.
Don't forget, you don't know anyone and you are just out of high school.
They ran us all over the place and if someone dropped, we had to drag them.
After a while we stopped and lined up for more screaming. I started laughing a little because I thought this was rediculous and the drill Sargeant
saw me and draggged me out in front of everyone to ask me what was so funny. He said you must be one of those NY tough guys. Then he said "what do you tough guys in NY do? Climb walls?
I said" In NY we have elev
ators." That was the wrong answer and I had to run around the barracks all night. The rest of the guys got up at 4:00 am, I was still dragging myself around the barracks from the night before. I learned not to be a smart A__ after that.
A lot of guys say, I wouldnt take that. Yes you would because the drill Sgt's would beat the hell out of you and I don't care how big you are. They were all right back from Nam and not all warm and fuzzy. After they beat the hell out of you, you go to jail and peel potatoes and clean greese traps 19 hours a day. Jail time does not count as Army time and it extends your time in the service.
In basic we were never allowed to walk except Sunday morning. If you had to go ten feet, you had to run.
Every day was a class, either hand to hand combat, shooting, bayonettes, chamoflage etc.
You had to run to these places for the classes. The classes were placed farer away each day so by the last week in basic the rifle range was 22 miles away, guess how you got there, and back with a full pack, a rifle and boots?
Breakfast every day consisted of getting thrown out of bed at about 4:00 am, then fall out for inspection at 4:10. You had to make your bed, shower and shave in that time.
After inspection which you almost always invariable failed, you low crawled to breakfast through a 100' mud pit. It was just as it sounds, a stream of mud. The drill Sgts would run alongside and push your head down in the mud with their foot. If you did not have enough mud on your face, you did it again. Then you went through the parallel bars, push ups, jumping jacks and screaming. You then stood at attention until you ate. You had 3 minutes exactly to eat then it was time for exercize. After exercize you ran through a shower and started your day of training, what ever that was.
If after 8 weeks, you did not pass basic, you went to the Doon Platoon.
Those guys just ran all day carrying telephone polls. 4 guys to a poll. They did that until they lost enough weight to take Basic over again. Some guys did die and some got out on medical discharges.
I don't know how basic is now but I would like to.