A Squid's Introduction

[AlaskaDude]

Served four years AD in the Navy as a Gunner's Mate. Did time on the USS Ross, a guided missile destroyer out of Norfolk. Did a deployment to Camp Lemonier with CJTF-HOA. Went to BUD/S and DOR'd. Got out in mid-September as an E-5 and now looking at joining the Army as an 11B. Would like an Option 40, but prior service is getting next to nothing from what I hear. I came to this site to soak up info. Thanks for having me.

[Ranger Andy]

Good luck on your Ranger mission! Don't take no for answer, if you want it bad enough, you'll find a way to hook with the Rangers...

[Baseplate]

Served four years AD in the Navy as a Gunner's Mate. Did time on the USS Ross, a guided missile destroyer out of Norfolk. Did a deployment to Camp Lemonier with CJTF-HOA. Went to BUD/S and DOR'd. Got out in mid-September as an E-5 and now looking at joining the Army as an 11B. Would like an Option 40, but prior service is getting next to nothing from what I hear. I came to this site to soak up info. Thanks for having me.

If you quit BUD/s what makes you think you won't quit RIP?

[AlaskaDude]

If you quit BUD/s what makes you think you won't quit RIP?

I was wondering when this question would come up. :) I honestly can't answer this. How do you explain to a group of guys who never quit their program why you quit the first one you chose and now you want to give theirs a shot? I had my reasons for leaving, although they aren't nearly as important now as they seemed then. I joined the Navy to be a SEAL. 3 1/2 years later I finally got the chance to go to BUD/S. 6 months from being separated I was out there getting kicked in the nuts every day. I thought I wanted to be out. I thought I wanted to be home and have a family and blah, blah, blah. I realize now that I don't. I started looking at my re-enlistment options and what I really wanted to do. I want to get a gun into the fight. I am proud to have served in the Navy and proud to have at least been to BUD/S and given it a shot. I am not proud of the fact that my four years of service were spent without really getting involved with what's going on in the world. After talking to a couple old Frogs about what I wanted out of another hitch and why I left BUD/S they both said that it sounded like I might find the Ranger Regiment to be a better program for me. I started doing research and looking into it and I think it's what I should have done four years ago.

[Baseplate]

If you quit BUD/s what makes you think you won't quit RIP?

I was wondering when this question would come up. :) I honestly can't answer this. How do you explain to a group of guys who never quit their program why you quit the first one you chose and now you want to give theirs a shot? I had my reasons for leaving, although they aren't nearly as important now as they seemed then. I joined the Navy to be a SEAL. 3 1/2 years later I finally got the chance to go to BUD/S. 6 months from being separated I was out there getting kicked in the nuts every day. I thought I wanted to be out. I thought I wanted to be home and have a family and blah, blah, blah. I realize now that I don't. I started looking at my re-enlistment options and what I really wanted to do. I want to get a gun into the fight. I am proud to have served in the Navy and proud to have at least been to BUD/S and given it a shot. I am not proud of the fact that my four years of service were spent without really getting involved with what's going on in the world. After talking to a couple old Frogs about what I wanted out of another hitch and why I left BUD/S they both said that it sounded like I might find the Ranger Regiment to be a better program for me. I started doing research and looking into it and I think it's what I should have done four years ago.

So you set a goal and after training and waiting for over 3 years you get you one shot and then you quit. Once a quitter always a quitter I say again If you quit BUD/s what makes you think you won't quit RIP?

[Earthpig]

Welcome. It's pretty hard to get an OPT40 with prior service. There's always SF, though. It's a long process, but we have guys on this site who've done it.

RLTW
EP

[AlaskaDude]

So you set a goal and after training and waiting for over 3 years you get you one shot and then you quit. Once a quitter always a quitter I say again If you quit BUD/s what makes you think you won't quit RIP?

Once a quitter always a quitter is a great line to throw out there, but it's false. The SEAL Teams have plenty of guys who have quit BUD/S, then later gone back and made it through. I'm willing to bet that there are Rangers, SF, PJ's and Recon Marines that have quit and then later gone back and made it. I set a goal as an 18 year-old kid that knew jack shit about the military besides what I'd read in books and seen in movies. After doing a lot of growing up during the first 3 1/2 years of my time and then getting the shot I thought I wanted, I realized it wasn't what I wanted. Knowing that that particular program wasn't in fact what I wanted should I have just done it anyways because I was already there? I don't think so. It was extremely difficult for me to quit and it still bothers me that I did so. I had my reasons. IMO, I am not going to explain this to your liking and that's fine. I'll do what I have to do and down the road your opinion of me as a quitter will change.

[Ranger Bill]

You will have a tough time getting to Regiment. If you can get Airborne, you might be able to find a slot for RIP when a bunch quit before they even get there. But you will have to be a PT stud and in the top percent of all your training. As was mentioned, check out SF. Good luck, squid, with luck meaning preparedness meeting opportunity. Go get yourself prepared and then make the opportunity happen.

[AlaskaDude]

You will have a tough time getting to Regiment. If you can get Airborne, you might be able to find a slot for RIP when a bunch quit before they even get there. But you will have to be a PT stud and in the top percent of all your training. As was mentioned, check out SF. Good luck, squid, with luck meaning preparedness meeting opportunity. Go get yourself prepared and then make the opportunity happen.

According to the Station Commander up here, I can MAYBE get 11B. Anything after that is out, to include Airborne. They want to save those slots for kids coming in off the street according to him.

[Earthpig]

According to the Station Commander up here, I can MAYBE get 11B. Anything after that is out, to include Airborne. They want to save those slots for kids coming in off the street according to him.

I have a very hard time believing what he told you...a very hard time. Getting the enlistment contract you want is like shopping for the right car. The car salesman wants to sell you the car that his boss wants off the lot....the one they're having a tough time getting rid of. He's going to tell you whatever he needs to and promise you the moon to get you to buy that car TODAY.

Bullshit. If that's not the car you want, don't buy it. If you want Airborne, don't sign anything less. OPT40 is a little harder. SF is there. One of our members (leatherneck) came on here several years ago as a combat seasoned Marine. He wanted to get an OPT40, and spent about a year chasing it. Never got it. He eventually looked at SF, and that's how he makes his living today. Since he's a Medic, it was a long trail for him, but he kicked butt and led the way....all the way to his Green Beret.

RLTW
EP

PS: We have some recruiter types here. Post your question in the Recruiting Forum, and hear it from them, if need be.

[AlaskaDude]

I had a hard time believing him as well. I know that the real contract negotiations happen at MEPS though, so I'll wait until then to really make it an issue. If they can't give me the right contract then I'll walk and figure something else out.

[PJ Rick]

[quote="AlaskaDude"][quote="Baseplate"]

The SEAL Teams have plenty of guys who have quit BUD/S, then later gone back and made it through. I'm willing to bet that there are Rangers, SF, PJ's and Recon Marines that have quit and then later gone back and made it.


Nope, once you quit the pipeline, you are out forever. PJ's don't deal with quitters.

[K.Ingraham]

One of two things can happen with you. The likelier, of course, is that you're a dreamer and will quit RIP. Home will always seem like the place to be when things really get miserable.
The other is that this monkey on your back and your willingness to overcome your shame will give you the fire in your belly for the rest of your life as you try to compensate, begining with being the RIP honor grad.

Nothing wrong with your prior service, someone has to be out there harrassing Chinese subs; or with being a straight 11B. There's good airborne outfits out there. You might also consider the Marines as well. Once you know that working in the dirt, rain and cold (especially when the targets return fire) are your thing, Force Recon is always looking for tigers.

Read more - anything you might ask about prior service enlistments is around the recruiting and other forums, it'll just take time.

You'll make your own luck.