Introduction: Gavin

[Disinfertention]

Hi! My name is Gavin. I'm 17 years old and am currently a senior in high school.

I got a ranger contract a few weeks ago for 11x. I ship out on July 23, 2024. Physically, I still have a lot to improve on, but I believe I'm on track to meet the physical standards for RASP before shipping. I look forward to being a member of this site and learning everything I can from it!

Gavin, welcome to the site.

Please review the rules and write back to me the minor error in your post.

Congratulations on getting a Ranger contract. That is definitely a big hurdle and you've already gotten on the path. What are you doing to improve yourself? You have about 7 months to put your best self forward into OSUT and RASP. Did you do any sports? What's your strongest trait you will bring to OSUT/RASP that you think will make you successful? What do you think you need to work on?

[Disinfertention]

Try this direct link for the rules: viewtopic.php?t=47264

There are a few odd things that happen when clicking through the site. Some of them can be alleviated by going to armyranger.com/bb instead of accessing the forums from the main site.

Your run times are not far off from where you want to be. Between the months ahead and then getting into OSUT I know you'll improve a lot. Ranger fitness is complicated because you need high endurance but you cannot sacrifice strength either. I struggled with upper body strength but not running. I think generally speaking I'd rather struggle with running improvements instead of some the strength side but it's easy for me to say.

Running definitely can take quite a bit of time to improve if your body is more on the strength side of fitness and vice versa. I'd recommend looking into 10k programs as that distance will prep you well for the 5 mile time while not ruining much speed to keep your 2 mile quick as well.

In terms of balancing running and rucking I wouldn't ruck more than twice a week. Maybe just once a week. Rucking is hard on your body. Running 15-30 miles a week is tough on your body if you haven't been doing it. The last thing you want to do is injure yourself because you are trying to push all three at the same time - running, rucking, weight lifting. Some folks are just genetically gifted and can do that without much issue. Others, like me, you just need to listen to your body. The best candidate isn't always the one who can do 11min 2 mile, 30 minute 5 mile, and then wipes out on the ruck. It's a balance. Although as I said some people can crush all events. A lot of this journey is getting to know yourself.

When does wrestling season end?

[BlueLiner]

Gavin, welcome to Army Ranger.com, This website is a great resource for preparing to go to RASP, and for getting ready to join the military in general.

I see that you have already secured an Option 40 contract with 11x-ray. Your fitness scores are not passing right now, however you took a diagnostic so we have somewhere to improve from. Next time you take an RFT, make sure to include situps. The test should flow like this - pushups-situps-5 mile run-chinups. I remember when I was getting ready to ship out, I was worried about my physical training like you are. If you stay committed to a training regimen and take it seriously, then you will be fine.

So now, let's talk about your goal of becoming a Ranger. The Ranger Regiment is a very unique unit in the Special Operations world, mainly because it's members try out for it immediately after OSUT/AIT. This is a great thing because when you are young and invincible, you are impressionable. I have been in this organization now for over 4 years, and I will tell you that this experience has become a major foundation in my life. This is due to the exceptionally high calibre of Americans you will meet and serve with. The 75th Ranger Regiment serves as the example for the rest of the Army to follow, and once you get to Pre-RASP you will find out why that is.

Start reading through the Letters From School Thread, it is the best one on this site to see what is on your horizons. Also check out the Ranger History section, and the About Physical Training section.

Whenever you get a chance, I want you to re-take that RFT and post your scores here. Also I want you to start researching Airborne Rangers In The Sky, and choose one to learn about and tell us about him here. Finally, I want you to start learning the Ranger Creed, and to watch Ronald Reagan's D-Day speech about the Rangers at Pointe-Du-Hoc.

Again, welcome to the site. You will get what you put into this forum, I suggest you start reading. Best of luck and keep us posted,

NEVER NEVER QUIT!
RLTW!

[BlueLiner]

Gavin,

Good SITREP. Enjoy your Christmas and also keep in mind that you have plenty of time before you ship out! Don't try to cram all of your preparation into two months because you'll burn yourself out or increase risk of injury when training.

[BlueLiner]

Gavin, great SITREP save for your 5 mile time. I suggest you look into doing 60-120 interval sprints to help out with your cardio, and don't be afraid to go full afterburner on your runs when you are preparing. Ensure that you are stretching though because running at this level is tough on your joints, don't be like me and have fucked up knees 5 years down the road.

For your HRP's and situps, don't be content with your scores. You need to be getting 60+ on the HRP's and 90+ on situps to be competitive.

For your next taskings, I want you to explain what a GOTWA is, what the 3 types of north are, and what mental toughness is in your own words.

RLTW!

[BlueLiner]

Gavin, good SITREP. Now, let's dive into it.

You will run into GOTWA's at almost every point in your military career, no matter where you end up. GOTWA's are a standard taught at Ranger School, and you will most likely learn about them in RASP 1 as well. They are used for a main purpose of accountability. For example, if you and the homies are out doing patrol base activities, you need to have accountability of your guys if you are in a leadership position, and even if you are not it is still important to know where your element is at. GOTWA's act as a failsafe to ensure that no one leaves the formation/patrol unaccounted for. GOTWA's in daily action in the military you will see if you become a Team Leader. Again for example, if your dudes are going out to do whatever task, it would be a really good idea to know where they are at, and what they are doing. This goes back to accountability.

For the three types of north and land nav, this is a very important topic for the RASP 1. (you will be evaluated on land-navigation as a go or nogo event) Say for example you are out in the beautiful moon lit piney woods of Fort Moore, you shoot an azimuth with your compass that is the same azimuth that you drew on your map from your attack point to your objective point. This is where Grid North comes into play because of a thing called declination. Declination is the natural offset of degrees from your map's north perspective, versus you holding a compass and shooting an azimuth. In the bottom part of a map, you'll see a thing called the "G-M Angle" from this, there will be instructions to either add, or subtract your G-M Angle if you are converting a map azimuth to a compass azimuth, or vice versa. So if you did not factor the G-M angle when shooting your original azimuth as stated above, then you could be walking for 200m into the woods and be offset by god knows how far. Why? Because you needed to factor the G-M angle to get an accurate azimuth/degree reading.

On mental toughness, BCT/AIT/OSUT will give you a little taste of what it really means. When you get to RASP, you will find out what your limits are, and you will be tested on how you respond to stress and fatigue, plus a meriad of other things. Mental toughness is the driving factor that makes you run harder when you feel like you want to pass out, it's getting past what you perceive your limits are. It's getting smoked for 4 hours and not quitting because your buddies to the left and right of you won't quit either, and you don't want to let them down. It is showing up and putting forth 100% and then some effort into whatever task you do, living in accordance with the Ranger Creed written decades ago that was upheld for generations, and still is. YOU are the deciding factor when it comes to mental toughness, it is either you want it bad enough to get it, or you were just kidding yourself along the way.

With your training, Rangers are expected to pass the RFT Standards as I stated in my above posts. The standard for a 5 mile run is in 40 minutes or less. Anything below 34/33 minutes is considered a competitive score. You can still do long runs, but BE VERY CAREFUL TO NOT FUCK YOURSELF UP PRIOR TO SHIPPING TO BCT. YOU NEED TO BE AS HEALTHY AS POSSIBLE!!!! There is a RASP prep plan freely accessible on the interwebs if you want to try that, or look into it for guidance. (Google is your friend on this forum) I recommend that you have a stretching regimen with your training, as this will pay off in dividends. Also don't discount doing 60/120 sprint intervals, these are awesome for cardio. Make sure you are doing general calisthenics as well, don't worry about getting yoked.

For your next task, explain to us the following:

The 5 Principals of Patrolling

Operation Just Cause

Rogers Rangers and MAJ Rogers' Rules of Ranging, and how they tie into the Ranger Creed

Memorize the Ranger Creed, and apply it to your daily life

Hard work betrays none, NEVER NEVER QUIT!
RLTW!
-BL