DEPLOYED *w/ questions*

[Assassin554]

Rangers,

I am kind of in a hard place with making decisions right now. I am a SPC currently deployed to Southeast Afghanistan. I have a couple questions as far as me reenlisting for the 75th. (Mainly looking for advice.) Heres my delima:

I am a 21W(CARPENTRY AND MASONRY SPECIALIST), which is an over-streangth MOS. The Army is forcing me to reclass my MOS if I stay in. I have no problem with that. So I contacted 75recruit@soc.mil and was told:

To get a guranteed slot for RASP, I would have to reclass into a low density MOS because, 11b's are a dime a dozen trying to go to the 75th. I was fine with that. Anything to get me into the 75th. So the MOS I want to choose is 25C (RADIO OPERATOR - MAINTAINER). Now here is where my delima occurs. 75recruit@soc.mil won't answer my questions. I just get the same generic email, which isn't promising as far as reenlisting downrange with no real solid retention. (The retention I do have wont promise me anything as far as RASP. Just the reclass to 25C. I can't get ahold of the Ranger Retention because the DSN doesn't work for calling his number here, we have no IP or morale phones. And my emails back and fourth with him are about 4-6 days between, if I get an email at all.)

You will need to have your Retention NCO either Re-enlist you to Re-class to your desired MOS, or see if you can submit a 4187 to Re-class if you are outside your Re-enlistment window. Once you have completed everything and you have your ATTRS Paperwork, you will need to send me a copy of that paperwork so I can change your follow on assignment to RASP enroute to the Ranger Regiment.

I just get that generic message after I ask these questions:

Is there a minumum GT requirement?

If I reenlist, my school wont be till July 2011. (Because I'm deployed they won't give me a school during the deployment most likely, and 90 days stabilization when I get back) So will the 75th still need those low density MOS's than?

I don't want to take a gamble on reenlisting for something that the 75th may or may not need in a year.

And if you change my ATTRS will I have Airborne before RASP, or does that just work it self out?

So everything seems a little sketchy. It's not that I don't want to do this or that and I want what I want. It's just I don't want to reenlist for something and than a year from now the regiment closes its doors to the MOS I reenlisted for. Anyone kind of see what I'm saying? So what should I do? Should I just wait till I'm about done with this deployment? And reenlist than? But who knows what the fiscal year is going to bring as far as reenlisting..

So any advice would be a great help. No one else in my batallion is trying to do what I want to do, so I don't have anyone to fight this battle with.

Meanwhile I'll just be training as if I were going to RASP when I get back. I got a half marathon in July and I am feeling good about that.


P.S. - In NO WAY am I trying to disrespect the Ranger Retention in this thread. I'm sure that he gets a SHIT load of emails and someone asking for stuff a year out probably isn't priority. I just want to get my career on path.

[Bravo57]

Pick an OBJ and hit it.

[JohnDowland]

Regiment always needs good 13Fs, and it's a great job as well. Check into it.

[K.Ingraham]

No one is going to tell you what to do or how to, you have to step up as we did.
Here's my reply from last week when you first asked this question:

Welcome.
Whatever your MOS is, be the best possible soldier that you can be. You never know when or where your former skill set might be useful on a mission down the road somewhere.
Commo is important, we can't succeed without skilled operators. The wider the technical background you bring to Regiment, the better.

As for the risk of picking the wrong MOS, you assess that risk & decide if you want to run it. Assuming risk and assessing same is part of ranger lifestyle, this decision is where the road begins for you. No matter what, the odds of you making it all the way into our regiment are against you, "many are called, few are chosen". We believe that risk was worth it or we wouldn't be here. You decide: 3-4 more years in Big Army in a different MOS, or the best/hardest time of your life.

[Assassin554]

Rangers,

Roger that. I was just seeing what other people thought about it.

XRAY - As far as my retention, the only thing they will (and can) promise me is a slot for school. I wouldn't expect more. But I see what you mean. If it comes down to the wire, I will try to get a hold of my CSM through the proper channels and get this ATTRS thing squared away properly.

JohnDowland - I wish. The only MOS's he said I could get a definite spot in would be low density MOS's. 13F would be cool; I like the idea of reconnaissance and BOOM BOOM. The recruiter just said that they didn't need any more combat MOS's. What do you do as a 13F in the 75th? My battalion career counselor is/was a 13F and he said all it is, is looking at maps for the guns. He explained it to me as Eyes, Brains, and Muscle. Somehow I think a 13F does a little more than plot coords on maps. I have actually looked into the MOS because a lot of my old buddies from basic were 13B's and they said the MOS was pretty awesome.

K.Ingraham - I wasn't thinking about choose a right or wrong MOS. I just don't want to choose an MOS the regiment may or may not need in a year. So I was wondering if anyone has had this problem before. What they did. It sounds like my best bet is to train as if I were going to RASP at the end of my deployment, and just reenlist for whatever job the 75th needs then. April-May timeframe. I wasn't trying to be redundant in my posts, I was told to post this question in this forum so I adjusted fire.

Thank you for the help, any more advice is more than welcome.

[cams]

You're overthinking it bud. As Bravo57 said, pick an OBJ and hit it. Hard.

You keep twisting and turning those thoughts in your head you'll never make a decision out of plain not wanting to make a mistake.

You know what you want. Now go take it.