Rangers,
Ryan655 and I woke up at 0515 this morning to start the long-dreamed of last day of RIP: Graduation. I can't tell you how many times I told myself, "I've gotta make that final formation." And suddenly it was upon me. We ate MREs for breakfast.
It is good for DEP'ers to wonder whether they have what it takes to be a Ranger. It is OK to be scared of failing RIP - I certainly was ... all the way back into Basic training. When I volunteered myself for service I was physically unprepared for pretty much everything. My first PT test score was an abysmal 179. I knew that was bullshit, that I was capable of a LOT more with the right conditioning, so I poured myself into it. I sucked at pushups and struggled to do one pull-up when I got started. By the end of OSUT I could knock out ten dead-hang pull-ups, and I scored a 251 on my PT test. I still felt completely inadequate, and kept the pressure on myself over exodus and during Airborne. If I can make it, I know that any healthy red-blooded male with proper motivation can do the same. Don't believe any of the hype or "private talk" you'll hear once you're in training.
But if you suck at PT, for God's sake... GET SCARED, and GET STRONGER!
PT works every time it's tried.RIP is hard, but not impossible. Most everyone who failed did because they wanted something else more than they wanted to be a Ranger. You're always tempted to "make the bad man stop," or fall out and sit on your ass while everyone else is sucking, but you have to keep pressing on through the smoke to the daily training and ultimately to the tests and graduation. There are only a few times where you're like, "Goddamn! That was BAD!" ... the rest of the time it's just physically straining, and the time hacks and stress suck. We never did anything like "boot run until someone quits" or anything that I would consider "unfair." If anything, RIP is unfairly fair because you can re-test any required event, or recycle to a new class and fail, and then RE-TRY again. You get FOUR chances at every required event.
Still, being a first-time go at every station is greatly preferred. Wouldn't want to do Cole Range again... whew. IT SUCKED. Hitting the woodline didn't hold a candle to "hitting the pond." LORD I hated that damn cold muddy slog. But only a selfish bastard would really consider quitting (Cole Range or elsewhere) because you never suffer alone. To your left and right, every man there is pressing towards the same goal, getting the same ridiculous commands, and trying their best to satisfy them. They're all soaked, sore, freezing, pissed off, and exhausted. Do you want to volunteer yourself as the weakest, the least concerned with obedience? Right on. They can make it suck harder, but you can steel yourself and hang in, if you want it.
I'm with my dad now. He drove 14 hours to see his son don a tan beret and join the ranks of the US Army Airborne Rangers. I can't believe I made it. I feel a huge sense of accomplishment, even as my objectives and concerns shift to larger and more difficult challenges emerging ahead. I am happy!
And so, my Army career truly and finally begins.Thank you Rangers, especially Ranger EarthPig, for all of your support and encouragement. Your words continually returned to me over these last six months as whips to drive me on, and totems to mark my progress. Today's RIP class graduation is our shared achievement.
-cdwdirect
