Yoga for Renewal with Adriene on Youtube. This was slower and different, with gate poses and opposing forces. It was good for glute activation.
Wednesday, Apr 7:
Back in CHS.
PT Test 6 with 48 pushups, 79 situps, 11.5 SC@60, 15 PP@60, 3 TGU@30 Left, 1:10 DH@30 using perpendicular hanging playground rings instead of a pullup bar. Did 2 easy miles with 30# in Ballistics to get to/from playground.
Did dry fire practice with dummy rounds.
Thursday, Apr 8:
PT Test 7, with 48 pushups, 84 situps, 13.5 SC@60, 18 PP@60, 3 TGU@30 (2R/1L), 2:00 DH@30 on monkey bars instead of pullup bars, with 2 miles to/from playground with 30# in Ballistics. I think the narrower diameter of the monkey bars is what made me able to go for so long on the dead hang.
Friday, Apr 9:
Evening 12 mile run at Park West and Laurel Hill County Park. I used to run along some of these same roads back when I was doing marathon training, so it brought back memories. 10:55 average pace.
I also picked some weeds as the sun set.
Saturday, Apr 10:
Picked more weeds in the morning.
Then went back to Park West Rec Center to do the HDT March Madness "Ankle Breaker" 20 min AMRAP with 2 rounds and 128 reps using the 30# ruck with Ballistics.
After that, I did the Jan 25th Ruck WOD, with 10 rounds of 10 curls and 10 burpees over ruck, in 20 min. The second half of the curls per set got ugly in the second half of the workout.
After that, I did 3 easy ruck miles at the county park trails. I tried the 210D-backed V3 with a tank top. I don't recommend it. Even on that short ruck, my skin was getting sloughed off. I don't know how people do it.
Sunday, Apr 11:
I did a Cooper River Bridge ruck. I made it into downtown, but the public bathroom that I normally use at the parking garage was locked, so I turned around and went back earlier than I had hoped for. I was wearing Salomons and rucking 30# in the V3.
Tuesday, April 13th:
Got my first shot! Harris Teeter FTW.
Bought a lot of cheese. Said goodbye to Opus for now, as I head back to CLT.
Thursday, Apr 15:
PT Test 8, cramming these in because so many are required over a 12 week period. 44 pushups, 75 situps, 11 SC@60, 15 PP@60, 3 TGU@30 Left, 1:35 DH@30.
Followed by lunchtime HDT ESTDFQ 30 min AMRAP with 40#SB with 2 rounds and 18 reps. I really needed to work out today after so many days off. The first dose of Moderna wasn't bad - my arm was sore, was all.
My cooldown was 100 ruck lunges in 10 min, 75 flutter kicks in 2.5 min, and ruck OH for 2.5 min with 30#, to fill out the time.
GORUCK COUNTER ACTIVE SHOOTER - PISTOL
We started off by filling some 60# SBs with sand from beside the creek, for use later that weekend. I didn't pass the initial Triple Bull Test, which weighed on me the rest of the event, knowing that I only had two chances left. It must've been great for those who did make it at the very beginning, since they could just enjoy the rest of the class and fully take in what they were learning.
It was AT and AW's first time at a GORUCK FAD event. We learned to avoid remanufactured ammo, for quality (and safety) purposes. They both did well and passed the initial qual.
My battle buddy ended up being an RO and competitive shooter, which was awesome. She was taking the class to learn other instructors' styles. It's cool to have a learning attitude, and to recognize that there are always different ways to approach things, and something new to always learn, no matter how experienced you are.
Chuy brought along a new Cadre named Dan. Apparently, he had been at the Savannah T/B, but SB and I had no recollection of him. He must be very good at being stealthy! During lunch, he gave us a lesson on first aid, with tourniquet practice.
We encountered more PT than usual at this event. As an example, one drill involved sitting at a table, then on "threat" start firing from the seated position. After that, you low crawl under the table and forward to an overturned table that you shot over, with your battle buddy. After that, you could move out from behind cover and shoot some more from the standing position.
There were three of us who had to retake the qual. I finally passed on the third attempt. It was a difficult experience, because I had more experience and practice under my belt but took several tries to pass. I had been practicing this exact drill. Normally, I'm right on the edge of passing (like 21/30), but I pass.
My biggest takeaway from the day was realizing how much I could let failure weigh on me.
GORUCK NIGHT FIRE - PISTOL
After CAS-Pistol ended, we transitioned into Night Fire. This evening's event would be pistol only, and would build on the skills we gained during CAS-Pistol.
We learned how to shoot with our handheld lights in our left hands with straight arm in the upper left position, while shooting one-handed with the strong hand. We also learned how to do it with the handheld lights at our chest. I preferred the former, because with the latter, my right hand would get in the way of the light, and the light would brightly hit my right hand and make the target less visible in comparison.
The importance of night fire is that bad guys can appear at any time (especially at night, because they like the cover of darkness). You need to be able to identify whether something that seems threatening is really a bad guy or a bystander or loved one before you decide how to respond. And if they are a bad guy, you need to learn how to effectively engage them in the dark.
SB and I stayed at a hotel afterwards. We could've camped onsite all weekend, but we wanted maximum rest between events, for optimal performance at quals and optimal ability to soak in and retain class content. It would also be easier to clean weapons indoors.
GORUCK COUNTER ACTIVE SHOOTER - RIFLE
We began by zeroing our rifles. I think it's a very good practice to do this at the start of each event. The packing list can say to come with a zeroed rifle, but if you had to travel with your gear, it may have gotten bumped along the way. Hopefully mounts and red dots are robust, but I don't know how robust they are.
This was more physical than the same class that I took in the past, too, and I loved it. It made the target engagement feel more realistic, because you have to fight to get into a position to shoot and heart rate is up by the time you shoot.
(low crawl)
(sandbag side toss)
(low crawl sandbag drag)
(coupon carry)
(shoot prone)
(shoot kneeling, then shoot standing)
Full Video:
During lunch, we had the opportunity to try a rope climb with full kit. That was cool.
We did another drill where we did clean and tosses, coupon ruck, clean and toss, rifle prone, pistol kneeling using handheld light.
GORUCK NIGHT FIRE - RIFLE (& PISTOL)
Night Fire - Rifle built on Counter Terror Rifle and Night Pistol. It is nice to be able to use WML's with rifle. Although my cable connections are finnicky.
We had an evolution where the cadres would shine lights at various targets, and when the light was shined on yours, it was time for you to hit it. You couldn't use your WML, in that case.
CAMPING
SB and I did want to try out camping onsite, so we did this on the last night, after we had completed all of the classes. There were several tents and one RV. There was a campfire that we all sat around and had s'mores over.
Sleep wasn't good because it was cold and itchy and pretty miserable, even with nice cots that SB had brought.
The sunrise in the morning made it worth it, though. SB cooked eggs, sausage, and bacon over a portable grill, too, and shared with everyone.
GORUCK SHOOTER COMP
With a $300 price tag for a 5K, pistol test, 10K, rifle test, with a low chance of passing for me, I opted not to sign up for the Shooter Competition on Sunday. SB and I did volunteer to help run it, though. It would give us a chance to learn more by observing others.
After a bit of warmup PT, the participants disassembled their weapons, so that they could reassemble for time later on. The buffer tube had to come out. No need to disassemble the BCG and bolt. Upper and lower had to be separate.
Then, we went on a 1.5 mile recon ruck that they'd be doing 2x for the 5K and 4x for the 10K, to understand which way to go. There ended up being a couple instances of missed turns by a couple of participants later on. The participants could go slick on this, but SB & I wore rucks for practice.
Then was the re-assembly test. This was all for points, based on the finishing sequence. It wasn't a must-pass evolution. They had 1 minute for the pistol. Then, after doing 15 HRPUs, they had 1 minute for the rifle. 3/9 weren't able to complete the rifle reassembly in time, but this was all for points, based on the finishing sequence. It wasn't a must-pass evolution.
They went on their 5K ruck, where they carried 1x10 and 4x5 per caliber, a TQ, and weight plate. In the middle of it, there was a rope climb with a memory test built in.
When they came back, they had a series of 3 variations of PT followed by shooting.
Squat Thrust Throw from 50m to 10m line with ruck and rifle, then remove rifle before shooting pistol. Do 25 squat thrusts on the line. Then load and make ready. Shoot 5 rounds then reload then shoot 5 rounds, all in 30s, which is plenty of time.
25 back squats next, with another 5 rounds, reload, 5 rounds, in 30s. This time, incorporate a 180* turn, though.
From 25m line, side tosses back to the 10m line. Load the 10-round mag while the SB is on your back. Draw and shoot without dropping the SB. Your choice on one-handed or two. 10 rounds in 30s, plenty of time.
The memory test quiz was next. Remember 10 items across 2 "rooms". They got a 10 minute break.
The 10K ruck was so difficult that nobody made the 15 min/mi time standard (with 30/45# ruck plus weapons and ammo). There was a TQ application test during this one. We had several drops during the 10K.
The ones who physically finished, even though it wasn't within the time standard, kept going to finish the evolutions (which had some of the PT taken out of the rifle shoot portion, because that would've been really hard on people who were already physically crushed, and safety is important when you're around weapons). They did one moving and shooting from the 25m line to the 10m line.
There were some bonus drills that they did at the end, too, like Bill Drill and El Pres.
I showed SB that she was capable of climbing a rope with the right technique, and she got it on her first try, which was exciting.
I was wondering if they'd really let a black class happen, and they did. The terrain was hilly and on trails. It was also the first warm day of the season. It had also been a very long weekend of shooting, so participants were probably fatigued.
It was good to get an idea of what kind of PT and rucking to train for. It was pretty strenuous.
I also walked away (barely) with 4 patches and some more good experience and skills under my belt.
