Classroom Training Can Be Good

After a bunch of high-speed hands-on stuff during the last week, it was nice to have a whole day in the classroom. We spent the morning learning how to assemble and disassemble the Mk 19 40mm grenade machine gun (it's like having your own personal mortar platoon)...which we won't get to shoot because a range instructor got injured by it several rotations ago. After lunch we transitioned to the venerable .50 caliber machine gun, which has been in the Army inventory since the end of World War One. Our instructor said that while he wasn't around when the weapon was first introduced, he believed that it remained pretty much unchanged. The guys from my unit all piped up that I had been in the Army back then, and could substantiate the instructor's claim. After class, following a delicious dinner in the mess hall (no kidding, it was chicken cordon bleu, and pretty darn tasty after MRE cuisine), several of us headed out to the track for PT. On the spur of the moment, we decided to take our PT test which we'd scheduled for the 30th. (We have to complete a record PT test as part of our mobilization requirements.) Our unit OIC graded the test, and most of us (including yours truly) passed easily. It sure made a difference doing the 2.5 mile walk versus the 2 mile run. Guess I healed pretty well after the beating I took at the combatives class. By the way, I have to give big thumbs up to my cousin, who teaches combatives for a living, and does this stuff all day...I have even greater respect for her after those 4 brutal hours. (Kudos to you, Sheepdog!)