Rucking

Special Operations Forces Selection PT Preparation Week 5, Day 4

Wednesday is Hump Day of the week, so we’ll head to the gym for a back and shoulders workout and then head out for a 5-mile ruck march. Remember to stay hydrated while on the march and mark your progress in the workout log book.

UBRR Training:

More Preparation for the UBRR:

3 x 12 Lat Pulldowns, behind the neck (go as heavy as possible)

3 x 12 Seated Rows

3 x 10 Deadlift

3 x 10 Dumbbell Side Raises

3 x 10 Dumbbell Front Raises

3 x 10 Dumbbell Arnold Press

3 x 8 Shoulder Shrugs

5-mile Rucksack march (45-lb minimum) the standard is 75 minutes. You need to be aiming to do better than that.

Stretch well after completion

Rucking Review, Doing It the Right Way is Very Important

In our Selection preparation, we always stress the importance of Rucking and the value that all of the services put on it in the Special Operations community. The services will all stress the 45-pound minimum in training and one of the frequent questions we get is why train with 45-pounds when in reality the amount will be much more.

The 45-pound weight is considered the minimum, it is a baseline that everything is based on. That isn’t the ceiling but the floor. As we’ll get to in just a moment. Carrying a ruck is the basic mode of transportation that every Special Operations Forces trooper will have to master. In Selection, it isn’t just a physical test and yes you will be tested physically there, but a mental one. You’re going to get tired, hungry, sore and worn down. The rucksack is the vehicle by the cadre to see who has the intestinal fortitude to keep putting one foot in front of the other and drive on with the mission.

It is even more important in the Special Forces Selection and Assessment Course (SFAS). That 45-pounds as we said above is the floor. That is the baseline of weight before a candidate has to add his food and water. And then the cadre of SFAS have no shortage of events for the candidate to increase that weight exponentially each day.

So, if you aspiring SOF candidates are following along with physical training program, on Sunday (we always do a Sunday ruck, to pay homage to the SF gods) we had a five-mile ruck on the agenda and I, for one was looking forward to it.

We’ve had a pretty sustained heat wave with high humidity up here in the Northeast for quite a while now. On Saturday afternoon, massive thunderstorms ripped thru the area but in their aftermath brought crisp, cool air with an almost autumn feel with it. The air was dry and temps in the low ‘60s, perfect rucking weather.

So as I was trudging along in the dark at about 0520, I decided to take another route and extend the distance (arthritic knees and all) for about another mile and a half into my neighboring town. While trudging along I made some mental notes to pass along about the basics of rucking and ensuring that we all are doing the little things right.

Boots and Socks: Are we all wearing two pairs of socks, turned inside out so the stitching isn’t rubbing and causing hot spots? The inner sock should be one of those nylon or polypro socks to wick away the moisture from your feet and put on some foot powder as well to help with the same.

Your boots have to fit snugly but not too tight, especially in the heel and have them laced up to where they are comfortable enough without being too tight and cutting off your circulation. Are your second pair of boots broken in well enough?

Packing Your Ruck: During training or train up for Selection, you don’t need to have a bunch of gear in your ruck, just the prescribed amount of weight, in my case a sandbag in the radio pouch. Again, going over the basics here, the reason you want the sandbag up higher between your shoulder blades is that you don’t have the weight down low pulling on your lower back.

If you do decide to opt for a gear-laden ruck, follow the same guidelines, the heavier items go on the top and as close to the frame as possible. You don’t want heavier crap far away from your body. Why? It is a simple case of leverage. The next time you are in the gym, walk back and forth around the gym a few times with a heavy dumbbell pressed against your chest. Easy right? Now do it with those dumbbells extended away from your body.

It is a lesson that once learned will stick with you. Once during training, a friend tripped over an exposed root in the dark and twisted his knee up pretty good. We were going to walk him out to a road and have him exfiltrated to the hospital just to be on the safe side. In the dark, we divvied up his essential gear to be shared amongst the rest of us lucky souls. The boss asked me to carry his radio and I, of course, said sure. As I was helping the injured guy to his feet, the boss stuffed the radio in my ruck. We loaded up and moved out.

It took all of about a quarter mile to realize, in his haste, he stuffed it on the outside. A big mistake of mine for not checking. It felt like it weighed about three times the actual weight. If you doubt it, try it once and put the heavy stuff on the outside and feel it for yourself.

Have your Camelback system handy to where you can drink on the fly and not have to stop or fumble for it. In training, it isn’t a big deal but once you’re in the Selection Course it will matter a great deal.

Just as a force of habit, I still pack a basic survival kit, (photo) with stuff I’d need in the case of an emergency, which while rucking along a road or trail in town seems ludicrous but it is just a good habit to get in, and good habits die hard. Why do I carry an extra water bottle when I have a Camelback? Some of us, myself included, are weird when it comes to people drinking out of my Camelback. If I come across someone that needs a drink, I will gladly share and even give them my spare water bottle. But unless of a dire emergency, I don’t care for anyone else drinking out of my kit.

Stride Out Without Running: In your training prior to Selection, we stress always to go as fast as you can without running. It puts way too much stress on your knees and lower back and you don’t want to hurt yourself before you even arrive.

And of course, it goes without saying that when you are in the course and conducting a gated event such as a long-range movement that is timed, do what you have to do to pass. If you need to make up time, lightly jogging down any hills or the flat terrain will help get ahead of the power curve or makeup time if you were slowed down for any reason.

During your train up is the time to find your ideal pace. You know what the standards are, (15-minute mile pace), and of course, you want to better that each and every time you go out there. Once you find your optimum pace that you can say do a 12-miler for that is well within the time limits, keep that pace and use it as your baseline.

You won’t know the details of the distances during Selection and probably won’t know how far you’ve gone on the gated events there. That’s why having your pace down pat is so important. It is why we stress the leg training that we do in our PT program. It builds the strength and power to push you thru these ruck marches much easier.

A quick word about posture, while you don’t want to be bent over staring at the tops of your boots, (that won’t go over well in the course and is dangerous while rucking along the roads here), you’ll find that the best way is to bend slightly at the waist and lean forward as you ruck. On steep uphill climbs, you may want to lean forward even more so. It is all a personal choice there.

So strap on your ruck, ensure the waist belt is secure and snug and get to it. This week as I mentioned I changed my route and rucked along the road in a neighboring town. I guess I looked like a sketchy MFer to the local gendarmes and they drove past me slowly a few times. Either that or they wanted my walking stick.

Ah well, it is all good. Ruck on and if you have any questions, shoot them my way and I’ll be happy to answer them.

Photos: US Army, author

Special Operations Forces Selection PT Preparation Week 5, Day 1

We’ll kick off things today with our Sunday morning rucksack march. A warmup of pushups and planks followed by a fast-paced 5-mile ruck march with a 45-pound minimum to start the day right. The ability to carry a rucksack is of paramount importance in Special Operations.

Remember to stay hydrated throughout the ruck and to ensure that you have at least two pairs of boots broken in for the course. So, wear pair #2 today.

UBRR Training:

Warm up

2 x 20 Pushups

2 x 20 Side Planks

5-mile rucksack march over varied terrain. 75 Minutes maximum. Try to keep your pace better than the standard. And mark your times in your workout log book.

Stretch well after completion

Special Operations Forces Selection PT Preparation Week 4, Day 5

Thursday is another UBRR training day followed by a 4-mile rucksack march. Are you keeping a log of your times on your runs and rucks? You should keep track of your workouts and especially your times on the runs and rucks. You should notice a marked improvement as we progress. Ensure you stay hydrated as well as break in the second pair of boots.

Training:

More Preparation for the UBRR:

3 x 20 pushups

3 x 20 sit-ups

3 x 20 crunches

3 x 20 dips or until muscle failure

3 x 20 side planks

4-mile rucksack march (45-pound minimum, 60 minutes maximum) over varied terrain, note your time

Stretch well after completion

Rucking 22 Miles in a Snap, The Green Beret Way

Here at SpecialOperations.com, we try to give our younger readers who desire to be members of the Special Operations brotherhood the tools to be able to navigate the rigors of the Selection courses and then follow on with their qualification courses.

In our articles, we tell our prospective candidates to do everything the right way and don’t break the rules. Well, today’s story isn’t about breaking the rules per se, but we definitely bent them just a little bit to our advantage. Just one of the little tricks of the trade that you can get away with when you’re in one of the units down the road.

First, a little background. Back in the late 80’s -early 90’s somebody at SOCOM had a wonderful idea (insert sarcasm emoji here). Before Special Forces A-Teams could deploy, they would have to “recertify” that they knew their jobs well enough. There would be days filled with basic tasks, and each night a long-range ruck march. There would be a training mission thrown in followed by one more long range (22 miles) ruck march to finish things off.

This particular time was a difficult one for members of 3/7 SFG. The 3rd Battalion which had been stationed in Panama for a long time was being redeployed back to Ft. Bragg, minus Charlie Co. which would remain. There wasn’t even a home for us there. While the powers that be were trying to scrape together a dilapidated World War II shithole for us to live in, we were sent to the Old Delta Compound, which was the Ft. Bragg Stockade in years past. For us leaving Panama, going to the Stockade seemed apt since no one wanted to go back to Bragg.

Our team had just lost our Team Sergeant, Joe P. who died in a car crash on his way to see his parents in NYC just days after getting back. A good friend of ours had lost his leg and was in the hospital in Womack Army Hospital. Joe had been working his tail off getting everything settled in back at Bragg and was taking a 4-day pass. I saw him the night before at the hospital visiting our friend and he looked exhausted. I asked if he’d be ok to drive early the next morning and he said he’d be fine…RIP brother.

Our Team Leader was already cleared because he was going to a school but he did most of the Recertification with us anyway…that’s just the kind of guy he was. So we’re doing this wonderful Recertification and we’re back at wonderful Ft. Bragg and morale is sky high. Many of the teams were bitching that the Battalion had just finished “Operation Just Cause” and the follow-on “Operation Promote Liberty” in Panama and now we have to certify that we know our jobs?

But we drove on with the program… that is what SF guys do and the Group SGM on the second night’s ruck march was offering his usual encouragement by checking everyone’s belt they were wearing under their BDU shirt to ensure no one was wearing that unauthorized A-7A strap, that now is issued to the troops… That’s leadership. (where the hell is that sarcasm emoji?)

So our Battalion Commander who had come over from Delta is giving us our briefing for how things will go and he mentioned the final long-range ruck…twice in his remarks. It was to be a 22-miler back to Ft. Bragg. In his briefing, he twice mentioned that it was a non-tactical road march along the boundary road (Plank) back to the base.

The second time he said “non-tactical” my senior commo man Luis Z. looked at me and smiled and raised his eyebrows twice so I knew he had a plan in mind. So, as soon as it was done, I asked Luis what was up. He’d obviously already spoken to the rest of the team as they all looked at me like, “Are you going to be a team guy or just another ahole officer?” I laughed and said, “Why not?”

The teams would be sent out 5-10 minutes apart, our team would be the third team out and our plan was this. We were going to go all out right off the bat, setting a murderous pace to try to catch and pass the two teams in front of us. So then we knew our times would be well ahead of the other teams. Our Team Leader who was on leave would have a truck at the halfway point (11 miles) with dry clothes, Gatorade, cool water and fresh fruit.

We’d then take a quick break, change into dry clothes and socks, get a quick refresh and drive on again to the finish. The kicker was the music….Music? On a 22-mile road march? Our commo man Luis had a boombox in his rucksack. Once we got ahead of the first team out, he would pull out the boombox and strap it to the top of his rucksack and start blasting AC-DC, Metallica and the like.

Our team had one of the best ruckers in the Battalion in Ed Y. A full-blooded Navajo, Ed’s normal gait was a trot to the rest of us. We set out and he set a blistering pace. Before long we caught and passed the second team out, who derisively talked crap to us that we’d burn out and they’d see us again soon.

It wasn’t long before we could see the first team in the far distance, Ed picked up the pace on a long downhill slope to almost a jog and we then passed the first team out. So now our time was about 30 minutes faster than theirs. Time for the music… Without stopping, we continued on and two other guys helped Luis get the huge silver boombox out of his ruck and strap it down on the top of it.

They cranked the volume all the way up, the first song was Ozzy with “Crazy Train”. As soon as Ozzy yelled, “All Aboard…hahahaha” the sound was incredibly loud on the otherwise deserted Plank Road, we all cracked up. The team that we had passed was far behind us but could hear it and we heard a few of them yelling.

The miles melted away. Sure enough at the midway point was our support truck. Everyone did a quick change into dry clothes and had a drink. The Gatorade and sliced oranges were awesome. In five minutes or so we were all ready to go. It was then that our team leader told us we weren’t at the halfway point or the 11-mile mark but at 12 so we had just 10 to go. There was still plenty of water, Gatorade and oranges left so he said, he’d remain there for the follow-on teams until it was all gone. Like I said, he is a good man.

The miles flew by and we eased the pace down to a dull roar after that. But the music was a difference maker. Instead of hearing just the squeaking of those damned ALICE packs and the shuffle of boots, we were a motivated bunch. About ½ mile from the finish point, which we could see in the distance, it was time to shut off the music and pack it away again. That was the longest stretch of the night.

We were the first team to finish by about 18-20 minutes and our team had by far the fastest time that night. At the finish point, the Bn Commander came over to tell us “well done and whatever other motivational stuff that LTCs say at that time. I don’t recall. The Adjutant knew what was up and had a big shit-eating grin on his face.

He winked at several of the guys as he followed the colonel back over to where the staff was. The Bn SGM, a very good man, unlike the Group CSM, came over and said, “What’s up Cacique?”, which is Spanish for Chief. He too must have heard what was up, he went over to Luis’ ruck and picked it up, “Carrying a little extra weight in there?” We all laughed. He didn’t say another word and shrugged and walked on.

Of course, somebody complained, especially about our support truck at the halfway point with water, fruit, and Gatorade. But our Company Commander, Mike B. wasn’t having any of it. “No one complained when they stopped for a drink too, just suck it up.” And as Mike pointed out, the Bn Cdr said twice, it was a non-tactical movement.

The music angle didn’t hit the head shed for about a day. I was at the Bn HQs talking to the Adjutant when the Bn Cdr stopped me. “Hey, were you guys playing music during the 22-miler,” he asked? Thinking quick, I said, “I’m a terrible singer, I sing really loudly but off-key,” I said. “I figured if my Sinatra couldn’t get the boys to move fast then nothing could.”

And I added…ever the smartass, “Since we were “non-tactical” I didn’t think it would matter to anyone.”

There were about 5 seconds of stony silence. The old man finally said, “uh-huh.” and that was the end of it. The Adjutant looked like he was going to turn purple trying not to laugh.

So the moral of the story to our prospective Special Operations candidates is to always, always follow the rules, especially while in the course. But also, listen very carefully to instructions. And then follow them to the letter as well.

So, who is up for a quick 20-miler this morning?

Photo: US Army

Learn to Ruck Like a Pro Before You Get to Selection

Our focus here at SpecialOperations.com lately is getting back to the basics. For our readers who are attempting to become part of our Special Operations Forces, of course after volunteering, the first obstacle in your path is passing Selection. And the biggest key to that is being properly prepared to do so.

We went back and recently posted a series of articles on Land Navigation where we called it a 101 type of course and got to the Nuts and Bolts, starting with the basic skills that every Special Operations trooper should possess and went from there. Now we’ll do the same thing with the art of rucking.

And make no mistake, carrying a heavy rucksack like all SOF troops do has an art to it. And we’re going to start from scratch here as well. When we get questions via email or social media, when it comes to Selection, the vast majority have to do with either Land Navigation or rucking. And like any other skill that you possess now or will possess in the near future, it requires practice and preparation.

Ask 100 veterans from Special Operations units a series of questions and you’ll likely receive 100 different answers. That is because there are many ways to skin a cat. What we ’ll post here are some tips that, based on our experience, that we feel will be of good value to you if you are getting ready to go thru Selection. I don’t claim to be a know it all, but after many years in SF, as well as a cadre member in Selection, what we’ll share here are some techniques that worked for me and should work for you as well.

So let’s take a look at some rucksacking basics, Rucking 101:

Packing and Strapping: In preparing for Selection we base everything off of the 45-pound weight. Why is that you ask? Is the amount of weight we’ll carry much more than that? And the answer to that is yes you will. But in Selection, the magic number is 45-pounds. Everything you do with a ruck begins at 45 pounds before food and water are added.

In your train up for selection, it doesn’t matter if you decide to use a sandbag, weights, or you basic kit so long as the ruck is the prescribed weight. We opt for rucking with just a sandbag as it is easy to fill up a sandbag with the weight that you’ll require and add in just the things that you’ll need, which isn’t much for rucking PT. It takes all the variables out of the equation. But as long as the weight is within the limit, it really doesn’t matter as we’re just trying to get used to lugging the weight.

While we’re on the subject of weight, here’s a very useful tip. As we said above, in Selection the magic number is 45-pounds. In your training to get ready for Selection, don’t go much higher than that number unless you are a very experienced rucker. Why? Because carrying that weight is something you have to train for gradually. You can’t just begin on Day 1 lugging 85-90 pounds around when your body isn’t used to it without experiencing injuries and setbacks.

Follow our daily PT program and work up to things gradually. We had one class at SFAS where a candidate barely made the time limit on one of the first ruck marches for time, coming in right before the clock struck zero, so to speak. So, as soon as the last student was in, we had the candidates take their rucks over to be weighed. Yes, there will be checks after every event and reminder to all of you that you are always being evaluated.

The one candidate’s ruck weighed in the mid-80s. When asked if he didn’t understand the directions given to him, he stated he did. Okay then. If you want to carry 85 while the rest of the class is carrying 45, you go then. By the way, there are no extra credit points given.

The weight should be packed up high between the shoulder blades. If your ruck has radio pouch up high, that is where the sandbag or weight plates belong. I prefer sandbags because it will mold to your pack and back and doesn’t have any sharp edges that can rub you on a long distance rucksack march.

I recommend using the waist strap on your rucksack, that way, the weight rides on your hips and you can loosen your shoulder straps a tad so that the weight isn’t all on them. But it is a personal decision and will sometimes depend on the situation, on your train up you can try both ways to see what works better.

If you’d rather take the guesswork out of it, the company GORUCK sell weight plates that will fit in your ruck and are molded so that they’ll be comfortable on your back as well. Check out their line of products, they offer not only plates, sandbags as well as a really top end line of different rucksacks that you can use for training, backpacking or just the day hike.

Boots: We have covered boots in the past in several articles and will touch on them again soon. Once you are in Special Operations units as a qualified member, you’ll probably have the choice of what to wear from either the military issue or the aftermarket which has a tremendous variety. I have several pairs that I take on hikes depending upon the conditions. The vast majority of the time I wear either the Merrell MOAB or their “Sawtooth” boots which are now out of production. In the kind of rough rocky terrain, you’ll find in many places, especially Afghanistan, a boot like that works extremely well. But I digress.

For your purposes, in Selection, those choices will not be open to you. You’ll have to wear what Uncle Sam issues. And we’ll leave this here but you’ll hear this hundreds of times on our pages. Have two pairs of boots broken in and ready to go that fit like a glove when you get to Selection. Your feet will get wet there. Bank on it. Change your boots out daily and allow them to dry out thoroughly. Selection is the wrong time to be breaking in the second pair of boots.

Increasing Your Speed: This is something that will come gradually and I’ve also stated before and trust me you’ll get tired of hearing it. When it comes to increasing speed, I don’t recommend that you run with a rucksack on your back during your train up phase. It puts an incredible amount of stress on your knees and back. There will be times on steep downhill, you can pick up a shuffle for a few steps but as for running a distance with a rucksack while prepping for selection…DON’T DO IT.

There are exceptions to the rule. In an earlier article, I wrote, “They’ll be times in your selection course or the qualification course that you’ll have to make up time or want to pick your pace, especially on the downhill slopes. At those times, you’re going to have to do what you must,”

However, it is imperative that you learn to increase your speed without running. Lengthen out your stride and generate power with your legs and your speed will come naturally without resorting to running. But in the course…do what you must in order to pass.

The standard in all of Special OperationForces isis a 15-minute mile pace. However, that is the absolute minimum. You should be aiming to go a lot lower than that. My pace today on my rucks around here is a bit slower due to the rocky terrain in the area and the steeper hills, which you won’t find a lot of during the selection courses in the US.

Water and hydration is very important and as a Selection candidate, keeping hydrated on the march should be a no-brainer. I use and you should as well a Camelbak system, I got mine courtesy of Sofrep’s Crate Club. If you’re looking for some great gear every month, check out the Crate Club. My “go-bag” ruck is rapidly becoming filled with the new stuff they put out every month.

A very common question we get is this: Is it a good idea to incorporate rucking with Land Navigation? Absolutely! In your training for selection, getting used to rucking where ever you go is great practice. It will build up your endurance while getting you used to carrying your ruck everywhere. And you will be carrying a rucksack while you do Land Nav…so there’s that.

While you are training for Selection, you’ll frequently be on your own unless you have a training partner and I’d highly recommend carrying a walking stick. In the areas I frequent, especially early in the morning before the sun rises, there are more than a few animals out there that have tested the waters. The stick is just a really good deterrent, plus it will keep you in practice of carrying a weapon.

If anyone else has any questions, feel free to send them along to [email protected] or at my Twitter page @SteveB7SFG and I’ll be glad to answer them and we may use it in our next training piece.

Photo courtesy of US Army

Special Operations Forces Selection PT Preparation Week 4, Day 3

We’ll continue to prep for the UBRR. Tuesday is Leg Day at the gym. We’ll begin with pull-ups, the hit the legs with squats, the sled push, and some other exercises. We’ll finish things off with a three-mile run at a good pace, faster than the standard.

Focus on strict form during the squats, you don’t want to hurt your back or knees in doing these. I like to super-set the Sit-ups and crunches but you can do them as you please. Stretch well and make sure you stay hydrated.

UBRR Training:

3 x Pullups 10 reps

3 x Front Squat 20-15-12 reps (lighter weight)

3 x 10 Deadlifts

3 x 10 Leg Extensions

3 x 10 Sled push heavier weight or Fireman’s carry

3 x 10 reps Dumbbell Lunges

3 x 20 Sit-ups

3 x 25 Crunches

3-mile run (24-minutes maximum)

Stretch well after completion

Special Operations Forces Selection PT Preparation Week 4, Day 1

Best way to start our Sunday before the sun comes up is our Sunday Ruck March. Grab your training partner (for me my Bulldog) and hit the trail. A little warm-up and a good long rucksack march. As always be sure to stay hydrated during the ruck march. It should be a habit that will carry over to Selection and training afterward.

Becoming dehydrated during a long training event such as a ruck march or long-range movement is a guarantee for bigger problems and failure, keep sipping on the water during the march.

Training:

Warm up

2 x 20 Pushups

2 x 20 Sit-ups

8-mile rucksack march (2 hours/120 minutes maximum) over varied terrain. Try to keep your pace better than the standard (15 minutes per mile). And mark your times in your workout log book.

Stretch well after completion

Land Navigation Tips: Do’s and Don’ts For Passing Selection

We’ve been going hard at Land Navigation for the past week or so with a refresher 101-type, of course, to get everyone on the same level playing field. We started we a basic map reading piece and moved on to the necessary basic skills every candidate should be familiar with before arriving.

The key to getting selected in one of the Special Operations Forces’ courses is to be properly prepared and keep a cool head during times of stress. It is certainly so with Land Navigation. Many of the students who fail to pass the Land Nav test did so because they didn’t prepare properly or didn’t think things thru. Occasionally both.

Like most of the challenges you’ll find in Selection, they are more mental than physical despite what you’ll hear from candidates who have gone thru the course.

So as a final primer for our Land Navigation refresher, we’ll put out some final reminders to all the candidates as a not-so-gentle reminder of what to do and just as importantly NOT to do on the navigation course. Some of these you’ve already heard in our earlier posts (foot stomp), they’re important which is why we’ll repeat them again and again.

So, here are our tips for getting a go at Land Navigation in Selection:

Soak up everything that the cadre put out in classes and briefings. They are out there all the time and know the area like the back of their hand. They won’t be trying to make it easy on you, but they won’t tell you anything to lead you astray either. And, (believe it or not, I’ve heard this one before), they will never try to tell you anything to make you fail. The cadre out there are professionals. They want people to pass. The right people,… good people.
Take advantage of all the Land Nav practice sessions out there. Some candidates are afraid of burning themselves out during the practice navigation sessions, that they purposely underachieve to “save it” for the test. Big mistake. Use every second of every practice to learn as much as you can about the course. Because you’ll run the same area for the test. Not the same lanes but you’ll be running on the same map sheet area. If you go to sleep during a practice night navigation. You’re going to get caught and you’ll be a very unhappy camper after the cadre find you.
Find the motivated candidates from the class and talk AFTER the day’s events are over. Don’t get caught talking during practice or the exam because you’ll get bounced. But discuss what you found, and share your experiences and any helpful tips where you can disseminate any possible trouble areas as well. That is allowable and encouraged, as long as it is after the event is over for the day.
Red lens flashlights only. Remember, you’re always being evaluated and the cadre WILL be out there and if you violate any of the rules, they WILL catch you
When you find yourself in one of those rare moments of non-restrictive terrain where the walking is easier, take advantage of it! Use your compass, pick out a spot as far in the distance as you can and move out quickly.
Avoid crossing the draws if you can, especially at night. But if you must cross one using a combination of speed and care. Check your compass every 20-25 paces as it is easy to get turned around in those things. Don’t just blunder thru it like a bull in a china shop. Remember, there have been a ton of students out there if you see a well-worn path that cuts across a draw, it probably means that the students before you have found the path of least resistance across the draw and I’d take advantage of that. Sometimes taking an extra minute or two to properly recon the area will save you tenfold or more the time.
During Selection, an SFAS cadre member will be at the points to check you in and give you the next point on the course, but occasionally you’ll come upon those green Engineer stakes with a tag on them. They’re land navigation points for the SFQC. Take the time, stop, and use the eight-digit grid on them to help you pinpoint your location. That is just like having a built-in GPS on the course. Those are placed in exactly where they’re supposed to be and they’re a great tool to use. Especially if you’re getting close to your point, if you come across one within 200-300m from your point, you now have a perfect attack point.
As we mentioned, use a page from your notebook or an index card to make notes on without writing too much on your map sheet. Make any notations afterward just in case you return on a later date.
Embrace the darkness and night navigation. The majority of your work will be at night, don’t let it get to you and become a master at moving at night.
Trust your map, pace count, and your azimuth as you move out on the course. And never let doubt creep into your mind. Your map and compass aren’t going to lie to you on the course.
Your training and keeping a cool head will get you thru this. Thousands of SOF guys before you have done this and you can too. You will get tired and beat up on the course. That is what it was designed to do. Rise above it and keep driving on.
Don’t forget to use handrails and corridors such as roads and such while moving out. Just don’t get too close to them. If you hit one, then you know you’ve veered too far and need to backtrack.
Plan multiple checkpoints en route to your points. The more the better to validate your location at all times.

And finally, here are some of the names of places on the map, some are named, some given their names from the cadre or candidates. You will know all of these by the time you’re done out there.

Five Points

Puppy Palace

Lake Baggett

Bones Fork Creek

3 Wire Road

Jurassic Park

Scuba Road

Dagobah (The north area…brilliant.)

One last thing, ensure everything is tied down and before you leave any stop, point or checkpoint, that you double check that you have all of your kit and equipment. Don’t ever quit and avoid “Ned the Navigator”, every class has one.

Good luck…and hopefully the day after Land Navigation is done, you’ll be standing in formation with your entire class intact. DOL

Photo: DOD

Night Land Navigation During Selection: “Hello Darkness My Old Friend”

Land Navigation in Selection is a very big obstacle to overcome. To help prepare the candidates for our Special Operations Forces we’ve gotten back to the basics and gone over the various skills that start at square one and gone from there. Now that we’re all on the same sheet of music, so to speak, it is time to take on everything you’ve learned and put it to the test. And the best, most difficult test will be navigating during the hours of darkness.

Some of the questions and/or comments we’ve gotten have to do with night land navigation. And navigating at night is by far the most difficult aspect of navigation. Be prepared to be tested to the max during the night as everything intensifies. Your range of vision will be extremely limited so you’ll have to rely on everything you’ve learned up to this point.

So, we’ll touch on a few highlighted skills that we’ve gone over previously that each candidate will have to know to get over the hump in night navigation. Much of what I’ll mention here has to do with the course in Hoffman, NC at SFAS but the location is secondary. These tips are geared for any Land Navigation course that you’ll attend.

As we’ve said here many, many times, this isn’t something that is impossible to pass. Thousands of Special Operations troops before you have done so and many more thousands will pass after you. Speaking from experience, I passed the Star Course as a candidate and had to do it again before working as a cadre member at SFAS and went thru a class with the candidates as a fully qualified Special Forces soldier. And occasionally between classes, our cadre would reevaluate some of the different lanes that students would run and during the course and conduct the courses again.

So, with that in mind, here are some night navigation tips, many of which are just as apt for the day navigation course.

Route Planning: We wrote a piece about doing proper route planning while navigating. Route planning during selection is probably more important at night as opposed to during the daylight as many of the terrain features are much more difficult to identify. Trying to use dead reckoning for 5-6 clicks in the dark is not a preferred method.

So plan a series of shorter legs and movements and set checkpoints along the way. It is a much easier way to tackle the course and your movement between points. This way, you can check your progress, pace count as well as constantly confirming your location along the way.

Set your checkpoints and handrails on large or linear terrain features such as ridgelines or streams that you can terrain associate with and move out quickly while using your pace count. Use dead reckoning once you get to your attack point. That way if you get turned around, you have a known point you can go back to try it again.

Plot your points using the smallest possible mark on your map sheet and then write down any and all pertinent information on either a small index card or tear a sheet off your notebook and place this inside the map case for quick reference.

Pace Count: We covered our pace counts in an earlier piece as well. Knowing your pace is very important, and even more so in the dark, since terrain association is generally much harder in the dark. How different is your pace count with all of your kit, to include your rucksack on? As we said earlier, your pace count will vary between day and night and it will increase as you tire. And depending on the type of terrain that you are operating in.

In time, you’ll become a seasoned pro at this and will know just by the conditions that you are dealing with what your pace count will be. And it will change over time. My pace with just web gear on flat terrain was 62 back in the days of Phase 1 at Camp Mackall.

But with a rucksack and a heavy load, it went up to 73. But I noticed after I had been in Special Forces for a few years, where rucking becomes like second nature, my pace counted lessened to between 68-69 depending on conditions. You’ll find that you will have similar results.

Keep a good pace count and using those checkpoints along your route, you’ll have immediate feedback on how accurate your pace is. Occasionally, you will lose track of your pace count. It happens. We’ve all done it. Don’t sweat it. If it happens to you, take a good guess at how far you’ve gone and try to keep an accurate pace from there forward.

Secure Your Gear: I know, this sounds ridiculous, but better a red face than a dead face right? Lose your map, protractor, compass or heaven forbid, your weapon and you’ll quickly find yourself on the truck ride from hell.

But remove all chance of this unfortunate (and very common) occurrence from happening to you. Every class that I was a cadre member of in SFAS had at least one candidate losing either a map, protractor or a compass. We had a saying that the draws in Hoffman feed off of land navigation students gear. And I doubt seriously that much has changed there.

Get a good smaller map case, preferably one with a lanyard and tie it or snap link it to your gear and then stuff it into your shirt, where it is easily accessible. You don’t need one of those huge map cases that the mech guys used to be so fond of inside of their vehicles. Fold up your map so that the terrain you’re walking in is the only part showing. It makes it much easier to find where you are.

So, this would seem like an apt place for a FOG anecdote, you know what FOG stands for …right? One morning, we were revalidating some of the land nav lanes in SFAS between classes. Down in the Bones Fork Creek area (you’ll get intimately familiar with), I came to the edge of a perfectly oval depression about 20-25 meters across. And it was only 100-200 meters from the point we were looking for. The bottom of the depression had very little vegetation and the sides were only 2-3 feet high so crossing it seemed like a snap.

Once inside, I stopped for a second and thought to double check my map sheet to see if it was marked on the map (it wasn’t) and to make a note of it for future reference. I pulled out my map case to take a look. At that moment, at my feet, I noticed 5-6 snakes (the poisonous variety) were almost underfoot.

“Jesus H. F***ing Christ!” I leaped over the assorted no shouldered reptilians that would have made an Olympic broad jumper proud. At that point, I cleared the depression faster than Lance Armstrong on all of his PEDs ever dreamed of going,…downhill on a 30-degree slope on his bicycle at the Tour de France.

I didn’t slow down for a good 50 meters and had my map case, compass and whatever else hadn’t been tied down, they’d have been gone. I got to the point in short order and my bud Doug P. was already there. “I heard you yell, you fall down”, he asked? When I relayed the story, he laughed. “I love my f***ing job! Best one I’ve ever had,” he said.

Tie your shit down…you’ll thank me later.

Move Quickly: One of the things that you’ll have to get good at and quickly is being able to move out in the darkness and cover some ground. Special Operations Forces own the night and the only way to get really good at it is to practice. And you’ll get plenty of it during practice night land navigation.

And the most useful feature of your compass at night is the bezel ring. If you’re following a basic azimuth, rotate your bezel ring so that your North seeking arrow aligns with the luminous bubble. So, say if you are traveling on an azimuth of 65 degrees, your North seeking arrow will be in the approximate 10 o’clock position, rotate the bezel ring so the bubble aligns with the North seeking arrow and it is a quick way to keep on your azimuth, especially in the dark.

Also, remember that each click in the bezel ring is three degrees. Keeping your compass at waist level now will allow you to move out quicker. Once the luminous dot and the North seeking arrow are aligned you are moving in the right direction.

If the terrain and conditions allow it, then shoot a point in the distance and move to it. But as we said above, you don’t want to be doing dead reckoning for long distances in the dark. Once you get better at it, terrain association is faster, easier and will allow you to find your way without getting lost. Your pace count then becomes just another way to check your progress and reference where you are on your map checks.

Just a few reminders, your visual range estimation is likely to be well off during the darkness. And your pace count, depending on the terrain is likely to vary a bit. And finally, your natural drift will likely be intensified in the dark, you’ll quickly find this out as you find yourself on the course. Natural drift is the way people walk. While you may believe you’re walking a straight line, most people, over time will drift either left or right. One way to combat this and I’ve heard this works for many navigators is to change hands holding your compass frequently.

Working and operating in the dark is a Special Operations specialty. It will come in time. And of course you’ll have NVGs then but not in Selection. Don’t let anything get in the way of your preparation and planning. Give it your all and you’ll pass.

Photo: DOD