I have experienced many proud events during my service in the United States Marine Corps. From receiving my Eagle Globe and Anchor after completing the grueling Crucible, to being meritoriously promoted to Corporal in the fleet. However, the one single event that provides me with the greatest source of pride and achievement is completing the Martial Arts Instructor course (MAI).
The MAI course is a vigorous three week training course to make Marines into Marine Corps Martial Arts Instructors. It tests all the Marine participants mentally, physically, as well as their character. This course is well known amongst the Marine Corps community and those who have earned their instructor status are viewed as “hard-chargers.” I considered it a way to challenge myself and to gauge my mental and physical abilities. In addition, I would be able to
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Our starting roster was reduced to half of its original quantity. The intense training began with a Marine Corps Physical Fitness Test (PFT), followed by a Marine Corps Combat Fitness Test (CFT). All participants were required to score in the 1st class range, and those with scores on the lower end of the 1st class scale were warned and given to opportunity to withdraw. Many Marines did not meet the requirements due to the physical demands of performing both fitness tests sequentially. Day one would be the easiest training day.
Throughout the course our teamwork was tested in multiple events. Rank had no significance, enlisted Marines were alongside Commissioned Officers. Everyone suffered and triumphed together as a team. People’s true natures were exposed when encountering failure and adversity. We trained in rain, the extreme cold, became familiar with the mud, and discovered the true meaning of teamwork. We overcame all the obstacles and hardships presented to us. If one of our teammates struggled, everyone made an effort to keep their morale
The Marine Corps today has developed itself into an elite fighting force based on strong naval traditions. The basic Marine is amphibious, which means that the warrior is capable of fighting on land and sea. The idea of an amphibious landing was developed through the training of the Marine Raider Battalions, which was tested and perfected in combat. Although there were two Raider Commanders with very different views on how to prepare their marines, Evans Carlson and Merritt Edson were responsible for training lightly armed Marines for amphibious assaults.
According to Nofi, “The United States Marine Corps is America's best-known military unit and perhaps the most famous in the world” . The traditions of the Marine Corps date way back since 1775 and the current regulations have been derived from the way marines in the past carried out their day to day activities. Some customs have been incorporated into the current orders and regulations to be able to standardize conduct of the marines. It is important for a marine to know and keep in mind traditional customs because one should never forget their heritage, therefore, practiced tradition in the Marine Corps should take precedence over Marine Corps orders and regulations .
Number four, your training cannot fail you only you can fail yourself. If you was one of the lucky one to pass without studying. This is for you. You had better be training each and every day. You and your crew lives depend on it. Do not fail yourself nor them.
SGT Singleton actively volunteered to train personnel to attend Sabalauski Air Assault. He trained five DENTAC Soldiers to get physically and mentally tough before the 10-day course. A course which consists of insertion,
Staff Sergeant (SSGT) Louis Moeller shaped me into the Recon Marine I wanted to be and the Non-Commissioned Officer (NCO) that I am now. By embodying the Recon Creed and always setting the example, he made me want to be an NCO that my troops would look up to and want to follow. Even when not in charge he was constantly the one peers and junior Marines alike, turned to for guidance and inspiration. To this day, I still find myself asking “What would Louis do?” when confronted with a leadership dilemma.
They would then go to bed at nine, and it all would repeat the next day. Caputo sheds light into this by recalling “We were shouted at, kicked, humiliated and harassed constantly,” (8). As awful as it may seem, that is what life in the military is like. You are property of your superiors, until you surpass your superiors… if you ever do. The marches they were taught were eerie, yet they were installed in the minds of these young men. The purpose of this was to teach them discipline and teamwork, which are two of the Corps’ “cardinal” values. The abuse was to eliminate the weak, and make the strong even stronger. The ones who were unfit, in the end, left. Most were sent home because of their inability to be a Marine, others were mentally unfit. Around seventy percent of the original class passed. Two years later, an advanced course was held for those who passed. Around seven hundred and fifty men began the advanced course. Only five hundred finished. In August of 1963, the men, aged from 21-22, graduated in a spectacular ceremony. None of the men knew that some of them would not live much longer. On February 2, 1964, Philip Caputo was commissioned as a second lieutenant. He went back to Quantico to begin a six-month apprenticeship
Men have been known to even die during training from heat exhaustion, dehydration, and other key factors. This course is excruciating to all but a dead set goal to others. This was never made for the faint at heart. It was designed to find the best of the best and weed out the rest. There are men that are very fit but the S.A.S. training is to push them past soreness and in to bone chilling pain and intense mental
At the beginning of the Academy, I was very anxious and nervous of the entire situation. Within the first two hours of the first day, Captain Gatlin gave introduction and scared us to death. But, overall he was a great inspiration and motivation throughout the Academy. The academic lead instructors Corporal Peppers and Sargent King performed exceptionally well and were a wealth of knowledge. While being very strict during the Academy they were also fair. Physical Training was a portion of the Academy that I enjoyed, Sargent Bradley and Sargent Cooper were very informative and through.
and Drill Instructors see Boot Camp. Why did he pick the Marines as his topic? Attracted to the Corps perception and morale, Thomas E. Ricks expresses the Marines as the only service still upholding its honor and tradition. Due to society changing into a commercial society with a “me” attitude, civilians focus on how they can splendor themselves with material items—never looking at the big picture at all that we can accomplish as a team if we give our heart and soul to life. Team means everyone on earth, for we are the people that provide for one another with peace and prosperity.
The most difficult barrier to conducting initial individual training is the varying backgrounds of all of the soldiers. In ...
MMA’s learning environment shapes individuals to become leaders in the fast-paced engineering industry. The school’s emphasis on setting high expectations through Sea Term and co-ops will enhance my learning and prepare me for an excellent career. MMA’s Energy Systems Engineering program
During morning PT on Ft. Campbell, CSM Hambrick was a regular fixture along the run route and throughout the Brigade’s footprint. He always encouraged leaders to participate in daily PT with their subordinates and regularly joined them as well. CSM Hambrick showed up during an APFT and asked me what my best run time was. After receiving my answer, he told me that he believed I could do better and he would run with me to prove it. I took an entire minute off of my run during that APFT. After the APFT he gathered the present NCOs and explained the importance of breathing excellence into your subordinates. He always stressed that it was important for Soldiers to know that their leader supported them and expected greatness. In reflection, I realize that he was also demonstrating that an effective leader leverages every available opportunity as a teaching
When I was seventeen I nervously traveled about 350 miles from my sleepy little home town of Freedom, Wyoming to the relatively enormous city of Boise, Idaho to go to the Military Entrance Processing Station. This wasn 't the first time I had been this far from home by myself, but it was the first time I was making adult decisions without my parents involvement. When it came time for me to choose my job in the army the counselors presented me with a long list that I qualified for. I got tired of scrolling and reading so I chose the first job that I actually understood. I returned home and excitedly told my parents that I would be an infantry soldier. My dad 's response to this might be considered a little less than heart warming “You dumb ass. Why didn 't you choose
As the bus entered the heavily guarded military instillation, I gazed upon the sign that read, "Be All that You Can Be." When the bus stopped, several angry Drill Instructors boarded and began introducing us to a very colorful vocabulary, usually reserved for drunken Sailors. They instructed us to gather our belongings, get off the bus and assemble in a circular formation. As I searched for the strength to get up, I found myself moving, while several Drill Instructors yelled at us for our clumsy attempt to dismount the bus and fall into formation. I wondered if I had made the right choice. However, I have come to realize that my military experiences have tremendously enhanced my self-worth. From those first eight weeks of Basic Training to the day I walked out with an honorable discharge, I gained an enormous amount of skill and confidence. I grew as a person, and I learned life skills: discipline, tenacity, leadership, and problem solving abilities, all of which will enhance my potential as a student.
''Teamwork is a fundamental lesson in the military. At basic training, you learn about being a member of a unit. You do not focus on the first person to cross the finish line. You do not focus on the last person to cross the finish line. What matters most — what matters entirely — is that every unit member understands that everyone crosses the finish line"(mydd.com)