<p>In one of my letters to my son, I mentioned that Webguy posts the daily schedule. Today, he asked if I could send him the schedule of what will be happening in Jack’s Valley. Of course, I don’t have any such thing. Is it possible to find out and mail him a copy of the plans for Jack’s Valley?</p>
<p>not in time. they will post the days activities (from what i heard last year) the night before or so. that way there is not enough time for the basics to get the info. and honestly, they don't really need it. the cadre will usually tell you which courses you'll do when.</p>
<p>It's a lot more fun to not know what is gonna happen next, speaking from experience. Tell your son to enjoy the ride...Jack's Valley is a LOT more fun than the first part of basic.</p>
<p>Potter said her Cadre have already informed them the A-course is their first stop, and (they her flight) could have done without the heads-up. They have enough to worry about without adding more.</p>
<p>Okay, I will tell him to take it as it comes. Thanks. </p>
<p>What is the A-course? ( :</p>
<p>They will be completing the A-Course Assualt Course. A big obstacle course on steroids with a lot of Rugby players screaming and yelling at them. The O-Course obstacle course, they will learn small arms combat (the M-16), and many other fun activities. I believe they had some trouble with one of the courses and may not be doing it this year. Hornet, G4C, Ramius, or Duckphreak would be better at this answer.</p>
<p>All right, there's my cue. :) Here are all the courses and their breakdown:</p>
<p>Assault Course:</p>
<p>The biggest and baddest of them all. This course features the infamous "rubber ducky" (fake rubber M-16) and helmets that the basics have to wear throughout the whole course. It is infamous for having a "warm-up" that is tougher than the course itself. The basics will crawl through mud, tunnels, and barbed wire, butt-smash dummies with their rifles, do combat rolls, and do whatever it takes NOT to let their cadre ever get their rifles. The cadre are usually rugby players, and are extremely intense...perhaps the most intense people the basics will ever meet, and they will not show any mercy. There will be lots of "grenades" (up-downs) between every obstacle. It's pretty much 3 hours of torture... and the basics are sure to come back filthy and exhausted...although the huge shower at the end is rather fun. :) The second time the basics run the course there will be shots, mortars, and smoke grenades going off the whole time.</p>
<p>Obstacle Course:</p>
<p>This course features what most people think of when they think of obstacle courses: rope ladders, high walls, weaving towers, low crawls, etc. The first time they run the course it will also be extremely high intensity, although just a tiny bit less intense than the assault course (but not by much). The second time they run it they will only have to go through it once (instead of continuously for 3 hours) and will be not be yelled at, since they are being timed.</p>
<p>Ops Warrior Course:</p>
<p>This was my favorite course in basic, and is a mixture of a lot of fun stuff as well as a little bit of PT. Basics will get M-16s with blanks, and will be trained on combat maneuvers, tactics, convoys, ambushes, and all other kinds of fun stuff (for most people, anyway...I loved it. :P) They will also learn how to guard, map, and run a DFP (foxhole) and how to apprehend suspicious characters and search vehicles to keep a base secure. They will then get to put all the training in action, as they don facepaint and load their M-16s for a simulated attack. It's a lot of fun. :-D While the cadre may scare them initially or "beat" them if they ignore any safety rules, it is not a "yelling course."</p>
<p>SABC (Self Aid Buddy Care) Course:</p>
<p>A close second to my favorite course, the SABC course is where basics learn the basics (no pun intended) of how to treat an injured soldier in the field. They learn about bleeding, fractures, burns, freezing, heatstroke, delusion, broken bones, shock, and all other kinds of injuries as well as how to treat them. After they finish the briefings, they are put into groups. Half of the group are "medics" and the other half are "soldiers." When the group leaves the tent, cadre dressed as "aggressors" walk around with M-16s "shooting" at the basics. There are also bombs and shells going off. The basics have to avoid being shot and killed as they make their way to a variety of injured bodies on the field. They have to think quickly and know how to react to delusion or even aggression from some of the "patients," all the while trying not to get shot. I thought it was a ton of fun...some didn't like it cause of the stress...it's pretty intense.</p>
<p>Confidence Course:</p>
<p>This course is basically like the Obstacle Course, but without ANY yelling (unless someone ignores a safety rule). This course features much bigger and more famous obstacles such as the "Tiltin' Hilton" or the "Tough One" that are 30+ feet tall. Lots of fun and low stress...but some of the obstacles are pretty tough for out-of-shape basics.</p>
<p>LRC (Leadership Reaction) Course:</p>
<p>This course is jokingly referred to as the "Long Range Conditioning Course" to scare basics, and intially the cadre pretend to be mean and "beat" the basics for about 10 minutes before suddenly relaxing and letting them all enjoy the course. It consists of a series of fun puzzles that have to be solved with minimal communication and restraints. It can involve climbing a tower without touching any of the red markings painted on the side, or crossing a minefield with only a few boards...etc. The LRC is also very difficult, and is a fun mental challenge with some physical elements involved.</p>
<p>I think that's all of them...hornetguy, let me know if I missed any.</p>
<p>The issues with some of the courses involves the Obstacle Course and the Confidence Course, since an AF Major killed himself falling off an obstacle sometime last year (I believe) and all obstacle courses AF-wide went into a safety re-haul. The courses should be open and ready to go for 2011, but there's always a chance the higher-ups might close some of the bigger obstacles for safety.</p>
<p>Oh my!!! </p>
<p>We will be praying for all of the cadets.</p>
<p>As intense as all that looks and sounds, it's actually what makes Jack's Valley fun...getting out and doing stuff instead of just getting beat in the hall for no reason is a welcome change. :)</p>
<p>G4C: you have entirely too much time.</p>
<p>It's nice to see all you 2010ers posting again-</p>
<p>we're all bored transition weekend...</p>
<p>How many miles is the "march" to Jacks Valley. Checked the weather report for today. High 80's with scattered storms this afternoon.</p>
<p>not very long. they used to have a 9 or more miler that they would take, but i believe last year was only 2 or 3, and i hear that its the same or shorter this year</p>
<p>It's actually quite a procession! People come out from the Springs just to watch (often around the B52). The academy generals lead the way. The local paper will probably do a write-up on it with pictures. So be sure to check the Gazette website. My son said last year they stood around so long that they all needed to go to the bathroom after the march was under way. They got tacit permission to run off into the woods to relieve themselves and then catch up with their units.</p>
<p>If you are having trouble getting on to Webguy through Explorer, try Firefox. I had trouble getting on all weekend with all the Field Day Photos up. It just wouldn't load, but everytime I tried it on Firefox, I got on. My son will be pleased that I am finally hooked on Firefox.</p>
<p>What happens if you are unable to complete a course (assualt,confidence etc.) Before the close of Jack's?</p>
<p>The only course left unmentioned is CATM. That's where the basics go to the range and learn how to operate the M16A2 rifle. Then they get to qualify on it and learn how to take it apart to clean it. It's usually the most relaxed course since the cadre want to keep the basics happy around loaded weapons. The only downside of it is that unlike most courses that are right next to the tents, CATM is 3 miles away which means double-time formation run.</p>
<p>If a basic fails a course or missed it due to injury/sickness, they'll be re-tested. If the basic fails the retest, they fail that week of Basic Training. Anyone who fails 3 weeks of BCT will be outprocessed.</p>
<p>Failure to complete ANY one of the courses or the knowledge test is enough grounds to not graduate from Basic Training. However, permanent party can and often do make waivers for those who missed a course if the reason is legit.</p>
<p>On Friday, July 27, the whole day is set aside for anyone to make up any courses that they haven't completed. I am sure the Cadre will let the Basics know if they have to make any up <g>. I am not sure what would happen if they were unable to complete them due to injury, etc.</g></p>
<p>Oops, I see Duckphreak posted at the same time I did. Go with what she says, she's a lot smarter than me..</p>
<p>On a note about CATM...</p>
<p>...if your basic was at CATM yesterday (the 23rd), they might have a good story for you. Be sure to ask 'em. :)</p>