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Old 07-22-2007, 04:44   #16
deano100
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Wink

I just had my 41st birthday. I am one of those very fit upper age range characters. I've read all the posts in the "Oldest SF candidate" thread and wanted to post a question there, but the thread is closed so I hope posting here is ok with you guys.

The challenge I see is the rucking. I exercise regularly at a high level, but i have never incorporated fast walking/marching. I look forward to the challenge.

I like the strategy that The Reaper has posted about joining the Guard and then going through the selection process for SF after 12 months. At the same time I wouldn't mind working for the Army if I didn't make the cut in SF Selection (I don't forsee not making the cut). Is there any Army position that could get me to SF Selection in 12 months as is possible in the Guard? One of posters mentioned CI-- is this a workable alternative that could allow me to begin the process in a similar time-frame? I've been communicating with a non-SF recruiter-- so far he hasn't been of much use.

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Old 07-22-2007, 05:47   #17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by deano100
.... if I didn't make the cut in SF Selection (I don't forsee not making the cut)....

I foresee it if you don't start reading the stickies.
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Old 07-22-2007, 05:49   #18
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As a Instructor I can tell you SUT Small Unit Tactics will Whoop the older guys A$$ more then the younger guys, you live with a ruck on your back, and your recovery time from simple injury will effect you.

Also I personely would be watching you alot more closely. Mainly in my Experince the older guys from units like the guard will try to mule thier way threw this phase and be a helpful team member, but when it comes time to lead and execute things like issue a Op-Order, they are lost, lack of army Experince or troop leading ability Shows in the end, you can be in the greatest shape, be a #1 team player, but can you execute and lead troops ? most fail when they are put to the test.
Anyone can be a pack mule and hump a ruck and get selected. if thats your only trait then you will fail when you get to SUT, just a trend ive seen from the older folks that come threw this Phase. but maybe you are one of them freaks of nature we hear about NOT LIKELY
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Old 07-22-2007, 06:53   #19
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Deano100,

Seems to me that the challenge for you is following simple instructions. You need to go back and fill out your profile, introduce yourself, and read all the stickies. This question has been answered. Use the search button.
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Old 07-22-2007, 08:43   #20
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Dino, you have failed to follow simple instructions, and your question has been asked here many times before.

Do not post again till you have done as requested.

TR
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Old 07-22-2007, 14:36   #21
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Your points are well taken,

I just finished posting on the self-introduction thread. I hope this is what you were referring to Reaper. I'm actually glad for any criticism I can find -- the more the better as fas as I am concerned. Be tough on me as I know at my age I require more scrutiny.

I have read hundreds of posts here, but obviously not all of them. In time I will have read more. I have only known about this forum for a short while. If there is a particular thread that would answer my questions then point me in that direction.
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Old 07-22-2007, 15:18   #22
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[QUOTE=I If there is a particular thread that would answer my questions then point me in that direction.[/QUOTE]

http://www.professionalsoldiers.com/forums/search.php
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Old 07-22-2007, 15:28   #23
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Quote:
Originally Posted by deano100
Your points are well taken,

I just finished posting on the self-introduction thread. I hope this is what you were referring to Reaper. I'm actually glad for any criticism I can find -- the more the better as fas as I am concerned. Be tough on me as I know at my age I require more scrutiny.

I have read hundreds of posts here, but obviously not all of them. In time I will have read more. I have only known about this forum for a short while. If there is a particular thread that would answer my questions then point me in that direction.
Deano:

Do not take this the wrong way, but we are looking for people who have good situational awareness and who do not require close personal supervision.

Essentially, what I am saying is that in addition to the physical fitness, which we can train most people to meet, and intelligence, we are also looking for people who can operate on their own, are self-starters, pay attention to details, and are self-motivated.

If I have to look up the threads for you and direct you to them, you have already missed the mark.

You have still not filled out your profile as we request all members to do. This reflects a lack of situational awareness.

When compounded with your age, this does not look promising.

Best of luck.

TR
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Old 07-23-2007, 12:05   #24
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52

In late '88, prior to my PCS to Oki, I was the Operational Skills Division (OSD) SGM. OSD had the old Phase I and III courses. The then MAJ Toney and I were THE division. I was out walking lanes during a land nav exercise with a Phase I class (yes, as a SGM in Tng Grp, I walked lanes and gave hip pocket training) and noticed a student who looked older than dirt. He was a 52 year old and had made the Army Times earlier that year or the year before for being the oldest Ranger School graduate. I don't know if he ever made it thru Tng Grp since I PCS'ed soon after.

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Old 07-23-2007, 14:29   #25
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MFFI115
In late '88, prior to my PCS to Oki, I was the Operational Skills Division (OSD) SGM. OSD had the old Phase I and III courses. The then MAJ Toney and I were THE division. I was out walking lanes during a land nav exercise with a Phase I class (yes, as a SGM in Tng Grp, I walked lanes and gave hip pocket training) and noticed a student who looked older than dirt. He was a 52 year old and had made the Army Times earlier that year or the year before for being the oldest Ranger School graduate. I don't know if he ever made it thru Tng Grp since I PCS'ed soon after.

Carl
CSM:

That would be great as an orientation for a chaplain or a doctor.

Not sure I would want a 53 year old E-5 on an ODA deploying to a combat zone. Assuming that we get ten years of team time or more out of most students, and possibly as many as 20 out of some of the SF babies, the guy will be social security eligible and still on an ODA.

I saw officers who were going to be promoted to Major very shortly shotgunned through the pipeline to get to an ODA for 90 days and a report card prior to getting a company, and I did not like it one bit. Those guys hurt our force badly.

Just my .02, YMMV.

TR
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Old 07-23-2007, 15:29   #26
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Yep.

I should have, but didn't take the time to chat with him. I recall the Army Times article said he joined the Army with his son. I don't recall if he was RA, US, or NG, but I believe he was RA. I'm sure Uncle Sam didn't get a return on the investment. I have to admit that he was quite the stud.

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Old 07-23-2007, 20:14   #27
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MFFI115
I should have, but didn't take the time to chat with him. I recall the Army Times article said he joined the Army with his son. I don't recall if he was RA, US, or NG, but I believe he was RA. I'm sure Uncle Sam didn't get a return on the investment. I have to admit that he was quite the stud.

Carl
He was in my Phase one class the first time he tried a few years earlier. He fell off an obstacle and had to leave. They kept him around for a long time. I never saw anything about him graduating.
Funny thing is he was my company FO in the 82nd. He was Scottish I think. No one could understand a word he said. Every time he showed up to go to the field with us he rode his Bike. Use to see him riding his bike around division all the time. He lived in the Barracks. Hard troop. Probably very interesting to talk with if you could understand him.
I remember the younger FO'S that worked for him. They got their asses chewed when they tried to keep the mike away from him. He wasn't going to let a little thing like a language barrier stop him from calling in Arty. They actually had a lot of respect for him.
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Old 07-23-2007, 20:59   #28
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Here is the bottom line.

Again.

It isn't about you, what you want, or what you think you can do.

It is about the other guys on your team who will count on you and put their lives on the line for you.

What do you bring for them? What do you bring to the fight to help keep your brothers alive just another heartbeat, if need be?

A good SF soldier wants to be on a team till the day he dies. At the same time, he would rather die than to let his brothers down, or to have any one of them killed trying to drag him of the mountain.

Do some internet research into the SF guys who have been highly decorated in this fight. By and large, they have not been bodybuilders or PT nuts. Most of them have been older, a little heavier, maybe a little slower.

What did they have? Experience. Confidence. Determination. And most of all, love for their brothers.

They had been at this game long enough to be realistic about their capabilities, but feared letting their teammates down more than they feared death.

And they had been around long enough, they had the confidence of their teammates.

When an O-6 wins a DSC for leading HN forces in a desperate firefight, that is something.

Going through the pipeline to be the slowest guy on the team at anything, drags the team down a notch. You will take longer to recover. Things that you could have shaken off years before, will stop you.

When I was 43, I could still max the PT test, but I knew my team days were over. Because I could prep for an event, but I could not do the deal for months on end, and I would not let a brother down, much less a whole team of them.

This isn't about you. It is about them. And whether you are an asset, or a liability to them.

Do the right thing.

TR
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"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat." - President Theodore Roosevelt, 1910

De Oppresso Liber 01/20/2025
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