[The Reaper]

Long Range Movement

The LRIM was essentially described to us as a “gut check”; a test meant to measure a person’s commitment to life in the special operations arena. It is a long-range movement that is designed to physically and psychologically tax a candidate’s endurance to its very limit. Any injuries that occurred during any of the “Star” exercises would, no doubt, surface at this time. Anyone that was merely surviving the events up to this point would be forced to face himself in a contest between his body and his mind. There is much lore surrounding the LRIM. Some measure success, or failure, based solely on whether, or not, they made it through this part of the assessment. I was certainly happy to be among the few who would begin this journey.

The LRIM would cover all of the training area surrounding Camp Mackall. We would be allowed to utilize the unimproved, improved and some hard surface roads as long as we crossed them quickly and at a ninety-degree angle. There was to be no use of paved roads, or other roads that were made known to us during our LRIM briefing. We would be afforded the luxury of crossing two main bridges, so as not to risk us swimming over two large bodies of water. As always, we were not allowed to communicate with any other candidates during the exercise. We would have maximum time of 48 hours in which to complete the LRIM. Everyone was encouraged to finish as fast as they could. As it is customary in most Army events involving a rucksack our official weight minimum was to be 45 lbs. This weight did not include any water, or food, and it certainly did not include our 12 lb rifle and our load bearing equipment (LBE) suspenders and their cargo. So, one starts out with 45 lbs. Then one adds about five pounds to ensure that if any of the scales are off, one would be on the safe side of things. Four MREs were added to the cargo. This was about another four pounds. We carried four quarts of water on the rucksack and two quarts on our LBE belt. This added another twelve pounds of weight. Then, we each received a PRC – 119 radio, complete with handset and short and long-range antennae and two extra batteries. This added another twenty-three pounds. So, in the end, we carried about eighty-five to ninety pounds of weight for the LRIM.

After the briefing, we lined-up our gear just outside of our hut areas. We were arranged in small groups of about sixteen men according our roster numbers. While awaiting our transport, we were each issued new maps of the training area as well as two packets of ORS. I took time to draw all the boundary areas such that I would be able to see them with a red lens flashlight during low visibility. We stood there for a while waiting to be taken to our starting points. I prayed silently and asked God to guide me and maintain my mind while my body was being punished. Suddenly, all the LMTV trucks arrived and we were ushered off to our starting points. It was still daylight and, unlike the “Star” exercises, we were not to take-off in the darkness of early morning. Instead, we would take-off exactly twelve hours earlier at 1500. The LRIM, while still utilizing land navigation as an assessment medium, is not really a test of land navigation skill. Instead, it is a test of physical, mental and emotional endurance. For this reason, we were allowed to use a few roads and begin with daylight. Our start point was located at an intersection several kilometers from Camp Mackall. As we arrived, we each settled into our own areas away from our starting point sitter. The point sitters are generally retired SF personnel who live in the surrounding area. Their participation in the course allows the Special Operations Command to utilize the current SF operators in the field, where they are needed most. Point sitters had their own personality. Some were very warm and pleasant to us. They were proud of still being able to share in the tradition of the SF community while at the same time having a small role to play in the selection of the future of SF. Others guarded the SF tab and treated us with suspicion and slight contempt. Either way, they were making a great contribution to the SF community and by and large we felt privileged to be around them. But, as most of us were a bit anxious about this last, defining event, we were not in the mood to find out what kind of point sitter was at our start point. We picked quiet spots well away from any cadre, or point sitter present and collected our thoughts and fears.

(TBC)