Professional Soldiers ® - View Single Post - What do you remember most about the Q Course/Training Group?

magician · 12-20-2004, 01:49

the land nav course, the first time I went through....I went through with this jarhead named Chris....he was a short guy, pretty squared away....good guy.

I was on some high ground, and happened to look off in the distance, and I saw a truck speeding down some hard ball...and in the cab of the truck....a diminutive head in profile....with a jarhead cover kicked back on his head, while he consulted his map.

I spewed.

A little later on, I came up a fire break, and there was a good old boy out hunting coon with his dog. He had some beers in the back, and offered me one. I told him thanks, I had a course to run, maybe another time. He told me to go ahead and take a six pack with me to drink when I was done.

I weighed it.

Was he a provocateur, testing me for an honor violation?

Nah.

Remember, this was the old days, 1984, long time ago. I graciously accepted a six pack...I think that it was Busch beer....blue cans....they were ice cold...pulled them out of an ice filled cooler....bundled them into my ruck...then went on to finish my course.

I hit my final point, had plenty of time, so I figured that I would wait a bit and see if any of my brothers were coming along behind me. Sure enough, my brother John T, a guy who had spent a lot of time in Hawaii, appeared at the bottom of the hill, and began laboring up it. It was a big hill.

I stood at the top, and I yelled, "John!" He paused, he looked up, and I held up a can of beer. He squinted, and then he broke into sprint. He virtually ran up that hill, hit the clacker for his last point, then grabbed that beer from me.

He said that it was the best beer that he had ever had.

There is something about the illicit....I cannot quantify it. I did not even really drink in those days. I shared the beers around with my brothers as they came into the rally point at the end of the course while we sat around the fire and dried off.

It was funny...it was hard....and we....HAD BEER.

You had to be there, I guess.

In retrospect, I am a little shocked. But it made sense at the time.

What can I say? I was young.

Good times.

12-20-2004, 01:49	#11
magician Quiet Professional Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Bangkok Posts: 856	the land nav course, the first time I went through....I went through with this jarhead named Chris....he was a short guy, pretty squared away....good guy. I was on some high ground, and happened to look off in the distance, and I saw a truck speeding down some hard ball...and in the cab of the truck....a diminutive head in profile....with a jarhead cover kicked back on his head, while he consulted his map. I spewed. A little later on, I came up a fire break, and there was a good old boy out hunting coon with his dog. He had some beers in the back, and offered me one. I told him thanks, I had a course to run, maybe another time. He told me to go ahead and take a six pack with me to drink when I was done. I weighed it. Was he a provocateur, testing me for an honor violation? Nah. Remember, this was the old days, 1984, long time ago. I graciously accepted a six pack...I think that it was Busch beer....blue cans....they were ice cold...pulled them out of an ice filled cooler....bundled them into my ruck...then went on to finish my course. I hit my final point, had plenty of time, so I figured that I would wait a bit and see if any of my brothers were coming along behind me. Sure enough, my brother John T, a guy who had spent a lot of time in Hawaii, appeared at the bottom of the hill, and began laboring up it. It was a big hill. I stood at the top, and I yelled, "John!" He paused, he looked up, and I held up a can of beer. He squinted, and then he broke into sprint. He virtually ran up that hill, hit the clacker for his last point, then grabbed that beer from me. He said that it was the best beer that he had ever had. There is something about the illicit....I cannot quantify it. I did not even really drink in those days. I shared the beers around with my brothers as they came into the rally point at the end of the course while we sat around the fire and dried off. It was funny...it was hard....and we....HAD BEER. You had to be there, I guess. In retrospect, I am a little shocked. But it made sense at the time. What can I say? I was young. Good times.
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