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Old 05-03-2022, 09:40   #9
Box
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Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: State of Confusion
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Quote:
Originally Posted by asg View Post
Thank you, both.

Box, the SF Recruiter gave a vehement "hell no" to the Option 40 because he said the Ranger mentality is so different from SF that I would either be discouraged from volunteering or just have a real hard time making the switch. However, what you outlined tracked more with my sense of that option.

7624U, understood about the OCS route- thank you for clarifying.

Given the responses here, this is where my head is at currently:

P- Get a waiver for 18x*
A- 11x Option 40 and volunteer after RASP
C- OCS and volunteer knowing clearly why I waited so long
E- If I wash out in an enlisted option, drop a packet for OCS and take that shot again at 1st Lt. and drive on knowing I at least accomplished one of my two primary goals in my military career of serving as an Officer.

*The only caveat here is, in the event of washing out, I could wind up anywhere else in the army... but that risk makes sense for taking the most direct route to the objective and the "Emergency" choice of dropping a packet might be the saving grace there.

Here are a few different points to chew on - a few of which may not sit well with some folks on this board - but...

...the Ranger mentality is so different from SF that I would either be discouraged from volunteering or just have a real hard time making the switch.

So says your recruiter. He probably just doesn't realize that 1st SFC, USASOC, and USSOCOM are FULL of folks from Ranger Regiment. There are more "Rangers" commanding units than there are SF guys commanding units. Look at the last - every single USSOCOM commander ever - and see how many of them 'grew up' in Special Forces. You might be surprised to find that every single NONE of them made it to the top by serving in SF. Pilots, Rangers, and Ninjas but no pure SF guys in the lot...
-There is no such thing as a "Ranger mindset"

What people consider "Ranger Mindset" can be found in just as many SF guys that never spent a day in Regiment.
The folks that think Rangers are stuck in the mud of uniformity, high and tights, and Hooah Sarn't just haven't been paying attention. Their hair is longer, their civilian assault boots are cooler, and their espririt de corps is higher than most of the SF guys that I worked with during my last 10 years in SF.
PLUS - they made it through selection.

Or - we would have to all agree that SF selection doesnt really work.
(which is a possibility - I made it through on my first try)

What most guys cling to as "the Ranger mentality" could just as easily be confused with a guy that doesnt like standards. Or a guy that keeps getting outperformed during PT. Or a guy that just doesn't like Rangers.
As a Team Sergeant and company SGM - I saw as many "X-Rays" with this mystical Ranger mentality as I saw Rangers with Ranger mentality.

Lets take it a step further - a REAL Ranger that has a REAL case of Ranger mentality would never stoop so low as to sully his feet playing with lowly SF guys. He would just take the long walk and go be a Ninja. Don't let a recruiter (or anyone else for that matter) tell you that your choice is anything but your choice.
"YOUR CAREER, YOUR CHOICE"



If I wash out...
I would recommend you get that crap out of your head. If you are already planning to wash out - why bother??? The details of your contract is all the "plan" you need. Selection is not hard. The shit going through your head makes you think its hard. Let me give you something - for free...
-You are going to carry heavy things across uneven terrain.
-The weather will be unpleasant.
-You will have to walk fast for a long time.
-You are your own competition so do your best everyday.
-The above five statements are built around the knowledge that you WILL become tired and unsure of yourself
-Even when you are tired and unsure of yourself, the program expects you to notice that there were only four statements worth of advice - not five.



*The only caveat here is, in the event of washing out, I could wind up anywhere else in the army...
I know - isn't that great !!!
The army already has your plan mapped out for you, so you have one less thing to worry about while you are walking very fast across great distances while carrying heavy things across uneven terrain. People think SFAS means Special Forces Assessment and Selection but it doesn't. It means Sore Feet and Shoulders because that is the vehicle they use to make you think about your own shortcomings.
But guess what - if you do wash out of 18x - drop a packet to go to RASP

If you don't want to end up "anywhere eles" in the army - I might even suggest that you rethink exactly why you want to be in SF at your age. SF (and the Infantry for that matter) is not going to be kind to your body. You will find yourself in the shoes of a 40 year old man, competing for a promotion to E7 with men that are 10-15 younger than you. You will be in your early 50's before you are old enough to retire with a 20 year package.

If you want to "enlist now" so you can go to OCS later - maybe it isn't really an SF guy that you want to be. Just being an SF guy and going to OCS doesn't mean you are coming out as an SF officer. You could end up 'branched' somewhere else and now you are right back to don't want to end up "anywhere else" in the army under that career path you could find yourself as a brand new Captain in his early 40's before you get your first job as an ODA team leader and then you'll get about two more years of team time before you become an "administrator" because there are very few majors that are really out there "operating"
You COULD look down the road at being an SF Warrant Officer, but again, you're still talking about being a 40 year old SF guy before you get back to an ODA as a WO1 and would get a lot more team time than a Captain will get.


Only you can answer those questions - but if you really want to be an SF guy - and you want to be an SF guy right now - get a waiver and don't quit.
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Last edited by Box; 05-03-2022 at 11:39.
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