I'm not 100% sure if this is the right place to post this update, however I will add in my training progress so it fits. There is a major lesson that can be learned through what I have experienced so far and I'd like to share it.
So a while back I had been finishing up college. I was on my last year before I got my bachelors degree and was interning with the US Marshal's Service, and had previously interned with a few local law enforcement agencies. I decided I hate sitting at desks and writing tickets isn't for me, although hunting down bad dudes is right up my alley. So I wanted to do something with a little more action but also wanted something that was challenging intellectually. So long story short I ended up going to an SF briefing with the 19th group. They were going to give me a REP-63 contract. So I went to MEPS, but they thought I had asthma. The first doctor I saw had me do a pulmonary functions test, then a methacholine challenge test. Then he proceeded to tell me I had asthma and wasn't fit for the military and even went as far as telling me if I managed to get in I'd probably have a reaction and die in the gas chamber. So I studied medical journals to learn how to read the tests. I read my own test results and saw that I was not asthmatic, and so off I went to a different doctor and explained the situation. He had me repeat the tests and cleared me, then I went to MEPS again and they DQ'd me for eyesight issues. I went up for a consult and they told me I have a lazy eye and it is not correctable to 20/20 and is only 20/30. So I said screw it, and joined as a regular infantryman with a waiver.
Fast forward to basic training. I asked my drill Sgt if it was possible to get a Ranger slot out of basic training. She laughed and told me not a chance in hell. I still did the best I could at everything knowing I might only get to be a regular infantryman. Guess what happened? 3 days before I graduated OSUT the Ranger recruiters came in and asked all the National Guard guys to sit down. They said "If you don't have a 270 PT score get up and walk away. I had a 261, and although I wanted to go I stood up and started to walk away. They pointed me out of about 20 dudes who had just stood up and said "Hey cornfed motherfucker, want to go to Ranger School?" I said hell yeah and sat back down. They are sending us to a month and a half long pre-Ranger course, then Ranger School. Depending on the state guys who finish Ranger get to go to Airborne School right after. If you're from Ohio they wont send you to Airborne unless you're in the SF unit. Just an FYI. I was one of three that got picked. One of us that got picked already quit. The other is a good friend of mine now and wants to go SF as well.
For the past month I have been doing a workout program that the Ranger guys gave me since I got back from OSUT. I followed it to a T. I even went as far as adding extra miles to my runs and extra pullups/pushups because that is where I struggle. I weigh about 215, and did my 5 mile in 37 minutes last week, got 65 pushups, 70 situps, and 10 chinups. I haven't done any long distance ruck marches since OSUT but I usually do a 6 mile ruck with 40 pounds every week. I use a treadmill and keep the pace at around 13:40/mile. Anything past that I'm pretty much running which is dangerous. I do my pushups and situps before my run, but I do the chinups after the run. This week I'm doing cardio and just resetting things before I head back down to Georgia for my Pre-Ranger course.
Now this is where it gets interesting. I decided to give the SF recruiter a call. They are going to give me a try out after I pass Ranger School. Assuming I make the try out, I am going to drill with the 19th group, probably do my Annual Training with them, then I'll go to SOPC and Selection in September/October. They told me that they are going to push a waiver for the eye if they need to, but most of the time the doctors kind of do a "eh, its close enough" type deal. So they think I'll pass the physical without a waiver.
Things to take away from this: I'm a very spiritual person and see all this as God kind of saying "you know what, I want you to become a Green Beret. Trust me and I'll knock down all the barriers that get in your way. You just gotta trust me and press on."
Even if you don't believe in God, fate, or any of that. Keep in mind that during basic training I think they want to see who is willing to do the hard stuff, without reward. It looked like I was just going to be a regular National Guard Infantryman. They told me if I deployed I'd be doing nothing but filling sandbags, and all the active duty guys gave me crap and told me I'd do nothing but fight tornadoes. It didn't help that most of the National Guard guys in my platoon got recycled or quit, except for myself. But I refused to be a shitty infantryman and had a whole hell of a lot to prove. But I was willing to strive to be excellent in a place that did not require excellence. I did that because I am not motivated by money, I didn't do it for my own glory, and I didn't do it because I had no other options. I did it because I want to help fight for America and for God. I think both God and America deserve my best.
