SF Q course history question

[Devildoc]

Who is the oldest green beanie here, and how has the Q course changed since your day? Just a history question. I'm bored.

 

[Steve1839]

Probably not the oldest, but never the less...72 y/o...went through the Q course (which at the time all the old guys called it training group) in 1976...no pipeline, no SFAS...we started with PT and swim tests, some 150 or so, around 100 or so made it to Camp Mackall for Phase I...two weeks of intense land nav training, a couple three days of survival training and off to the Uwharrie National Forest for around two+ weeks of advanced land nav, moving only at night, cross-country, alone...less than 40 of us finished that, then off to Phase II...eight weeks of MOS specific training, everyone in my weapons class passed (everyone had passed my demo class, as well), then off to Phase III, which was SF Operations and an FTX. Wasn't called Robin Sage or Gobbler Woods (those were for officers, at the time) and when all was said than done, 28 of us graduated, 14 without having been recycled...off to our groups for language and area orientation, if possible...maybe SERE (very few), HALO and SCUBA for some...can't speak accurately for today's pipeline, just thinking two years or so is a long time to be a student...I was a SGT when I went...most of the class were off the street enlistees (no 18X program) and most of them failed...of the 14 of us that made it without recycling, only three or four had no prior service.

 

[Devildoc]

Probably not the oldest, but never the less...72 y/o...went through the Q course (which at the time all the old guys called it training group) in 1976...no pipeline, no SFAS...we started with PT and swim tests, some 150 or so, around 100 or so made it to Camp Mackall for Phase I...two weeks of intense land nav training, a couple three days of survival training and off to the Uwharrie National Forest for around two+ weeks of advanced land nav, moving only at night, cross-country, alone...less than 40 of us finished that, then off to Phase II...eight weeks of MOS specific training, everyone in my weapons class passed (everyone had passed my demo class, as well), then off to Phase III, which was SF Operations and an FTX. Wasn't called Robin Sage or Gobbler Woods (those were for officers, at the time) and when all was said than done, 28 of us graduated, 14 without having been recycled...off to our groups for language and area orientation, if possible...maybe SERE (very few), HALO and SCUBA for some...can't speak accurately for today's pipeline, just thinking two years or so is a long time to be a student...I was a SGT when I went...most of the class were off the street enlistees (no 18X program) and most of them failed...of the 14 of us that made it without recycling, only three or four had no prior service.

Thanks, I appreciate that. Very interesting.

 

[Cookie_]

One of the guys in my office has a kid interested in the military, so I directed him towards the SFAS books published by David Walton.

This led to a few podcasts being played in the office, and Walton discussed changes between the SFAS of the past and now.

Don't remember if it was on The Team House or Ones Ready; maybe both?

 

[TLDR20]

So I went through starting almost 20 years ago…. WTaF?

When I went through SOPC for 18X’s was at Ft.Bragg in the now mostly demolished “old division” area. SOPC was a man maker of sorts, brutal beatings, it was the true selection event. I went through an interesting SFAS class as it was the first July SFAS they had run in almost a decade, as multiple people had died previously. They modeled it after the Aussie SAS selection, because there are similar heat variables at play. There were multiple Aussie SAS guys at our selection observing. We did almost a full reverse cycle selection, with mostly every event happening at night or early morning. It was cool. My class was also exclusively CONUS based 11 series which is obviously different. They wanted people who more accustomed to the climate and heat. We were told most of this at the end. Obviously they didn’t tell us anything other than “check the white board” during the class. I do believe that having an all infantry selection was good, and to stand out you had to be even better. Our class was also very small by SFAS standards.

I was one of the last classes to go through SOPC 2, which was basically like Pre-Ranger. Lots of smokings and fire hose levels off SUT. I’m sad that the trail of tears isn’t still a thing, that was a true ball buster. SOPC 2 doesn’t exist in any form any longer.

Here is where things got weird. There was an intensive focus or refocus on language so I attended a language “blitz” of some amount of weeks, I don’t recall, then went to SUT and SERE, then came back and did more language school. Then I went of to medic land for 18 months to complete a 12 month course;). By the time I returned they had shifted language school to before SUT. So now us MOS qualified guys were in language school with a bunch of guys who just showed up to Bragg. I did 4(?) months of language school and then Sage.

Add in some interesting timestamps. I ate at the old McKall chow hall until I came back for Robin Sage. We were in tents for SFAS and SUT, due to construction of new barracks during that phase. Million Dollar shitter was there in all its glory. We stayed in the old Selection huts for parts of SOPC and then in SERE, but they were demolished.

I know it isn’t ancient history but it is much different than now.

 

[Devildoc]

So I went through starting almost 20 years ago…. WTaF?

When I went through SOPC for 18X’s was at Ft.Bragg in the now mostly demolished “old division” area. SOPC was a man maker of sorts, brutal beatings, it was the true selection event. I went through an interesting SFAS class as it was the first July SFAS they had run in almost a decade, as multiple people had died previously. They modeled it after the Aussie SAS selection, because there are similar heat variables at play. There were multiple Aussie SAS guys at our selection observing. We did almost a full reverse cycle selection, with mostly every event happening at night or early morning. It was cool. My class was also exclusively CONUS based 11 series which is obviously different. They wanted people who more accustomed to the climate and heat. We were told most of this at the end. Obviously they didn’t tell us anything other than “check the white board” during the class. I do believe that having an all infantry selection was good, and to stand out you had to be even better. Our class was also very small by SFAS standards.

I was one of the last classes to go through SOPC 2, which was basically like Pre-Ranger. Lots of smokings and fire hose levels off SUT. I’m sad that the trail of tears isn’t still a thing, that was a true ball buster. SOPC 2 doesn’t exist in any form any longer.

Here is where things got weird. There was an intensive focus or refocus on language so I attended a language “blitz” of some amount of weeks, I don’t recall, then went to SUT and SERE, then came back and did more language school. Then I went of to medic land for 18 months to complete a 12 month course;). By the time I returned they had shifted language school to before SUT. So now us MOS qualified guys were in language school with a bunch of guys who just showed up to Bragg. I did 4(?) months of language school and then Sage.

Add in some interesting timestamps. I ate at the old McKall chow hall until I came back for Robin Sage. We were in tents for SFAS and SUT, due to construction of new barracks during that phase. Million Dollar shitter was there in all its glory. We stayed in the old Selection huts for parts of SOPC and then in SERE, but they were demolished.

I know it isn’t ancient history but it is much different than now.

In the 3, 3 1/2 years I've been working with SF and the schoolhouse it's even different now than it was then. The guys who got tabbed three years ago consider themselves "old" lol.

Thanks for your story.