Motivation
Accepting help isn't always a sign of weakness, but a utilization of all your resources.
My Path
So maybe I lied when I said I have gained weight. I weighed myself today and I'm still 165 pounds. Maybe I've lost some muscle and put on some fat. Damn MREs. I just don't look the same, but now that we will be back in garrison for a few weeks and I can hit the gym regularly, maybe I'll get back to my usual physique. Today wasn't a bad start with a full body "Wake Up the Muscles" weight workout and then a nice MetCon (Metabolic Conditioning). We'll see how I feel in the morning and then I'll make a decision on what kind of workout to get in tomorrow. I need to keep in mind that we have a couple days of Company PT scheduled. Nothing like being introduced the the Combat Fitness Test (CFT) again and, what I've really been waiting for, introduction to the Endurance Course. Hopefully I won't be too tired to get back into my Wendler 5-3-1 strength cycle.
Now for the subject of this post's title and the meat of what I wanted to talk about. I couldn't be more proud to be a Marine of Echo Company 6th Platoon, TBS Class 5-12. There were jokes being made early in the POI that we were the meetheads of the company. We had the best scores on the initial PFT across the company, but when we took the first exam, we had the lowest average score. We did a little bit better on the second exam. Where exactly we fell I'm not sure, but I know we weren't last. We're getting it turned around academically, but that was before the last couple of weeks. Throughout Range Week we have really come together, doing things that no other platoon in our company has done and things that have been unheard of from platoon at TBS.
If I remember correctly, I mentioned that we were the only platoon to have every Marine qualify on both the pistol and rifle. This was on the whole pistol course of fire and Table 1 of the rifle course of fire, but this was something that no other platoon in recent knowledge has done. I don't want to say that we are the first ever, because I wouldn't doubt that there have been a platoon or two before us do accomplish such a feat, but it is a rare achievement. We held this accomplishment all the way through Table 2 of the rifle course of fire, sealing the deal. As outstanding as this achievement may be as a platoon, this was all individual effort. No Marine could rely on another to qualify on each weapon system. It was pass or fail on your own skill. What is really amazing is what the Marines of 6th Platoon can do when they come together as a cohesive unit.
Throughout Range Week we spent every waking moment as a platoon, but not as an entire company. There were times when the company would suffer the same, such as the morning/afternoon hikes out to the range, but once we got out to the range platoons would be on their own schedule and conducting their own training. Some platoons would be in the Pits while others were on the rifle firing line, others would be at the pistol range; Some platoons would get to sit in the shade after shooting while others were police calling the range. I won't say who did what, but each platoon had their own tasks to complete, serving their own purposes. These situations facilitated an environment for platoons to grow closer, should they choose to take advantage of it. In my opinion, 6th platoon became extremely close.
We may have been close as fire teams and squads before Range Week, but after our platoon became a family. We all conducted the same training, suffered through the same pains, and dealt with each other at our lowest points. It's through these situations that unit cohesion is developed. The culminating event of Range Week is the a 6 mile hike after two straight days out at the range on little sleep. Like the 9 mile hike at OCS, this hike was a graded event. Either you completed it and you passed, or you fell out and you failed and would have to make it up in the future or get rolled into Mike Company to await another TBS class. Now 6 miles isn't very far, but after all the moving we do at the range each day for two weeks, gradually increasing the weight, and finally humping about 100 pounds of gear in the middle of the night, it's both physically and mentally daunting. With that being said, we also had Marines who had suffered sprained ankles and severe foot blisters throughout the week that mustered the courage to participate in this event.
About a half hour before stepping off for the hike our SPC called us together and gave us a quick talk. The most important take away from this meeting was that, "No one falls out of this hike." While some may have taken that as an order or demand, one Marine made it clear that it was to be taken as Commander's Intent. What that means is that it is the endstate desired by the commander and that it was up to us how it would get accomplished. While it was a graded event, and walking 6 miles sounds like individual effort, physically and mentally it requires a team effort for everyone to make it. We were willing to do everything it took to make get every Marine through the next 6 miles. I witnessed several Marines falling in the pitch black night to be helped up by members of the platoon, Marines holding up the pack of the Marine in front of them to decrease the load of those struggling, and Marines act as tugboats for others who could not march as fast as the rest of the company. We did everything we could think of to make sure every Marine of 6th platoon made it through the 6 miles, and in doing so we were able to say we did something no other platoon in the company could. We were the only platoon that did not have a "Hike Drop."
Now you might say, "But that's another physical event and your platoon was already demonstrating superior physical performance." My response would be that it isn't about accomplishing a physical task, but how we accomplished it. The team effort demonstrated on the 6 mile hike is what is important. To say that our platoon was the only platoon in the company to have all of its Marines hike all 6 miles is not saying that we are all PT studs, but that we are a cohesive unit willing to do whatever it takes to make sure that we rise to the occasion as a platoon. It may have been in a physical event, but I guarantee that it will care over into our below average scholastic performance. I anticipate seeing those who excel at the academics helping those that struggle, just as I saw the physically strong helping the weak. Individually we are all above average, but as a platoon we are extraordinary.
I'm proud to be a member of such a strong platoon. I'm proud to be able to say that we had no "UNQs" on the range and that we had no hike drops. Not only that we accomplished those things, but that we were the only platoon in the company to do so. I think you'll see many more great things coming from the 6th Platoon of Echo Company, TBS Class 5-12. It's been a little over a month and we've already accomplished so much. With five more months left, I feel like the potential is endless. We'll be able to accomplish anything as long as we work as a cohesive unit.
Extra Feature - Qualification Scores
Pistol: 272/300 - Expert Qualification
Rifle - Expert Qualification
Table 1: 221/250
Table 2: 97/100
Total: 318/350
WOD
3 Rounds for Time - 9:01
5 95# Clusters (Squat Clean Thrusters)
10 Burpees
15 Pullups
20 Pushups
30 Double Unders
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