more pics

Here is a group pic of our squad in the "field"- I am the cute one on the left in the hawt camo outfit lol :-P

Day 8- LAST DAY!!

Thursday is the last day, unless you are Navy and need to qualify on the M-9.  You can "sleep in" till about 6 am and go to the chow hall for breakfast.  After breakfast they make you form up by platoon and turn in all your gear.  This is a Charlie Foxtrot for sure as they have you going from one place to another, waiting in line and getting your issue form signed off.  You must do it in the order they tell you and of course it is not logical and so your stuff is not packed that way.  After you turn in your gear and get your hand reciept they start screaming at you to HURRY UP because the bus is going to leave to the airport, turns out, not so much.  They make you sit/stand in front of the bus for about an hour while they "check" the hutments to make sure they are clean (all you have to do is get your shit out and sweep them) and then hand out your certificates for the course.  Once all that is accomplished they let you get on the bus and drive you to the airport.  Of course you are dropped off at the USO, which for some of us is a hike and a half to get to our "terminal."  There are BRs at the USO so you can change out of your uniform if you have time.  Originally they said do not book any flights before 1500 but that is BS because several Navy people had flights at 1200 and one of the AF nurses had a flight at 1145- it was not an issue.  My flight was at 1300 and it was perfect timing.  I was able to change, get some Starbucks (which I know tmi, instantly cured my constipation issue) and hang out for about an hour before my flight took off. 

Overall, I have to say this is an EXCELLENT course if you are thinking about deploying in the near future.  During the down time pick the brains of the cadre and the instructors for the professional courses- they have a wealth of information to share with you.  You will get what you put into it.  Have a good attitude and have fun and you will be fine.  Good luck...

Day 7 - last day in the field :)

So Wednesday starts off kinda shitty- they wake you up again at o' dark thirty and you go for a run as a unit.  If you don't run you will love it b/c basically you can walk, the pace is so slow.  If you do run, like me, sucks for you, b/c you will kill your knees as you 'run' a 14 min mile.  After the run is over, they give you plenty of time to shower and eat an MRE for breakfast.  You form up and they take you out to the rappeling tower.  For me, this was awesome, loved it and did it 3 times.  Some people had problems with it, but I thought it was a lot of fun.

After the tower, you go on to some more 'classes' in the field and you finish up the day with a scenario through a level 1 BAS.  We were done by around 1600.  At that point, you could eat dinner in the chow hall if you wanted and we watied for the squad leader meetings to wrap up.  Oh and btw,  your squad will also be responsible for "cleaning' the BR every other day.  Seriously, just pick up after yourselves and it will be fine- don't cause more work for other people.  This is the night they allow you "liberty" to go into downtown SA if you like.  They let us stay out until 0300, but most people did not stay out that late.  We all split taxis down to the river walk, ate dinner, had some drinks and went back.  I have to say that SA river walk on a Wednesday night was pretty freaking lame.  It seemed like every bar we went into was just filled with middle age men oogling at drunk women- not really my scene so much.  It was nice to get off Camp Bullis though, and believe it or not, it was like 20 degrees warmer down there from the insulation of the buildings.  A much deserved break from all the retardedness...

Day 6- Major field exercise

OK so now it is Tuesday and you are going to spend SEVERAL hours out in the field.  They will wake you up at 0430 and you will be allowed to eat your last real breakfast before forming up and heading out to the training area.  The first "evolution" we did was marching as a platoon through a narrow trail with a patient (dummy) on a litter, under fake gun fire while they (the cadre) are yelling at you to GO! then GET DOWN! then GO! again.  Part of the course involves low crawling under a cammo net.  If you are the ones with the litter at this time, it really sucks because you have to push and pull the thing under the net - help each other out and take turns with the litter.  Those dummies are heavy so don't be afraid to say that you need relief.  After you get through that obstacle they will kill off key people like the squad leader.  Make sure whoever takes over has accountability for the squad b/c they will ask you.  After each evolution you will have an After Action Report (AAR) and you will discuss how you did, blah, blah, blah.  The funnest evolution in my opinion is when they take you through the tactical simulator.  You are split off into about 4-5 individuals.  They give you a brief "map" of what it looks inside the sim and tell you what you need to do.  Basically, you are looking for casualties and will treat them as you find them.  They turn the lights TOTALLY off so for much of it you are feeling around in the dark, trying to find bodies which are dummies and treating them.  All the while the cadre are throwing wood chips at you, fake gun fire is going off and they are screaming at you.  In between evolutions you will have classes.  Two other evolutions we experienced were a convoy attack and rescuing pt.s from a fake C-130 crash.  All in all, it is a lot of humping around the hills of San Antonio and a lot of moving and "treating" pt.s which are ALL dummies.  We ended up finishing around 1630, but had to wait for the rest of the platoons to return so they could have their "squad leader" meeting.  The majority of us, after showering that night, discovered many "battle injuries" such as severely bruised knees and elbows.  I got a hematoma to the top of my right hand- not sure how I did it, and one of the Navy docs ended up busting her ACL- not good since she was a surgery resident :(  Other than that, we all passed out and got ready for the "last" day in the field.

Day 5- the heat is on ;)

Day 5 is Monday and you will begin your introduction to the field at this point.  They will bus you out there (on a duece and a half with no shocks)  for part of the day and the rest of the day you will spend at Fort Sam Houston getting a 4 hour death by power point lecture from the burn czars at Bamsey.  Interesting stuff, but difficult to follow b/c you will be so freaking tired.  After the burn lecture you will bused back to Camp Bullis as you pass restaurant after restaurant on hwy 1604 only to come back to the hutments and eat more MRE's.  They tell you that you cannot do anything in the evening until the "squad leaders" have their meeting (generally around 1830-1900), but by the end of the course people were breaking this rule left and right and showering before officially allowed.  Oh and btw, I hope you are not shy, because the showers are totally open and in a bay and the toilets are not only right NEXT to each other but also ACROSS from each other so you can watch you friends pee and poop (if you are so lucky to poop- MRE's make you seriously constipated).

Day 3 and Day 4

Saturday- for those of you taking TNCC, you will finish up today but having some more hands on practice and a test "review" ;).  ATLS and PHTLS will have more classes today and then will test on Sunday.  You will be allowed to eat at the chow hall on Saturday night.  Sunday night you should be able to also, but for some reason they did not get the message while we were there and we ended up with the lovely MRE.

Just so you know, the PX is closed on Sunday but IS open during the week from 0700 to 1800 and on Saturday from 1100 to 1800.  You can go in there during any of your down time and buy stuff.  There is also a little "barbeque" right next to the PX.  The guy is open every day of the week and must make a killing on the OBS an C4 students.  He sells ribs, hamburgers and cheeseburgers and fries.  They probably have more calories than the MRE but it is a nice change and good for a hot meal (MRE heaters- not so great).

Day 2

Day 2 is Friday and you will all be woken up by the CQ and will be allowed to go to the chow hall to eat breakfast- take adantage of all breakfasts you have- they will be your predominant hot meals, also take what you can from there (ie. fruit, cereal boxes etc. for snacks later).  After breakfast you will be forced to fall into formation with your platoon.  They will then march you over to the theater....

 

where you will have a crapload of lectures and powerpoints and introductions by the cadre and staff.  At this point, all the groups will be broken down.  ATLS (docs) will be bussed to Fort Sam, PHTLS (dentists, nurses) and TNCC will stay at Camp Bullis for their training.  I did TNCC and it was very good, as were the instructors.  We did lectures all day on Friday and were instructed by different personnel-all EXCELLENT.  We finished up that first day at around 5 or 6- ate at the chow hall and then had to wait until the "squad leader meeting" to find out what was on tap for the next day.  The squad leader then "briefed" us and we were released to shower and chill for the evening.

What to bring

If you are lucky (unlike me) you will get a list of what to pack and also "recommended" items.  Here is the low-down, seriously, this is what you need or might want:

towels (they will not give you any)
pillow
thermarest (highly recommended- the cots suck and are pretty damn thin)
ear plugs (for those huttment members that snore)
knee pads (you better bring em- all I can say is the "field" is full of gravel and rocks and you WILL be low crawling and on your knees a lot)
cell phone (coverage is spotty, but does work)
laptop (if you want to watch movies, also if you do at night please wear earphones)- there are plenty of outlets for plugs and such.
if it is during fall or winter, better bring some warm clothes
flip flops- shower is gross
MOTRIN or if you have flexoril or something better bring it- you will be sore
sleeping meds if you can't sleep (ie. benadryl, ambien, whatever works for you)
two BDUs/ACUs- one for your professional courses and one for the field
sunscreen
chapstick
toiletries
Whatever you don't bring, you will be able to get at the PX- it is open from 7 am till 6 pm every day except for Saturday and Sunday it is closed.  You will even be able to get coffee there in the morning on your breaks from professional courses.  They also sell laundry detergent which you will need and their are washers and dryers in the bathrooms
pogie bait if you want, b/c otherwise you will be eating a lot of MREs or barbeque
bandaids, mole skin for those who don't have their boots broken in yet
camera- you will be able to take pics for some of the revolutions

What to expect

Day one- if you are flying into SA airport make sure you report to the USO area and get on the FREE bus.  I did not get the info prior to and had to take a shuttle which cost $45.00- not good.  You should be able to report up until 1500, but trust me you can come anytime that night.  A bunch of Navy people came in quite late- I think it was actually better for them b/c they missed out on all the yelling that went on earlier. Speaking of yelling... when you get to Camp Bullis (change into BDUs/ABUs prior to) you will be told to go to a "briefing."  The briefings are held I believe about every hour and are held in the classroom.  You will verify your student number, fill out a bunch of paper work and listen to some civilian drone on for about 15 min.  Then you will meet the NCOIC (SFC Butler) who is a pretty cool guy and will give you the low down on what to expect.  If you did not get a book for your professional course (ie. TNCC,  ATLS etc)  don't worry, you can get it then. At that point they will tell you to start getting your equipment.  You will be issued a sleeping bag, poncho liner, MOPP gear, wet weather gear, kevlar, canteens, flack jacket and ruck.  Once you get them you will be told what squad and platoon you are in (based on student number) and then the yelling will begin.  Your cadre or 'PIs' as they like to call them will start screaming "hurry up", "lets go Sir/Maam" etc.  They will have you line up in order of your student number and will have you go through your gear one piece at a time.  They will then tell you to take all of your shit (including civilian bags) and place them in one huttment or another- this is what the huttments look like:

They appear to be made sometime during WWII and are made out of wood and paneling.  They also have steel doors that stick and are very loud when opening and closing.  Oh and yeah- there was no heat (they had turned the gas off and refused to put it back on) even though it was freezing while I was there.  You will be told to pick one of two huttments according to your student number.  You will be sleeping co-ed.  After that, you will hang out, meet your cohabitants and will unpack your crap.  You will be told to do this until your next meeting which will be at around 1800 or so.  At 1800 you will form up again according to student number and they will assign squad leaders.  At this point they will tell you what to expect the next day and what time you will wake up and report.