Crucible Journal (Part 5)

The following is a portion of a journal a recruit kept while at bootcamp on Parris Island as he embarked on the Crucible and became a United States Marine.

Dear Journal,

FRIDAY - Parris Island Boot Camp - CRUCIBLE:

Got up at 0400. Each platoon's daily schedule is different. 1104 and 1105 may be scheduled for an obstacle that 1106 and 1108 completed yesterday, and 1109 and 1110 may be on their way from re-supply to take the same challenge. With 500 guys out here, there is no way for us to do obstacles at the same time. So last night after Prayer and the Marine Hymn, we talked to each other quietly about the other obstacles we saw. I should have slept more.

We stepped out for our first challenge of the day. The first Station was a good 3-mile hump from our huts. The obstacle was a tire suspended 4' with the side painted red. All members of our squad had to go through the tire without touching the red. We did all make it, but it was hard. The tire was swinging and spinning…guess that was the challenge. After we finished up there, we moved over to the Bayonet Assault Course. This course is exactly the same as the one at the Base. Lots of hooking and jabbing here! Kind of fun actually. But we are all run down.

From there we went to the Day Infiltration Course. We had 25 minutes to go through the whole course dragging with us a real team member (casualty), 2 large ammo cans, 2 small ammo cans, and 2 water jugs… filled with concrete!! God, I wanted to be the one being dragged! But, another Recruit had pulled a muscle, so we took turns pulling him. We are all filthy and covered in dirt now. We stopped for a sock change and foot check. My blisters are filling with fluid now. I put a double layer of moleskin on but it comes right off when my socks get wet.

Then we humped over to the Day Movement Course. And believe me, they don't call it "Movement" for nothing! This course had booby traps all over! And if we tripped them, that team member became a casualty. The more traps we tripped during the course, the more difficult it became because we had to pull the casualties along with all our gear. We are so tired and hungry and sore and aggravated. We are over halfway through. I'll write more later…