For the next couple of weeks I've decided to post a mini story about a cadet leadership school I attended in the Civil Air Patrol back in the summer of 2010. When the story is finished I will post about the importance and great experience this school offered me. Perhaps it will help some other people too.
Day one, I awoke at 6:00am to take a shower, brush my teeth, get my uniform on and head out the door. I never knew what I was getting into; I thought it would be like NESA (National Emergency Service Academy) but living in a tent. Could you blame me? There was very little info on their website, and I didn’t know anyone that went to Hawk. I waited in the bag check line and surprisingly enough met a guy named Hunter Limb, a cadet that was also going to Hawk. I grabbed a bite to eat at McDonalds, and then boarded the plane. Limb never mentioned what I was in for; I guess he didn’t want to ruin the surprise. I talked to an elderly woman on the two hour plane ride about life and school, I felt relieved that I would land and have a great time. Later that effect would wear off. We landed in a small airport, about the size of my hometown airport. Limb and I called for transportation. We waited a while, and ate lunch. When the van was about to arrive Limb asked why I wasn’t shaved, I had forgotten to do it after my shower. He insisted on shaving or else I’d get crap. So I grabbed my travel razor, sprinted to the men’s bathroom and shaved, right on time too. The van was there and loading when I got out.
We traveled through small towns in an elevation I’d hardly seen before. The Appalachian Trail, I couldn’t wait. When the bus stopped I saw what looked like an abandoned training camp. Limb mentioned it was because not a lot of people came on the travel day. Most would come the next day. I stepped out onto the gravel hearing a crackling sound, limb offered to show me around. I was eventually assigned work with other basic and staff trainee cadets. For hours on end, we would move things. Scrub buildings, and clean anything else that needed cleaning. The staff trainee cadets had insisted telling me their stories of basic year. I was shocked. I had but one night to meet my maker.
Throughout the rest of the day more cadets showed up and were given work. Eventually more came than expected. The Hawk staff found it surprising themselves. They had no camps set up to sleep in, so they crammed us all under a small 40x40 foot pavilion. We set up our sleeping bags and waterproofed our gear. The screaming eventually initialized by the overwhelming amount of mess all the cadets had generated. It seemed this night was going to suck.
Throughout the night cadets poured in, more and more from late flights. I woke up along with another cadet named whose name escapes me. We both watched in awe as the first Hawk rain started pouring over the mountain. We then caught eye to a group of cadets trying to fit their packs under the tarps that housed our packs. What were we to do? It was an absolute mess. All we could do was hope our packs weren’t soaking wet by daybreak.
Alas, they were. After taking hours to scrounge through all the rubble of packs, we found all of our soaking wet gear and packs mud ridden. Dry clothes were not an option. In fact a large hole had been ripped in the seam of my duffle bag were all the clothes were. Everything was soaked. Training day one had officially begun.
We were all given orders to sign in and report to our commanding squadrons. Mine was basic squadron Bravo. Thank god I didn’t get Charlie. We marched all of our packs, gear, and food a grueling quarter-mile up elevation into a heavily wooded area. We were instructed to make a pack line along the trail and waterproof. We unfortunately did not do it fast enough for the staff and were instructed to do it again about five times. Our gear only got wetter each attempt. We then were instructed to form a line and report in. If we did not report in with 100% pronunciation and in the right form, we would be sent back to line to do it again. I messed up by one word. I was happy to see everyone screwing up as well. My second time I got it right and acted as if I had won some award, I felt accomplished and relieved. That was until I met the next staff member that ordered me to dig a 4x4 four foot deep hole in heavily rooted ground with a two foot shovel. He instructed that I get my safety gear first. This included an orange vest, goggles, gloves, and an orange helmet. I remember that day; digging that hole making no progress. It was so wet. I distinctly remember water dripping onto my face with no dry item to wipe if away. I tried with my BDU’s only to get wads of mud in my eyes. The day was not over.
After reporting in was commenced all the cadets were given jobs of setting up camp. I was eventually relieved from my duty of digging to pick up sticks for the firewood pile. I was partnered with a cadet. I would hold the firewood and he would pick it up and set it in my hands, pretty easy job right? Wrong. Eventually a female expert ranger decided to come help us. What this really means is: screaming her head off at the other cadet about not going fast enough. I swear she wanted to beat him. At what seemed like eternity the firewood grew into a humongous pile. It still wasn’t big enough said the staff. So I was relieved of that duty and moved to lifting huge boulders and setting up a trail. That was fun too, ha, ha. My final task was to take parachord and help set up the supply tents, to waterproof our gear. Those things always leaked. Eventually hours later, after logs had been placed as fire seats, the firewood pile had grown to a story in height. The leafs had been raked. The boulders were placed, and the supply tents had been set up. We ate lunch and eventually were given an introduction by our commander, Lt. Krakower. He told us about how the rain was the naturally sucky Hawk weather and how we were officially into training day one. To explain why I’m glad I didn’t get chosen for Charlie comes in his speech. Throughout the entire day and night the Charlie basic camp were screamed at and torn apart as we watched adjacent to their camp. In Lt. Krakower’s speech he made it clear that if we did not want what Charlie had, we would put out maximum effort.
Toward the evening we had one last chore, set up the tents. Tents at hawk are a weird story. They only use what is absolutely necessary. My tent was not used, and neither were about ten others. The general rule of thumb is “A tent at Hawk is double the recommended capacity”. Suddenly a two person became a four person tent. A four and eight, And so on. I was packed into a Hawk rated five person tent with some of the greatest friends I’ve ever encountered. Charles Hancock, Kevin Reid, Matt Deaton, and Zach Perry. Those guys are awesome!
Anyways the first lesson we learned about the tents were, to keep them closed! The Hawk daddy longlegs love tents. And if you leave your tent open they swarm all over the place. And even then sometimes you just get unlucky with those things. You’ll be going to sleep and feel one crawling on your face. Sorry off topic. Anyways, the day ended with diner at the campfire. We ate our little MRE’s and canned food. At the end of chow firewatchers were announced for certain times during the night. Guess who name was first on the list? Mine.
Check in next Wednesday for the next chapter at Hawk.
-Griffin
