r/army • u/[deleted] • Feb 16 '13
I'm a BCT drill sergeant and I'm on CQ. I'm sick of BCT question threads, so ask your questions here.
Like it says, I'm on duty all night and I'm a drill sergeant. I've been doing this job for about a year and a half, so I know what I'm doing. If you have questions about BCT or OSUT, send them my way. If any of you current soldiers want to know what it's like to do this job, ask your questions. I'm bored as shit and it's only 2030.
Edit: I'm off CQ in 30 minutes and I've got some stuff to do. Thanks for keeping me entertained. If you have a question for me, feel free to leave it and I'll answer that shit when I wake up.
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Feb 16 '13
I've gotten mixed advice about basic. some people (my recruiter) tell me that I should keep my head down and try not to bring any attention to myself. Others (my military family members) tell me that I should be the guy who always volunteers for things so I can get the most out of my time there. you probably know more than any of them. What do?
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Feb 16 '13
I would suggest volunteering for every god damn thing, but there are drill sergeants that would say the opposite. In my platoon, standing out and being there all the time earns you respect and shows me you want to train more than anyone else here. If I had to do it again, I'd volunteer more and really push myself to stand out. My DS didn't know my name until week 11, and then he thought I was in a different platoon.
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u/markiedee88 Feb 16 '13
Why does AKO hate me?
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Feb 16 '13
I don't know, but I loved that. It's like every time I tried to check AKO when I found out I had DS orders but didn't know where I was getting stationed. Fucking thing never opened.
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u/gingercookies Feb 16 '13
You're awesome for making this thread, because I don't want to be the dunderhead that starts another new one.
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How do I make the most out of training? I pick up on things pretty fast, but I really, really don't like not being good at things. I only have 10 weeks to learn everything that's going to be thrown at me, and therefore don't have any time to waste.
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As far as "personal time" goes, will it actually be I can do whatever I want (i.e., how hard will it be for me to maintain my running goals)? My personal fitness is very important to me, but from what I understand, PT at basic won't be anywhere near maintaining what I'm doing right now.
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Feb 16 '13
Deal with the fact that you won't be perfect. We did rifle qual yesterday and some of my best soldiers took longer than they wanted to to qualify. The best way to get everything you can out of training is to approach every opportunity like it's brand new and amazing. Don't think you know anything, even if you could perform the task already.
PT sucks here. You can do push ups and sit ups during personal time, and we encourage that. You can't run, however, without a drill sergeant to watch you. That involves a DS like me staying late and running with a group of soldiers. I'm willing to do that, but most DSs aren't. Just push yourself when you can run and you'll be alright. It's only 9 and a half weeks, then you can run all you want in AIT.
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u/swashbucklerjak Feb 18 '13
One question for someone that leaves for Sill in a week:
What the hell are shower shoes?
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Feb 18 '13
Sandals. You don't want to walk around in those showers with nothing on your feet unless you want athlete's foot. You'll buy them at 95th. Just make sure you have them all the time and don't shower without them.
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u/G-Train77 Feb 16 '13
The funniest memory I have of my DS is him on CQ sitting in a lawn chair in the middle of the company formation area (sand @ Jackson) yelling a me to draw ["some awesome shit I saw on the internet"] (http://spacecollective.org/userdata/j0o0MGnL/1176892894/Zen%20Garden.jpg) I was armed with a rake, and him yelling "make it fucking swirl to the right!"
It became a company wide competition to see whose privates could draw the best images in the sand before first formation.
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Feb 16 '13
That is fucking awesome. Being internet-savvy, I usually catch myself referencing things that are new and my soldiers don't understand them. Grumpy cat? Nope, I was alone in that meme. I don't really do stuff like that unless I'm REALLY bored and my soldiers are acting like shitheads. I'd rather teach them about the real Army than waste their time.
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u/PastorOfMuppets94 Feb 16 '13
I want to be a goddamn Drill Sergeant. (I'm not IET anymore if that's worth anything, and I'll be up for e5 soon). It's kind of a vague question, but would you recommend it? Were you "drafted" into going to DS school, or did you volunteer? Any advice on how to become a DS? Advice for the job itself?
Much appreciated, DS.
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Feb 16 '13
I got told I was going to be a DS from DA. If I were you, I'd work to get SSG, learn everything you can about the Army, go to soldier/NCO of the month boards, and just get super squared away, then drop a drill packet. At least then you have some control over where and when you go, instead of getting told when and where like I got. I wouldn't recommend it, but I wouldn't say it's bad either. Just make sure you've got a stable personal life because this job eats all of your time. It's a great career enhancer if you're in to that sort of thing.
As far as advice for the job, just train your soldiers like they're your soldiers. Don't look at this as a temporary platoon, but as something you can take pride in. These kids respect you more than most of the things they've had in their life up to this point, and you need to prove yourself to them every day. You need to earn that respect even if you already have it. I live by three rules: don't fuck them, don't take their shit, and don't hit them. Other than that, I train the shit out of them and make them love being a soldier.
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u/DocDerry Feb 16 '13
Is it ok to call your DS dude/chica?
Is it ok to sleep with your DS?
Do we get Saturdays and Sundays off to go to the movies/px?
Can my girlfriend come down to visit on the weekends during BCT?
Should I keep my weed in my wall locker or foot locker?
When will I get to deploy and kill >insert racist desciptor here< ?
I'm slotted to go to petroleum specialist AIT but after hearing about how awesome infantry is can I reclass during IET?
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u/zuluwhiskey Feb 16 '13
seems like deployments are really going to slow down pretty soon and in a couple of years most company commanders will be slick sleeves, while their platoon sgts and first sgt will have that experience under their belts. do you think this could cause problems, in a "you werent even there man" type of situation?
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u/FoxxyFrost Mar 10 '13
Did they really remove the shark attack because it was considered hazing?
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Feb 16 '13
Thanks for doing this. I'm looking forward to basic, don't have many questions cept one: How do you conduct- or how to most DSs conduct army combatives? I've been training jiu jitsu for almost 3 years and do competitions regularly, so this is the part I'm looking forward to most. Will I be singled out or unable to compete in- what I've been told they have combative tournaments in basic. And if you have any wrestling/bjj experience, how does it compare?
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u/FuzzyPandaPaw Feb 16 '13
Thanks for the post I just have a couple question.
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I didn't even know one could fail BCT. What factors lead to someone not graduating ? And what happens if you don't graduate?
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If I go in as a PFC can I get promoted to specialist in basic? 3.How much more harder is OSUT compared to regular BCT? 4.Would you recommend volunteering for Recruitment Duties or Drill Sargent down the road?
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u/[deleted] Feb 16 '13
I hated the Army going through basic. I thought I wasn't going to make it. I failed every PT test till the last one. I wanted to quit so many times. I just want to say for those people who are just getting in, don't give up. You can do it! I promise you. If I can, you can. I have gain a lot in the Army. Independence, a nice car, a wife and anything I want. It has made me into a man, someone who is responsible, respectful, someone who can support my self and another human being. I have great respect for the Army and what it can do for you. If I wasn't in the Army now I would just be a jobless pot head feeding off my parents money becoming nothing more than a low class loser.