7 July 2008
BIG SANDY, Texas - This is my first year with CAP, so I was privileged to attend the Texas Wing Basic Summer Encampment hosted at the ALERT Academy in Big Sandy, Texas. We reported to Encampment at 1200 hours on 15 June to start training. Our days followed a basic routine.

They woke us at what felt like midnight everyday, but was actually 0600 hours. Then we would go outside to do PT (and I don't mean personal time). We would do an hour of stretching followed by thirty minutes of running equaling a mile or more, usually more. After that, we would have morning formation and then breakfast.

We then went to our barracks to dress in BDU's for morning inspection. Then we would have an activity or we would go to the PIR (Pass in Review) field for drilling. Lunch would follow, and off to class after that, to learn about different military and Air Force related things including: various airplane types and uses, jobs available in the military and on base, and military ranks and protocol. Finally, we would have dinner and be allowed personal time or go to the devotionals offered. The devotionals were fun, but I wish there had been more than the two.

My two favorite activities during the week were when we were able to do the ropes course as a unit and the shooting range. My flight, Alpha, went to an off-site area by vans one day. When we got to the range they had the rifles on the ground by mats and we were assigned a number so we would know which weapon was ours. We had to take the clip out, load one bullet, and put the clip back in. After we fired that round, I was told that I didn't have to take the clip out anymore, just load the next 49 bullets into the bolt. The ropes course was cool too, because we were able to work together and come up with solutions to get through. It was great fun and a great way to share ideas.

The only bad thing was when bees ambushed us and I was stung several times on the arm and leg, along with most of the other cadets. No one was seriously hurt, but it did sting pretty badly.

Near the end of training, Alpha Flight forms for a group photo. The author is the fourth cadet from the right (sixth person from the right). His new friend Dundore is the cadet ahead of him in the line.

I made a lot of friends including cadets Velez and Dundore. It was great hanging out with people from all over Texas and some from as far away as Maine, Wyoming, California, Washington, and Florida.

That's what I did at summer encampment 2008. It was hard work, but worth the blisters.

(C/AB Corin Carter)


 

Article by C/AB Corin Carter (First published in the July Group III, Texas Wing Newsletter)