The New 49'ers :: Members Forum :: Some entertaining reading?

1 people online in the last 1 minutes - 0 members, 0 anon and 1 guests. (Most ever was 55 at 21:51:42 Sun Nov 11 2012)

Offline
322 posts
Administrator

Some entertaining reading? ( 09:12:58 FriAug 27 2010 )

Here is an article from the June 1974 issue of Skin diver Magazine that covered the Hell week which I went through during navy Seal Team training (BUD/S). The 36 year old magazine was passed onto me from a member who flagged me down on the Rogue River a few weeks ago (thanks for that!).

Some of you might find this pretty entertaining reading.

I was just 19 years old at the time. It was really the beginning of my transfer from kid to adult. Talking about a reality-check!

I have a lot of interesting memories about that week, but I'll never forget this poor guy in the first group that was shoved into the pool during drown proofing (hands tied behind and legs tied) in just the first few days of hell week. It might have been on the first day. He panicked. Just the few times he managed to get his head above the water, he yelled "I quit!" The problem was that the only way to quit was to ring a special bell that was miles and miles away.

As this was just the first group in the pool (deep end), as an object lesson to the rest of us, all the instructors lined up alongside the edge of the pool, lowered their heads as if at a funeral, and watched the guy drown. Eventually, after the poor guy (quitter) passed out and sunk to the bottom of the pool, one of the instructors jumped in and pulled him out. Paramedics on the scene revived him and took him away in an ambulance. I was in the front of the next line of trainees, so got to watch it all play out directly. There was zero sympathy for quitters!

Nobody was given an opportunity to quit before drown proofing. If you were going to quit, it was going to be in the deep end of the pool with your hands and feet tied!

This was a very serious business.

It was important to get this right in the pool; because later in the week, we were shoved off a boat out in the Pacific Ocean several miles off of San Diego, for several hours, hands and feet tied the same way, in the middle of the night, for two, cold, winter hours. Holy crap, was it cold!

But we were only down to about 8 determined guys by then. We started with about 57 very qualified guys. Landing rafts on the rocks during a big storm, in the middle of the night, took several guys away in the ambulance. They were mangled! We never saw them again.

One guy fell off the 50-foot-tall cargo net in the obstacle course about mid-week. We never saw him again, either. Letting go of the net was the same as quitting.

Any excuse for failure was the same thing as quitting.

The article only goes a partial way to covering what we went through during that week in hell. It took me a full year to graduate the training. You have to go through it to really appreciate the experience.

I'll bet the training these days is just as challenging!!

We should all appreciate the young men who are actively fighting for our freedom.

Does anyone want to guess how many times the article shows my much-younger self? Which ones?

johntf

Offline
334 posts
Reply

Re: Some entertaining reading? ( 13:48:20 FriAug 27 2010 )

Dave I was not aware of your history in this .
Now that explains a lot , Juvenal abuse ? :devil:

When I was in the army , the teams really were a secret .

redwood

Unavailable
272 posts
Reply

Re: Some entertaining reading? ( 14:46:01 FriAug 27 2010 )

Pretty cool Dave, your past comes through on the present very well. Your dealings with adversity and your teaching to the novice in the mining / prospecting community show the training you went through and the benefits from it are long lasting to you and all you meet.

All the best Dave,
your friend,

Mike O'Connell

---
Joe's Cabin Rental

rlh1946

Offline
450 posts

Re: Some entertaining reading? ( 14:58:41 FriAug 27 2010 )

I just finished watching the tv show called 2 weeks of hell, green beret SF it was eye opening...thanks to all who serve & served.

---
proud father of a Army Soldier
"PLP" member
"NRA" member
"UFC" fan
Why don't anti-gun people have stickers on their windows that say "This is a gun free home"

Rod_Seiad

Offline
629 posts
Reply

Re: Some entertaining reading? ( 15:08:58 FriAug 27 2010 )

Dave,

You are why I joined the New 49ers.

I'm proud to share my limited time with you.

Rod

aunuts

Offline
201 posts
Reply

Re: Some entertaining reading? ( 19:51:18 FriAug 27 2010 )

And here I thought that jump school and LRRP training was a bitch. You da man.

AuTSaurus

Offline
102 posts
Reply

Re: Some entertaining reading? ( 08:24:20 SatAug 28 2010 )

Hi Dave,

How've you been? I'll take a guess. Three times/pictures?

On the ropes of the "black lagoon", front man on the log,
and far right(if "in" the picture), standing, in the picture of lined up helmets.

How'd I do?

Greg

rlh1946

Offline
450 posts

Re: Some entertaining reading? ( 20:43:58 SatAug 28 2010 )

I think that looks Like Dave as the far left guy with the helmets pic , thats left side with me looking at it. [1 edits; Last edit by rlh1946 at 23:50:21 Sat Aug 28 2010]

---
proud father of a Army Soldier
"PLP" member
"NRA" member
"UFC" fan
Why don't anti-gun people have stickers on their windows that say "This is a gun free home"

scooters

Offline
234 posts
Reply

Re: Some entertaining reading? ( 12:27:23 SunAug 29 2010 )

I have been in the Philippines for over four monthes and this article was just what I needed. Thanks for sharing the article with us. Russ

UncleMark

Offline
624 posts
Reply

Re: Some entertaining reading? ( 17:10:22 SunAug 29 2010 )

Dave,
That was a great read.
As far as the guess about how many times you are in the pictures, that is tough with the grainy black and white pictures, but hear it goes.

1.) the opening picture on page 34 on the ropes over the "black lagoon"

If 11 started hell week, and after the first night there were only 8 left and all of those eight finished hell week, I am guessing you were in three of the pics on page 36.

2.) Somewhere in the cargo net pic.

3.) head down face in the sand with your mouth open under the wire.

4.) in front carrying the log.

5.) on page 39 standing on the left looking down the line of helmets

6.) since I like blackjack and consider 50/50 good odds, I'll guess you are one of the men in the seven man raft on page 39 because with eight men there must have been two rafts.

My guesses of 1, 4, and 5, are great face shots.

I must also admit I have seen a couple of those pics before, and the pic I saw of you carrying the log is much clearer and really shows the emotion/energy of the situation better than this grainy one does.

Mark

Dave_Mack

Offline
322 posts
Administrator

Re: Some entertaining reading? ( 01:24:41 SunSep 19 2010 )

Good guesses, guys.

A reply to this really deserves a bit of story telling, because each of the pictures is only a momentary snap shot of some very substantial challenge and dangerous adventure. Some of you will enjoy hearing more of the story.

I also have some images that Skin diver magazine took that week, but did not publish.

So I have now pulled it all together in a story and forwarded it to Jason (our web master). He is a bit busy at the moment, so it might be a few more days before I can post a link.

scooters

Offline
234 posts
Reply

Re: Some entertaining reading? ( 10:33:16 WedOct 20 2010 )

Is more of the story ready? Russ

socalgold

Offline
715 posts

Re: Some entertaining reading? ( 13:03:23 WedOct 20 2010 )

If I remember right, Dave was the only one to complete the course, all others dropped out. Believe also he was the only one from the class before, his class and the following class to make it. Might just be rumors, but that was what I understand. I wouldn't have made the first roll call. Stationed at North Island for 2 yrs, I watched them often during them days. They were married to that telephone pole. Went just about everywhere with it, and don't confuse it with someone elses.

Dave_Mack

Offline
322 posts
Administrator

Re: Some entertaining reading? ( 02:32:32 TueOct 26 2010 )

My full story on Hell Week is written with some additional images. I'm just waiting for Jason to finish with it on line. His mother took a fall, so he is a bit tied up at the moment.

I have also finished a story about the time I jumped ship out in the middle of Hong Kong Harbor (for a girl) with images. Jason will be back on the job soon.

I just finished the first draft of a longer story (with lots of images) about when my brothers, Eric Bosch and I struck it rich dredging in British Columbia and then had to sneak up into Alaska in the middle of the night to keep from getting everything confiscated by the authorities up there.

Guess I'm just in the story telling mood at the moment!

Stay tuned.

Real49er

Offline
249 posts
Reply

Re: Some entertaining reading? ( 05:06:58 TueOct 26 2010 )

Quote: Dave_Mack at 02:32:32 Tue Oct 26 2010