Category: Army

Monday morning, we kick our week off right. Head to the gym where we’ll do our workout with the basics of pushups, sit-ups, and crunches, then to the bar for V-ups, pull-ups, and dips before a 4-mile run. Remember to stay hydrated and mark your progress in your workout log book. Training: More preparation for […]

The U.S. Army Special Forces built a number of camps to defend South Vietnam from Communist infiltration during the war in Vietnam. These would be manned by a typical Special Forces A-Team and manned by paramilitary Montagnard tribesmen, called camp strikers, in the Civilian Irregular Defense Program (CIDG). Special Forces camp A-109 at Thuong Duc […]

Wednesday is a back and shoulder day at the gym followed by a 6-mile rucksack march. Look to better the time that is the standard (90-minutes). And remember to hydrate throughout the march. Don’t forget to mark your progress in the workout log book, it would also be a good day to wear those second […]

To our readers who are attempting for a career in Special Operations, you’ll meet all kinds of interesting people everywhere you go. Some societies are eclectic, like our own.  Others are very regimented, but one thing that will never change, no matter where you travel are kids. As Americans we have a built-in affinity for […]

For anyone who is a member of the Special Operations Forces, regardless of what service or unit, there will always be the debate over the standards, whether they changed or have been lowered, and how they “need to get tougher.” And invariably, one grizzled veteran will proudly proclaim, “I went thru the last hard class.” […]

On this day during the early 1960s, the 5th SFG (A) was activated at Ft. Bragg, NC. One of the most storied units during the Vietnam War, the 5th SFG has been the vanguard of Special Forces units in Operation Enduring Freedom and during the Global War on Terror. The 5th SFG like all of […]

And others you can’t I recently was talking to a few old friends who had either been members of the Ranger Battalions of the 75th Ranger Regiment, or attended Ranger School as a member of the Special Operations community and we got into a discussion about the ways Ranger students can be prepared for the […]

By September of 1943, World War II was not going well for Nazi Germany. The Russians had routed the German attack at Kursk and had the strategic initiative. The German Afrika Korps had been pushed across and out of North Africa. German cities were routinely being bombed by American bombers during the day and British […]

The Israelis are no strangers to the counter-terrorist world of Special Operations. They arguably have the most experience in that they have been dealing with counter-terror issues in and around their own country for decades. They have developed several Special Operations units that integrated with their conventional troops, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) and each […]

Getting prepared to pass Selection into Special Operations is a long, and difficult process. As the summer months begin to slowly morph into fall, many of the prospective candidates will begin their preparation in earnest to tackle the course. For many of the candidates, the two biggest elephants in the room revolve around carrying a […]

About a year ago, we wrote a piece about preparing our candidates for Selection and in regards to the Physical Fitness test, training for the UBRR (Upper Body Round Robin) rather than the old, outdated 3-Event Physical Fitness test. We had received several questions from potential candidates asking,“Why do use the Upper Body Round Robin […]

There are times in Special Operations where you just have to stand back and say WTF just happened. And it seems to crazy that it can’t possibly be true…but it is and then you just have to laugh. He’s a funny rucking story for you guys this morning. Many years ago, while our Special Forces […]