In order to participate in the GunBroker Member forums, you must be logged in with your GunBroker.com account. Click the sign-in button at the top right of the forums page to get connected.
Army Ranger
Gene B.
Member Posts: 892 ✭✭✭✭
Hi its been awhile since I last posted here. I am seriously considering trying to become an Army Ranger. For the most part all I want to know, is what I have to do to become one, and how do I get into Ranger School, what are the physical requirements, etc. I live right by a military base so I'll probably be talking to a recruiter there soon. Also I was in ROTC throughout high school, and know Spanish and German, I dont If that will help any become a Ranger. I know alot of yall will say dont enlist now theres a war going on, call me crazy but I actually want to go to war. And if I some how do become a Ranger what are my chances that I'll be sent to the middle east? Semper Fi do or Die.
P.S. I dont have email so I really cant email anybody.
P.S. I dont have email so I really cant email anybody.
Comments
Why does man kill? He kills for food. But not only for food; frequently, he must have a beverage.
Reserving my Right to Arm Bears!!!!
Secondly: I applaud your interest. I'm on a Ranger-track contract myself. I'll tell you the basics, and if you've got any more questions, you can ask Idsman.
Just for the basics, you need to be medically and criminally qualified (have a clean record). Then, because of your choice of carerr, you WILL need the following: to be willing to sign up for the maximum term (6 years), to be willing to sign up for a combat MOS (probably 11-B if you want the best chance), and be possessing of a high ASVAB score (VERY important).
You chose a difficult path, and slots are highly limited.
I'd advise you to think LONG and think HARD about why you are making this choice. Infantry training may be tough, but Ranger training is designed where only those who want it worse than anything in the world will be able to hack it. When your physical body wants to quit (and it WILL), you need to have that ability to suck it up and soldier on. You wont get there unless you want it so badly you can taste it.
If after all that soul-searching you still want it, then go through all of the paperwork and prepare for battle with the career counselor at MEPS. If you can convince him, then you'll be done with at least the first part of your trials and tribulations.
Do your best. That's all you can do.
Rameleni1
If you want it bad enough, and you've got the ASVAB scores, you can do damn near anything. But you should really do your homework and think it through very well before you sign anything.
I'm not positive about this, hopefully Idsman can clarify, but I'm fairly sure if you sign a demanding contract and then decide at some point that you dont want to do it anymore or simply cant keep up, you are assigned "per the wishes and needs of the Department of the Army".
That's not to say they'll automatically stick you in Alaska as a cook, but technically they could if they wanted to if you dont fufill your end of the contract.
Edited by - gene B. on 08/22/2002 23:50:39
AlleninAlaska
http://www.outdoor-o-rama.com
He who dares not offend cannot be honest.
-- Thomas Paine
Bullz, it's Semper Fi, not "Semper Fi Do or Die". If it absolutely positively must be done in 24 hours or less, call the Marines.
I know it, Allen. Semper Fidelis said in full just doesnt have the same ring to it, does it?
My little brother just graduate Ranger school this past March.
GOOD LUCK!!!!!!!!
"How do I get out of this chicken **** outfit?"
There are several hurdles in your way that you will need to overcome before you can get what you want. You need to take the ASVAB (Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery) and you will need to score fairly well. A good command of the English language (word knowledge/paragraph comprehension) and basic mathematic and algebra skills are a must.
Secondly, you need to have a very clean record. Being a part of a Ranger Batallion is a great source of pride. There is a strict code to live by if you want to stay in your Ranger Bat. Too many speeding tickets or even one non-traffic-related infraction of the law can have you out on your rear and back in a non-Ranger infantry unit.
Thirdly, you have to be medically qualified. If you have had ANY contact with a doctor/physician/psychiatrist/psychologist/etc they will want the pertinant medical records in order to screen you for eleigibility.
As a Ranger you work hard but you also play hard. A Ranger compound is a very nice place to live. Those guys get the dollars they ask for--for training and for recreation. When I was stationed at one of the Army posts where there was a Ranger Bat they had a pool table, a bar and several nice amenities right there in the barracks. You'll be on jump status and will jump at least monthly from a perfectly good aircraft. You'll also get the extra $150 jump pay for being on jump status. You will train and you will train hard every day. Remember "Blackhawk Down"? Rangers are HIGHLY trained in urban combat which is probably one of the most dangerous forms of combat there is. Being a Ranger is a great way to go if you want to go Special Forces one day.
The Army is the only service that operates solely on a "closed contract" basis. That means that you get exactly what is in your contract and can't be reassigned to a different MOS on the basis of "Needs of the Army". Our office has copies of the other services' contracts. In the Army you will not go through basic training only to find out that the Army is going to send you to training different from what you enlisted for. If a tornado wipes out the entire installation where you are going for your training and you can no longer go for the training that you enlisted for, you will be released from your contract or be offered something else.
B - BreatheR - RelaxA - AimS - SightS - Squeeze
Ranger training is tough, but you can be tougher. You can expect to be sleep deprived, water deprived (unless you're in it) and generally harrassed beyond belief. I suggest that you go into immediate training just like a fighter would for a prize fight, with one big difference: Gain as much muscle weight as your body can carry. You will burn all the fat off your body, and some muscle as well while in training.
You will be in training with all ranks, but never know what their rank is; they are all called "Ranger". You will be expected to function as a team player. You will be called on to demonstrate extraordinary navigational skills without a GPS, study up on your map reading.
After Airborne and Ranger training, you may want to consider SFAS (Special Forces Assessment Selection) and if you make it, the Special Forces Qualification Course.
Special Forces is a very demanding lifestyle, but the rewards are tremendous. You'll make lifelong friends that become truly like family.
Good luck & Hooah!
"If you can do it, it ain't braggin'".
JR Ewing - "Dallas"
SUBMARINE SAILOR,TRUCK DRIVER,RUSTY WALLACE FAN AND AS EVERYONE SO OFTEN POINTS OUT PISS POOR TYPIST e-mail:WNUNLEY@USIT.NET
Be careful who you choose to be your experts.
Anyone that's not Ranger qualified has no real idea of what it takes,
they're outsiders, looking in and giving their opinions or relating something they read about it.
That's OK, too they're entitled - but Old Sf'er hit the nail on the head on a little of what it takes to be a Ranger.
I'd add to that by saying it is some of the hardest training the Army has to offer, and many candidates don't make it. You will be subjected to more physical and mental torture than you ever knew existed, and be expected to rise above it. You will be taught the basics of Special Operations, and advanced battle techniques. You will do things on a daily basis that an 11 Bravo leg would think was impossible.
A lot of soldiers "talk a good fight". Rangers and Special Forces do it!
Jim
"De Oppresso Liber"
Be careful who you choose to be your experts.
Anyone that's not Ranger qualified has no real idea of what it takes,
they're outsiders, looking in and giving their opinions or relating something they read about it.
Jungle Jim--Hope that wasn't ALL directed towards me. Just for the record--I'm no expert. Just trying to play my position on the team. I never aspired to be the quarterback.
OK Gene, I'll bite-
The best (and a commonly heard military urban legend) is the one where while out on a patrol, for no reason, a guy gets up and starts bashing a tree with the butt of his M-16.
When asked why, "RangerJoe" usually replies, "Damn pop machine ate my frickin' money.."
Sleep Depro WILL do this to you...I once spent the better part of guard rotation trying to draw a bead on Bugs Bunny through a night vision scope. Lucky thing I never could hold tight on him for more than a half a second or so.
Reserving my Right to Arm Bears!!!!
Wasn't directed at you or anyone else. There are a lot of "experts" out there and people that claim qualification that aren't.
You're just trying to do your job, and from what I can tell do a good job at it.
My point was to this young man that Ranger is a tough slot, and he needs to be prepared if he's going to try it.
The toughest troops I ever trained with were the Australian Special Forces with their forward repelling techniques!
Jim
"De Oppresso Liber"
Edited by - Jungle Jim on 08/26/2002 08:54:16
Gene- Dano doesn't want to talk about it, but he's just taking the long route about it.
Like the man said....."Let it be, Oooh, let it be.......
Reserving my Right to Arm Bears!!!!
Edited by - gene B. on 08/26/2002 20:14:20