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Military special operations /training/units?

Alan RushingAlan Rushing Member Posts: 9,002 ✭✭
edited January 2012 in US Military Veteran Forum
Is anyone here aware of a site that would have a factual breakout and breakdown of current US military special training and grouping;

Something real and true and for public knowledge?

Thanks

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    MaxHawaiiMaxHawaii Member Posts: 18 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    I don't know which branch you're looking at, but the only one I have knowledge of is:

    http://www.thesealteams.com/SEAL_workouts/

    If you scroll down to the suggested student preparation link it should be decent info for what you're looking for. Different branches emphasize different skills, SEALS obviously emphasize waterborne fun, but the rest of the conditiong would get you ready for most challenges.

    Good luck.
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    MaxHawaiiMaxHawaii Member Posts: 18 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    And it's SOCOM now.
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    SGMBalzSGMBalz Member Posts: 219 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Just Google Special Operations recruiting, or go to your local recruiting station, they have all the literature and websites for you.
    Be advised though, that is a hard way to make a living, and being retired now, a lot of my friends are crippled now, having lead that life style. Not trying to discourage you, just want you to have your eyes open going it. It ain't all glory brother
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    melkormelkor Member Posts: 191 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    [V] Alan what in the world do U need Special Operations Training for ? Please think about what your doing. Merc ? Spend the money on some ice cream, or donate the money to a needy person or organization.
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    Jim RauJim Rau Member Posts: 3,550
    edited November -1
    SOG-Study and Observation Group!!![;)]
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    Alan RushingAlan Rushing Member Posts: 9,002 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    quote:Originally posted by melkor
    [V] Alan what in the world do U need Special Operations Training for ? Please think about what your doing. Merc ? Spend the money on some ice cream, or donate the money to a needy person or organization.

    [;)] [:0] [:)] . . . Hey thanks so much!... If it hadn't been for you and your sane cry for reason, I'd have probably been in Afghanistan by now and have died from altitude sickness! . . . [;)] [:0] [:)]

    No, I was hoping to find something other than the hoopla and BS that is in the news and on the street.

    Two thirds my lifetime back I had some idea of the training and how it all fit together. Hoped that I might find something somewhere that was factual and straight forward. The lingo regarding this school or that is way, way beyond my current knowledge base.

    Met several guys in SFG lately and they are of course talking way over my head. I've not been around any of it for soooo long. I was hoping for a decent informational refresher.

    Anyone that can direct me thata way, I'd appreciate, thanks.

    ( PS: Have had too much ice cream too often ... not consuming that stuff lately. The evidence is on my body though! )
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    rawhide54rawhide54 Member Posts: 432 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Check out the recent documentary series "Making the cut." I can't remember whether its on The Discovery Channel or The History Channel but it's pretty good. It's about the initial training for the various US elite units.

    You're probably not going to get much on advanced or operational training because so many of the techniques, methods, technologies and even weapons are not for foreign or public dissemination.

    I think Tom Clancy did some books on SF, SEALS, etc. While they're probably dated, Clancy's stuff was always about one year off from the information he uses being classified.

    Good luck with your search.
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    CSI21CSI21 Member Posts: 1,206 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Alan,
    Are you trying to find out what different types of training folks go through or what exactly?
    I guess I got lost in all the hoopla of the others.
    Just remember training is never static, it changes as we learn and adapt. If you desire training, well thats another ball of wax.
    Best
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    buckstarbuckstar Member Posts: 1,163 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    quote: Met several guys in SFG lately and they are of course talking way over my head. I've not been around any of it for soooo long. I was hoping for a decent informational refresher.

    Most of what is trained in the military is not found in the Field Manuals (FM's) that you can buy or download. A lot of it, I suppose from my memories of training, was personal experiences, things from seminars, and little tidbits of so-called "common sense" that I apparently didn't have. It's unlikely that most people who had not been through training in the same timeframe or for the same job type will have the same knowledge base or frame of reference to interpret or find the humor in the jargon.

    Most training stories in the units I've been in have been considered indicators of new guys though and generally people within the unit don't want to hear them because everyone has gone through essentially the same training. A person that goes on and on about training stories may or may not have made it much past that training.

    Stories about what a person actually did in their unit are mostly 'you had to be there' things and although they may provoke laughter among 2 people that were in that situation it generally isn't of interest to outsiders. Just a couple of guys reminiscing on the past.

    Mostly what I'm trying to get across though is that even if you're listening to two guys chatting about their military experiences and they are having a good time it doesn't mean that you would have this same good time if you knew more jargon or read some book about training or whatever. People that try to have a conversation with me that have gained their knowledge this way are immediately noticed as such and I usually get off of those topics quickly because it's not that pleasant for me to talk to someone who was not in the military trying to speak with confidence that they know all about it. I can talk for hours to a 'good listener' though.

    The short of it is that if you want to talk to your new SFG friends about military stuff then mostly just listen. When they say something that you can't pick up from context and it won't break the flow of conversation ask about what that thing is. A complete conversation killer would be to compare something in your civilian life to what they are talking about though. Not sure why it has such a strong effect except for a lot of the stuff I learned, said, and did in the military remains in its own compartment as it is not suitable for non-military situations (or is perceived that way even if benign). To make a connection between a civilian and a military experience can sort of blow a protective fuse by connecting the two 'worlds' so to speak. For me, on a good day that may just lead me into a more non-military conversation. On a bad day it could result in me loosing the ability to speak or form thoughts entirely until I'm well away from the situation and then I'll have sleep issues for a while.

    Long story short, just have fun with your new friends and if you have questions about something they JUST said (not something they said another day/state of mind) then just ask them about that thing they said. You won't get much help from books. Hope that helps a little.
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