GORUCK Heavy 039 -- Chicago -- After Action Review (AAR)

This past weekend I had an opportunity to travel to the windy city to complete an event I had not previously heard of -- GORUCK Heavy. This AAR is not intended to be an overview of events that occurred or even a "review" of how the event was conducted. I intend, rather, to discuss what worked well for me and what didn't, and perhaps a bit about what I would do different when faced with adversity such as this again.

The event page touts GORUCK as "the ultimate team building" event, covering 35+ miles in 24+ hours. This is no joke, it turns out, as Saturday evening we finished the event with 40.2 miles coming in at 26 hours and 5 minutes. What occurred during those hours was some of the most gritty, frustrating, uncomfortable madness I've experienced to date.

n.b. I'm no stranger to endurance events. In fact, the past few weekends I've covered 400+ miles of dirt and road biking. These, however, were individual endurance events. In this case, 42 of us were required to work together and a theme ran through the entire day's work -- we were never stronger than our weakest man. This meant it was critical to work together, for better or for worse, in order to get things done. As a pretty introverted, independent guy, this was massively taxing on my ability to put up with the suck.

I work best with structure, so let's outline 3 things that worked well, that I enjoyed, and that were positive aspects of the event followed by what didn't work, what sucked a lot, and was negative:

"+"

1. Master Sargent Andy is The Man -- From the beginning introductions, I knew this event was in good hands. There were other Cadre (who we later learned were leading their first "Heavys") but Cadre Andy (hereby, "Top") was clearly top dawg and a keystone of the entire event. An eloquently spoken, combat-decorated marine, Top told story after story of unbelievable situations he's encountered in his 20 years as a Recon Marine. His amusing, off-the-wall demeanor combined with sternness and experience was entertaining. As Top's bio reads, his three loves are Freedom, Family, and America, and by the end many of us began to relate. As for his love of America, the event was partially structured by rucking to several key monuments in the Chicago area where Top would give us a recap of the person's contribution to American history. He knew his shit and rarely used notes to boot. While it was mentally taxing to listen while sleep deprived, his dynamic personality was engaging (and frankly I was scared out of my mind to let me catch me snoozing). In short, Top made this event what it was and to have him as our cadre was a privilege.

2. United We Stand, Divided We Fall -- Our team comprised of 42 people with ranging ages from ~20-40, including two females, one (6th grade) teacher, several marines and a few army folks. Our crew covered the gamut as far as experience with GORUCK, with several having never completed an event, many having done a few, and several having many others under their belt. Meeting these folks and sharing this experience was rewarding, and I'm glad to have done the event with them. One thing I noticed was how people changed from beginning to end, and how difficult it is to keep your guard up when you've had your ass handed to you for 16+ hours. In short, I got to know new people quite well in a short period of time, and saw a side of my best friends that I hadn't seen previously.

3. What's Past is Prologue -- As mentioned before, history of America was a major theme of the event, which was fitting for Memorial Day weekend. I also enjoyed the "dismount" explanation of GORUCK bridging the civilian/military gap. We were brought slightly closer to what many before us have experienced for much longer periods of time. Hearing about this hardship, then living a small part of it, was special. Full disclosure: as a result of this my "Freedom Boner" (Top's term, not mine) is alive and well. Additionally, given Top's background with being a medic, we learned certain techniques of caring for those wounded in battle. This was difficult to hear at times (and I'm not usually squeamish) but the content was legit and again made me grateful for those that take a (violent) stand for the greater good of our principality.

"-"

1. Amphibious Reconnaissance -- I expected to get wet during the event, but the extent to which we would simulate actually taking a beach I underestimated. I don't want to spoil any "secret sauce" but it will suffice to say we got sandy and it really sucked. The breaking point was learning, shivering as the sun came up, that my dry change of clothes was soaking wet and sandy inside of the zip lock/grocery double-bag I had configured. To anyone reading this prior to completion: bring a proper waterproof setup. At this point in the event, I was exhausted -- the water was cold and I was sandy and the "team building" exercises tickled a spot in me that has not been agitated before. I was vulnerable, and to be honest, I almost said uncle. I'm glad I didn't, it was rewarding to finish, but I learned that I really, really don't like the feeling of being sandy, tired, wet, fatigued, and sleep deprived and that I really, really need to stop being such a pussy when faced with this sort of hardship and just grin and bear it because it's going to end and I'm going to be on my couch again doing mindless bullshit in the very near future.

2. Thoughts --> Destiny -- If I could do this event again, I would go in being more mindful of my "self-talk." Frankly, I did too much bitching, and spent too much time feeling sorry for myself. Indeed, it was terrible at times, but every time I bitched about it only propelled me the opposite direction from where I needed to be going. Physically, I could take it. Mentally, I was not where I needed to be and a huge take away from this is to limit self-shame at all costs and just stick it out for the greater benefit both collectively and individually.

3. Teamwork: Easier said than done. -- What at this point seems trifling, the team weight that was improvised for our class because the cadre could not find a log was a chintzy substitute. Instead of carrying a log, we filled a bag with wet sand (~400 lbs) carried it on a stretcher followed by ~800 other pounds of ridiculous objects distributed throughout the procession. Carrying this was just awful, and we could only fit 3 people on each side of the team weight stretcher so this meant taking shifts. Many people gave up and stayed in the back of our procession (behavior in marine terms known as "cheesedicking"), and refused to take shifts in with the weight. If I would do this event again, I would hope that there would be a more manageable team weight.. but perhaps that goes back to my bitching problem. More appropriately, perhaps, if I were to do this again I would strategize more effectively about to take shifts, save energy, and foster encouragement. The team weight was truly the crux of our crew's disagreements (arguments) throughout the event.

Overall: I'm glad I completed the Heavy. We saw a lot of the city, and I pushed myself further than I thought possible. Top was motivating, and I learned quite a lot about military history and medical techniques I wouldn't know otherwise. I also got the opportunity to stay in touch with my best friends from high school which now live in other cities. I'd have to think long and hard about signing up for another (I am eyeing the one in Boulder...), but in any case I am starting to look into other endurance events (i.e. ultra marathons) to complete this summer. This event has influenced how I will prepare for those events and the experience overall was formative and memorial.

Post: This was shared with me by my friend, Craig Shaver, a combat-decorated marine veteran. What a fitting expression of what it means to be a leader.

NCO Creed

I am an NCO dedicated to training new Marines and influencing the old. I am forever conscious of each Marine under my charge, and by example will inspire them to the highest standards possible. I will strive to be patient, understanding, just, and firm. I will commend the deserving and encourage the wayward. I will never forget that I am responsible to my Commanding Officer for the morale, discipline, and efficiency of my Men. Their performance will reflect an image of me.

 Sauce: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noncommissioned_officer%27s_creed