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greenberetTFS 08-06-2010 15:01

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Reaper (Post 342026)
The average load of an 82nd Airborne infantryman in theater is in excess of 130 pounds.

I do not recommend training with that weight, but it is reality.

How much of your share of the team gear do you think your fellow team members should have to carry for you?

If you are in good shape at 135 pounds, you had best be the strongest 135 pound man on the planet, and be able to buddy carry the heaviest guy on your team when you have to.

TR

OK guys,I'm not the brightest guy on this forum,however please tell me how a 135 pound guy would be able to carry a 130 pound rucksack?.............:confused:

Big Teddy :munchin

The Reaper 08-06-2010 15:27

Quote:

Originally Posted by greenberetTFS (Post 342408)
OK guys,I'm not the brightest guy on this forum,however please tell me how a 135 pound guy would be able to carry a 130 pound rucksack?.............:confused:

Big Teddy :munchin

Teddy:

It isn't a 130 pound ruck, at least not normally.

Body armor, helmet, weapon, ammo, grenades, smoke, crew served ammo, water, chow, radio, spare batteries, NVG, snivel gear, sleeping gear (temps ranged from 40s to more than 110 degrees), uniform, knife, tools, compass, map, flashlight, first aid/blow-out kit, IV kits, hygiene kits, gloves, etc., etc., plus a ruck adds up to 130 plus pounds.

Frankly, having humped over 150 pounds load before, when I weighed 190, it isn't exactly a tactical movement. More like a struggle to put one foot in front of the other without falling, eyes on the ground.

This study shows you where the weight comes from.

http://thedonovan.com/archives/moder...LoadReport.pdf

Here goes:

Quote:

Rifleman.

Average Mission Duration: 48-72 hours

Resupply Items: Soldiers were resupplied with 2-3 MREs per day and up to 8 liters of water per
day. When under fire, Soldiers could expect a resupply of their basic load of ammunition each
day.

Duty Position: Rifleman

Average Fighting Load (lbs): 63.00 lbs

Average FL % Body Weight: 35.90%

Average Approach March Load (lbs): 95.67 lbs

Average AML % Body Weight: 54.72%

Average Emergency Approach March Load (lbs): 127.34 lbs

Average EAML % Body Weight: 71.41 %
Hell, the study shows the 60mm mortar crews and leaders, assistance machine gunner, MG ammo bearer, and SAW gunners all over 140 pounds, and in some cases, almost 150 pounds.

The items counted for the 11B look like this. No beer, ipods, cigarettes, etc. included.

Quote:

Equipment Common to Riflemen:

A. Worn on Body/Uniform:

• M4 Carbine with PEQ-2 Laser/PAQ-4 Laser, ACOG/CCO, and 30 rounds of 5.56mm ball
ammunition.
• Desert Camouflage Uniform with Infrared Tape on left sleeve (1”x1”).
• Desert Combat Boots.
• Dog Tags.
• ID Card.
• Undershirt.
• Socks.
• Tactical gloves.
• Interceptor Body Armor with two Small Arms Protective Inserts.
• Advanced Combat Helmet with night vision mounting plate.
• Rigger belt.
• Notebook and pen.
• Watch.
• Knee and elbow pads.
• Sun, Sand, and Dust type Goggles or Wiley-X Goggles.
• Folding Knife/Multi-tool.

B. Worn on Fighting Load Carrier/Interceptor Body Armor:
• MOLLE Fighting Load Carrier with modular MOLLE pouches.
• 180 rounds of 5.56mm ball ammunition.
• Bayonet.
• Fragmentation grenade.
• 64 ounces of water in two 1-quart canteens.
• 100 ounces of water in a hydration bladder.
• Casualty and witness cards.
• Flex cuffs for personnel under custody.
• Night vision equipment (PVS-14/PVS-7).
• Iodine tablets.
• Lensatic compass.
• Flashlight.
• Chemlight.
• First Aid dressing and pouch.
• Canteen Cup.
• Earplugs.

C. Carried in Assault Rucksack:
• MOLLE Assault Rucksack or commercial assault rucksack, with MOLLE attachments.
• 500ml intravenous fluids bag with starter kit.
• 70 ounces of water in a second hydration bladder.
• Two Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs).
• Poncho and/or Bivy Sack.
• Poncho liner.
• Undershirt.
• Spare batteries.
• Two pair of socks.
• Polypropylene or silk long sleeve undershirt.
• M4/M16 Rifle Cleaning Kit.
• Personal hygiene kit.
• Rubber gloves.
• Sling rope with two snap links.

D. Carried in Main Rucksack: (Main rucksacks were rarely taken on operations during
study)
• MOLLE main rucksack with Sleeping Bag Carrier or Large ALICE rucksack.
• Modular Sleeping Bag (one bag per two men).
• Long Polypropylene Underwear of Fleece Jacket and Bibs.
• Two Undershirts.
• Two pairs of socks.
• Cold Weather Gloves.
• Knit/Fleece Cap.
• Additional ammunition.
• Two Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs).
• Sleeping pad.

Special Equipment:
• Lock pick (B).
• Collapsible Riot Baton (B).
• Bolt cutters (C or D).
• Metal detecting wand (C or D).
• 60mm mortar round (C or D).
• Combat Lifesaver Kit (C).
• Personnel Under Custody (PUC) Kit (sand bags, flex cuffs, trash bags, PUC cards, rubber
gloves) (C).
• AT4 Anti-armor Weapon. (C or D).
• SMAW-D Bunker Defeat Weapon. (C or D).
• Hooligan Tool. (C or D).
• Sledgehammer. (C or D).
• Entrenching Tool. (C or D).
• M18 Claymore Mine. (C or D).
• Pole-less Litter. (C or D).
• 200 rounds of 5.56mm linked ammunition for M249 SAW. (C or D).
Not judging, just saying that a 135 pound rifleman in the 82nd is getting his ass kicked by his load on a regular basis.

Guess how much 135 pounds of lightweight gear weighs?

TR

Chuckarthy 08-06-2010 16:26

Quote:

Originally Posted by Utah Bob (Post 342404)
From what is this log suspended?:rolleyes:
.

Haha well I hold it above my head in a way something a bit like this :lifter. Its an old wrestling workout that I used to do all the time in HS. My purpose for starting this thread was to find out if my stature would in some way disqualify me from becoming a SF soldier just by default. I am not so much concerned with weights or distances as I know that I will be capable of carrying and covering them with several months of training especially since I am already in fairly good shape (I can rock climb 5.8's with a 20lb weight vest on and was hiking 15-25 mile days with a 35-45lb pack on for 29 days during june/july. However, I guess if their is anything to take away from this thread it is that I should try to bulk up to at least 145-150lbs lean mass which shouldn't be that hard given my genetics and enough food. Anyhow, I truly appreciate your input and look forward to exploring the depths of knowledge on this site further.



*JJ_BPK * My intention for that was in no way to be arrogant and if that is the vibe you got from my last post I apologize.

lksteve 08-06-2010 16:57

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Reaper (Post 342422)
Not judging, just saying that a 135 pound rifleman in the 82nd is getting his ass kicked by his load on a regular basis.

I seem to recall being a little more tired than my larger squaddies back in the day...and after a three or four day exercise, I was pretty well spent..

Quote:

Guess how much 135 pounds of lightweight gear weighs?
210 pounds...maybe 250...

And to Teddy's question...how does a 135 pound trooper carry that kind of weight around (okay, I paraphrased )...it takes a lotta wanna...

Dozer523 08-06-2010 22:47

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chuckarthy (Post 342435)
. . . My purpose for starting this thread was to find out if my stature would in some way disqualify me from becoming a SF soldier just by default. . . .

Do your feet reach the ground? Then you're not to short.
Seriously, how big is your heart? What about your head? If those two are the right proportions you'll be okay.

craigepo 08-07-2010 08:08

I have watched little dudes go like crazy. Have watched guys built like greek statues quit/fail miserably.

As young as you are, I wouldn't worry a lot about the weight. Chow hall eatin' will put some ass on ya'.

Anybody up for some shit-on-a-shingle?

ZonieDiver 08-07-2010 10:56

Quote:

Originally Posted by craigepo (Post 342551)
I have watched little dudes go like crazy. Have watched guys built like greek statues quit/fail miserably.

As young as you are, I wouldn't worry a lot about the weight. Chow hall eatin' will put some ass on ya'.

Anybody up for some shit-on-a-shingle?

I was 5'9" and 150 when I went to Camp Mackall. I had a fear that I would be the smallest guy there - because the soldier who had been at Infantry and Airborne with me was 6'3" and 210... looked like John Wayne, and did a great impression, which was a handy skill in 1970 SFTG (I copied his imitation, though I looked nothing like "The Duke"... a couple guys from SFTG still know me as "Duke"!). When I got there, I discovered I was more the norm than the exception. However, we didn't have many guys much smaller than I was....

"Shit-on-a-shingle"! Yum. Though it didn't measure up to my mom's "chipped beef on toast" - I soon came to love the Army version, as I did most "Army chow." It was often derided, and I must admit the USAF seemed to eat better regularly. However, on the whole it was ,IMHO, usually pretty good, sometimes very good, and always plentiful.

"Chow down, hogs!"

mojaveman 08-07-2010 11:08

Sometimes there are advantages to being slight of build.

The tunnel rats that served during the the Viet Nam war are a fine example.

theis223 08-07-2010 13:01

Pricleess advice...
 
Quote:

Do your feet reach the ground? Then you're not to short.
Seriously, how big is your heart? What about your head? If those two are the right proportions you'll be okay.
Very sound advice for so many other applications in life. That is a gem Dozer!:)

Utah Bob 08-07-2010 17:19

Quote:

Originally Posted by mojaveman (Post 342571)
Sometimes there are advantages to being slight of build.

The tunnel rats that served during the the Viet Nam war are a fine example.

Well..when it came to tunnels I always thought that a fella about 6'4" and 250 had the advantage.
He couldn't fit in 'em.

Utah Bob 08-07-2010 17:21

Only disadvantage to being short was that I couldn't take as long strides with snowshoes and fell behind the team or (usually) had to break trail.

Blitzzz (RIP) 08-07-2010 17:43

Size does matter.
 
Height and weight certainly have some bearing on being SF in the minds of some.
This can be measured and photographed , but the real measure is measured by trial.
This is the measure of the Heart and will. No physical sizing will help determine this result. Blitzzz

Ret10Echo 08-07-2010 18:46

Quote:

Originally Posted by Utah Bob (Post 342636)
Only disadvantage to being short was that I couldn't take as long strides with snowshoes and fell behind the team or (usually) had to break trail.

Had some studs out in Yuma who had issue with the distance between the bottom of the pack tray and the ground while they were standing up. (This is prior to exit for you guys about to make some smart-alecky remark :D). Sometimes there isn't a lot of rucksack that fits between there.

Course, once you leave the ramp, none of that really matters....athough you could find yourself lacking a high quality rudder when you need one the most.

mark46th 08-07-2010 22:52

We had a medic in 46th Co that was 5'2"-5'3". It wasn't a problem until we had a jump out of a UH-1H. He was in the front spot, sitting on the edge of the cabin but his feet didn't reach the skid. When he pushed himself out, he didn't clear the skid and got hung up by the saddle on his harness. 1500' in the air, hanging upside down by his ass...

rdret1 08-08-2010 01:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blitzzz (Post 342640)
Height and weight certainly have some bearing on being SF in the minds of some.
This can be measured and photographed , but the real measure is measured by trial.
This is the measure of the Heart and will. No physical sizing will hep determine this result. Blitzzz

I always found it kind of amusing when some of the Arnold Jr.'s couldn't pass the PT test, while the little skinny guys had no problems.


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