I signed up to be a CBRN, haven't left for basic or anything yet. What advice would you give?

PV2 Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 12 Feb 2018 13:07:45 -0500

Response by PFC Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 12 at 2018 1:32 PM

PFC Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 12 Feb 2018 13:32:07 -0500

Get used to wearing gas masks in class, and make sure you learn how to put on clothes in less than two minutes in a very specific order.

Response by SSG Carlos Madden made Feb 12 at 2018 1:36 PM

SSG Carlos Madden — Mon, 12 Feb 2018 13:36:08 -0500

There are a lot of other good discussions on RP about preparing to go to basic. Try using the search bar to find past posts because they already have a lot of good information in them. Here are two:
https://www.rallypoint.com/answers/what-would-be-the-best-advice-for-a-private-heading-to-basic-training-at-fort-leonard-wood
https://www.rallypoint.com/answers/best-advice-for-basic-training

What would be the best advice for a private heading to Basic Training at Fort Leonard Wood? |...

I leave next Monday on the 27th and I am just wondering if there are any certain tips or advice that portrays to ft Leonard Wood that would help?

Response by SGT Frank Pritchett made Feb 12 at 2018 2:32 PM

SGT Frank Pritchett — Mon, 12 Feb 2018 14:32:55 -0500

The CBRN course is very good, the experience is valuable and will set you up for a very lucrative career in HAZMAT if you chose. The course is very expensive for civilians to learn and it's all hands on with some death by power point, it's fast pace so take notes. Once you get to your unit you will half to spend a lot of time trying to use it. Most units don't know how to use CBRN NCO's.

Response by SGT Joseph Gunderson made Feb 12 at 2018 7:23 PM

SGT Joseph Gunderson — Mon, 12 Feb 2018 19:23:52 -0500

Your points are going to be stupid high... Always... Make sure that you jump on finishing civilian education and military education as quickly as possible so that you have those points in the bank.

Response by CPL J Ariel Sturtz made Feb 12 at 2018 9:24 PM

CPL J Ariel Sturtz — Mon, 12 Feb 2018 21:24:47 -0500

Fort Leonard Wood isn't for the faint of heart. Learn your blue book for basic, ensure you can pass your PT test the start studying for hazmat. They have different apps you can also put on your phone as study guides

Response by PV2 Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 12 at 2018 10:31 PM

PV2 Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 12 Feb 2018 22:31:32 -0500

Get ready to come to Korea, honestly

Response by SFC Michael Hasbun made Feb 12 at 2018 10:52 PM

SFC Michael Hasbun — Mon, 12 Feb 2018 22:52:36 -0500

Try your best to get to Korea. It's the one place where you can take center stage and be a priority commodity.

Response by CW3 Jeff Held made Feb 13 at 2018 1:06 AM

CW3 Jeff Held — Tue, 13 Feb 2018 01:06:29 -0500

At basic; don’t worry about what others are doing. Keep your head down and work your tail off. Basic can be a source of great stress for some - don’t get sucked up into a “feeling sorry for myself” vortex. It can be a big crap sandwich but everyone will be taking a bite of it.

Don’t argue. Do everything with gusto.

Start getting into the best shape of your life now. Get up to running 3 miles a day at 6 minute miles, do 80 push-ups in 2 minutes and 80 sit-ups in 2 minutes. Start carrying around a 50 pound sack. Practice lifting and carrying a buddy for 15 to 20 yards to start off with.

When on the ground pay attention and catch on quick.

Piece of cake and you’ll be graduating before you know it!

Oh, tell your family to write letters.

Response by PFC Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 13 at 2018 2:45 AM

PFC Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 13 Feb 2018 02:45:13 -0500

You learn a lot just to forget half of it at your unit that despises doing any CBRN training what so ever. Really depends on unit. Good AIT, classes are easy if you study. Most are open book anyhow, and the instructors are there to help. Hope you like PT, cause you do lots of it if SFC Cruz is still there. You’ll like it

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 13 at 2018 2:30 PM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 13 Feb 2018 14:30:12 -0500

Just learned everything you. Be on time and pass your PFT.

Response by PV2 Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 16 at 2018 10:32 AM

PV2 Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 16 Feb 2018 10:32:51 -0500

Take AIT very serious.

Response by PFC Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 16 at 2018 7:51 PM

PFC Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 16 Feb 2018 19:51:11 -0500

In AIT once you get there start studying hazmat ASAP

Response by PVT Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 17 at 2018 5:24 PM

PVT Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 17 Feb 2018 17:24:51 -0500

When you finish basic

Response by CPL Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 18 at 2018 9:15 AM

CPL Private RallyPoint Member — Sun, 18 Feb 2018 09:15:59 -0500

You shouldn’t have

Response by SFC Antonio Nieto made Feb 19 at 2018 9:04 AM

SFC Antonio Nieto — Mon, 19 Feb 2018 09:04:09 -0500

Embrace the suck at AIT

Response by PV2 Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 19 at 2018 9:28 AM

PV2 Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 19 Feb 2018 09:28:09 -0500

Once you get to CBRN training, immediately start studying your HAZMAT books! It’s the hardest tests out of the course

Response by 1LT Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 19 at 2018 1:31 PM

1LT Private RallyPoint Member — Mon, 19 Feb 2018 13:31:11 -0500

I think it's a cool MOS. You learn a lot, the gas mask will be your best friend. Ive seen a lot of opportunities to do cool missions/training

Response by PFC Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 20 at 2018 9:08 AM

PFC Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 20 Feb 2018 09:08:48 -0500

At basic just do has you are told
Ait same but you get a few more freedoms
Be ready for death by powerpoint

Response by PV2 Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 20 at 2018 12:33 PM

PV2 Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 20 Feb 2018 12:33:39 -0500

Hard work brother. Best thing you can do is keep your head up and always find the bright side of everything

Response by SPC Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 20 at 2018 2:13 PM

SPC Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 20 Feb 2018 14:13:37 -0500

Prepared to be bored as fuck

Response by PFC Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 20 at 2018 7:41 PM

PFC Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 20 Feb 2018 19:41:30 -0500

Go in level headed and with a good attitude

Response by PFC Randall Sykes made Feb 24 at 2018 9:24 AM

PFC Randall Sykes — Sat, 24 Feb 2018 09:24:24 -0500

I honestly loved it, it was fun yet challenging. The most important think it's to take your training very serious, there are many ways things can go south if you are careless because the nature of this MOS. But if you were able to score high enough to qualify for the gig you got this.

Best of luck to you

Response by CW3 Kevin Storm made Feb 24 at 2018 5:36 PM

CW3 Kevin Storm — Sat, 24 Feb 2018 17:36:37 -0500

I was never a CBRNE soldier, I worked with Nuclear Weapons, spent some time with some Chem rounds, and explosives. I studied hard and worked for Texas Engineering Extension (TEEX) as DHS WMD EMS Instructor. Read some of the history of WMD/CBRNE. Some really good books to better understand a lot of what we do, and should be doing can be found The Great Influenza, The Speckled Monster, a historical tale of battling smallpox. Demon in the Freezer by Richard Preston (this book led President Clinton to ask his national security advisors if this could really happen, they said yes and shortly there after radical changes started happening). The great mortality by John Kelly deals with the bubonic plague and how it got started and wiped out half of Europe. You may also read some short stories on Anton Dilger, the German American Chemist who used Ganders on horses being shipped to Europe from the US. Anything you can find with William Patrick in it, he was the last Chief of Offensive Weapons Production at Fort Dietrich. He did some NOVA video interviews in th e lte 1990's and after 9/11. He forgot more about biological weapons than most of us will ever know.

Response by PV2 Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 25 at 2018 11:32 PM

PV2 Private RallyPoint Member — Sun, 25 Feb 2018 23:32:55 -0500

Stay awake. Sleep is the enemy in the long classes you take. PT in your free time. Don't do something stupid to get you stuck longer. And finally, the quickest way out is graduation.

Response by SPC K Webb made Mar 28 at 2018 7:54 PM

SPC K Webb — Wed, 28 Mar 2018 19:54:52 -0400

Be a road guard. For AIT, take lots notes, take it serious.