Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego --
Marine
Corps recruit training is difficult and many times recruits are put through
situations that are unfamiliar to them. However, by completing exercises
throughout recruit training, they learn to push themselves to limits they never
thought possible
Expanding
their limits, recruits of Delta Company, 1st Recruit Training Battalion,
conducted their first Combat Fitness Test at Marine Corps Recruit Depot San
Diego, Sept. 9. The event consists of an 880-yard run, timed 30-pound
ammunition can lifts and a maneuver under fire drill.
The
CFT is a training requirement for all recruits as well as an annual requirement
for all Marines. It is conducted in the Marine Corps Combat Utility Uniform and
boots to simulate combat environments. All three events are each worth a
maximum of 100 points each, leading to a perfect score of 300.
The
first event of the CFT began with recruits running the 880-yard timed run.
Wearing combat boots makes the sprint around the track difficult for some
recruits. The purpose of the run is to simulate moving quickly through a combat
situation. In order to gain 100 points on this event, recruits must complete
the run in less than 2 minutes and 45 seconds.
The
second event was the ammunition can lifts. The cans weigh 30 pounds and were
used to conduct overhead presses. Each recruit performed as many presses as he
could in two minutes, attempting to reach 91 repetitions to achieve a perfect
score of 100.
The
final event of the CFT was the maneuver under fire. The course for this portion
covers 75 yards and requires recruits to perform exercises such as sprints,
ammunition can carries, fireman’s carry and throwing a simulated grenade at a
marked target. Recruits were timed as they ran through the course and needed to
finish it in less than 2 minutes and 14 seconds to receive 100 points.
“The CFT trains us to push ourselves
physically and mentally further than we think we can go,” said Recruit Tyler D.
Reed. “We have to be able to perform under stressful conditions in combat. If
your buddy needs to be dragged or you need to resupply ammunition, you have to
be able to do that or it could cost a Marine his life.”
The
initial CFT is taken in first phase of training, but it is just to familiarize
the recruits with the course. The final CFT is taken toward the end of training
and is recorded in their basic training record.
“The
CFT better prepares us for what we may encounter during our time as Marines,”
said Recruit Tim R. Reed. “Every Marine is expected to be a rifleman. Being
able to run a CFT is part of accomplishing that.”
Before
recruits experience the CFT, they are put through several physical training
sessions to better condition them.
“Every
day we are conditioning our bodies,” said Reed. “There is no breaks or time
off. We are here to be Marines, and that’s how we are going to train.”
The
CFT was a test of grit and strength for recruits of Delta Company, but it will
help them prepare for their last challenge, the Crucible, a 54-hour training
event where all recruits must endure in order to earn the title Marine.