May 06, 2006

[Wingnut]

So far as I've seen, I'm the only one with a May 6 OCS date as of yet, so I guess I'll start the thread even if it ends up being a lonely one. I'm hoping to get together with a couple people before we start, so if anyone else gets a May 6 date, don't be shy.
Anyway, at this point I'm planning on driving straight through, leaving on Thursday and getting there late Friday. It looks like it's just a little over 2100 miles from where I live here in Montana to Pensacola. I'm used to long hours on the road, but this is a big bite none the less. Anyone have any opinions on that? I know many people wouldn't do it because they're just not used to driving that many hours on end, but I guess my only concern is that I'm not too dragged out from the drive, I'm confident I'd get there.

 

[BrandonJ1780]

I'll hand it to you for at least wanting to make the attempt, but that is a HUGE drive to nail it in one stretch...When driving from down here in Mississippi back home to Iowa, I know I'm starting to feel it bout 3/4 of the way through Missouri...If you can, I wouldn't jeopardize myself--just get as far as you can, get some sleep, and head out again. All at one time, wow...Best wishes down in PCola.

 

[BrandonJ1780]

You might want to check out a Flying J or another big truck stop--those AudioBooks on CD can be lifesavers...

 

[Thisguy]

yeah, the navy will give you more than enough per diem to cover travel, and you may as well take it. Leaving earlier in the week is a much better idea, and driving is a good idea, because it's nice to have your car there.

 

[TSmyth]

Hey there Wingnut,

I just got word TODAY that I'll be classing up on May 6th! Certainly a hell of a lot sooner that I ever expected. Nothing like a 3 week notice. At this point, I'm only mildly prepared... a situation I hope to remedy before I leave. Now I really wish I had gotten more running in. Oh well, I'm sure the friendly DI's will take care of all that.
Probably better at this point to focus on having fun and relaxing.

Shoot me a PM at some point...


Todd Smyth

 

[kanakAttack]

2100 mi straight sounds pretty nutts. The longest I've driven solo without sleep is about 1000 miles. It was doable but the wee hours of the morning right before dawn in the CA desert were rough.

Side note: my trip started near the US/CAN border in upsate NY. The 1000 mi leg was from Joplin MO to Newport Beach CA in a dodge 2500 pulling a trailer full of canoes and kayaks, going around 95 much of the way, stopping only for Red Bull and 87 octane. The red bull killed my appetite so I hadn't eaten at all and arrived home to hear that my girlfriend had been doing "a lot of thinking". So I drove from the NE to the SW of the country and hauled ass to get back to see her and I get dumped on arrival. We'd been dating for a year and a half and living together for 6 months. At the time I was numb from lack of sleep and food so I just went to sleep, now I get a kick out of the story.:icon_lol:

 

[caseyh46]

Hey Wingnut and Tsmyth I got the word yesterday that I'm "penciled in" for the May 6th class also.. I'm SNFO and from what I understand they've had a hard time filling this class for some reason... don't take me at my word, that's just what the recruiter told me. As long as my blood work comes back clean I'm in. Driving from Montana huh? I'm in the Dallas area.. you should stop through here.. I may be able to hook you up with a place to crash and a hot meal if you're interested... shoot me a PM. I'm glad you started this thread though, I haven't seen another thread on this site regarding the May 6th class. There are a couple more guys SNA's I believe from the dallas area that are going to this class as well. One I've met, he's pretty cool... anyway... hopefully we can get some more on here that are scheduled for this class..

Casey

 

[Oh-58Ddriver]

2100 miles straight through? One question: WHY?

Would be a shame to put in all the work to get selected then end up having your guts scraped off the road with a spatula. Or worse yet, cause someone else to have their guts scraped off the road because you were too arrogant/stupid/cocky/immature (circle as appropriate) to do a little prior planning and drive safely. Oh well, I guess it opens up an SNA slot for someone else.

If you do get lucky and make it down there in one piece, I would check that attitude at the door, because it will get you killed in the cockpit.

 

[Mav]

I'm trying to get an idea of the kind of what kind of Degree, GPA, and whatever else you need to get into OCS, thanks

 

[derekd2]

Hey I'm new to this forum, I just registered.

I found out last week that I am in the May 6th Class as well.

2100 miles sounds like a long drive, I'm gonna be driving from Ft. Worth.

I can't believe how close its getting. Its almost not real. It will get real the first time I'm yelled at I'm sure.

 

[TSmyth]

Mav,

if you look through the forum, especially the ASTB section, you'll soon find out that there is no concrete profile that the boards are looking for. Certainly they are looking for achievers but, other than that, specific stats are hard to come by.
For example, I went to a highly specialized music school in Boston. Studied recording engineering; worked out in LA as a recording engineer for a while; went back to my hometown and kicked the dirt for a bit before deciding on giving the Navy a shot. Finally got it after about a 7 month process. I did have good grades, extracurriculars, LORs etc...
As I'm sure others will tell you, do your best to make yourself look as good as possible and just submit (if you haven't already). No harm in them passing on you the first time... they passed on me the first time, too!

Good luck



Also... since you're new here, I will forewarn you that you should never mention anything about jets unless your citing performance specs. Just a friendly heads up!

 

[Mav]

Thanks TSmyth, I have a low GPA in General Studies, no LOR's, no extracurriculars, I guess i'm screwed

 

[caseyh46]

Mav,
you have to go get LOR's and don't count yourself out... put in a package and see what happens man. No one here can tell you if you'll make it or not, only the board can, the worst that can happen is they say no. There's a lot of good gouge elsewhere on this site containing the info you're looking for.

Hey Derek.... driving from Ft Worth? I'm just north east of Dallas... we ought to get together and drive it convoy style LOL... it seems like there will be a few others passing through this area on their way to P-cola...
Casey

 

[Wingnut]

Wow, great to hear I'm not alone. Sounds like they're throwing a bunch of people in to the May 6 date, I haven't heard anything as to why. We'll have to get together for a last good meal before the real fun starts. If anyone who's been in through OCS recently has some suggestions as to some good places to hit, I'm all ears. From what I've heard, you're supposed to report on a Saturday, but they tell you to report back Sunday and nothing actually happens until then. If that's still the case we could check in at the same time and go from there; I'm planning on poking around the base and such, not sure what else.

As for driving down, I should have mentioned that I'd probably grab a motel room and crash for the night before I got too fragged. Without pumping myself full of caffine and junk food I can't drive through the night, I start to get drowsy and all if I try to drive past about two in the morning. I figure I could do it in two days though, it'd be about fifteen hours a day, which I'd be fine on in daylight. I just gotta get a new stereo in my car, get some new CDs, load them up on the old iPod, and that should help pass the hours. The reason I'm thinking about making it two days is because the Wednesday before I leave is the last day for the kid's group (Awana, if any of you have heard of it) I help out with and I'd like to be there. It might have to slide, I'll have to think about it.

I too wish I'd had a little more time for prep, it'd be nice to have a solid month of running 25+ miles a week to get my shins and knees ready for whatever abuse (I'm just about back up to my pre-winter norm of 15 miles a week) and time to get pushups and situps to max. My PFA mile and a half was a few tics over ten minutes; I was happy with that, and while I'd like to knock it down in the eight minute range, I don't know how possible that is, I'm not that great a runner. My pushups sit at about 75, situps around 90. Hopefully I'll be able to hit maxes on that by the end of OCS, but for the time being I'm just hoping to pick up a dozen or so. We'll see. I'm really glad now that I didn't let myself get lazy over the winter.

 

[TSmyth]

Wingnut...

sounds like you're in pretty damn good shape. The 1.5 run in just over 10 is pretty solid. I've been slacking in the cardio department a little lately. I assumed I'd have more than 3 weeks to get ready! HA! First military mistake on my part. Oh well, I'm sure they'll get me in shape soon enough. I'm just going to go down there as relaxed as possible and do my best. I'll panic later.
As far as my travel plans, I'm coming from Cincinnati, OH so I basically have a straight shot south to Pensacola. I'm might leave on Thursday and make a few stops along the way to see the sights. But, if we all get there on Saturday and have no evening obligations, it would be great to get together for a "last supper". Let's all make plans as the date draws nearer.
Feel free to spam me at smythts@yahoo.com