So this is my first official blog, ever. So here it goes.

My name is Kristina Boone, and I am currently a sophomore at Georgia Southern University. I am also the MS II representative, which means I am supposed to write a blog or so every month about what I go through in school and as a cadet.

This month has been a little hectic coordinating our fall FTX and making sure everyone was prepared to go. As the PL I had to ensure my platoon had all essential equipment to take with them at Ft. Gordon. It was a 3 day affair, and cadets were missing Friday classes (fortunately I don’t have Friday classes this semester). Excuse notes and handing out equipment were the top priorities for all those going. That Friday morning came and the MS II’s and III’s set off to Ft. Gordon, the MS I’s were only coming for one day to get them affiliated with LANDNAV.

We arrived to our site and got set up into our company and platoon areas, this would be our resting place for the next couple nights. Once we were settled in, we immediately began training in order to start the day portion of LANDNAV.  We trained to LDAC standards, 5 hours to get 5 points out of a possible 8. The first day I got 6, and it was the first time I went out on my own. So I was pretty confident during the day, but not so much at night. After our rest period and chow, we set off for night LANDNAV. The standard was 3 hours to find 3 points out of a possible 5. With the little confidence I had in myself, mixed in with getting lost in the dark, it’s needless to say I didn’t pass.

Day two started early with LANDNAV again, I did a little better the second day getting 7 out of 8. After succeeding during the day for the second time during the day I starting convincing myself I could do it at night, it was the same course, just with the lights turned off. We had a break for lunch then the squads were assigned for the STX lanes for that afternoon.  We had dinner then set out for round 2 of night LANDNAV. I was a lot more confident this time, but it’s easy to stray in the dark and not catch it until it’s too late. I lost my bearings and shot an azimuth to find the main road. With the time I had lost I didn’t have enough time to get my last point, so I returned to the TOC and got 2 out of 5. So overall it was a better learning experience and a refresher course. I learned that I need to trust my pace count and always keep my compass out.

On another note, I finally contracted and now I am an official SMP (Simultaneous Membership Program) cadet. Tune in next time to learn about my next test...Ranger Challenge.