“Its harder than it looks” said the dripping cadet emerging from the pool having completed the rifle portion of the swim test. “Pfft… As if…I’m a great swimmer.” I thought to myself. The other day I proved myself wrong.Cadets of the Nittany  Lion, in accordance with the prescribed academic plan and coinciding qualifications dictated by Cadet Command, went to the Natatorium to complete the “Combat Water Survival Test.” I had heard horror stories from the upper class man about the perilous trials about it but I shrugged it off. “We did this shit in Boy Scouts” I scoffed. Again, I would prove myself wrong.

Walking to the Natatorium on that fateful morning, as soon as the windchill blew through my blouse, I remembered that I didn’t bring a change of clothes. I would have to walk back in this weather, in a sopping wet set of Army fatigues. We were off to a great start.

After a quick formation, and some processing, we were ready to go. The first portion of the test was just a regular old swim test. All we had to do, was swim out 50 meters, tread water for a bit, then swim back. Under normal circumstances, this would be stupidly easy. The only problem that one doesn’t account for is how heavy your uniform gets once it has been saturated. Coming back for the second 50 meter length, pulling my arms out of the water was unfathomably more difficult then swimming in a suit. Regardless, I eventually struggled back and passed that portion.

At this point, I realized it would be kind of hard. Any it was time for the next station. In this portion of the test, a cadet had to put on a flick(ammo vest) and swim 15 meters while keeping a rifle un-submerged. This is where that cadet I talked about earlier comes in. It was my turn and, for the first three feet, it didn’t feel that bad but then the gravity of the ammo vest combined with the fatigue felt from the last portion hit me with a force nearly as hard as reality. Basically, I drowned and kicked in a horizontal direction for 15 meters. Regardless, the rifle didn’t drown, so I passed that portion.

Moving on, for the next station, all you had to do, was jump in the deep end with the ammo vest on, and take it off underwater before reemerging. I was one of those kids that always loved diving to the deep end so I was kind of excited for this. Unfortunately, upon releasing my breath and hitting the deep end, I couldn’t find the buckle that releases the vest. Drowning a little more, I eventually free my self from the vest and reemerge. Another station passed.

Finally, I had made it to the fun station. For this one, the cadets just stood at the top of a high dive, and after being literally kicked off, all they had to do was maintain control of the rifle during the fall. Oh, and you are blindfolded for this one. Anyway, besides some initial anxiety about the fall, this station involved no drowning on my part and was actually pretty fun.

So that, was my Water Combat Survival Test experience. Like all the blogs I write, this was a large dramatization for comedic affect. But none the less, it was a hard test for everyone and it reminded us all why we didn’t join the Navy.

The Army is steeped in traditions that can be traced back to its founding in 1775. A lesser known tradition is a revered ceremony called “Dining In.” Originally a British tradition that was adopted by the American forces during the Revolution, it is a formal dinner meant to raise morale and stir commradary. However, it involves a rigid set of rules and etiquette that if breached could result in dire punishment which will be explained later. The Nattany Lion Battalion enjoyed a dining in last Friday.

The night starts with each cadet introducing themselves to the highest ranking officer as they find their seats. When every cadet, officer, and NCO has found their seat, the “president of the mess”, who is the highest ranking cadet in the battalion, will call the room to attention while the colors are presented. Following the presentation of the colors, the president of the mess will call a series of toasts to which the response is “here, here!” They may include toasts to the Army, the president, the country, and the Battalion.

When the toasts are completed, the grog master comes to the stage so he may complete the mixing of the grog. Remember how I mentioned dire punishments? The grog master will ingredient, by ingredient, dump items into a giant punch bowl while explaining the symbolism behind each item. Each item represents a piece of the Army’s history.  For instance, one of the ingredients is oatmeal which is supposed to represent the sand and dirt of Iraq. The grog master will continue to poor in bizarre ingredients like orange juice, wine, coffee, spam, and mayo to name a few and using an entrenchment tool, will stir the items into a vile concoction.

Poor cadets who break the rules of etiquette of the evening, including not drinking with your pinky extended or not using the right silver wear for the current course, may be victim to a “point of order.” This is when another cadet, before the entire mess, will point out the violation that was committed. The condemned cadet will then march to the front of the hall and fill their canteen with the grog. They will salute the president off the mess, execute an about face, and recite the toast, “to the mess” before he downs the toxic mixture.

Following the dinner, there will be another time for grogging. At this portion of the night, the president of the mess will play a slide show of pictures that fellow cadets submitted. The images displayed are instances in which cadets were “doing stupid shit” in uniform like crossing the street without a cross walk or wearing the patrol cap backwards, or other crimes. Cadets with photographic evidence against them will be required to drink from the grog. I am sad to say that during this portion of the night, Cadet Wright was grogged. I prefer not to say what I was doing in uniform.

Once the second round of grogging has been completed, the cadets are honored by a guest speaker. The guest speaker for our dining in was an executive from Wells Fargo, and a veteran officer who served with distinction in the cavalry. His speech was thoroughly inspiring.

Following the guest speaker, the last portion of the night was entertainment in which each grade level presented a skit to the mess. I assure you that the freshman skit was the best.