United States Marine Crucible

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The United States Marine Corps Crucible is the final test in phase two of Marine Corps recruit training. There are three phases of recruit training before becoming a United States Marine. Designed to emphasize the importance of teamwork in overcoming adversity, the Crucible is a rigorous 54-hour field training exercise demanding the application of everything a recruit has learned until that point in recruit training. Throughout the Crucible, recruits are faced with continuous physical and mental challenges that must be accomplished before advancing further.

During the Crucible recruits are only given two or three field ration packs (MRE) each and only allowed eight hours of sleep — four hours each night, unless given extra night duties such as firewatch. Depriving the recruits of sleep and food simulates the stress of the battlefield. Initially, it may seem like an impossible task to complete. However, compared to real combat, the Crucible is much less stressful. At MCRD Parris Island, the final crucible event is a ten mile march, also called "hump", in full combat gear. At MCRD San Diego, the final crucible event is a ten mile march that culminates in humping up a large steep hill dubbed "The Reaper". During these humps, recruits are continuously given orders such as "AT&T" where they must sound off shouting "reach out and touch someone" as they touch the recruit in from of them, or "Tigher" where they must sound off shouting "Tigher Aye Aye Sir" and get closer to the recruit in front of them. The recruits in the back of the platoon get shafted as they experience the accordian affect.

Some of the challenges encountered during the Crucible are various team and individual obstacle courses, day and night assault courses, land navigation courses, individual rushes up steep hills, platoon sized MCMAP challenges, and countless patrols to and from each of these.

After returning from the ten mile "hump", the recruits are treated to a "warrior's breakfast" and will be faced with phase three of recruit training, followed by the graduation ceremony where they will then be formally recognized as Marines.

[edit] External links

• "The Crucible", U.S. Marine Corps. (Retrieved on 2006-06-20.)
• Garamone, Jim (14 January 2003). "The Crucible". Rite of Passage: Making Basic Training Tougher. Armed Forces Press Service, United States Department of Defense. Retrieved on June 20, 2006.