It's that time of year again: Basic Training

Tomorrow the team and our large class of probationary members will embark on a journey they will never forget: basic training.

Basic training (AKA Basics) is essentially search and rescue boot camp. They are the most awful, painful, and difficult 2 weekends I will ever love and fondly remember.

After returning from Basics, everyone will be blowing black shit out of their noses for days. Muscles that we didn't even know existed will ache. Not only will our feet be blistered, but our palms will be too. We'll all be so dirty that when we shower, the water will turn opaque brown and we'll leave behind sediment on the floor. We will all have gained a second family and realized how far we can go when we push our limits. Most importantly, we will be a search and rescue team.

The first day of the first Basic weekend is pure hell. We wake up with the sun, eat a quick breakfast, and do a mock search. We find the person code 1 (alive, uninjured, no assistance needed) about 1.5-2 miles away and hike back. The next scenario is a search with a code 2 find (injured or ill, needs rescue/assistance) and so the probies get their first taste of a carry-out. This is a carry-out:


The victim is loaded into a stokes litter and carried by 6 people (ideally). People are rotated on and off the litter periodically but it is hard work. You're carrying significant weight with one hand while wearing a hot, uncomfortable uniform and a pack that weighs 15-40 pounds while hiking over rough terrain at altitude for miles. During Basics, we purposely make the carry-outs more difficult than normal by choosing long, difficult routes and not using the wheel (a wheel that can be attached under the litter to help support the weight) or scree-evac rope systems (a way of making carrying the litter on slopes easier).

We repeat this cycle of search...find...carry-out...brief rest...search....find...carry-out...brief rest... all day. That night the exhausted members lick their wounds and pass out in their tents early. They sleep like babies. Until we wake them up in the middle of the night to do 2 more carry-outs.

It is the most physically strenuous work most people on the team have ever done and will ever do. Last year, when I was a probationary member I thought I was pretty much going to die. You just can't anticipate how difficult it is going to be without going through it firsthand. This year will be better because I'm prepared.

It's a beautiful experience though. I love everyone on my team like family and we have a great time toughing it out together.

I can't waaaaaaaaaaaaait. I'll let you all know how this year goes.