The annual 12-mile ruck is a necessary requirement every year that MS3 cadets in the ROTC program here at Campbell must complete in order to be prepared for the Cadet Summer Training (CST) Course. The whole event which took place in mid-April, started at 6AM and ended at 10AM as the standard time to complete the ruck is 4 hours both here and over at CST.
Getting a chance to interview one of the cadets afterwards, Brandon Villines described the experience as nerve wracking, despite having prior experience with his old unit. Villines says “it’s probably the longest three hours of your life, and once you get past mile six all you can think about is putting one foot in front of the other. and it’s not fun especially without music.”
Villines goes on to explain that this event is a capstone event, as in after every major activity accomplished in the military is usually ended by a 12-mile ruck specifically in training.
What makes Campbell such great ROTC program, Villines believes is the size which he describes as small and tight knit. There’s a real sense of community because everyone spends a lot of time training together. Enduring hardship and learning off of each other.
By Julian Dominguez
PineBurr Blog 