Walk in a soldier's footsteps
Shelley Lipke
Staff writer
Arian Aminalroaya hoisted a Carl Gustav recoilless rifle on his shoulder to imagine what it would be like to fire the weapon.
Photo by Shelley Lipke, Lookout
Staring down the scope of a C7 automatic machine gun, Dylan Thomas squinted one eye and chose a target with the other.
Like the others standing in his line, he had never shot an automatic weapon, and as he steadied it, pressed his cheek against the cold metal, and squeezed the trigger, he wasn't sure what to expect.
A riffling of rapid succession shots followed, each echoing around him. He felt the recoil of the gun kick back against his shoulder and saw a showering of golden shell casings spit from the C7. When the firing stopped and only a cloud of smoky gunpowder lingered in the air, he lowered the weapon, removed his finger from the trigger and shared an ear-to-ear grin with the others in the line.
This was 11 Service Battalion's Soldier for a Day at Albert Head and shooting blanks at the small arms weapons stand was a shared favourite among those who experienced it.
"This program is a productive way to show civilians what we do and some of the aspects of a service battalion role," said recruiter MCpl Les Gardner. "It's positive and provides insight that we do similar jobs to civilian trades."
Twenty six civilians joined Thomas to step in the boots of a soldier at the Albert Head training area on Jan 16. Most of the attendees were young, some as young as 15, and while they have to be 16 to sign up as a reservist, they were out to experience what it's all about.
The day began with an introduction to navigation and compass reading, which taught grid references, bearings and plotting. Then the civilians broke into groups to rotate to different stations to see some of these jobs firsthand.
Thomas's group began at the vehicle repair and recovery stand.
"One of the possible jobs available for army reservists is vehicle technician," said WO Ken Kieley while showing them a supply truck. "Our large supply trucks travel about eight to 10 kilometres behind the front line personnel to ensure they have enough supplies for their mission, but we need vehicle technicians and material technicians so they run well in the field."
Then WO Kieley led the group to another truck, this one used for towing in Afghanistan and other areas. Here he demonstrated an indirect tow by pulling a heavy logistic vehicle wheeled wrecker stuck in a ditch with a large MILCOT (the army version of a Chevrolet Silverado). "Depending on where the vehicle is stuck, we can't always pull it out in a straight line, so we are using a pulley and chain secured around a tree to show you how we would get this MILCOT out of the ditch," he said.
After the demonstration he let people operate the towing cable on the truck and answered their questions about jobs for drivers, vehicle technicians and material technicians.
Then it was a lesson in military- style camping. Each group set up a 10-person tent and learned about the importance of stealth camping and leaving nothing behind. Cpl Tracey Trowsdale-Pollitt showed them how to set up camp and survive in temperatures below 60 degrees Celsius.
Cpl Troy Andrews assisted people in firing the C7 and C9 small arm weapons.
"I'm sure none of these people have fired an automatic weapon before, and this seems to be their favourite part of the day," he said. "Some are here for their second time in Soldier for a Day and they hopefully will go back to their school and tell their friends about it."
For Cpl Andrews, joining the reserves seven years ago has provided opportunities that most people don't get to experience.
"It is a chance to do something different than everyday life," he says.
At the camouflage and concealment stand Cpl Greg Corfield said, "It's all about blending into your surroundings," as he smudged green, brown and black paint on one volunteer's face. "We are trying to deny the enemy of our whereabouts in the field, and we have to blend in."
Once everyone was painted, Cpl Corfield led the group on a walk through the forest looking for anything that wasn't camouflaged and seemed out of place.
Near the end of the walk a camouflaged soldier, Pte Christian Milne, complete with leaves attached to his hat jumped out of the bushes shooting at the group. Someone screamed, another person darted behind a tree, but the point was made - expect the unexpected and appreciate the element of surprise that camouflage provides.
Pte Milne smiled and laughed with the group after he introduced himself, and told them that he had been in their shoes a year ago. The 28-year-old enjoyed Soldier for a Day so much he signed up.
"I love it. I am about to start my basic training and I've decided to do the weekend course at Work Point for that. It's a good adventure and I like learning a lot and having fun while doing it," he said.
"When I did Soldier for a Day last year I found it beneficial to talk to the troops and they helped confirm what the recruiter told me. I am going to be a vehicle tech."
As the day came to a close the civilians thanked their hosts and hopped on the bus and excitedly chat about the highlights of their day.
Most had learned about the Soldier for a Day through school, friends or family, or had heard about it from the recruiter.
Thomas said, "It's opened my eyes to what the military can offer me, and it leaves me thinking I'd like to join. The personnel were very friendly and answered all my questions."
Back at the Ashton Armouries the bus unloaded and MCpl Gardner debriefed the group again on the positions available and some of the benefits of joining the reserves and then handed out applications and information.
"11 Service Battalion provides support to the first line units like Canadian Scottish Regiment (an infantry unit) and 5th Field Artillery unit," explained MCpl Gardner. "We are the army reserve support unit for them and have jobs like cooks, vehicle technicians, weapons technicians, drivers, supply technicians, and administration roles available to support them."
Soldier for a Day is held once or twice a year and more details can be obtained by emailing MCpl Gardner at les.gardner
@forces.gc.ca.
