Oh my God only humans yawn those of the Death Star do not so yep, you guessed it, the Cadre are human. And as humans we’ve done worse than we’re asking of others and we wouldn’t have them do it if we hadn’t. We say Selection is based on Special Forces Assessment and Selection (SFAS) because it is. Little to no sleep, lots of miles, terror and silence in one fell swoop. I would argue that the 48 hours of GORUCK Selection are harder than any consecutive 48 hours of SFAS but only because SFAS is ~ 21 days and at GORUCK Selection we concentrate it for effect. I would infinitely rather do GORUCK Selection than SFAS again but mostly cause SFAS is kinda like shoot me in the gut and see if I live and I’m not a drag it out kind of guy.

As for Tyler yawning. We have a Cadre rest plan nobody wants to follow cause nobody wants to miss anything but Garrett was especially brutal about hey get out of my sight this go round. So you find some remote spot and hunker down in your too quiet car that’s missing all the action and you think about the guys out running with the candidates and then you shut your eyes and you almost fall asleep. Almost.

There’s beauty in these gritty nothing hours where a casual observer would say that looks miserable and better you than me I’m clean and showered and in my warm bed so comfy comfy. But these are the moments that frame the best moments in your life. You just don’t know when they’re coming exactly but if you’re not there you’ll miss ’em every time.

So you open your car door and it’s back to the management and the execution of destruction and the promise that something not nothing will happen.

No real sleep later closing your eyes isn’t the same thing then you wake up in plenty of time and wait for them to arrive it’s like how if you have an army army formation at a certain time you show up 15 minutes early but you plan to show up 15 minutes before the 15 minutes  and when you add it all up you really don’t get any sleep at all and that’s what it is and we love it.

If luck were luck I’d call them the lucky 5 who made it to the morning. Garrett planned to get them off the beach and under some canopy at just the right time so they wouldn’t be able to see the sunrise because that’s too motivating. Yeah, it’s a nice touch and we all kinda smiled about that one.

But it’s not luck to still be around it’s a ton of hard work and dedication and hours training that nobody ever sees. You do it and you show up prepared and you make it further unless something unlucky happens so yeah let’s call it luck that something unlucky didn’t happen by now to these 5 cause they all deserved to be here. And when they read this, here’s what I’d say to each of them: you have it in you to pass Selection coulda shoulda woulda style. Plus a little more as we promise feedback and fuller AAR’s to the participants:

Chris is the guy you’d root for nice guys finish first style. It’s as if he had to train himself not to smile since those were the rules. If he comes back he ought to make sure he wants to do the whole 48 hours we got the sense at a certain point he was happy or dare I say surprised to still be around. If you want to make it all the way it’s a fine line between being humble enough to understand that it’s always a game of roulette you might lose and expecting to be at the finish no matter how far away it is. Too much humility and you’ll quit, too much expecting your own greatness and we’ll make you fail until you quit.

Lots more on Jon later later. I had no idea who this guy was till I did, and often times that’s how it works out best.

Michelle Hickey is a lucky lady and if we would not have med dropped AJ later on in the event, he’d be dead as in 6 feet under and that’s a fact. He’s one of the strongest dudes you’ll meet, mentally and physically. I had the (mis)fortune of getting to know him and his fam for ~2 weeks while he recovered in a hospital not far from my house and GORUCK HQ. Misfortune only due to circumstance, of course.

But he didn’t finish and you can’t know how the world goes round once something stops and where that leads next.

We med dropped Mark a few hours after this pic because he collapsed on the Florida sand under the Florida sun from heat exhaustion. His is the story we didn’t really tell, the one that bad luck cut short. I’m not gonna spoil it here and now, but he’ll pass the next one he chooses call me a fortune teller when not if he does.

Tim’s is the most complicated. He represents the biggest divide between doing Selection in the military and doing GORUCK Selection as a civilian because if this were the military he would have finished and welcome to this not being the military. He’s of the quiet variety, mistakable if blazing guitars are your only favorite soundtrack. Tim trained hard, prepared in all the right ways, and still came up short for reasons we’ll get into later. Above all, he’s a friend and my horse meaning the one I picked to finish (around all the other Cadre) before it started and I hate being wrong and I don’t want to claim anything less.

Enough after the fact stuff we’re back in the moment and bucket carries to the beach and on the beach till you see another Cadre etc. etc. for miles and miles and probably miles after that.

I got word one had been dropped go pick him up but had no idea which one and there was no right answer of course. Above shot is the behind the scenes of the production crew lol that captured most of the AAR’s (after action reviews). Mark’s the strong, humble type and I could sense his disappointment and behind those shades I hope he could sense mine. But not at him, at circumstance and life’s not fair you can say it all the time and you’re always right.

We chatted about things among them his feet which got pretty torn up this time. Last time, not so much – they looked like polished marble after 24 hours I remember Bert and I both saying we couldn’t believe how perfect his feet looked. The only explanation I have is that the Sand Gods behaved differently. So be ready for anything, even from your own body.

The other 4 off in the distance, 2 hours of miles and miles and more miles behind schedule.

Yeah yeah they’re throwing off the whole time hack plan. Garrett shall overcome.

You’re all here. Proceed under the shade, perform the priorities of work, and take further instructions as you receive them.

And it’s pretty simple to do what you need to do especially if you’re reading this in the comfort of somewhere anywhere and everything’s going pretty well for you – roof over your head full night’s sleep last night kind of deal. If you’re them, though, it’s hot, you’re dehydrated, and you got sand everywhere.

But you’re doing it, man.

You’re beat down and glazed over and not that strong but it is what it is and you’re maybe just maybe accepting it because you’ve paid a lot of pain that others could not endure to be here. That’s a strength you can only find in a time like now. And they’re gone and you’re not and you know what it feels like and they don’t. This isn’t for everyone, after all, and numbers always dwindle.

Our hope, for you, is that you can pay a lot more. Cause it’s comin’.

Up next Part 5: You Guessed It … More PT