Marine Military Academy Plebe Training, Part III
Maj Harold Compton
On Saturday, 28 January the Marine Military Academy held the final training session of Plebe Training on the Leadership Enhancement and Development Complex. This final session included a hike and Rock Climbing in the morning and COPE Games in the afternoon. Plebe training, which began on Registration Day, will officially end at their graduation next Saturday morning at the Plebe Graduation parade when they will officially become members of the Corps of Cadets.
Plebe Training Hike
Following a hearty breakfast the plebe formed up for their final hike of Plebe Training. This hike would be approximately 5 miles in length and began at the Academy, headed south to Grimes Rd., then east about 1 mile where it began a long loop through farmland ending up back near the airport. It then wound its way through the Texas State Technical College campus to the Iwo Jima Monument. Here the plebes got a short break while a group photo was taken and then finished up the final leg back to their barracks. The beautiful South Texas weather was ideal for the hike and spirits remained high throughout the entire hike. Take a minute to check out the hike photos. A short 30 minute break followed the hike while plebe prepared themselves for Rock Climbing.
Plebe Rock Climbing
Following a short rest the plebe headed to the tower for Rock Climbing. After donning helmets and harnesses the plebes received a short brief on proper climbing technique and began their assault on the wall. Many of them found the going much harder than they expected but they were determined. Each plebe had an opportunity to take on one of the climbing routes at least twice and by the time many of them hit it the second time they had figured out that good technique is always better than brute strength and they successfully reached to top of the wall. Plebe training’s last high event was now a thing of the past and they were relieved to have finished it as they headed to lunch.
Plebe Training COPE Games
After filling their stomaches the plebes headed back out to the Back 40 for the final outdoor event of plebe training: COPE Games. For this event they would be tackling 5 separate events: Island Hoppers, All Aboard, Pass the Hula Hoop, Tank Walk and A-Frame Shuffle. Without going into long explanations, these events are all team based events that require all of the plebes to work together to complete fun and challenging events. Some events such as the A-Frame Shuffle look surprisingly easy however plebes quickly find out that coordination between all team members is the key to success. Plebe training would not be complete without a chance for the plebes to find amusement in their own actions and COPE Games can certainly provide such amusement! This marked the conclusion of the outdoor training portion of Plebe Training and the plebes can now look forward to one more week of classes before graduation.
Plebe Training Photos
Check out the photos of Plebe Training, Part III
To learn more about the Marine Military Academy visit our website at http://www.mma-tx.org or request information at http://www.mma-tx.org/MMA/admissions/