DIs give look into daily depot duties (May bring back happy memories or nightmares -- CAUTION)

Marine Corps News ^ | Lance Cpl. Dorian Gardner

[SandRat]

MARINE CORPS RECRUIT DEPOT SAN DIEGO (March 3, 2006) -- The sounds of their cadence roll through the halls and across the grounds of the depot.

Up to 65 Marines go to Drill Instructor School each cycle. During this training period, students learn methods of training recruits to become United States Marines.

The overall goal of this institution is to give these students as much knowledge from their instructors’ own experiences, as best they can, said Gunnery Sgt. Christopher L. Hambaugh, Drill Instructor School instructor.

Every instructor served time in the trenches before he became an instructor at the school. Drill instructors refer to the recruit training battalions as the trenches.

Instructors do everything they can to ready these Marines for the drill field.

“When we graduate Marines, we make sure they are set up,” said Hambaugh. “The decisions they make while training recruits will determine their success or failure, but every Marine leaves here with the tools.”

The average drill instructor has a shelf life of three years on the depot. He may spend two years with recruits and one at a battalion office or on quota, which is a period in a drill instructor’s term where he may step away from training recruits to specialize in one aspect of training – usually swim qualifications or martial arts.

There are many different billets on the drill field to include a chief drill instructor, company first sergeant and battalion sergeant major. Drill instructors who excel on the drill field may extend their term here.

Some students are misled to believe that going to D.I. School is like going back to boot camp all over again, said Sgt. Nicholas C. Hibbs, E Company drill instructor.

This is not the case, said Hambaugh.

“I would say it’s intense,” said Hambaugh. “It is stressful. The way it is set up causes a lot of self-induced stress. It gets the students stressed without us even getting involved, but Marines who truly want to be here will make it.”

For 11 weeks and two days, students are educated, tested, monitored and corrected by their instructors. On the third day of the twelfth week, they accept their diplomas and graduate into one of the Corps’ most famous jobs.

A recruit squad bay is a different obstacle. Facing the recruits for the first time can prove to be as stressful as forgetting a drill movement during teach-back tests at D.I. School. Teach-backs are designed for students to learn on a deadline.

Certain parts of the curriculum, like drilling movements, require students to demonstrate their knowledge in order to move on in the course. This is also a way to ensure proper knowledge and execution of the movement.

“I was worried that I would stutter and stumble and get confused,” said Sgt. Randolph D. Hubert, E Company drill instructor. “You just got to get into things until you no longer worry about what you can and can’t do, but what you need to do.”

After recruiters, drill instructors may make the biggest impression on recruits, said Hibbs.

“I do the same thing my drill instructors tried to do – successfully produce a basically -trained United States Marine,” said Hibbs. “We are the ones who teach them all the basic knowledge. All the things they learn here, they are going to take to the fleet.”

One of a drill instructor’s biggest concerns is sending a Marine to war without proper training.

“You ask any drill instructor about one of his recruits who died in Iraq, and you will see a grown man cry,” said Hubert. “It is personal pride in yourself that makes you want these kids to be better.”

During the first few cycles, new drill instructors learn how to live in their new atmosphere. Life as a drill instructor can be extremely challenging due to the long hours at work and limited time for anything else. Three months at a time, drill instructors devote themselves to their recruits.

“I expected to work,” said Hubert. “I expected to be hit with different problems. It’s not like the fleet where you deal with 30 Marines. We deal with 80 different recruits every three months – 80 different personalities.”

Sacrificing time for recruits is more of a hardship for some.

“Long hours,” said Hibbs. “Being away from my family was the most difficult part.”

According to Hibbs, some workdays lasted 20 hours or more.

While being a drill instructor may be one of the more tiresome jobs in the Marine Corps, Hubert thought of a few reasons to sign up for the next course.

“I’m making a difference,” said Hubert. “All the Marines I looked up to, master sergeants, gunnery sergeants, they were all drill instructors. I loved their leadership styles – how they lead Marines. In the beginning I did it to further my career. Now I enjoy it. Of course it’s work. Your head hurts, feet hurt and you miss your TV shows.”

While their mission stays the same, new drill instructors bring new flavor to Recruit Training Regiment four times a year. With sore feet and soar throats, drill instructors find a way to continue the production of the world’s most powerful fighting force.

[SandRat]

MARINE CORPS RECRUIT DEPOT SAN DIEGO - Sgt. Lavon Mitchell motivates a recruit to keep his hands during a grip exercise in the training area. Photo by: Lance Cpl. Dorian Gardner

Staff Sgt. Keith Mobley orders a forward march to his platoon while the rest of Company G practices drill elsewhere. Drill is among some of the top events during recruit training. Photo by: Lance Cpl. Dorian Gardner

Running alongside his platoon, Sgt. Kevin Pirtle checks distance and alignment. During drill competitions, everything contributes towards the final score. Photo by: Lance Cpl. Dorian Gardner

Sgt. Jorge Maleno currently serves as a martial arts instructor on the depot. Drill instructors are given time away from recruits to serve in a variety of support billets within the regiment. Photo by: Lance Cpl. Dorian Gardner

[SandRat]

Listen UP!!!

[martin_fierro]

Just some Gentle Encouragement goin' on there.

[GeorgiaDawg32]

"Sergent, can we talk about this? It's awfully early to be getting up, it's dark and cold out and I'm warm and comfy in this bed"

[skimask]

The sound of a DI barking cadence and watching his platoon of recruits drill on the grid in perfect formation about a week before they graduate still makes the hair on my neck up, Especially those DI's that have a southern draw. I also used to get a kick watching one DI march his platoon through another DI's platoon.

God I love the Corps
Semper Fi

[real saxophonist]

The DI School on Parris Island is right near the HQ area, and sometimes you'd see them out there talking to trees, to improve their speaking abilities; Or even demonstrating drill moves to trees. I always thought that was funny.

[E.G.C.]

BTTT

[GaltMeister]

DI BUMP!

[stumpy]

To the tune of "Ghostriders in the Sky"

He was born in San Diego
the land that God forgot

Where sand is 18" deep, the sun is scorching hot

He wakes up every morning, away before the sun
He'll run a dozen miles or more before the day is done

Marine, Marine, Marine.

[Texas_Jarhead]

Settle down... You're bunchin up...

[RaceBannon]

you can actually sing the Marine Corps Hymn to that tune, also.

[RaceBannon]

Check your cover and alignment!

Cover Down! COVER DOWN!

Platoon...HALT! Bends and thrusts begin!

[2111USMC]

"I also used to get a kick watching one DI march his platoon through another DI's platoon."

LOL!

I remember that one!

I also remember a D.I. that our Platoon had for a number of weeks after we went through processing. For whatever reason, he was transferred to a different Platoon. One day our Platoon Commander had us out on the "Grinder". The former D.I. was up on a balcony and shouted "Platoon Halt". We did, because we recognized his voice. It was kind of a respect gesture. Needless to say, we were "in the dirt" shortly after!

[SamAdams76]

In 1981, I went to Parris Island as a recruit and graduated in May of that year. Last year, I visited PI as a civilian for the first time. As my wife and I were vacationing at Hilton Head Island, we decided to take a day trip there.

Despite the passage of nearly a quarter century, it was nerve-wracking being on that base. Standing by the parade deck , I found myself almost coming to attention myself as the DIs on the deck shouted orders. Even though I technically was supposed to stay away from the barracks, I could not resist driving into the parking lot of the 1st Battalian barracks and I was shocked to see that they didn't change a bit. That three-story squadbay was exactly as it was when I stayed there back in 1981! All kinds of memories started coming back to me.

After about three hours on base walking around and seeing how practically nothing had changed, I was convinced that had gone into some sort of time warp and I had better get off base quick before one of my old DI's saw me and reclaimed me for Platoon 1081!

[SandRat]

and you thought things like that only happened when Rod Serling was around hosting Outer-Limits......LOL

[SamAdams76]

Here's one of the pics I took last year of the barracks I lived in during my boot camp in 1981. Still looks the exact same 25 years later!

[SandRat]

Scary ain't it?!

[real saxophonist]

What's scary is being assigned there a few months after being at Boot Camp there.

That's where my post #6 came from. It's weird being able to go where you want, eat at the Burger King, not be scared of every Marine who approaches you.

On the other hand, it was kind of nice to pass on a lttle motivation to recruits without being a Drill Instructor. Just a little thing like looking them in the eye and saying 'Good Morning, Private' and watching them walk a little taller because someone actually acknowleged them.