Week 17

Some weeks are so defined by one or two activities that they become the focal point, obscuring and overshadowing everything else. This week was קליעה 3 – loads of shooting practice – but all we could think  about was the בחמ”ס on Sunday and the מסע מ”מ on Wednesday.

The week had it’s other highlights; seeing Asher on Sunday one final time before he officially leaves the unit due to a medical condition, dancing at a hachnasat sefer Torah on the base, Krav maga where we actually started punching each other (with protective gear on), and loads of interesting shooting drills to further advance our shooting ability. But that all seems insignificant in comparison to the בחמ”ס and מסע מ”מ.

I still haven’t passed the בחמ”ס. I get stuck at the wall. When I train for it I’m able to clear it easily, but it’s the mixture of the increased heart rate from the run and the fear and self-doubt of not being able to pass it, that makes me fumble. I tried to pass it 5 times, and after the fifth, the מ”פ told me to just continue on the course. Even with the delay at the wall, I passed the other obstacles and finished the run in 10:03. To pass the course in the final stage of training, you need to be able to do it under 10:05, so I know that if I pass the wall on the first try I’ll be able to do it.

On Wednesday night we had the masa. 18 Km + 5 km with stretchers all while carrying 30% body weight on our backs. I was nervous going in; during the last masa, the first one with weight, I rolled my ankle 6 times and had an overall tough time. I prepared this time by putting on ankle brace beforehand. We also got new bags with waist straps so you could shift the weight of the pack to different parts of your body: a huge help. Also (and I definitely think this helped in the first third), I took a caffeine pill from a friend. I felt energetic and in overall good spirits in the beginning, passing time by whistling tunes quietly to songs, trying to remember them in full.

The path was overall simple, pretty straight and on a designated dirt road. In the middle, we hiked up an incredibly steep hill. Legs burning, lungs and heart pumping away, we felt a sigh of relief after finishing the crazy ascent and descent. Only to do it again twice more. ככה.

At the end of the 18 KM , about 200 meters from the start of the 5 km stretcher portion, someone in my Machlaka collapsed. He fell on the ground and started muttering incoherently. Everyone started shouting for the מ”מ and we all went into overdrive, running through the procedure we’d learned if someone gets a heat stroke. We ripped his pack and clothes off and started pouring water on his chest. He was saying he couldn’t see anything and was asking for his Mefaked again and again. At this point, the medics came and took care of him. We all waited on the side, waiting to see what happened. He regained consciousness in a few minutes and went to the hospital later on that night.

But, there were also 3 other people through the course of the masa that either collapsed or were about to collapse and couldn’t continue. So, with this fourth case, right before the stretcher portion, the head of the base called off the rest of the masa. Something must be wrong, he reasoned, and it was unsafe to continue. We took out the weight from our packs and walked the 5 km back to base.

The whole experience ended on a negative note. Since we ended without properly finishing the masa, where was an atmosphere of under accomplishment; as if we hadn’t just done 18 km with 30% body weight. This was also supposed to be the masa where we would put pins on our kumta afterwards, get equipment donations from the parents, and officially be in אימון מתקדם – advanced training. None of that happened since we technically didn’t finish the masa.

We had a late wakeup on Thursday and left for home that night – a special treat since everyone had just closed two 21’s in a row. I had to wait at tachana merkazit for two hours before heading home as punishment for starting to drowse off in a class we had earlier that week.

I went out with friends Thursday night and visited family in a nearby Jerusalem hotel for breakfast and a swim Friday morning. Friday night I went to a large chayal boded meal held at the Great Synagogue. Shabbat day I was with family again by my cousin in Jerusalem. Saturday night, I went to the light festival at the Jerusalem botanical gardens with family and watched Tampopo with close friends.