<p>What kind of rucksacks are used at WP? Do they have a metal backing?</p>
<p>I know a yuk and he says that the rucks are “really bad”, Vietnam era stuff. I think they have a metal frame with padded areas in the shouder and hips. He put on my REI pack one time and called it a “Cadillac”. Oh well.</p>
<p>The rucks are the standard army ruck sack. You’ll probably get new shoulder pads and a new kidney pad issued with them. The frame is metal. Get used to the ruck, it’s the same one you’ll take to Buckner, BOLC II, and BOLC III.</p>
<p>They use ALICE gear in what I’m pretty sure is close to a TA-50 load. Basically, this:</p>
<p><a href=“Army ROTC | Wright State University”>http://www.wright.edu/academics/armyrotc/cadetinformation/ta-50.htm</a></p>
<p>Yeah, you’ll get the standard LC-2 ALICE rucksack at West Point, just like was said earlier. You will use that ruck for everything in the Army, so also like it was said, get used to it and dont think you’re getting shortchanged on equipment. West Point gets far better TA-50 than any ROTC program, so griping about it isnt really isnt worthwhile. It’s all in pretty good shape there for the most part anyways.
Key here is: never listen to yuks, the glass will always be half empty, it’s just the way it is.</p>
<p>All our stuff is pretty old, but still good for the amount and type of training we do here. Besides, I’d much rather have the new stuff going to people who really need it.</p>
<p>good call there</p>
<p>Screaming Eagle:
Funny what you said about yuks—I had heard that before and now we get to hear it from our yuk D.
Very true…</p>
<p>Make sure you distribute whatever they’re having you stuff in there. Normally I’d estimate the Ruck at 35lbs on its own. They’re not bad for “regular” or taller people. </p>
<p>If you’re really petite, good luck because those things are impossible to adjust to small enough sizes. Do make sure that bottom bar is securely in the small of your back and that your waist region is baring most of the weight. You’ll want your arms for other activities and you don’t want it to impede on your marching speed. </p>
<p>The good thing for cadets at USMA- no LBEs circa nam because those on a 22" waist are a nightmare. If you’re that small, you’ll never comfortably fit 2 ammo pouches and 2 canteens in the front and still buckle the Big Green Tick- you won’t notice it until they take it off after a while. Hah!</p>
<p>bl, no way that ruck weighs 35 pounds by itself. I’d say max 15, and maybe the lbe pushes it to 25 with full mags and water. It is uncomfortable, but not bad if you make sure the shoulder straps are tight enough so the ruck sits high up on your back and there are no alice clips pushing into your back.</p>
<p>I was in Ranger Challenge (didn’t compete), our rucks weighed in at 50lbs for training (we added extra junk)…I’m not really certain as to what goes into the rucks for USMA. So they may be different.</p>
<p>When I was in IOBC, my ruck with e-tool and full 2 quart canteen weighed 21 lbs. In Beast, your ruck will never be heavier than like 45 pounds, at most. You never really carry that much. When I was at Buckner and was an AG (assistant gunner for the M240), my ruck was pretty legit then, like 75+ pounds, but that’s because you carry so much more in Buckner and when you’re AG, you have all the additional crap for the gun that weighs like an extra 40 pounds. Dont worry too much about the ruck in beast; like everyone’s been saying, just get the straps tight enough to raise it up and it’s all good.</p>