Page 40 - RADC Bulletin 2018

Pegasus
Company
– How to
pass and
enjoy it!
Capt R J Watson RADC
“MR DEVINE, ARM FORWARD AND GO FOR IT!!!”. 31 of us remaining from the original 59 look on... Seeing a 6ft + man run across a 5m high beam and launch himself at the cargo net, only to stick his feet out first and subsequently bounce off but catch his ankle, and then watch
it break, is a memory I will not forget! An important lesson stuck with me - to listen to the directing staff.
Stories, there are literally hundreds of stories about P-Coy. Ask anyone and they will have a story of themselves, personal friend or someone they distantly know undertaking this. Rather than just writing my personnel experience, I thought of writing a few hints and tips that got me mentally and physically through to earning the maroon beret.
Before You Go
Understand the Mission Statement
The Pegasus Company mission is “To test physical fitness, determination and mental robustness, under
conditions of stress,
to determine whether an individual has the self-discipline and motivation required for service with Airborne Forces”.
The course does
exactly what it aims
to achieve, and you
will be pushed to your
mental and physical
limits. Throughout
the course, they will keep pushing you to achieve this mission but at the same time they will tell you why and what real life event is being simulated.
For example, the log race, 2 miles cross country, carrying 130 Kg in an 8 man
team, was horrible! What’s worse is you can’t change hands, you are competing against other logs and if someone drops out, the weight is the same and you just have to push on with less people. But it was
simulating getting ammunition to the front line over tough terrain as fast as possible.
What is your Mission Statement?
I personally want to serve with 16 Medical Regiment, and asked for a while to get myself onto P-Coy. I have also always wanted to test my physical and mental strength to see where it could take me.
Understand what you want and why you want to do it, and hold tight to this because it will get you through and push you to continue. If you go into this because you want to “give it a go”; when you are in the hurt locker you may not have the motivation needed to push you through.
It’s physical, so get training!
The best advice I was given came from really early on, by the then Captain Beaven, at
my first CDO(A) study day. He simply said “.... just do loads of phys and go in mentally strong, and then you should have a chance. Also stop drinking 3 months before!”
people don’t rate them, but I can’t praise them enough.
If you are great at sewing - well done, but if not, go to the tailors and get all your white patches sewn on properly. It looks cleaner and more professional, and you won’t get picked up for having poor kit and doing extra push ups while the directing staff have a brew.
Don’t own a big nose - when you are milling it will break, it will bleed a load and you won’t forget the feeling too soon. The radiograph is a keeper though!
Whilst You Go
Phys, Stretch, Eat, Repeat
Make sure you look after your body throughout, don’t just go to bed and sleep to think it will be all over. Good admin kept people going; ice baths, blister packs, zinc oxide tape, stretching and eating became life. All of this was mixed with being in a four-man room, chatting and laughing about the pain and the problems seemed to normalise it very quickly. Just don’t be “Jack” and cause your own problems.
I have 5 quite large scars on my back now from the Bergen rubbing as it takes the top layer of skin off when you are only wearing
a t-shirt and running around for 2 hours in
The course does exactly what it aims to achieve, and you will be pushed to your mental and physical limits
P-Coy may be three and a half weeks, with weekends off to recover, but the hard work has to be put in months before you arrive with eating right and putting miles through your boots
so that you avoid the blisters and sudden shock to the system. Quite a few people went home from
their feet and body failing them, rather than mentally giving in, which was gutting to see.
Kit
Alt-berg Sneakers. Get them! I started in my defenders and once I made the switch I was practically floating due the difference in weight and the ability to drain water rather than retain it. Some
38 RADC BULLETIN 2018
MILITARY MATTERS