Page 6 - The Light Blue Volunteer 2019

Ex BLUE LONDON
One training weekend took place in central London, with the luxurious surroundings of the Cavalry and Guards Club, a far cry from the freezing countryside of STANTA.
OCdts were split into teams to undertake an ‘apprentice style’ task, using the seven questions format to underpin the planning process. The task at hand was to create a recruitment video for the UOTC. The video, along with a back brief on the planning process and the effects intended to be achieved by the video, were to be presented to Alan Sugar (the Commanding Officer), Karen (the XO)
and Claude (the 2IC) at the Cavalry and Guards Club fewer than 6 hours later.
A prize of £20 for each member of the winning team was up for grabs.
The teams set off to various cafés
and barracks to begin the planning process. The teams rigorously identified what students are looking for and how the UOTC would be able to fulfil these wishes, before moving on to how best
to utilise the London location to sell the UOTC offer. This highlighted the value of using structured thinking as an approach to any task, outside the usual application of the estimate process. Most groups
chose to focus on the adventurous training, sports, social, personal development and CV building benefits of the UOTC as well as stressing the fact you get paid! The target market was generally students who had not heard of the UOTC and didn’t have any intention of joining the military.
Once the presentations had been given and the winning team awarded their prize, OCdts were released to enjoy the delights of London. The next day OCdts undertook military and combat swim tests at RAF Honnington before splitting up into sports teams for a training session in preparation for QCC.
2LT Hodgkinson-Toay
Ex DYNAMIC VAGABOND
Ex DYNAMIC VAGABOND saw a team of six Officer Cadets from CUOTC spend a weekend with the Royal Armoured Corps (RAC) in Lulworth, Dorset, along with teams from other UOTCS. The objective of the weekend was to introduce OCdts to the life of an Officer in the RAC, either regular or reserve.
We arrived Friday night and went to the RAC Gunnery School Officers’ Mess to talk to recently commissioned 2Lts about their experiences at Sandhurst and in the RAC so far.
Saturday morning began with an
arduous log race: a 2.6km course with
a log, tyre and two ammunition tins as
burdens to be carried. The team was
well paced and all Officer Cadets pushed
themselves through the pain to a sprint
finish! The rest of Saturday comprised
of a range of stands. OCdts were given
tours of a wide range of vehicles used by the RAC, from the fast, light and open-topped Jackal to the rumbling beast
that is the Challenger 2. There was a chance to have a go at gunnery on the Challenger 2 and Warrior in gunner simulators
and driving in the Challenger 2 simulator. Finally, there was a timed challenge to evacuate a casualty from a rolled Mastiff in the rolling vehicle simulator. A mess dinner that night gave a flavour of mess life and the opportunity to better get to know the Officers and talk to them about their regiments – as choosing a regiment is as much about finding a culture that fits as it is about choosing a role.
It was a late start on Sunday –
much to the relief of those who picked up hangovers the night before! The mornings activities consisted of a range of command tasks (in which Cambridge dominated) before a visit to 5 Tips Range to watch impressive live firing of the Challenger 2 as the Royal Wessex Yeomanry undertook their annual crew tests.
Everything on the weekend was a scored competition, and the weekend ended with a presentation of awards by the Corps Colonel,
with Cambridge taking first place!
2Lt Hodgkinson-Toay
6 THE LIGHT BLUE VOLUNTEER