A Day in the Life of an Army Dive School Recruit
Posted on September 30, 2015 by Katie Lange
By Katie Lange
DoD News, Defense Media Activity
Some of us were taught to swim as kids, and some weren’t. While you think that would be a huge factor for those training to be Army divers, it actually isn’t.
During a recent visit to Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, where Army deep sea divers get their start, I discovered that not all of them started out as good swimmers – or even swimmers at all, for that matter.
“As crazy as it sounds, we get soldiers who can’t jump into the deep end who signed up to be a diver,” said Staff Sgt. Samuel Winter, an instructor for the Army Diver Phase 1 Course.
What recruits do need, however, is mental and physical toughness, as well as the will to learn.
Army dive school recruits learn mask appreciation, one of the more difficult parts of Phase 1 training. Photo courtesy of the Army Diver Phase 1 Facebook page
Recruits learn mask appreciation, one of the more difficult parts of Phase 1 training. Photo courtesy of the Army Diver Phase 1 Facebook page
“I asked my recruiter for the hardest job I could sign up for, and he sent me here,” said Pvt. Dylan Dubas, a recent course graduate. The 22-year-old Nebraska native never took formal swim lessons growing up, but he was ready for the challenge.
The daily routine is far from easy. After PT in the mornings, the recruits have to study basic diving physics, charting and the medical aspects of the job. They then hop into the pool for at least three hours a day, where they have to learn to pass the “bay swim” – flutter-kicking 1,000 yards in fins – as well as in-water proficiency training, drown-proofing and instructor-imposed underwater problem-solving.
I got to watch several of the recruits in action. On Day 8, after their daily bay swim, their proficiency training consisted of getting their masks and snorkels from the bottom of the deep end, clearing them on the surface, then going back to the bottom and getting a 16-pound weight they had to tread water with for one minute.
Next came the problem-solving. Each recruit had to swim along the bottom of the deep end, where their instructor pulled off some of their gear and tossed it everywhere. They had to find it and put it back on – all in the same breath – before calmly coming back to the surface.
Recruits practice problem-solving
More drills followed, including one in which the recruits passed a few 10-pound bricks around in a circle while treading water for however long their instructor chose.I was tired just watching them, especially knowing that not a lot of them make it through.
Dubas’ class started with 12 recruits. He and only two others passed the three-week course. Winter said in the past two years, the graduation rate has been about 30 percent to 45 percent.
Drills include treading water while passing heavy bricks
So what’s one of the hardest parts? Winter said it’s actually one of the basics – pullups on Day 1.
“They have to do a minimum of six pullups to pass a Diver Physical Fitness Test, and a lot of soldiers struggle with that,” Winter said. “Also, just being comfortable and confident in the water.”
Army Diver Phase 1 Course recruits practice lots of endurance drills, including many that involve treading water. DoD photo by Katie Lange
Recruits practice lots of endurance drills, including many that involve treading water. DoD photo by Katie Lange
For Dubas, the hardest part was the bay swim. The most memorable, however, was what’s known as mask appreciation.
“You get a hose sprayed in your face with a mask full of water, trying not to swallow the water, and you have to sing cadence,” he said of the drill that teaches them the value of a well-fitted mask. “A lot of people threw up that day. I didn’t … but the average was probably about three.”
Dubas said he felt himself getting better every day. That’s something the instructors see a lot.
“Two soldiers since I’ve been an instructor here went from not being able to swim one length of the pool without grabbing the wall to graduating Phase 1,” Winter said. “One of those soldiers is on a dive team now; he graduated Phase 2. The other soldier is at Phase 2 right now.”
Army Diver Phase 1 Course instructor Staff Sgt. Samuel Winter lines up his recruits to get ready for the day's drills. DoD photo by Katie Lange
Instructor Staff Sgt. Samuel Winter lines up his recruits to get ready for the day’s drills. DoD photo by Katie Lange
Seeing that progress is one of Winter’s favorite parts of his job.
“It’s a pretty good feeling when you see someone go from having zero confidence to passing the course,” he said.
Phase 2, which is 26 weeks of further training in Panama City, Florida, is held at the Naval Diving and Salvage Training Center, where all military divers are trained. After that, there are many possibilities for those who pass.
Check out some of those possibilities in part 2 of our blog!
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