Attempting a Special Operations selection as an older candidate
by Steve Balestrieri
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I’ve recently heard from several individuals that are preparing to enter Selection for Special Forces. This isn’t something new: I’ve gotten emails from people ever since I began writing here. But what’s different about these latest candidates is that they are a bit older than the average candidate. They range from 32 to the mid-30s; there is even a potential candidate who is pushing 40.
While it is far from impossible, at that age, there are certain factors that just can’t be ignored. Going through and passing Selection is a grind even for someone much younger than any of these candidates are.
As much as some of us don’t want to admit it, your body doesn’t quite recover as fast as you get older and it is more susceptible to injury than when you were in your mid-20s. And the pace of Selection, and the recovery time it affords, is never really sufficient, to begin with. It is guaranteed that candidates will be tired, hungry, sore, and mentally mush at certain points of the course. It is okay to be that way. The course is designed to do that to all of the candidates. It is the right of passage to get to the Special Forces Qualification Course (SFQC) and then, hopefully, for the right candidates, to a spot on an SF A-Team.
https://sofrep.com/news/attempting-a-special-operations-selection-as-an-older-candidate/
