They were OK and TBS medical has them.They will give you 2 if you ask them. Personally, I will say go out to a running store and buy a solid pair. You will be in your boots for most of the time at TBS and those things do not last that long. Investing some money in a good pair will pay off.
The PX on Mainside Quantico actually has a pair of insoles that you have heat up and they are suppose to form to your feet. Check it out
Put down the publications besides knowing the 5 paragraph order backwards and forwards and do combat conditioning. The academics are not that hard. If you have a weighted vest run with that if you dont buy one because you will do so many things with that god awful flak vest. You should be running 50/50 in your boots because at TBS I ran in go fasters 3 times and it was for 3 pft's. Anything you can do to add weight to a run and look up the new combat fitness test if that is the correct name. And by know the five paragraph order I mean know it because it will make your life easier. Then step back, take a knee, and punch yourself in the face..............welcome to the Marine Corps
We did it at OCS, almost all of it was with wargear, kevlar and weapon and involved (from what I remember):
1) starting in the prone position weapon pointed downrange, getting up and running ~50 meters and picking up a buddy and fireman carry him back in less than a minute to pass
2) rope climb with weapon and full gear ( I think about less than 45 seconds to pass)
3) running as a squad through a short combat course, low crawling under barb wire, around tires and shooting blanks at those green targets (less than 5 minutes to pass, this was the easiest part)
4) Run with weapon/wargear (can't remember time/distance, I think it was about 3 miles)
5) I'm blanking out on this one, the combat course, endurance course, and this all blend together in my memory bank. feel free to add/correct anything...
by the way, just read your profile "God bless GySgt Clark" OMG my platoon made me play him in our gong show skit, he was ten feet behing me the whole time. I kept expecting a kabar in my back as soon as I took off my boots and put them on my knees (dorf style) to "get into character", but somehow I pulled it off.
You've just described the CRT (Combat Readiness Test). From what I've read this new "Combat Fitness Test" isn't the same thing. What it really consists of however I don't have a clue yet. Obviously it's going to be geared much more to combat conditioning, but I'm curious as to the structure of it and it's relation to the PFT, if any.
Re: GySgt Clark - hah, believe me, EVERY platoon at the end of my 10 weeks did a GySgt Clark skit. And yeah, most of them involved midgets screaming. His face was so red after the skits, and to see him basically rolling over laughing after those 10 weeks with him was amazing. I will never forget that man.
Clear as mud?
Chill out bubba, enjoy life in the FirstCivLant. Heck, I graduated from OCS on Friday, started TBS three days later on Monday. Stay in shape and get ready for life in the Corps. Good luck, Semper Fi.
You've just described the CRT (Combat Readiness Test