An Cosantóir

An Cosantóir April 2017 www.dfmagazine.ie 18 | REPoRt & PhotoS by SGT KARL ByRNE First activity of the day was jumping off a bridge into the cold dark waters of Blessington Lake. After CQMS Ken Sheridan declared the area underneath the surface safe for jumping into, the green light was given to make the jump. A cold southerly wind ensured that each jumper was pushed out into the water away from the bridge once the leap of faith was taken. With two army divers in the water and a RHIB (Rigged-Hulled Inflatable Boat) on standby, safety was paramount for each jumper and anyone in difficulty once they surfaced were as- sisted onto the lakes edge. Leading the way were the Lieutenant and Sergeant instructors of 62nd pln, Lt Eddie McGuire and Sgt David Graham who made the leap with no hesitations. For each person making the jump, it was a different men- tal battle, some fearing the height, others fear- ing the water, but for some it was both, and the internal struggle to jump was too much for 4 of the 35 recruits who were on the bridge, all others proceeded to make 2 successful jumps each. Not happy with doing just one activity for the day the group moved onto Cloghleagh Woods not far from Manor Kilbride, where a team of CTIs (Confidence Training Instructors). Lead by Capt Alan Mordaunt and Sgt Deirdre O'Raw of the Defence Forces Association of Mountain- eering (DFAM), they were ready to push the recruits to their limits once more. Broken up into teams of 6 they were handed a chicken egg to protect along the course, just to keep things interesting. The course consisted of various rope bridges, a zip line over a river in which they then both jumped over and into. The final part of the heavy rope course was a tough rope climb up the side of a 5m bridge to the finish line. All this, while trying to keep their egg from cracking on route. Speaking to Lt Eddie McGuire he said, "All this confidence training gives the soldier confidence when working at heights and in water, building the ability to follow orders, sometimes in the face of danger". Watching from the sides and having memories of do- ing all this many moons ago, I was glad to be warm and dry but couldn't help be slightly jealous of the excitement and adrenaline experienced by the troops on the day. We can have no doubt that this training will serve them well as they push forward with their army career well past their 3* course and onto bigger and brighter horizons in the Defence Forces. O n 10th March 2017 the 62nd and 63rd recruit platoons of 2 btC Athlone converged on blessing- ton Lake and Cloghleagh Woods for some organised Recreational training (oRt). For these troops, recruit training started on 14th november 2016 and finished on 27th March 2017. over the course of their training oRt consisted of over 30hrs training to which the instructors have used over 27 of these hours to carry out confidence training. they abseiled off the accommodation block in Custume bks, rock climbing in the gym, confidence jumps off hudson bay into Lough Ree, dived into the deep pool in the Curragh as well as doing the obstacle course also located in the Curragh Camp.

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