Currently stationed at Fort Bliss and it’s easily over 100° everyday here in summer (keep that in mind). My unit is scheduled to go to the range for qual this week, my people specifically this Tuesday. Now I get it, we gotta qual and it’ll suck being out there in full kit while its 104° but it’s just the one day, we’ll get through it. Ohhhhhh, but why would I ever think it ends there.

This past Friday at final formation is when we find out there’s some new rule saying we have to “occupy” the range the night prior…so come Monday we have to draw at 5am, go to the range, stay the night, THEN qual. You’d think we’d be done and go home then right? NO! We’re not scheduled to leave until Wednesday now because the bus won’t come until then (my best reasoning is to maybe give people who fail time to pass then we clean up and the bus gets us the next morning). So, to summarize, the usual 1 day early ammo draw, qual, cleanup and head home routine has now extended to 3 days (2 nights sleeping on the range) in 104° temp and NO water buffalo!!!! Yes, you read that right, there’s no water buffalo. We were given jerry cans to fill up before we leave and while there, they will have a detail that runs back and forth to post to refill them over the course of 3 days. Our leadership recommended to “pack as much water/Gatorade as we can bring with us”.

Now I don’t mean to come off whiny or like It couldn’t be worse, but riddle me how the Army has done this for YEARS and suddenly a 1 day qual turns into a 3 day event? I get this is not the worst thing ever, but I’m just curious the stupid shit people have had to deal with lately due to Army fuck fuck games or someone else’s poor planning (because let’s face it, this is an everyday occurrence for the Army now)