New Regiment Recruits Settle Into Training
Bermuda Regiment soldiers participating in this year’s Recruit Camp prepared for their first time on the shooting range yesterday [ Jan 16] , with the rookie soldiers sitting their weapons test – designed to ensure they handle Regiment rifles safely.
Volunteer Private Shaundray Gilbert said: “I’m looking forward to getting out on the range.”
The 18-year-old from St David’s, who is studying for his GED qualification at Bermuda College, added he hoped to use his Regiment experience to give him the confidence to run his own business.
Pte Gilbert, from 8 Platoon, said: “I volunteered so I can learn to become a leader – I want to be an entrepreneur. I’m aiming to become a Corporal and gain confidence and skills that I can take into my career in the future.”
Fuelling up: Recruits line up for lunch after a morning’s tough training.
He added: “What I love the most is that, as each day goes by, all these strangers become closer and part of a team. We’ve become better and stronger and learn as a group.”
Private Leeann Medeiros, from 9 Platoon, said three years in the Regiment Cadet Corps, now the Junior Leaders, had given her an edge in drill instruction on the parade ground.
Pte Medeiros, a pastry chef at Cambridge Beaches, said: “I enjoy drill because I did three years in the Cadets, so it’s not new to me.”
The 22-year-old from Warwick added: “The training has been wonderful – it’s a bit strenuous but I can deal with it.”
Learning the drill: recruits get their first taste of drill instruction at Warwick Camp
But she said: “I’m not used to waking up so early, but I’m getting used to it and the Non-Commissioned Officers are fine.
“They are just trying to make sure we get the most out of it – we had a swim this morning, which was a bit cold at first, but it was okay after a bit.”
And she added: “I’m really enjoying the workout – it hurts, but I’m enjoying it.”
The new recruits are approaching the half-way point of the two week Recruit Camp, the first major event of the Regiment’s 50th anniversary year.
Captain Chris Gauntlett, who is second in command of C Company, home to the new recruits, said he was pleased with the soldiers’ progress.
At the double: Rookie recruits head for their next lesson.
Capt. Gauntlett added: “It’s going well – everyone is cracking on with their training and they’re all looking forward to shooting on the range.”
He said that upcoming events include a night exercise, with recruits under canvas on the south shore for the night, as well as sports competitions – which will count towards the points tally for the top platoon of the camp.
Capt. Gauntlett added: “They know the competitions are coming and they’re getting very enthusiastic about the chance to do team sports. They all want to win.”
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When I hear people who are against my regiment and keeping conscription I get angry. The regiment has always been a place where a lot of young men from different backgrounds have been made into better people partly because they received the discipline that they so desperately needed and secondly it taught them teamwork and the understanding that all of us in this island need to work together to make it a safer better place for future generations.If the regiment was good enough for me and my son then it is good enough for anyone.when I went in in 1968 things were much harder than they are now.Any old soldier considers today’s boot camp compared to ours is like being in the Boy Scouts.
Ah but what if i don’t need the regiment to be a better person. What if I can manage that on my own? Just because you like the regiment and was probably a good thing for you doesn’t mean it’s the best thing for everybody. Let’s face it the world is changing and people prefer to do what they want to do not what a law made half a century ago tells them to do.