I went through a winter SERE class in Maine 2005. I remember I was soo damm hungry after a few days I woke up in the snow in the middle of the night from a dream I was robbing a McDonald's at gun point. While the cashier was throwing the money at me I was smacking it out of the way and demanding a burger lol.
Boot camp fire guard was so funny watching everyone re-live the day's stresses in their sleep. Funny stuff. I guess sleepwalking was a big dangerous concern too. We did have a guy jump from the fire escape 3 floors, into oblivian. He couldn't stand all the screaming at him, it seemed. So much of it is mental. And how you grew up.
Seriously, I had the same nightmare but mine was at Wendy’s & I have never even been into one of there stores but I recon, I could of read the entire menu board the following day it was that clear.
I went through SERE at Warner Springs in 89. Some guy was being interrogated in the "hard cell" with the "guards" screaming at him, "HOW MANY PIGS WERE ON YOUR AIRCRAFT?!!" After a minute or two of this, with no hint of sarcasm in his voice, the guy responded, "There were no livestock on my aircraft!". I wasn't present to witness it, but apparently some of the guards almost lost it trying to keep straight faces.
I also went through SERE in Warner Springs in '89 as a Naval Aircrewman (AW) Acoustic Sensor Operator and remember those fake foreign accents well. Hot ass days and cold ass nights. "GRAB THE RAGS OF YOU", nothing like being folded into a wooden box the size of a shoebox with little room to even breathe as they banged on the box with a cane. Had a guy escape only to be brought back to camp and then we all were tortured for it...those were the days.
@@markphillips3007 Also a NAC/SAR but went to Maine in 96. Remember the box well and thinking, am I going to fit in that? hahaha yes they made it happen.
I went thru Corando traning and SERE school in 1967, prior to being shipped from San Diego to Vietnam. I was first wounded on the 30th of January 1968. That was the day started the TET offensive. They bombed the shi_ out of us. I lost a number of good friends. Here it is 2023 and I relive Vietnam every day. All of my buddies are dead and I will rejoin them at Arlington one day soon. Semper Fidelis gregory, usmc ret.
Went through AIr Force SERE in eastern WA back in the mid-80’s as part of ABGD training in preparation for operations in Central America. We had Vietnam era instructors and they held nothing back, messed you up physically and mentally, rough time, but well worth it. The instructors had the last word, rank didn’t matter, nothing like seeing an E-5 dressing down an arrogant AFA Lt. Colonel like he was a 5-year old. Best times! Thank you all who served for your service!
Fairchild, yep went through in ‘82. The Cadre hated me, I kept reminding them it’s simply training and the USAF had to much $$ invested in me for them to actually hurt me.
@@michaeldubya In 2008 when I did Fairchild crossing green to blue, the 2 stripe instructor made milkshakes out of multiple loudmouth 1LT's (you know the type...their butter bar colored in with a Bic pen as the orders were effective the night they arrived), and they handheld a Chief and 2 LtCols through, but bounced out (in full grandeur) 3 1LTs (2 being Dyess Bone-massagers....uh...Lancer Drivers) and one a fresh pinned full chicken Doc, who was no longer granted Grandfather status. Bird and the chief were both 58 and they made them both complete it anyway. I was black and blue neck to belly for a week but they are pretty skilled at not actually damaging anything you could put in the A's (maybe to hide in the K's, but she's still loggin' at least a single wheels up time for the day). Timid O's, Beta young E's, and over 50% of the females were more scared of pain than anything else, that fear more effective than the actual pain. I learned a lot about newer society (I was 33 and not a newbie, and as a father of a teen, I had several solid mental takeaways from that camp)
Went thru Fairchild in 1971 or thereabouts prior to going to Vietnam. People's Democratic Republic, 'BI Con My Commandant. ' I was young, mobile, agile and hostile and chosen to be the guy to escape the camp. I wasn't captured in the E&E portion of training, I made it to the end and then was taken prisoner and taken to the camp. I was linked up with a Navigator who got us lost on the night nav portion. So much for Navs. It was not called SERE then but we did the same stuff,
Rambo Rd. I wondered when I was there if that was how Hollywood got the name for the movie, as that was an old family name that owned the land way before the Air Force got it. "class of 2004"
Did a short SERE course in the mountains. After escaping my buddy and I hid on a tight curve where the prisoner truck came up with POWS and went back empty, when it slowed down we sprinted up behind and climbed in the empty truck unseen. Unfortunately the first SGT. was coming up the road in the opposite direction and saw our feet running under the truck and stoped it but was so impressed he let us continue the course. The guys in the truck had no clue we were there.
Brunswick, ME, December 1989...War Criminal #80 here. Evading in 2 feet of snow. So friggin' cold. After getting captured, they took all of our clothes except our boots (didn't want our toes to get frostbite) and then they proceeded to PT us to keep us warm. When I looked around and realized there were about 80 buck naked men doing Umpty Jumps (jumping jacks) with their junk flopping around I started laughing at the absurdity of it and I couldn't stop. The captors singled me out and proceeded to give me "personalized" one on one instruction. 😆 Learned alot.
Brother; Your story was a complete blast from my past. Thoroughly enjoyed your memory of it. I'm a bit older than you, sir. I was a S.E.R.E Instructor way back when NAS Brunswick, ME was still an active base. We did our training at the Remote Training Facility in Rangeley ME (1986-89 for me) and Tropical Environment Survival was conducted on Antigua Island, just north of Guadalupe. Now THAT was a bitch! I had an opportunity to visit the Warner Springs Facility as well and we swapped instructor patches and laughed our asses off at the students behind their backs (sorry, we had to entertain ourselves, too!) Been to BUD/S too (Class 170/171). I'm retired and cranky now. Just a boot tough ol' vet, I guess. I caught your video off of Don Shipley's feed. You're sporting quite the beard, bro! Easy to take the silent option, I guess. Congratulations on making it through S.E.R.E School; and more importantly SQT. One is honed in fire after SQT. It's nothing for anyone to shrug at! I'd like to see all active duty personnel go through S.E.R.E. They might just learn something about themselves they didn't know. Getting familiar with The Code of Conduct and a crash course in the Geneva Convention Act couldn't hurt them either. Enjoyed your story, sir. God Speed.
I was an aircrewman in VP-10 in Brunswick (1990-1995) & I went to SERE in Oct 1993. After the debrief back at NAS Brunswick it was fun meeting some of our "captors". The main, out of control, brutal lunatic that I didn't want to even make eye contact with was an E-5 SEAL. Him & his partner said at one point I said something so stupid in front of the entire class while we were in captivity that they struggled to not laugh (I remember exactly what happened lol). Prior to graduating SERE I thought they gave the SERE patches to you but no, they charged us $5 a piece. I figured after what we went through they'd just give you a patch but I was wrong.
Glad to see many SERE survivors here. I had to suffer it twice. The first was the original SF course in Bragg, I remember some of my buddies called it the normal mode The 2nd time was when I inducted to certain unit. It's the last of the training courses there. We called it the hell mode.
Air Force side... (I went green to blue just before the 10 year point to fly CSAR before the J Model Herks killed off the Combat Rescue Flight Engineer billet and replaced him with a 1982 tech level Speak'n'Spell, at standard Lockheed markup FOR said Speak'n'Spell of Cost plus (variance allowed also listed): $1M +/- $133M ) "F.E...fone...HOME" ...they had SERE, and "Advanced Beatings" for HROC I'd been 11C then 2 Helo Mx MOS'es, brother in 7SFG, buddies with 2 future SEALs in High School years (including one lost on Red Wings while I was at Arifjan at Patton AAF, hearing the chatter after, totally unaware that it had any connection to me), and so lots of notes got compared in a drunken "AAR at the Bar" once upon the full mooned eve of the 15th Article... Consensus from dudes that had done cross service courses was that the Chair Force's contractors and dedicated SERE kids in that AFSC (and I do mean Kids...2 stripes could be a seasoned lead dogg...very unique shit us grey hairs could not compute.) did the most complete psych mind fuck work, and the shock-to-imprint memories imparted were done RIGHT. A-10 Hog Driver said that "When that bag went over my head, I was RIGHT back in that class, 20 years prior" I'll lower my shit talking stick and concede this one. I went in ready for physical dick measuring and my "R-MEEE Training" arrogance, and they put me in my place, and then taught me WHY. And they were NOT full of shit. "I" was...going in (false motivation) But I wasn't while leaving. (A bit of humble pie served up by a smart guy who made me really think like a leader must.) Advanced Beatings about the same in scope but application was an art form unique to service / mission set (so I heard...I wasn't required)
@@armageddon1403what part of my reply made you say that? I re-read it, and it was clearly a drunken reply,..way too verbose than it needed to be (sorry guys…chatterbox when toasted) Buy other than that, what part of it seemed that bad?
I went to SF SERE at Bragg in 90 as a Force Recon Marine. I remember the “Bearded One” and “Santa Claus” well and an instructor named Cobbler (Ranger) during survival training who was awesome and funny as hell. Another Survival Phase instructor named Gutierrez too. Also being led thru the O Course by Living SF Legend and Vietnam War Hero Richmond Nail (Ret) who blew our doors in overalls a feed cap and jungle boots blind in one eye. Incredible 18 days. Pretty good gut check too!
9:07 makes me laugh and smile for you! The sheer flood of fondness you recall in all of this... some absolutely amazing experiences to keep in memory forever. I love your content and tune in for all the truck talks/scripture reading you've been doing. I haven't seen any videos on this binder yet; can't wait to hear the rest of them!
Jeez Chadd, these new stories are fascinating and Brutal! Honestly you've really made my day with this and without hearing this from you, we would never fully grasp the trials you faced. Hats off, nuff said.
I went to University with a Sere instructor in Spokane. He was majoring in anthropology on an rotc. He told me he had to see a shrink x1 a month to assure he was separating his role at seré as an interrogator. and assure he was not becoming Sadistic. The Psycholgists at SERE became involved in the torture techniques implemented at Abu Grahib, confined spaces, etc.
I went through SERE in 85 when I was with SBU-XI. North Island and Warner Springs. Woohoo. My evasion buddy was from Team 5. I ended up being war criminal #6. LOL. Damned fine experience, once it was over.
Man you are awesome! I love every one of these videos. one of the coolest things I think I'm learning from you is how to keep things comical entertaining and raw without saying a single curse word!! I have a foul mouth, I use it in front of my children my wife and I'm ashamed of it. I lack self-control in so many areas and I think this one is probably the one I hate the most about myself. So thank you for another amazing episode and for showing me how it's done without a potty mouth.
You should have received an commendation. In '74', going through basic training, we were out going through night fire and I bought 2 tracers from 3 guys in my squad for a buck apiece. I received the highest NightFire score in the history of the base. The next day I was in the CO's office explaining myself. There was no rule in the manuals I had read that I couldn't do what I did. I was congratulated and given a stripe for being a quick thinker and taking charge and also became leader of my squad, haha!
I also spent some time living out in the desert 🏜... i was homeless at 13 & 16. Oh yeah, it gets cold at night! I had no gear. I found that if you bury yourself, you'll survive. It's not as warm, but if you just ruff up a few inches of topsoil and lay on that, it's warmer than simply laying directly on the ground. Lots of critters, so i also learned real quick to create a face covering that still allowed me to have some ability to see through. One thing you can use for that is simply a knit beanie pulled over your face. You're covered and have some level of vision. Saved my ass till i could get a better bug net. Also, watch your footwear if you take them off at night to sleep... that could be a huge mistake. Not only do critters find their way into them, but coyotes may steal them like one did to me! Oh yeah, and snakes 🐍 will sometimes decide to sleep with you! Move very slowly 🐌 and they may just leave without incident... then change your shorts!😂
I went through SERE at Ft Lewis in 1977. Our battalion was the first group to go through there. It was similar. It was a spring time course. But it rained a lot. The survival part, they set a whole company out on a deserted island in Puget Sound with 100 chickens and 100 Rabbits that were turned lose before we got there. And 7 LRRP rations per man for two weeks. And a shelter half or a poncho liner for each man. We got through that but people were fighting over the rabbits and Chickens. Then came the evasion part. All done in the woods around Ft Lewis. We had to make our objective about a click away without getting caught. Most got caught but a few of us made it through where that gave us a single K Ration for a reward. Those who were caught got an early ride to the POW Camp. The rest of joined them after a hot supper. Then came the resistance and escape part. Where we were treated as POWs and sleep deprived and starved, interrogated, by the CID and were supposed to try to organize communications and make any attempt to escape our captors. Turns out that this was also the training camp for our CID and their AIT training for the interrogations and POW handling parts of their training. So we didn’t get any successful escapes despite three attempts. We were in that situation for five days. We were pretty out of it after that time. And they did not afford us any full meals or much water during our stay. I graduated and then then we were sent to JOTC Panama where we went through Jungle school. Those were the days.
Went through SERE in the Air Force not long ago, enlisted aircrew. Not nearly as brutal as yours, but some of those "fun" memories definitely came back
June 82 myself. Funny the area broke a record for being the coldest June on record if I remember correctly. Otherwise all okay. Some funny stories however. Nobody wanted to kill/eat the rabbits but me. So I ended up with all the rabbit meat myself. Country boy will survive. ;)
@@vsupreme9386 Who comes up with these stories? Nobody saves you. Then you sit in line waiting to turn shit in at supply until you are actually mistaken for missing in action.
Did SERE at Fairchild AFB back in 06. Beatings and Advanced Beatings. Chad really enjoying your content. Thank you for sharing your knowledge with us, sir
I was fortunate when I went to advance beatings. I did not get beat at all. Some got beat the whole time through the interrogations. I would not want to do it again though.
There's some memories! I completed SERE school back in 1978 at Warner Springs near San Diego. No urban survival training then. It was all remote/jungle type survival. There were 2 Seals in my class and those boys were treated special. Waterboarded for 3 days.
Attend SERE at Warner Springs in 1989. Got to go back into camp and observe other students. Great experience seeing the other side. Then Adv SERE at NAS North Island were we got to read debriefings from POW’s and got to talk to one who came in for question and answer type class. Very professional sailors who ran this program. I was a Marine so to make this statement means a lot. I was War Criminal 03…..
Went through SERE as a carrier pilot in the mid-late 80’s in Maine late summer… interesting evolution, with things I can still relate to and apply outside the military. Certainly gave me perspective…. on a lot…
SERE school was the best diet I'd ever been on. Lost 15 lbs in 4 days during the final FTX. The shower I took when we got back to the barracks after the final FTX was the best shower I'd ever taken. The shitty DFAC cheeseburger I ate (that was about all I could stomach after having not eaten for 4 days) was the best cheeseburger I'd ever eaten. The 7 hour drive back to Ft. Campbell was the best road trip I'd ever taken. That school teaches you to appreciate the little things.
I knew Navy Seal training was the hardest. I never knew how tough the training was after hell week. Chadd Wright, you are an amazing story teller. Upmost respect on what you went through!
To this day I remember SERE training, some good times but a lot of just crappy times. By chance I saved my graduation certificate, later as a LCDR squadron department head, the admin reviewed our records, no sere certificate. They tried to send me again, I gladly made them a copy and told the Admin officer to shove it where the sun don’t shine.
Went to Brunswick in December 1982. When I got off the plane it was 12°. Luckily, by the time we got out to Rangeley it was in the mid-20s. It was a pretty miserable week between the weather and POW camp.
I watch a lot of Don Shipley's Stolen Valor videos. Listening to this story and the detail remembered, how can any idiot ever think they can pull off faking being a SEAL? /Salute. USAF vet.
Congratulations man for hanging tough! My pops was a sere instructor at Camp McCall/Ft.Bragg many moons ago. Several members of my family and friends were SF 7th group when I was growing up. What a childhood I had thank almighty God! My Pops turned out to be a Church pastor after 27 years of military service...what a champion!
I hope he is teaching people to the word of Jesus to stay awake and vigilent as false prophets are here and the enemy is not some foreign country but our own WEF infiltrated governments. We must pray and shine light on the real evil amongst us.
Went through Air Force SERE in WA in 2021. Hardest training of my life so far. Man those instructors are really good. Learned a lot about what my body is actually capable of during stress, and, also got a LOD out of it (lost a tooth) ha!
I respect all that you have done and accomplished. I’m just as proud for being a father and raising 2 boys into good men. We all have our own bragging rights.
Cool! I was an Air Force helicopter flight engineer and went through the escape and evasion course at Fairchild AFB. I went through the dunker training also.
Pretty cold of your trainers to let you guys think they're going to fail you out and leave you hanging for some legal charges when what did they expect you to do, walk in a store and order new clothes when you have nothing. The things you men went through and endured just in the course of proving yourselves to the Navy SEALS is truly amazing and I admire and respect anyone who can go thru so much for the opportunity of serving your country with the best! Boot camp and AIT don't teach squat compared to what you men went through! Great video I'm glad I found your channel and thank you for your service!
I attended SERE in Warner Springs, CA in 88 the Butcher.... Interesting thing, I went home and found a job and met a coworker, Mark Gartley former Hanoi Hilton POW, this was in 1997. I asked if he could still remember all former POW names and he recited them... on the spot Amazing.
Theses are great!!!!!!!! I cant hit that like button enough !!!!! Your stories are very cool you have lived an intetesting life thuss far and i Appreciate your service and thank you!! Godbless you an your ken nuff said!
Did SERE in Maine Feb 86 in the Navy. 8 to 10 inches of snow on the ground in upper Maine. Sleeping at -10 degrees in just a sleeping bag under a fallen tree with snow packed around it to make a shelter. Guards throwing cold water on us in 5 degree weather as we stood naked to outside to get deloused. Daily interrogations and beatings, and other things I'd better not mention. Fun stuff, but I made it....
I'm a BUD/S dud unfortunately from 2010.. I remember a story, SEAL students flipped the script at SERE holding the instructors hostage. Always wondered if that was true. Ended up on the Nimitz chipping paint as I was told would happen. I caught pneumonia during BUD/S then sent to the fleet. Thanks for your videos man.
Don Ponchos is legendary! They sent the new guys down there to buy burritos for the whole platoon. I remember there was a rice king on wet side 32nd street. I went through SERE "for enablers" in 2011 at North Island. Then reported to ST5.
Went to SERE School in Brunswick Maine July 1995, after I re-enlisted in the Marine Corps, made a lat move from 0351 Dragon-gunner to 0231 Basic Intel Specialist. Lost my SERE certificate when I moved out of Camp Lejeune NC in 1996. Would love to be able to get another certificate, it’s listed on my DD214 as SERE School 07/95. Just found your channel and you gained a new subscriber. Yut!!
NAVY man proud of His training... My training west as excited but I have had my share of Training schools, all loved and enhanced my career while serving my country. Best 20 years of my LIFE. thanks for service.
I had the privilege to attend S.E.R.E in 1980 at Nas Brunswick Maine I was with Marine Barracks at Brunswick.. I made evac with my navy partner Larry We were rewarded with hamburger and fries along with about seven others. Them the fun and games began. I've been there.
I will add my favorite training was 3 months in Quan Virginia. Training tactics for advanced psycops training with some very scary people. I was 21 lol, after my first day of instruction. I understood how powerful fear is. 6hrs after graduation I went to a tattoo shop and got my most memorable quote done altered of course: behold,I have become death, destroyer of worlds. Have since had it recovered and pictorial added of archangel/in a reaper cloak. Prob the best conversation piece I have but leaves ppl without response. Had to learn that tale to make it more acceptable to civilized ears.
A modern day, enthralling version of Mark Twain's "Roughing It" with a dash of Chinese ingredient thrown in for extra flavor and variety. Mark Twain, America's foremost storyteller and "modern" writer, salutes you for your verve and raw storytelling details as well as your leading edge, call of the wide, SERE training. Bravo!!!!
Went through Navy SERE School 1983 Warner Springs CA. I was war Criminal #28..... I was a "AW" was stationed at Nas Barber's Pt Hawaii...story has it only 2 SEALS were allowed to go to SERE School at a time because in the early days of SERE SCHOOL they put through 5 or 6 SEALs in 1 class....well they over ran the camp, tied up the SERE Instructor's and ate the guard dogs....years later that story was written up in a news letter from the Naval Aviation Museum at Nas Pensacola....
Amazingly I didn’t lose as much weight as I wanted. I was already super lean when I went. Right from the start before training an officer was kicked out for stuffing pop tarts in his pants when we dumped our duffle bags. Do me a favor guys, when you go to SERE you must constantly remind yourself that it is just training. Say it out loud. “This is just good training and I am a bad mother fucker and I can handle anything they can dish out.” Say that often. The toughest thing for me in SERE was being the e only Black dude. Everything can trip you up. Believe that you can and will make it through and you’ll be fine. Great vid. Keep them coming. After you get rescued don’t eat so fast or you will be sad. Eat slow. Very slowly and calm. I ate two MRE’s quickly and I was very sad afterwards. That stupid protein bar!
I want through Warner Springs in 96, clearly same school Seal bro in video is talking about . They broke my jaw and both my index fingers during "Hard Cell" interrogation. I think the baby crying on repeat is what gets to most people though.
Do any of you guys remember the row of boxes? If I remember right they were 2.5 ft. wide by 4.5 ft. long. I was crammed into one and left to soften up. The aggressors would come by and hit the box. I yelled out "sir prisoner no. 65 reporting sir." People who were claustrophobic lost it. The silence was good in the box.
Did S.E.R.E "Water Survival School" at Homestead Air Force Base, Florida. Feel the tension, man what a ride. Spent first 18 months going from school to school not knowing why each course and even failed jump school due to injury.
I went through a winter SERE class in Maine 2005. I remember I was soo damm hungry after a few days I woke up in the snow in the middle of the night from a dream I was robbing a McDonald's at gun point. While the cashier was throwing the money at me I was smacking it out of the way and demanding a burger lol.
Boot camp fire guard was so funny watching everyone re-live the day's stresses in their sleep. Funny stuff. I guess sleepwalking was a big dangerous concern too. We did have a guy jump from the fire escape 3 floors, into oblivian. He couldn't stand all the screaming at him, it seemed. So much of it is mental. And how you grew up.
That's one of the funniest things I've ever heard. The dream. Not the guy jumping in the other post that is tragic.
Seriously, I had the same nightmare but mine was at Wendy’s & I have never even been into one of there stores but I recon, I could of read the entire menu board the following day it was that clear.
I was there in 1999, place was rough!!
@Black Widow Outdoor Adventures Hmmmm Not tracking???
I went through SERE at Warner Springs in 89.
Some guy was being interrogated in the "hard cell" with the "guards" screaming at him, "HOW MANY PIGS WERE ON YOUR AIRCRAFT?!!" After a minute or two of this, with no hint of sarcasm in his voice, the guy responded, "There were no livestock on my aircraft!".
I wasn't present to witness it, but apparently some of the guards almost lost it trying to keep straight faces.
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤙🤙
I also went through SERE in Warner Springs in '89 as a Naval Aircrewman (AW) Acoustic Sensor Operator and remember those fake foreign accents well. Hot ass days and cold ass nights. "GRAB THE RAGS OF YOU", nothing like being folded into a wooden box the size of a shoebox with little room to even breathe as they banged on the box with a cane. Had a guy escape only to be brought back to camp and then we all were tortured for it...those were the days.
@@markphillips3007 I was an IFT on the east coast in the.early 90s.
@@markphillips3007 Also a NAC/SAR but went to Maine in 96. Remember the box well and thinking, am I going to fit in that? hahaha yes they made it happen.
I absolutely adore that comment. Made my month man thanks!
I went thru Corando traning and SERE school in 1967, prior to being shipped from San Diego to Vietnam. I was first wounded on the 30th of January 1968. That was the day started the TET offensive. They bombed the shi_ out of us. I lost a number of good friends. Here it is 2023 and I relive Vietnam every day. All of my buddies are dead and I will rejoin them at Arlington one day soon.
Semper Fidelis
gregory, usmc ret.
Semper Fi brother!
Thank you
Omg, god bless you.
Hope you’re well man
Bullshit
Went through AIr Force SERE in eastern WA back in the mid-80’s as part of ABGD training in preparation for operations in Central America. We had Vietnam era instructors and they held nothing back, messed you up physically and mentally, rough time, but well worth it. The instructors had the last word, rank didn’t matter, nothing like seeing an E-5 dressing down an arrogant AFA Lt. Colonel like he was a 5-year old. Best times! Thank you all who served for your service!
Fairchild, yep went through in ‘82. The Cadre hated me, I kept reminding them it’s simply training and the USAF had to much $$ invested in me for them to actually hurt me.
@@michaeldubya In 2008 when I did Fairchild crossing green to blue, the 2 stripe instructor made milkshakes out of multiple loudmouth 1LT's (you know the type...their butter bar colored in with a Bic pen as the orders were effective the night they arrived), and they handheld a Chief and 2 LtCols through, but bounced out (in full grandeur) 3 1LTs (2 being Dyess Bone-massagers....uh...Lancer Drivers) and one a fresh pinned full chicken Doc, who was no longer granted Grandfather status. Bird and the chief were both 58 and they made them both complete it anyway.
I was black and blue neck to belly for a week but they are pretty skilled at not actually damaging anything you could put in the A's (maybe to hide in the K's, but she's still loggin' at least a single wheels up time for the day). Timid O's, Beta young E's, and over 50% of the females were more scared of pain than anything else, that fear more effective than the actual pain. I learned a lot about newer society (I was 33 and not a newbie, and as a father of a teen, I had several solid mental takeaways from that camp)
wife did Honduras Palmerola with the Army in 84
Went thru Fairchild in 1971 or thereabouts prior to going to Vietnam. People's Democratic Republic, 'BI Con My Commandant. ' I was young, mobile, agile and hostile and chosen to be the guy to escape the camp. I wasn't captured in the E&E portion of training, I made it to the end and then was taken prisoner and taken to the camp. I was linked up with a Navigator who got us lost on the night nav portion. So much for Navs. It was not called SERE then but we did the same stuff,
Rambo Rd. I wondered when I was there if that was how Hollywood got the name for the movie, as that was an old family name that owned the land way before the Air Force got it. "class of 2004"
Did a short SERE course in the mountains. After escaping my buddy and I hid on a tight curve where the prisoner truck came up with POWS and went back empty, when it slowed down we sprinted up behind and climbed in the empty truck unseen. Unfortunately the first SGT. was coming up the road in the opposite direction and saw our feet running under the truck and stoped it but was so impressed he let us continue the course. The guys in the truck had no clue we were there.
Boots Boots marching up and down again, going back and forth again, there is no end to the war.
Brunswick, ME, December 1989...War Criminal #80 here. Evading in 2 feet of snow. So friggin' cold. After getting captured, they took all of our clothes except our boots (didn't want our toes to get frostbite) and then they proceeded to PT us to keep us warm. When I looked around and realized there were about 80 buck naked men doing Umpty Jumps (jumping jacks) with their junk flopping around I started laughing at the absurdity of it and I couldn't stop. The captors singled me out and proceeded to give me "personalized" one on one instruction. 😆
Learned alot.
Brother; Your story was a complete blast from my past. Thoroughly enjoyed your memory of it. I'm a bit older than you, sir. I was a S.E.R.E Instructor way back when NAS Brunswick, ME was still an active base. We did our training at the Remote Training Facility in Rangeley ME (1986-89 for me) and Tropical Environment Survival was conducted on Antigua Island, just north of Guadalupe. Now THAT was a bitch! I had an opportunity to visit the Warner Springs Facility as well and we swapped instructor patches and laughed our asses off at the students behind their backs (sorry, we had to entertain ourselves, too!) Been to BUD/S too (Class 170/171). I'm retired and cranky now. Just a boot tough ol' vet, I guess. I caught your video off of Don Shipley's feed. You're sporting quite the beard, bro! Easy to take the silent option, I guess. Congratulations on making it through S.E.R.E School; and more importantly SQT. One is honed in fire after SQT. It's nothing for anyone to shrug at! I'd like to see all active duty personnel go through S.E.R.E. They might just learn something about themselves they didn't know. Getting familiar with The Code of Conduct and a crash course in the Geneva Convention Act couldn't hurt them either. Enjoyed your story, sir. God Speed.
I was an aircrewman in VP-10 in Brunswick (1990-1995) & I went to SERE in Oct 1993. After the debrief back at NAS Brunswick it was fun meeting some of our "captors". The main, out of control, brutal lunatic that I didn't want to even make eye contact with was an E-5 SEAL. Him & his partner said at one point I said something so stupid in front of the entire class while we were in captivity that they struggled to not laugh (I remember exactly what happened lol). Prior to graduating SERE I thought they gave the SERE patches to you but no, they charged us $5 a piece. I figured after what we went through they'd just give you a patch but I was wrong.
Amen on the Code of Conduct...
Glad to see many SERE survivors here.
I had to suffer it twice. The first was the original SF course in Bragg, I remember some of my buddies called it the normal mode
The 2nd time was when I inducted to certain unit. It's the last of the training courses there.
We called it the hell mode.
Air Force side...
(I went green to blue just before the 10 year point to fly CSAR before the J Model Herks killed off the Combat Rescue Flight Engineer billet and replaced him with a 1982 tech level Speak'n'Spell, at standard Lockheed markup FOR said Speak'n'Spell of Cost plus (variance allowed also listed): $1M +/- $133M )
"F.E...fone...HOME"
...they had SERE, and "Advanced Beatings" for HROC
I'd been 11C then 2 Helo Mx MOS'es, brother in 7SFG, buddies with 2 future SEALs in High School years (including one lost on Red Wings while I was at Arifjan at Patton AAF, hearing the chatter after, totally unaware that it had any connection to me), and so lots of notes got compared in a drunken "AAR at the Bar" once upon the full mooned eve of the 15th Article...
Consensus from dudes that had done cross service courses was that the Chair Force's contractors and dedicated SERE kids in that AFSC (and I do mean Kids...2 stripes could be a seasoned lead dogg...very unique shit us grey hairs could not compute.) did the most complete psych mind fuck work, and the shock-to-imprint memories imparted were done RIGHT.
A-10 Hog Driver said that "When that bag went over my head, I was RIGHT back in that class, 20 years prior"
I'll lower my shit talking stick and concede this one. I went in ready for physical dick measuring and my "R-MEEE Training" arrogance, and they put me in my place, and then taught me WHY.
And they were NOT full of shit.
"I" was...going in (false motivation) But I wasn't while leaving. (A bit of humble pie served up by a smart guy who made me really think like a leader must.)
Advanced Beatings about the same in scope but application was an art form unique to service / mission set (so I heard...I wasn't required)
So you were part of "The Unit-D'? That's actually badass if it's true
I've had actual dreams I had to do it again. Wouldn't.
@@SnoopDougieDoug What are you on?
@@armageddon1403what part of my reply made you say that?
I re-read it, and it was clearly a drunken reply,..way too verbose than it needed to be (sorry guys…chatterbox when toasted)
Buy other than that, what part of it seemed that bad?
You’re a national treasure. Thank you for your service, Shipmate.
Tremendous amount of respect for you dude and every man and woman who has served our country.
I went to SF SERE at Bragg in 90 as a Force Recon Marine. I remember the “Bearded One” and “Santa Claus” well and an instructor named Cobbler (Ranger) during survival training who was awesome and funny as hell. Another Survival Phase instructor named Gutierrez too. Also being led thru the O Course by Living SF Legend and Vietnam War Hero Richmond Nail (Ret) who blew our doors in overalls a feed cap and jungle boots blind in one eye. Incredible 18 days. Pretty good gut check too!
Yep, went through in April of 90. "do not be taller than I am tall." The bearded one was rumored to be a Sunday school teacher. I was from 1/75.
@@vortexprosper7171 outstanding
9:07 makes me laugh and smile for you! The sheer flood of fondness you recall in all of this... some absolutely amazing experiences to keep in memory forever.
I love your content and tune in for all the truck talks/scripture reading you've been doing. I haven't seen any videos on this binder yet; can't wait to hear the rest of them!
Jeez Chadd, these new stories are fascinating and Brutal! Honestly you've really made my day with this and without hearing this from you, we would never fully grasp the trials you faced. Hats off, nuff said.
I went to University with a Sere instructor in Spokane. He was majoring in anthropology on an rotc. He told me he had to see a shrink x1 a month to assure he was separating his role at seré as an interrogator. and assure he was not becoming Sadistic. The Psycholgists at SERE became involved in the torture techniques implemented at Abu Grahib, confined spaces, etc.
I went through SERE in 85 when I was with SBU-XI. North Island and Warner Springs. Woohoo. My evasion buddy was from Team 5. I ended up being war criminal #6. LOL. Damned fine experience, once it was over.
Man you are awesome! I love every one of these videos. one of the coolest things I think I'm learning from you is how to keep things comical entertaining and raw without saying a single curse word!! I have a foul mouth, I use it in front of my children my wife and I'm ashamed of it. I lack self-control in so many areas and I think this one is probably the one I hate the most about myself. So thank you for another amazing episode and for showing me how it's done without a potty mouth.
You should have received an commendation. In '74', going through basic training, we were out going through night fire and I bought 2 tracers from 3 guys in my squad for a buck apiece. I received the highest NightFire score in the history of the base. The next day I was in the CO's office explaining myself. There was no rule in the manuals I had read that I couldn't do what I did. I was congratulated and given a stripe for being a quick thinker and taking charge and also became leader of my squad, haha!
My father was a sere instructor up at warner springs. He graduated in a wheelchair when he went through.
😂😂😂😂 McCall 98 SERE graduate and the best stories I’ve ever had were from this school. Cheers Mr Wright!
Great Story brother. I cried when they finally raised the American flag and played the national anthem 😥❤
Never heard of S.E.R.E. school! Learn something new every day! God Bless!
My cousin is a S.E.R.E. school instructor in Maine. Some of the stories he has told. whoa.
I also spent some time living out in the desert 🏜... i was homeless at 13 & 16. Oh yeah, it gets cold at night! I had no gear. I found that if you bury yourself, you'll survive. It's not as warm, but if you just ruff up a few inches of topsoil and lay on that, it's warmer than simply laying directly on the ground. Lots of critters, so i also learned real quick to create a face covering that still allowed me to have some ability to see through. One thing you can use for that is simply a knit beanie pulled over your face. You're covered and have some level of vision. Saved my ass till i could get a better bug net. Also, watch your footwear if you take them off at night to sleep... that could be a huge mistake. Not only do critters find their way into them, but coyotes may steal them like one did to me! Oh yeah, and snakes 🐍 will sometimes decide to sleep with you! Move very slowly 🐌 and they may just leave without incident... then change your shorts!😂
I went through SERE at Ft Lewis in 1977. Our battalion was the first group to go through there. It was similar. It was a spring time course. But it rained a lot.
The survival part, they set a whole company out on a deserted island in Puget Sound with 100 chickens and 100 Rabbits that were turned lose before we got there. And 7 LRRP rations per man for two weeks. And a shelter half or a poncho liner for each man. We got through that but people were fighting over the rabbits and Chickens.
Then came the evasion part. All done in the woods around Ft Lewis. We had to make our objective about a click away without getting caught. Most got caught but a few of us made it through where that gave us a single K Ration for a reward.
Those who were caught got an early ride to the POW Camp. The rest of joined them after a hot supper.
Then came the resistance and escape part. Where we were treated as POWs and sleep deprived and starved, interrogated, by the CID and were supposed to try to organize communications and make any attempt to escape our captors. Turns out that this was also the training camp for our CID and their AIT training for the interrogations and POW handling parts of their training. So we didn’t get any successful escapes despite three attempts. We were in that situation for five days. We were pretty out of it after that time. And they did not afford us any full meals or much water during our stay.
I graduated and then then we were sent to JOTC Panama where we went through Jungle school. Those were the days.
Lewis is the best ,such a pretty area to do SERE at.
Went through SERE in the Air Force not long ago, enlisted aircrew. Not nearly as brutal as yours, but some of those "fun" memories definitely came back
my brother was enlisted aircrew, USAF, went through SERE in Washington state, in the early 90's.
I went through this course at Fairchild Air Force Base, 1977. Bycon!
Is it true that at the end of usaf SERE they mock have Seals save you?
June 82 myself. Funny the area broke a record for being the coldest June on record if I remember correctly. Otherwise all okay. Some funny stories however. Nobody wanted to kill/eat the rabbits but me. So I ended up with all the rabbit meat myself. Country boy will survive. ;)
@@vsupreme9386 Who comes up with these stories?
Nobody saves you. Then you sit in line waiting to turn shit in at supply until you are actually mistaken for missing in action.
Great experience and training , THANK You for Your Service.
Did SERE at Fairchild AFB back in 06. Beatings and Advanced Beatings. Chad really enjoying your content. Thank you for sharing your knowledge with us, sir
I was fortunate when I went to advance beatings. I did not get beat at all. Some got beat the whole time through the interrogations. I would not want to do it again though.
There's some memories! I completed SERE school back in 1978 at Warner Springs near San Diego. No urban survival training then. It was all remote/jungle type survival. There were 2 Seals in my class and those boys were treated special. Waterboarded for 3 days.
Attend SERE at Warner Springs in 1989. Got to go back into camp and observe other students. Great experience seeing the other side. Then Adv SERE at NAS North Island were we got to read debriefings from POW’s and got to talk to one who came in for question and answer type class. Very professional sailors who ran this program. I was a Marine so to make this statement means a lot. I was War Criminal 03…..
Went through SERE as a carrier pilot in the mid-late 80’s in Maine late summer… interesting evolution, with things I can still relate to and apply outside the military. Certainly gave me perspective…. on a lot…
SERE school was the best diet I'd ever been on. Lost 15 lbs in 4 days during the final FTX. The shower I took when we got back to the barracks after the final FTX was the best shower I'd ever taken. The shitty DFAC cheeseburger I ate (that was about all I could stomach after having not eaten for 4 days) was the best cheeseburger I'd ever eaten. The 7 hour drive back to Ft. Campbell was the best road trip I'd ever taken. That school teaches you to appreciate the little things.
Every formation, a parade. Every meal,a banquet!!! God I miss it.
I was dumb enough to eat pizza with my now brother in law at the Coronado E club the night we RTB from FinEx. That was a dumb fuckin plan
I knew Navy Seal training was the hardest. I never knew how tough the training was after hell week. Chadd Wright, you are an amazing story teller. Upmost respect on what you went through!
To this day I remember SERE training, some good times but a lot of just crappy times. By chance I saved my graduation certificate, later as a LCDR squadron department head, the admin reviewed our records, no sere certificate. They tried to send me again, I gladly made them a copy and told the Admin officer to shove it where the sun don’t shine.
Went to Brunswick in December 1982. When I got off the plane it was 12°. Luckily, by the time we got out to Rangeley it was in the mid-20s. It was a pretty miserable week between the weather and POW camp.
There were no Chinese restaurants in SERE LVL-C /CWEST when I 'attended' in 1980's 🙂
Thanks!
Met some Seals in real life and some channels online, you seem the most down to earth and real I have seen so far. Good stuff man.
I watch a lot of Don Shipley's Stolen Valor videos. Listening to this story and the detail remembered, how can any idiot ever think they can pull off faking being a SEAL? /Salute. USAF vet.
Thanks for sharing brother
Boots boots boots moving up and down again
Slogging over africa.....boots, boots, boots,...lol...winter 04 rangely lakes school for wayward boys lol
Congratulations man for hanging tough! My pops was a sere instructor at Camp McCall/Ft.Bragg many moons ago. Several members of my family and friends were SF 7th group when I was growing up. What a childhood I had thank almighty God! My Pops turned out to be a Church pastor after 27 years of military service...what a champion!
Yay
I hope he is teaching people to the word of Jesus to stay awake and vigilent as false prophets are here and the enemy is not some foreign country but our own WEF infiltrated governments. We must pray and shine light on the real evil amongst us.
@@smgibv4393 Yes sir, we were taught the enemy has always been in the perimeter.
SERE is crazy man. More power to you sir.
Awesome to hear the stories behind the man
Went through Air Force SERE in WA in 2021. Hardest training of my life so far. Man those instructors are really good. Learned a lot about what my body is actually capable of during stress, and, also got a LOD out of it (lost a tooth) ha!
Went thru West coast SERE July 83…Went thru with some SEALs learned a lot from those guys.
I respect all that you have done and accomplished.
I’m just as proud for being a father and raising 2 boys into good men.
We all have our own bragging rights.
Cool! I was an Air Force helicopter flight engineer and went through the escape and evasion course at Fairchild AFB. I went through the dunker training also.
You're awesome and thank you for you service. Keep it up, myself and many other appreciate you. Thank you.
Thank you sir! Coming from a disabled country boy . Much appreciate
Pretty cold of your trainers to let you guys think they're going to fail you out and leave you hanging for some legal charges when what did they expect you to do, walk in a store and order new clothes when you have nothing.
The things you men went through and endured just in the course of proving yourselves to the Navy SEALS is truly amazing and I admire and respect anyone who can go thru so much for the opportunity of serving your country with the best!
Boot camp and AIT don't teach squat compared to what you men went through! Great video I'm glad I found your channel and thank you for your service!
No its not. The point is you cant get caught.
They could have admitted what they did or returned the clothes and explained.
Legal charges….Seems pretty typical of NSW these days
Also having that noodling around put some extra pressure and made the sere training more realistic
Your a good speaker and thank you for your service. Tuff dude!!
I Love these stories ❤️
Go Navy !!!!!!
Love these stories Chadd!!💯‼️❤️
I attended SERE in Warner Springs, CA in 88 the Butcher.... Interesting thing, I went home and found a job and met a coworker, Mark Gartley former Hanoi Hilton POW, this was in 1997. I asked if he could still remember all former POW names and he recited them... on the spot Amazing.
I remember those wool blankets all to well, was in Basic training (Army) Ft. Knox in August and those things were brutal, never forget them.
Yeah, nothing like a Kentucky August to sap your strength
It was an honor to hear that.... Absolutely awesome story, thank you very much for sharing!!!!
Theses are great!!!!!!!! I cant hit that like button enough !!!!! Your stories are very cool you have lived an intetesting life thuss far and i Appreciate your service and thank you!! Godbless you an your ken nuff said!
Thank you for your service!
what a stud...thank you for your service.
Did SERE in Maine Feb 86 in the Navy. 8 to 10 inches of snow on the ground in upper Maine. Sleeping at -10 degrees in just a sleeping bag under a fallen tree with snow packed around it to make a shelter. Guards throwing cold water on us in 5 degree weather as we stood naked to outside to get deloused. Daily interrogations and beatings, and other things I'd better not mention. Fun stuff, but I made it....
Went to SERE in Brunswick Maine July 2005. Was freezing at night for the summer time.
the ending was the best
Same same Dec 78!
You guys who make it through SERE are fucking badasses for real much respect 🫡
I'm a BUD/S dud unfortunately from 2010.. I remember a story, SEAL students flipped the script at SERE holding the instructors hostage. Always wondered if that was true. Ended up on the Nimitz chipping paint as I was told would happen. I caught pneumonia during BUD/S then sent to the fleet. Thanks for your videos man.
I thought if you were injured or sick they would roll you into the next class? Did you not get another chance?
Don Ponchos is legendary! They sent the new guys down there to buy burritos for the whole platoon. I remember there was a rice king on wet side 32nd street. I went through SERE "for enablers" in 2011 at North Island. Then reported to ST5.
Love this! Keep ‘em coming.
Went to SERE School in Brunswick Maine July 1995, after I re-enlisted in the Marine Corps, made a lat move from 0351 Dragon-gunner to 0231 Basic Intel Specialist. Lost my SERE certificate when I moved out of Camp Lejeune NC in 1996. Would love to be able to get another certificate, it’s listed on my DD214 as SERE School 07/95. Just found your channel and you gained a new subscriber. Yut!!
They have all been good to hear you tell of your training
NAVY man proud of His training... My training west as excited but I have had my share of Training schools, all loved and enhanced my career while serving my country. Best 20 years of my LIFE. thanks for service.
Best training class I ever attended. Rangeley was quite the place. LOL. Props to whom ever made the brownies.
Rice King is now L&L Hawaiian BBQ, aboard 32ndSt Naval Base San Diego.
Boots--boots--boots--boots--movin' up an' down again!
There's no discharge in the war!
I had the privilege to attend S.E.R.E in 1980 at Nas Brunswick Maine I was with Marine Barracks at Brunswick.. I made evac with my navy partner Larry We were rewarded with hamburger and fries along with about seven others. Them the fun and games began. I've been there.
Just love your “I love me binder”
A temperature of 10 degrees in short on the body.. .Glad You said that.....People dont realize when its that short of a condition change
I will add my favorite training was 3 months in Quan Virginia. Training tactics for advanced psycops training with some very scary people. I was 21 lol, after my first day of instruction. I understood how powerful fear is. 6hrs after graduation I went to a tattoo shop and got my most memorable quote done altered of course: behold,I have become death, destroyer of worlds. Have since had it recovered and pictorial added of archangel/in a reaper cloak. Prob the best conversation piece I have but leaves ppl without response. Had to learn that tale to make it more acceptable to civilized ears.
Hard as nails bro 🤘🏻🤘🏻
Very interesting. I always wondered about Seal training.
I heard all about SERE when I was a Navy Country attached to the Medical Clinic at NAS North Island in Coronado.
I was able to evade this one at HCS-5 - but then wound up in 6 months of hell - well done bro
love it, thank you Chadd. It is very interesting and can't wait for the next one. Have a nice day.
Another great story I could listen to you tell stories all day looking forward to the next time
Awesome! Thanks for your service.
A modern day, enthralling version of Mark Twain's "Roughing It" with a dash of Chinese ingredient thrown in for extra flavor and variety. Mark Twain, America's foremost storyteller and "modern" writer, salutes you for your verve and raw storytelling details as well as your leading edge, call of the wide, SERE training. Bravo!!!!
YOU ARRE AWESOME THANK YOU FOR GIVING BACK
That was one heck of a story! Keem em' coming!
Sorry for ur loss and all that new him
Good to know your Command had your back.
Went through Navy SERE School 1983
Warner Springs CA. I was war Criminal #28..... I was a "AW" was stationed at Nas Barber's Pt Hawaii...story has it only 2 SEALS were allowed to go to SERE School at a time because in the early days of SERE SCHOOL they put through 5 or 6 SEALs in 1 class....well they over ran the camp, tied up the SERE Instructor's and ate the guard dogs....years later that story was written up in a news letter from the Naval Aviation Museum at Nas Pensacola....
I heard the exact same story when I went though.
Good story, wish it actually happened no proof it dident but sounds reasonable hahA
Amazingly I didn’t lose as much weight as I wanted. I was already super lean when I went. Right from the start before training an officer was kicked out for stuffing pop tarts in his pants when we dumped our duffle bags. Do me a favor guys, when you go to SERE you must constantly remind yourself that it is just training. Say it out loud. “This is just good training and I am a bad mother fucker and I can handle anything they can dish out.” Say that often. The toughest thing for me in SERE was being the e only Black dude. Everything can trip you up. Believe that you can and will make it through and you’ll be fine. Great vid. Keep them coming. After you get rescued don’t eat so fast or you will be sad. Eat slow. Very slowly and calm. I ate two MRE’s quickly and I was very sad afterwards. That stupid protein bar!
Goes right back to your leadership video
There’s a Don Ponchos in IB off like 7th street and the main road that goes into the silver strand
Thanks Chadd, the more Seal stories the better!
Great story, thanks for sharing and thank you for your service.
Chad..thank you for the SERE insights...explosive diarrhea...not a good sight or smell..and thanks for the video series...I'm watching each one...
thanks for telling us all about SERE training. funny stuff
Enjoyed every minute of life after SERE. I went through in 1966 when the aggressors could slap the snot out of your nose. Combat Craft Crewman.
I want through Warner Springs in 96, clearly same school Seal bro in video is talking about . They broke my jaw and both my index fingers during "Hard Cell" interrogation. I think the baby crying on repeat is what gets to most people though.
Do any of you guys remember the row of boxes? If I remember right they were 2.5 ft. wide by 4.5 ft. long. I was crammed into one and left to soften up. The aggressors would come by and hit the box. I yelled out "sir prisoner no. 65 reporting sir." People who were claustrophobic lost it. The silence was good in the box.
@@Combat11245 how long did you have to stay in those?! as a tall dude, this has got to be the worst part of it all haha
Did S.E.R.E "Water Survival School" at Homestead Air Force Base, Florida. Feel the tension, man what a ride. Spent first 18 months going from school to school not knowing why each course and even failed jump school due to injury.
Enjoyed hearing about your experience. Thanx for sharing. GBU
Down that dirt rd back in marsoc, stone bay, in the very back...very interesting noises and..yeah lol
THANK YOU TO YOU AND ALL YOUR BROTHERS 🤘✌️