On RIP - the great Ranger Indoctrination Program and that's why Rangers Lead The Way!

Rangers Lead the Way!

“You smell that, son? Nothing in the world smells like that. I love the smell of Georgian red clay in the morning - it smells of victory.”

Sometimes I miss the stench of Georgia’s red clay, bug juice, chiggers and gun stuff... Georgia is the home of Army Ranger training.

THE ABRAMS CHARTER created early in 1974 by the god-father of modern Rangers (post-Vietnam) General Creighton Williams Abrams Jr (1914-1974) set the foundation of the then new Ranger Battalions:

The battalion is to be an elite, light and the most proficient infantry battalion in the world. 

A battalion that can do things with its hands and weapons better than anyone. 

The battalion will contain no “hoodlums or brigands” and if the battalion is formed from such persons it will be disbanded. (NAVSPECWAR take a hint)

Wherever the battalion goes, it must be apparent that it is the best.

One of the reasons the 75th Ranger Regiment is arguably the second best American military unit, top slot goes to Delta, is because of the Charter and its rigid adherence to it – well at least 99% of the time because nothing is perfect – except maybe Rangers and Delta. SEALs come a distant third because of their rather terrible behaviour over the last couple of decades – not all of them of course but enough of them to besmirch their otherwise good reputation. Perhaps even fourth because the US Army Green Berets aren’t too bad – Delta and Green Berets have a ton of Rangers in their respective units. The 75th Ranger Regiment is well-led, well-trained, and superior in all aspects except for Delta. There is a reason why we say “high-speed, low-drag.” We are also Airborne School graduates.

Rangers - Even Navy SEALs need heroes too. Source: Nicholas Moore

There is also such a thing called the Ranger Standard and it actually has stuck in my head ever since those long-lost or foggy memories of being young, dumb and full of cum when standards were hammered into my brain – sometimes painfully, but they were always entertaining. Koalifying was one such thing, Ranger Push-ups another, low-crawling and the endless push-ups, flutter kicks, running and road-marching… oh the joy of it all… if interested check out a small book I wrote called US Army Ranger 1983-2002: Sua Sponte – Of Their Own Accord published in 2003. https://ospreypublishing.com/us-army-ranger-1983-2002 - no royalties, work-for-hire.

The Pit where my teeth lost their virginity. Source: Mir

The Ranger Indoctrination Program (RIP) was three weeks long and conducted after Airborne School which was down the road in much spiffier barracks. The standards were high with the RIP Cadre – most of them were absolute professional, hard-core Rangers, demanding an excellent effort from the volunteers. They also had fun, often at our expense but it was also fun but challenging. The Cadre would kick your ass. “WTF? Bahmanyar, get the fuck up and start again.” I had stopped low crawling one foot or maybe six inches before the finish line – hahahaha. Fun crap. I also had my teeth kicked in during hand-to-hand combat in the PIT – but that’s another story. Some of us participated in nightly barracks horse-with-rider races across not so decent wooden floor planks. Others were allowed to low-crawl for their mail… sweet stuff. We ran everywhere and also conducted a ton of valuable training and more parachute jumps to a Ranger Standard.

Back in the day they had converted the old WW2 Airborne barracks near Cardiac Hill at Fort Benning, Georgia. It had the best accommodations and training facilities of all time – you think I am kidding? They were run down, had more bugs on the floors of the showers than soldiers on post, no toilet stalls whatsoever, and when someone says cold showers… often we’d grab the single hose and quickly rinse ourselves off while others preferred the company of bugs and warm showers… the obstacle courses could have been built in WW2 but I am kidding… we did almost no barracks maintenance – our purpose was to train, not to clean! 

You can chat up your buddies. Source: Mir

I don’t remember exact numbers but we had something like 60-68 RIP students and I think about 14 graduated after half re-took a grueling 12-miler. I am fairly certain seven of us made it the first time around (maybe 10?). In any event, it was a tough course as the numbers bear out – most washed out and stayed on for another entire RIP course while others moved on to meet the needs of the army – no shame in that. There are some great dog soldiers out there. I should mention I broke my ankle in my first RIP class during a parachute jump. And those bastards gave me a two-day notice that I was to start another RIP class – I was not in good shape. Hahaha. We also had Rangers returning to the Regiment from other duty stations and they too had to go through a three-week program called ROP – Ranger Orientation Program? for NCOs and Officers.

You also learned the Ranger Creed:

Recognizing that I volunteered as a Ranger, fully knowing the hazards of my chosen profession, I will always endeavor to uphold the prestige, honor, and high esprit de corps of the Rangers (we used to say my Battalion I seem to recall).

Acknowledging the fact that a Ranger is a more elite soldier who arrives at the cutting edge of battle by land, sea, or air, I accept the fact that as a Ranger my country expects me to move further, faster and fight harder than any other soldier.

Never shall I fail my comrades. I will always keep myself mentally alert, physically strong and morally straight and I will shoulder more than my share of the task whatever it may be, one-hundred-percent and then some.

Gallantly will I show the world that I am a specially selected and well-trained soldier. My courtesy to superior officers, neatness of dress and care of equipment shall set the example for others to follow.

Energetically will I meet the enemies of my country. I shall defeat them on the field of battle for I am better trained and will fight with all my might. Surrender is not a Ranger word. I will never leave a fallen comrade to fall into the hands of the enemy and under no circumstances will I ever embarrass my country.

Readily will I display the intestinal fortitude required to fight on to the Ranger objective and complete the mission though I be the lone survivor.

Rangers Lead The Way!!!

Mir is the second team leader from the left. I think five or six graduates were from ROP. One of the smallest number of RIP graduates - of all time??? Source: Mir

The Ranger Standard has helped me for better or for worse throughout my life. The good thing is that I have maintained a healthy respect for individuals – you never knew who would drop out or make it. We had some physical studs who quit because they could not handle the harsh training methods and some of the weakest looking dudes would finish even though their rucks looked twice their size. Don’t judge a volunteer by his (and now her) appearance. 

After graduating, you’d be sent to one of the battalions or Regimental Headquarters. Most ended up at the dreaded 3rd Ranger Battalion, right next to HQ and who wanted that? HQ pumped out nothing but new Ranger manuals and so on… phew… anyhow once at a Battalion you might spent one to two years before attending Ranger School. And after completion you kind of had a year left on your contract and many left the military. 

Justice was harsh and swift at the Battalion - if a Ranger did not conduct himself properly, he’d leave the battalion the same day his offence was discovered. Down the street to another unit in the army. The Rangers did have a few malcontents such as bank robbers, or drug abusers and so on but the Battalion took care of the offenders in no uncertain terms. The 75th Ranger Regiment excels because of its adherence to the Abrams Charter and the Ranger Creed.

The strength of the Regiment lies in its privates – it forces the veteran Rangers to maintain high training standards for the new Rangers. Its basics are arguably the best in the military. You know that each Ranger from private to Sergeant-Major knows his Ranger fundamentals.

If you want to read about modern Rangers pick up 2/75 Nicholas Moore’s book, co-written by moi, called Run to the Sound of the Guns. It is excellent – straightforward – no BS - no chest thumping. Published in 2018 – and we get royalties. https://ospreypublishing.com/run-to-the-sound-of-the-guns