Recruits of Fox Company sight in on Grass Week

Photo By Sgt. Angelica Annastas | A recruit with Fox Company, 2nd Recruit Training Battalion, assists a fellow recruit with his kneeling shooting position during Grass Week at Edson Range, Weapons and Field Training Battalion, Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Calif., Dec. 9. The recruits spent one week learning about the different fundamentals of firing. Today, all males recruited from west of the Mississippi are trained at MCRD San Diego. The depot is responsible for training more than 16,000 recruits annually. Fox Company is scheduled to graduate Jan. 29.  

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, CA, UNITED STATES

12.09.2015

Story by Lance Cpl. Angelica Annastas 

Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego     

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. - When learning new things, it is important to have a foundation of knowledge to build upon. Recruits quickly learn how to hold a weapon and keep track of it every day during training. It is paramount they are comfortable with it so they are prepared to take on Grass Week.

Recruits of Fox Company, 2nd Recruit Training Battalion, began building a foundation as they learned the fundamentals of Marine Corps marksmanship during Grass Week at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Calif., Dec. 9.

The purpose of Grass Week is to help the recruits become more familiar with their weapons.

“They’re so used to holding the rifle as a tool for drill,” said Staff Sgt. Sigilfredo C. Garcia, drill instructor, Fox Company. “Now they’re learning and preparing to [actually fire their weapons].”

At the beginning of Grass Week, recruits attend classes taught by primary marksmanship instructors and learn about what they’ll be doing for the rest of the week. They start with the basics and learn about the different fundamentals such as breathing control and trigger control.

“Our PMI taught us the different shooting positions that we’ll be in this week and next week,” said Recruit Thanh T. Truong, Fox Company. “There’s a lot we have to learn, so if we don’t understand something, then we get up and ask our instructor about it.”

Recruits also learn about the different safety rules that are expected to be applied while handling their weapons.

“Our instructors want us to get used to our weapons and all of the safety rules before being able to shoot,” said Recruit Truong, native of Fort Worth, Texas. “We need to be comfortable enough with handling the weapons according to those rules.”

The different shooting positions recruits learn are the standing, kneeling, sitting and prone. They practice switching from one shooting position to another in order to develop muscle memory and to prevent them from having any trouble with that when it comes to firing.

During Grass Week, the recruits take a lot of time snapping in which is when they form a semicircle around a barrel painted with targets. The targets resemble the ones the recruits will shoot at during Qualification Week, which is the first time they’ll be shooting their weapons, too.

“They don’t know what’s going to happen when it comes to shooting next week,” said Garcia, originally from Michoacán, Mexico. “They’re always asking how I think they’re going to do, and I think it’s that uncertainty that gets to them a little bit.”

After experiencing Grass Week, recruits get the chance to fire their weapons during Qualification Week.

“Their expectations are really high after experiencing so much thus far in training,” said Garcia, native of Watsonville, Calif. “They should always be working towards a goal, and we’re here to help them reach them.”

• Date Taken: 12.09.2015
• Date Posted: 12.16.2015 18:32
• Story ID: 184721
• Location: MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, CA, US
• Hometown: MICHOACAN, TAB, MX
• Hometown: FORT WORTH, TX, US
• Hometown: WATSONVILLE, CA, US