Summary of Matt Jackson's Undaunted Valor

By IRB Media

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Book Preview:

#1 I was raised by a Navy brat, and had been around the military long enough to know that some of the soldiers were not the sharpest knives in the drawer. I was not officially in the military yet, but I had raised my right hand and taken the oath of allegiance.

#2 At Fort Polk, the army processed us quickly. We were given haircuts, uniforms, and immunizations. The whole process took about thirty minutes.

#3 The Army trained us to climb onto the back of trucks and move to our training company. We were then instructed to line up and do pushups, with our duffel bags in front of us. Some trainees didn’t understand and moved too slow for the drill sergeant.

#4 The exercise and tirade went on for an hour. We were all smoked by the end of the ordeal. We were told to pick up the contents of our duffel bags, which had been dumped on the ground for contraband inspection. Three other drill sergeants came into the barracks.

• Language: English
• Publisher: IRB Media
• Release date: Jul 8, 2022
• ISBN: 9798822544376

IRB Media

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Insights from Chapter 1

#1

I was raised by a Navy brat, and had been around the military long enough to know that some of the soldiers were not the sharpest knives in the drawer. I was not officially in the military yet, but I had raised my right hand and taken the oath of allegiance.

#2

At Fort Polk, the army processed us quickly. We were given haircuts, uniforms, and immunizations. The whole process took about thirty minutes.

#3

The Army trained us to climb onto the back of trucks and move to our training company. We were then instructed to line up and do pushups, with our duffel bags in front of us. Some trainees didn’t understand and moved too slow for the drill sergeant.

#4

The exercise and tirade went on for an hour. We were all smoked by the end of the ordeal. We were told to pick up the contents of our duffel bags, which had been dumped on the ground for contraband inspection. Three other drill sergeants came into the barracks.

#5

The mess hall entry involved a interesting exercise. Two hundred trainees would line up by platoons outside the mess hall on the cables. Never missing an opportunity to conduct physical training, the drill sergeants would have us doing pushups, flutter kicks, or sit-ups until it was our turn to enter.

#6

The first night, we were told to set up our footlockers and living area. We were not allowed to touch anything on the top shelf if we wanted to stay on the good side of Staff Sergeant Ford.

#7

After the first week, the barracks exploded with activity at 0500 hours, with Staff Sergeant Van B. Ford turning on lights and kicking over garbage cans. Ten minutes later, everyone was outside doing pushups and flutter kicks, running, and low-crawling. Breaks included fireman carry races with one trainee being carried on the back of another trainee over a fifty-yard racecourse.

#8

The training was hard, but the ass chewing and intimidation subsided. We soon realized that the physical training we were doing was similar to the physical fitness test we would have to take at the end of our basic training.

Insights from Chapter 2

#1

At Fort Wolters, Texas, we were greeted by another cadet named Dan Cory, who was assigned to the fourth bunk on the right side. We were given a brief briefing on how to set up our wall locker and footlocker, and what we could expect in the morning.

#2

When we returned from the PX, we walked over to the mess hall with Bob. In basic training, Eat fast and haul ass had been the motto. Here, it was different. We entered the mess hall without having to do pushups or overhead bars. No one was screaming as we moved along the cafeteria line with a tray and real dishes.

#3

At Preflight, we were subjected to inspections every day, and if the TAC officers felt like it, they would throw everything out of our wall lockers and footlockers. The level of cleanliness was achieved when a cadet wore white gloves while conducting a pre-inspection.

#4

When I arrived at flight school, the first thing the officers did was ask me why I wanted to