Notes From SFRE
I was lucky enough to be invited by T Co, 3/20 SFG(A) to come down to Camp Blanding, FL and take part in their Special Forces Readiness Evaluation (SFRE). The SFRE is a critical first step in getting your Green Beret and offers prospective candidates an absolutely unparalleled opportunity to get directed and unbiased performance feedback across the physical, mental, and interpersonal domains. SFRE attendance isn’t required for active-duty prospects, but after you read this, I suspect you’ll want to make it part of your prep. 3/20 is mostly unique amongst the National Guard units in that they allow chemically pure civilians to attend these events. This most recent class had Active Duty, National Guard, Sister Service, prior service, regular civilians, Officers, NCOs, junior enlisted, male and female, combat arms and combat support. Misery is an equal opportunity provider.
The SFRE is designed to mirror, not replicate, Special Forces Assessment and Selection. I’ve walked with 50+ SFAS classes and watched hundreds of events. I have decades of dedicated study and experience, so I feel well positioned to provide comparison. The 3/20 SFRE is as authentic an SFAS experience as you could hope for. The events are nearly identical, the Cadre are forged in the same crucible, and the culture is the comfortingly familiar “the standard is the standard”. Even that Florida sand is eerily reminiscent of the Pineland sugar sand so traumatically familiar to the initiated. It saps strength, absorbs energy, and is unrelenting…just like at Selection. SFRE is the real deal.
The events are exactly what you might expect. The PT test is efficient and fair. There are no Cadre Roulette games, but the grading is strict, reasonable, and consistent. The swim test is a fairly low bar by design but does a good job at evaluating comfort and safety in the water. The obstacle course is a surprisingly high barrier to entry. There is nothing unique about the obstacles and the event is graciously conducted, but the expectation is that candidates will fly through the course…most do not. The poor performance becomes part of your performance record, and you will have to answer for your deficiencies, so you would be wise to practice this event with some directed effort and intent. No excuses.
The Team Day events are…traumatic. If you think that you’re just going to get a “diet” version of SFAS events because it’s ‘just an SFRE’, then you’re about to break your diet with the ultimate cheat meal. The water cans are the same weight, ceaselessly plentiful, and ever-present. The ammo crates have the exact same rope handles and dead weight. Your grip strength will be thoroughly tested. And I would be remiss if I didn’t introduce my old friend The Sandman. He apparently vacations in Florida, and he never ever sleeps. You will get to build him a comfy little hammock and parade him around with pride. His fat-ass weighs exactly the same…and its pure dead weight. The logs are slightly shorter, but you can only get four candidates on them, so the relative weight may actually be a little more than Mackall. And the logs are just as wonky and imbalanced as you might imagine. Remember, there are no good ways to do these events. There are only bad ways, and your job is to pick the least bad way. The upside-down world.
Operational Fitness
The SFRE is not something that you should take lightly. It is a low threat environment, and you will absolutely be treated with dignity and respect. But the training environment is going to punch you in the face, repeatedly. Just like at SFAS, the only thing that matters is your performance. So, if you’re not prepping with focus, intent, and intensity then you will be exposed. The expectation is that you are coming to Camp Blanding for a job interview, so you’d better prepare to provide the absolute best resume that you can. The modalities are well known; ruck and run fast, be strong, be a good communicator, and put the team first. Stronger than the fastest runner and faster than the strongest lifter. Sound familiar?
The performance benchmarks are the same that I have repeatedly promoted. You should be able to max the Hand Release Push Up and Plank, run at the 6-7 minute mile mark (a competitive 2 mile time is sub 13 minutes), 15 dead hang pull-ups, and 12-13 minute mile rucks…indefinitely. But you also have to be athletic. The obstacle course is an excellent measure here. Lots of strong and fast candidates can’t move their bodies over obstacles. Climbing a rope, a fundamental commando task, isn’t a test of strength…it’s a skill. It’s almost all technique. And it’s not like you can only practice on an official, certified, accredited Army obstacle course. It’s a rope. They’re in nearly every gym you can find. You can find them in playgrounds all over the place. So don’t show up to commando tryouts and struggle with this foundational commando skill. You don’t have to practice with clutching a knife in your teeth, but you’d better master the climb. And you should include the mantle at the top. Don’t just climb the rope, practice mantling over the anchor point at the top.
Strength, or lack thereof, was a repeated theme. We tend to focus on the speed metrics because they are easier to quantify and thus train for. But there are no objective strength measurements, so it can be tough to gauge the level of effort that you need to apply to your prep. Let me be abundantly clear. You need to be strong. Stronger than you think. Stronger than the fastest runner. I like to use the speed benchmarks as a baseline here. Be certain that you can ruck and run at the prescribed paces, and then get as powerful as you can without sacrificing those speeds. Then get a little stronger. That’s your goal. And not just muscular strength, but muscular endurance too. Everyone starts the Sandman with a strong showing. But the apparatus is relentless. You have to keep going, your rest breaks are painfully short and infrequent, and you are right back under the load. The water cans illustrate this perfectly. Even though there are fairly large teams and candidates quickly establish a reasonable rotation cycle, the reality is that there are so many cans to carry that when you rotate positions, you’re just rotating to another set of water cans. So, the cycle looks something like 20 seconds carry two cans, 5 second break, 20 seconds carry, 5 seconds break, rotate to a water can in one had and an ammo crate in the other for 20 seconds, repeat this cycle for about 4 minutes…then you get maybe a 30 second break…and you’re right back into the rotation. For an hour. Or more. Your grip strength will fail, so you better train for these conditions. Check this Instagram post for video…
Get A Grip
If rucking is King (and it is…see below), then grip is Queen. For many candidates, grip is a Court Jester. Everyone suffers from grip strength failure. Some fail within minutes. Some last a bit longer and hold out. But everyone suffers from grip failure. You have rope handles on ammo crates, you get some thin metal handles on ammo cans, you have the tubular nylon handles on some logs and apparatus, and you get the water can handles. That plastic is a special kind of slippery, from either water, sweat, or sometimes…tears. And while the Obstacle Course is more technique and skill, there is definitely a grip component. Especially for those candidates who white-knuckle death-grip when they get higher than 6 feet off the ground. Your grip will be tested at a dead hang on pull-ups, a dead-hang on apparatus, and flex arm position on some team events. Older versions of SFAS had two events a day, essentially a low carry and a high carry with an apparatus build in there somewhere. But the current construct has less structure, and you could do up to four events a day and you may get several consecutive low carry events. So, grip strength becomes even more critical for this newest generation.
So how does one train for this wide range of grip strength requirements? I’ll give you a few recommendations that have seen good results, and you can pick and choose. First, don’t wear gloves when you lift in the gym. Your weak, effete, soft hands are a liability. You need to build man-hands (even as a female candidate). You will have the option for gloves at SFRE and SFAS, but you need to start callusing your hands and conditioning them for real work. If you want glove recommendations check out this Packing List Manifesto in which I take the 4-page SFAS packing list and give you 30 pages of analysis and gear recommendations…including gloves. Next, I don’t recommend lifting straps. This one does get some push-back. At the upper ends of your lifting, you are likely to be pulling some serious weight, and your grip may become the limiting factor. But that will be at the real tail end of the curve. Maybe <10% of your lifts. So be judicious with lifting straps. They should be the rare exception, not the norm (the same goes for a weightlifting belt).
What is a stronger concern is not the grip at the tail ends, but the sustained grip. For this, I recommend some old school techniques. Towel pulls (flop a towel over the bar for your pullups) or fat bar lifts are great ways to augment your grip training. Rock climbing is an obvious facsimile, but I think the ROI on your grip can be replicated without the investment (and full body fatigue) of full on climbing or bouldering. Get a climbing grip board (aka fingerboard) and use that routinely and you’ll see you grip improve. And finally, the old-school spring-loaded grip trainers are a super simple way to squeeze in (no pun intended) extra work. Get a set for your car and just jam a few sets in every time you go on a trip. Throw a set at your desk or by your La-Z-Boy and get to squeezing. This is one of the few places where I don’t have too much issue with junk volume. You’re going to need it.
Rucking
I don’t recall if I’ve mentioned this before, but rucking is important. Listen to me…RUCKING IS KING!!! We’ve well documented how important rucking is, as well as the best way to build rucking performance, and we.ve provided an ideal ruck workout for you to use (the 5x5 Man Maker). Shut Up And Ruck will give everyone from a novice rucker to a guy closing in on SFAS report a rock solid rucking plan, but one thing remains clear…rucking is king. And remember, at SFRE and SFAS, you won’t be rucking under ideal conditions. You will be fatigued with sore feet, throbbing shoulders, and a clouded mind. There are no accommodations for your desired idyllic circumstances. Make certain that you train with this in mind. We’ve given you a ton of ruck training resources, we have a book shortly arriving that will give you the definitive answers, and we are launching a video series to address the various ancillary tasks to round out your prep. Let’s touch on a bit of this now. At SFRE, getting a quality ruck time on the books sends a clear message. I trained, I prepared, and I am serious about this endeavor. Hire me and I will not embarrass you.
Rucksack Management
Learning to properly plan, pack, balance, and load your rucksack is a critical skill for SFAS and beyond. It was clear that many candidates simply don’t know how to manage this process. As a general rule of thumb, you want the heaviest load to be centered, high on the back, and as close to the body as possible (another reason why the ALICE pack with integrated radio pouch is superior). But there’s more…
For selection events, you must also create a stable platform to rest apparatus on. Notice in Ruck #1 that the sandbag is stable and secure without any straps. This candidate was easily able to ‘couple’ with extreme apparatus loads without fear of slipping or shifting. Ruck #2 was forced to rest apparatus loads between his back and the frame, rather than between the much-preferred frame and bag. This is…problematic, to say the least. Ruck #3 was what is affectionately known as a Gypsy Wagon. His load was swinging, flopping, and interfering with his ability to carry loads and simply stand up and sit down. This picture was taken AFTER 2 events, and he went several additional hours in this configuration before he sorted himself out.
If nobody sits you down and shows you how to set up your straps, balance and position the load, and manage this throughout the events then you simply don’t know. And you will suffer. To be clear, you will suffer no matter what, but you can suffer a little bit less and actually be an asset to your team (and yourself) rather than a liability if you recognize these basic skills and foundational knowledge. Learning how to pack, learning how to shuffle, and learning how manage that unique rucking misery will be critical to your success. And we’ll address the Great Hip Belt Controversy with the same delicate sensitivities that you’ve come to love from TFVooDoo. IDGAF.
Communication
One thing that remains elusive is effective communication. Both broadcast and receive. Even simple communiques like disseminating cadre instructions or organizing a work detail become these complex exercises that inevitably end up as a version of The Telephone Game, where the initial message is often distorted and nearly unrecognizable by the time it gets to the final recipient. I’d like to blame the current generation’s reliance on texts, emojis, and disappearing shorthand but that’s not a fair assessment. This certainly plays a role, but the environment is the biggest factor…and you can prep for the environment. But it takes deliberate effort and effective communication is learned skill, so you better learn it.
The selection environment, SFAS and its mirror at SFRE, is stressful. SFRE definitely has a teach, coach, and mentor component where Cadre fill that traditional NCO role, but that’s only for a short time. Team Day at SFRE is just like Team Week at SFAS. So, this stressful environment gets into candidate’s heads, they get flustered or overthink stuff, and the communication suffers. It’s especially apparent in candidates that come from a regimented and structured environment with preparatory commands, formality, and deference. Officers, who should be skilled in public speaking, often sound like semi-literate rubes. Young inexperienced junior enlisted candidates often look completely overwhelmed. One of the best things that you can learn to do is listen.
Listening is a skill. Not hearing, but listening. And not just listening for your chance to talk, but listening to the speaker, understanding how they are saying what they are saying, what are the points of emphasis, and what are they asking you to do. Listen to the entire message take a couple of beats to process it and ask any clarifying questions. You might even repeat the high points back to the Cadre for clarity. You’re likely to get a deadpan stare in return followed by, “Do what you think is right.” But you might get confirmation of clarification. I’m not talking about wearing out your welcome with endless queries and validation seeking, but its human nature to respond to inquiry, so use that. Then, take another few beats to process what you heard, make sense of it, formulate a message and then…and only then…issue your decree. Don’t start talking until you’re ready to finish talking. Nothing looks weaker, and is more frustrating for the listener, than for a speaker to wildly switch from one thought to the next. You want me to actually execute that disjointed, rambling, disorganized verbal diarrhea that you just spewed?!? So learn to listen so that you can then learn to speak.
And speaking of speaking, learn to be heard. Once you’ve listened, formulated an articulate and appropriate response, speak like you want to be listened too. You’re not asking your liberal hippy parents for drug money to buy ditch weed and vapes, you’re giving commands to commandos. Act like it. These “schoolhouse” scenarios are unique, and I will never understand why so many guys don’t get this point. Everyone is smoked. Everyone is struggling. Don’t make it harder. Unless you are specifically directed to keep your voice down, when you are a patrol leader and you are issuing guidance to your squad leaders (or whatever element names you want to go with) instead of just quiet talking and whispering sweet nothings into their ears, speak up a little bit so that more people can hear what you are saying. This way, folks lower down on the line can hear you and start working on the task at hand. They don’t have to wait for the phone chain to reach them. This saves you a little valuable time and can serve as a safeguard in the event that the person you’re talking to has a brain fart. If more people hear it straight from you, then they can double check the subordinate leader if he somehow screws up your message. The subordinates still must play the game and pass the word, but that word can now pass faster and clearer. Learn to play the game.
And finally, get out of your bubble. Your instinct…your human nature…is that when things start to really suck you start to shut down. You will turtle up. When that ruck really starts to press into your traps, it’ll mess with you. Your back will sway, your knees will buckle, and your heart will sink. I talked in Ruck Up Or Shut Up about how the sheer magnitude of the effort required to complete some of these events will leave you speechless. Your team leader or your buddy will be trying to get information out of you, and you will be struck mute from the struggle. Don’t do this. Be a good teammate. When the team leader asks, “Does anyone need a break?”, you owe them a response…either in the affirmative or the negative. Again, let’s be clear, you will always need a break. But you can help them out by saying, “No, we’re good.” You’re not good. You’re dying. Everyone is. But if you can give that leader some feedback then the train keeps going. And if you don’t say, “No, we’re good,” then that weak-ass who is holding the team back is going to speak first and say, “I need to rotate!” and now the train stops, you swap out cabooses, and you break your hit time. The train has derailed for lack of communication. So, get out of your bubble. Cheerleading is not leadership (I stole this little gem from Cadre J) but be a good teammate and communicate. Tell the leaders what they need to know and keep that train on the tracks and on time.
Finish At the End
There exists an immutable truth. No matter how many times you caution them, people will self-select. The SFRE Commander addressed the class at the opening of the event and his words were, “Wait until Sunday morning.” Don’t quit. Let the Cadre do their job and assess you. Trust the process and be standing in formation at the end. Finish. You showed up to be evaluated and you deserve to be evaluated. If you quit, then you deny yourself this valuable assessment. And some of the best feedback that you will get is at the final board. There is no formal board at SFAS, so the board at SFRE stands alone as one of the best feedback mechanisms that I’ve seen. In 30 minutes, you’ll know exactly what Green Berets think about you and your chances of earning yours. You will report to the board and be read your performance stats. Was your run slow? Explain to me why. Did you fail an obstacle? Describe your train up and why you failed to prepare. Were you constantly calling for a break on Team Day? You will be held to account. There are no Grey Men and the Cadre are not shy about telling you exactly what you did and what it means. You better know some SF history and lore, you better study your civics, and you better approach this endeavor with the same gravity that the Cadre do. The board is an eye-opening and critical assessment, but only if you make it to the board. So don’t self-assess and bail out early. Be there at the end.
At the end you’ll be given one of three statuses. Option 1- We like what we see and were ready to accept some risk and invite you back to an SFCP (Special Forces Conditioning and Prep). This is great. You’re going to receive tailored prep and mentoring. This is one of the reasons that National Guard guys boast a higher SFAS success rate. Congrats, time to put in real work. Option 2- We like what we see but we need to see more; you’re invited back to attend another SFRE. This is good, but when you come back, you’d better have addressed your deficiencies. You’ve already seen the test, so you better not miss many answers. Finally, Option 3a and 3b; Option 3a is we were unimpressed. Take a few years and get yourself right. When you’re ready to be serious about this then send us a message. Bad, but not the end. Option 3b is we were unimpressed, and we don’t see any reason to continue the conversation. Low scores, low effort, low energy. You showed up and you didn’t quit, but that’s about it. This is bad. This is the end.
Closing Ceremonies
If you’re looking to earn your Green Beret and you have the wherewithal to attend an SFRE, you owe it to yourself to try. I’ve been in the SFAS orbit for decades and the 3/20 SFRE is as authentic of an experience as you could ever want. There were multiple times while I was watching and walking that I was transported back to the Land of the Longleaf Pine. The same pained expressions and desperate gasps from candidates. The same water cans and metal poles. The exact same Sandman, who never sleeps. The same standards and the unyielding pressure to perform. All the rules matter, the standard is the standard, and performance is the only thing that matters. You’re not at Camp Mackall, but you’d might as well be. The secret sauce is the Cadre. They run a conclusively professional operation and they absolutely get how important their role is. The future of the Regiment is in their hands and the weight of this mission is not lost on them. Amazing pros and absolutely top-notch operation. The Green Beret remains a symbol of excellence, a badge of courage, a mark of distinction in the fight for freedom.
DOL
Post Script – I’ve been invited to attend some other SFRE and SFCP events for different States. I’m adding them to my calendar as we go. So should you. These events are an amazing opportunity that you should take advantage of. The long-term plan is to bring the TFVooDoo Land Navigation Muster events back to Florida as a regular part of their train-up. This will include an open invite to anyone who wants just the Land Nav training without the commitment of the full SFRE or SFCP. Stay tuned as we develop these opportunities.
Ruck Up Or Shut Up!
