 |
| Michael P. Murphy - High School |
BUD/S Training - The Price of Admission
"Hell Week"
From the book "SEAL of Honor"
Michael had to complete 5 weeks of very difficult physical and mental training to prepare him for the Navy SEAL's infamous "Hell Week". 30% of his class had already quit at this point. "Hell Week" consists of 5 and half days of of continuous physical training, with a maximum of 4 hours sleep for the ENTIRE WEEK with never more than two hours at one time. It is deliberately designed as the ultimate test of physical and mental motivation. Michael would be told that 20% of the remaining class would quit within the next 24 hours and another 20% by the end of the week.
If a soldier was injured during Hell Week and could not complete the course, he would have to repeat the whole course vs coming back and starting where he left off.
The sheer physical torture Michael had to endure included multiple exposures to the cold surf in which they experienced moderate/severe hypothermia followed by rolling in the sand, running 2-4 miles at a time, hundreds of push ups, sit-ups, pull ups, flutter kicks, carrying a 50 foot log while running in the sand, running to the chow hall with a 50ft. raft above their heads....all in thier long pants and boots. Pushed to the point of vomiting multiple times.
Michael was well aware that there were two critical mental elements to surviving Hell Week:
Taking the punishment handed out by the instructors; and trying not to think about what was to come because more often than not it was the anticipation that destroyed the will to go on, rather than the punishment itself.
Michael experienced seeing one of his fellow soldiers die during Hell Week. Unfortunatly this would not be the the only training incident to deeply affect him.
to be continued...
