FYOP Cadets Face First Major Hurdles

Round and Round ‘Til They Get It Right: Passing off the Square

We’ve all done it. Every First Year Cadet dreads it, and every Senior Cadet loves to watch it. Passing off the Square is a College tradition that has the First Years, working with their roommates, perform a series of drill maneuvers on the Parade Square and answer questions on the history of the College,as put to them by one of the Top Five. A single mistake, by either them or their partner, and they’re back to the beginning to do it again, and again, and again, until they get it right. And if the First Years are really lucky, they get to do it while it is still daylight.

The College unofficial record is supposedly set at 78 repetitions for a single pair of First Year Cadets. This year’s record was somewhat lower, at 23 for a single pair. Below are the highlights of this year’s Passing off the Square.

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Warrior Race: A Glimpse of Things to Come

Starting this year, the College added another teamwork event to the First Year Orientation Period (FYOP) program. On Sunday, 16 Sept, the Class of 2016 and their FYOP staff ran the Warrior Race, which incorporated five of the traditional obstacles from the end of FYOP Obstacle Course, as well as seven brand new obstacles. The event itself was designed to provide the FYOP staff and their flights the opportunity to work together to achieve a common goal. At the same time, members of the Class of 2016 were assessed on their leadership skills and basic military traits.

Though similar to the Obstacle Course, the Warrior Race differed in several respects. First, it was a straight time race versus the shotgun start currently used in the Obstacle Course. Flights started in a randomly selected order every seven and a half minutes. In addition, the Warrior Race was designed to be slightly less demanding than the Obstacle Course. FYOP staff members also completed the Race with their flights, something that will not happen on the actual Obstacle Course. Each FYOP CFL was given the Warrior Race as a set of orders and had to conduct their own battle procedures, in addition to leading their flight through the Race on the day of the competition.

The Warrior Race was a useful stepping stone to the Obstacle Course. It gave the First Years a glimpse into what to expect in two weeks, as well as a look at what they need to work on before the Obstacle Course arrives (which will be sooner than they think).

The final Flight standings are below. Time penalties were assessed based on the Race rules, and the final time for each Flight calculated from that.

1st Place – Fighter Flight, 2 Sqn, Time of 41:39

2nd Place – Kaeble Flight, 4 Sqn, Time of 43:12

3rd Place – Whiskey Flight, 8 Sqn, Time of 45:27

4th Place – Grizzly Flight, 3 Sqn, Time of 46:44

5th Place – Papa Flight, 5 Sqn, Time of 48:27

6th Place – Warrior Flight, 9 Sqn, Time of 49:41

7th Place – Tango Flight, 7 Sqn, Time of 50:19

8th Place – Romeo Flight, 6 Sqn, Time of 50:41

9th Place – Hunter Flight, 12 Sqn, Time of 51:26

10th Place – Victory Flight, 11 Sqn, Time of 52:17

11th Place – Alpha Flight, 1 Sqn, Time of 57:35