VMI Class of 2013 Breakout Day wake up

0500, VMI Barracks, 30 January 2010. This was the wake up that the Rat Mass of 2010 + 3 (now Class of 2013) received on their Breakout Day.

We had M14s and M16s firing blanks, along with VMI's cadet artillery piece "Little John" firing volleys in each barracks, kicked off by a recording of George C. Scott's version of General George S. Patton's speech to his 3rd Army. General Patton spent a year at VMI and even though he is not a graduate he is still remembered for his time in barracks.

Rat's start their journey at VMI not as Cadets with their own class, but as "Rats" in a Rat mass. The Rat mass does not have its own class distinction, it bears the name of its Dyke's class with three years added on (for example, the Rat Mass of 2010 + 3). Rats do not have the title of "Cadet" or their own class until the 1st Class (seniors) decide that the Rat mass is ready to "breakout" of the Ratline. This usually occurs at the end of January but it is not a guaranteed time frame.

Breakout Day consists of a whole day of constant physical activity and struggle. It is the last day that the Rats have to bond and unite as a class to survive the day. The Breakout activities have changed overtime, varying from climbing up "Breakout Hill" to fighting their way up to the fourth stoop amongst a melee of upperclassmen in their way. This year, the Rats were physically challenged all day, with the day culminating in a challenge to destroy sand bag barriers in place amongst upperclassmen blocking the way to the fourth stoop.

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• VMI
• Virginia
• Military
• Institute
• Class
• of
• 2013
• Ratline
• Rats
• Breakout

[vmi02raven]

0500?!?! You all should have done it at 0300 like they do durning "Drum Outs." You got "little John" firing, good. The M16s and M4s...check. I especially liked the Patton recording, nice touch. But where were the Cadre or the RDC? (maybe it was took dark a video to see them?) You all could have amped it up a bit by throwing in some grenade sims and have a M240 (or two) going at it. That would have created some sweet wake up music. :)

[2011VMICadet]

@vmi02raven

Pre-0500 wakeups are reserved for one thing and one thing only, something we hold dear to our hearts -the Honor Code. We don't want anything to be near that time because nothing comes close to its importance, and the Rats must by law be given a certain amount of sleep. A lot of people complain that VMI isn't what it used to be and that is true for the better and for the worse. The only thing I think is completely true is that the Ratline will still be a challenging process.

[ThePresidentFreeman]

@2011VMICadet How's it gotten less hard? I'm an incoming rat.

[2011VMICadet]

@ThePresidentFreeman

I never said it's gotten less difficult, in fact I remember a discussion I had with our Commandant in which he said he believes the Ratline nowadays is harder than it was when he went through in the 70s. I don't think it's gotten less difficult, I just think it's changed both for the better and worse. All in all it's still a beast, not to be taken lightly. Keep in mind we have the last adversarial system in the country. Check your messages.

[2011VMICadet]

@DiPpindAn35

The Citadel just teaches you to put up with stuff a man should never have to put up with. We have a Citadel alum teaching at VMI, he was a Summerall Guard, and he's ashamed at what his school has become. "Real" is relative, but if you want to learn how to become a great officer and get trained instead of get hazed;, then VMI is the place to go. The Citadel is a pretend military school, but it certainly is funny to watch.

[2011VMICadet]

@theartofsnipe

We are not on the same track. It's not about promotions, ribbons, awards, or what your CO thinks of you.  It's about your enlisted guys. You don't have to say you're from VMI and frankly they won't care anyway, it will show. The enlisted joes will see that their PL is not an ordinary butterbar piece of crap, he spent 4 years through the ringer and knows the true meaning of fighting for every scrap you have.

[vmi02raven]

@2011VMICadet Since you put it that way, the 0300 thing may have been sacreligious in a way. The rest were just me going "hey, that was cool but it would have been better if..." Ain't no arguement here about "the older we get the tougher it was" arguement. You see "downgrading" in just your 4 years there, I challenge anyone to say otherwise. Is it still challenging today? Absolutely. Will I go through it again even with today's standards? Absolutely not. Once is enough, thank you.

[2011VMICadet]

@SuperSoyAbortion

I honestly do not believe that one bit. A soldier is a soldier is a soldier, right? No matter what country he was trained in, right? I believe personal traits are a huge part of the equation but the place of "molding" and foundation-setting is also important.

"The ones who come out on top are the ones who have been trained in the hardest school." — Thucydides

[SuperSoyAbortion]

@2011VMICadet

An officer is an officer is an officer. Commissioning source doesn't matter jack squat. There are fantastic officers from ROTC and there are terrible officers from West Point. In the end, it's a matter of the man, not the commisioning source.

[2011VMICadet]

@Blndrfist

A lot of enlisted guys hate academy officers by default unless given a reason not to. I have yet to find the senior NCO or junior NCO that has told me he loves West Point officers. I've heard a lot of great stuff about VMI and Citadel officers, but I think that's because we have spent four years living with other cadets of a different branch. My main criticism of the Service Academies is that they teach Cadets how to interact with officers of their own branch.

[Blndrfist]

@theartofsnipe You're 100% wrong. Do you think that CO's and other officers did not go to VMI, Citadel, etc? The military is filled with academy officers; filled with them. They look out for each other all the time and have their own little cabals here and there. It makes all the difference in the world whether an officer went to an academy with respect to their individual careers.

[namespatrick]

The morning wake-up failed. LOLS