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Originally Posted by wooohooo
They have a minimum of doing that many pushups, sit ups etc... but is that just how many they make you do?
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That's like the bare minimum you need to be considered physically fit. You'll do all sorts of physical training during your courses outside of the actual fitness test you'll likely do on your basic. Your instructors will be creative when comes physical training
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14 weeks seems like an awful long time too... do they actually just send you to a base in Quebec and train you?
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If you join the Regular Force, then your basic will be 14 weeks and in St. Jean, Quebec. The reserves works much differently. The standard route is that you will do your BMQ (basic) for about one month in July, followed by your SQ (soldier qualification) right after in August. Basic is just that... you'll be taught how to dress properly, use all your issued kit, basic drill movements and qualified on the C7 rifle. SQ takes it a little further and you do a field exercise and learn grenades, C9 light machine gun and all that fun stuff. You will generally follow these courses up with your trade specific course the following summer... so a course specific to infantrymen, engineers, armoured recce, etc. Also around one month in length.
You will likely do these courses in Wainwright, AB (east of Edmonton) and/or Shilo MB (east of Brandon). They can also be done during the September to May training year during the weekends, depending upon availability. I would recommend doing the summer courses, however. Training is better and it's tough to switch on soldier mode every weekend (and then spend your weekend getting yelled at
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I'm still going to take school next year but I was hoping to do reserves part time.
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The reserves is designed to cater to students and people with full time jobs. The general commitment is wednesday nights, 7 to 10pm (or 1900 to 2200... might as well get started now
) and one weekend a month from September to May, excluding December. The weekends you'll usually drive to CFB Edmonton, CFB Wainwright, etc, and do some shooting, urban patrolling, winter warfare, etc. These are not mandatory commitments, however, as it is understood people have other things (school) that will get in the way. Then you have special events like Remembrance Day, for instance, that you'll do.
You can do the odd Wednesday and odd weekend ex or throw your name in to go overseas and everything in between. I would recommend getting those 3 courses I mentioned above out of the way ASAP and then many more opportunities will open up for you. More courses become available once you're " trade qualified," less restrictions on field exercises as you're qualified to use most of the weapons, more "taskings" become available, etc.
The reserves is good because it is very much a whatever you make of it type of thing. I've pretty much been on both ends of the spectrum I mentioned above. It can definitely suck some of the time, but it can also be a great job and overall experience. Meet new people, something different than the regular 9 to 5 grind, often you forget it's "work" in the traditional sense. I've been
very fortunate in that my reservist "career" has been anything but the standard and I've gotten to do a lot of fun things not many others have gotten to do.
Happy to help with any other questions you may have.