CHAPTER 24: The Final Exercise
LOOK OUT VC – HERE WE COME! They have big ants in Queensland, some are an inch long and they
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Ian Cavanough
CHAPTER 23: Bits and Pieces
I spoke about the Red Fox, our company commander, earlier. Others were not so kind and referred to him as
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Chapter 22: Boots
I had two pairs of boots: AB and GP. There is some conjecture as to what these letters mean, some
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CHAPTER 21: Coming Back
Cootamundra is a small country town located on the South West Slopes of New South Wales. It had a population
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Chapter 20: JTC Canungra
Canungra is where the Army’s Jungle Training Centre is located not far from the Gold Coast. You may have heard
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Chapter 19: More bloody training
Dum, dum, dum, dum, dum. That was the sound in my brain. It was from the pounding of our boots
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Chapter 18: Who we are
5 Section, 2 Platoon, A Company, 2nd Battalion, the Royal Australian Regiment Woo hoo, I am an Infantry soldier posted
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Chapter 17: In the bush
“Righto men, all here?” said the platoon commander, “Follow me.” We exchanged glances, shrugged our shoulders and rolled our eyes
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Chapter 16: Nearing the sharp end of corps training
Someone said that soldiers expend more ammunition in training than they do in actual combat with the enemy. Someone said
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Chapter 15: Day/Night Navex
I mentioned before how powerful it can be to navigate in close country particularly at night. What I didn’t tell
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Chapter 14: We Settle In To Infantry Stuff
They called us the Cadre Company, 100 Nashos to be skilled in the fine art of infantry soldiering. The stakes
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Chapter 13: Graduation and starting all over again
It was graduation parade day. My parents and my brother, a Vietnam veteran, and his girlfriend came to share the
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Chapter 12: The downhill run
We got a haircut, so I guess we are finally getting close to the end of the 10week recruit course
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Chapter 11: Duties
It seems the Army has a system regarding recruit training at Kapooka. The daily routine of room inspections, lectures, PT
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Chapter 10: Football
Cootamundra in the 60s fielded very strong football teams in three codes: Rugby League, Rugby Union and Aussie Rules. Like
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Chapter 9: Yippee – we get local leave
We are fairly well into the 10-week course to turn us into soldiers. While there are lessons all day and
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Chapter 8: 22 v the crayfish
Just who were these guys in 22 Platoon with whom I was sharing my journey to soldiering stardom? It seems
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Chapter 7: We bin shootin’ as well as marchin’ marchin’ marchin’
I am familiar with a .22 rifle. I did a little bit of shooting as a lad in the hills
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Chapter 6: Day Six (or is it day ten)
Day six (or is it day ten) and I’m rooted. Every muscle in my body aches, it hurts to even lie
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Chapter 5: Wah, Two Free, Wah
“Tonight the barber cometh. Youse will all get a haircut”, this was the great order of the day from the
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