29/06/11 The RCMP

The RCMP, the guys in the iconic beige flat brimmed hats, red tunics and jodhpurs were a real surprise.

The facility that we went to that we went to outside of Regina was really state of the art.

We didn’t know what to expect when we arrived. But we were welcomed in and I was given the full set of kit military style, stacked one on top of the other, including  my own hat, my own boots, a plastic gun and everything that I’d need for the full on 25 weeks training. 25 weeks of any type of training is a scary thought. Especially when your commanding officers don’t like your facial hair.

Yes I was shouted at innumerable times in connection with my facial hair. It’s still there though! And despite being bright red, out-of-breath, and feeling nauseous, we managed to get through our qualifying assault course. As soon as we’d accomplished this we went on to receive the full mountie experience.

Run Charley Run!

We stayed overnight, ate with the cadets and hung out with them. Something that really helped us understand their lives as mounties and how important their training is to themselves, and the people they will later protect. You can also tell that the skills they develop now are going to be essential to dealing with all sorts of situations on the road.

It was a real eye opener- and something that I feel will make great TV as an insight behind this iconic image.

Until next time,

See you on the road,

Charley xx