Crawling to the Next Step: Gibbush Tzanchanim

Just over one eventful week ago, I participated in the gibbush for Tzanchanim, the paratroopers of the Israel Defense Forces. While I had completed a gibbush previously, Yom Sayerot, this one was a completely different animal.

After years of waiting for this very day, I arrived at Tel Hashomer, believing that this tryout would be far easier than the last, as I had been told. The wakeup call slowly arrived. After hours of extensive paperwork, we were divided into small teams. Fortunately, I was assigned to the same team as Darren and another friend from our Garin.

The teams went through the usual logistical tasks: signing in, being examined by the doctor, and receiving uniforms. We were led to the cafeteria and given lunch, far tastier than anything given to us at the previous tryout! Eagerly awaiting the Bar-Or test, we continued on to our tents and set down our belongings and uniforms on cots, another huge improvement over Yom Sayerot. The improvements, unfortunately, would stop there.

Before embarking out onto our run, we were instructed to drink our entire one-liter canteens at once, before turning them and holding them over our heads when finished. This would become a recurring theme. As we approached the run sight, we were told to sit and wait. Another recurring theme.

Finally, as the sun set and the night drew closer, my group prepared for the run. When the word came, we were off again. Another gibbush, another two-kilometer run. This one followed a hilly track, the sand remaining in the air from the previous groups. On the narrow trail, returning runners from the last group collided with us as we attempted to pass, while each one of my group struggled to get himself ahead.

Pushing ourselves until the very end, we reached the finished line. As we all waited in line at the end for our numbers to be taken down, each runner placed his head and hands on the back and shoulders of the person in front of him. Struggling to catch my breath, I saw this as a shining example of brotherhood only found in Israel. Despite competing with one another for the few spots left in the unit, each participant assisted another in recovering.

We were put to bed, once again at 8:00 P.M. due the early morning wakeup. At 3:00 A.M., we were up and divided into new teams. Somehow, I ended up in a team with Darren again, a comfort in the face of a very long day ahead. The twenty-five of us in the group were given numbers and had a short warmup before heading out to the field behind our commander.

Slowly we arrived at a long, narrow trail. As expected, our commander gave us the order to sprint to a point up the trail and back. “Tzeh.” My favorite word....

We sprinted and sprinted some more. This was not unexpected, though it lasted far longer than the previous tryout's sprints and far longer than I ever could have imagined it would. At the end of each sprint, another round without breaks. After about forty minutes, our numbers started dropping and four of our guys had left. It was only the beginning.

We continued the routine for some time longer, completely reduced to rubble by the end. When our commander finally showed some mercy and allowed us to stop, he gave us about two minutes to drink our canteens before starting again. More sprints, this time with stretchers.

At each round of sprints, I exerted myself much more than I did at my first tryout. It's been my dream to be a Paratrooper since I made the decision to make Aliyah, and my way of proving that was giving everything I had. While certainly not in the top few physically, I gave it my all through each sprint and earned a place under the stretcher a few times.

After what must have been an hour, we set down the stretchers and caught our breath for a minute. The commander, his face bearing the mischievous grin of the plan he had devised, instructed us to walk to the other end of the trail. When we arrived, he looked us all over, our uniforms dark with sweat, and instructed us to lay on our stomachs. “Crawl to the finish line and sprint back. First three people will have their numbers written down.”

I honestly cannot put into words how difficult army-style crawling is, especially in the capacity of a race. Whether it's the feet kicking into your shoulders and face, the sand caking your teeth and stinging your eyes, the muscles in your torso screaming to rest, or the rock and glass on the trail piercing your arms and legs, I was ready to quit by round two. But I persevered, and although finishing near the bottom each round, I gave everything I had to drag my body an extra few inches and move along.

After an eternity, the crawls were finished and we gathered in a chet (open rectangle) for a group game. We were instructed to come up with a few reasons for why women should or shouldn't serve in the army. After the discussion, we were given orders to navigate a small obstacle, getting our entire team from one point to another through a puzzle. These activities were especially difficult for me, given the language barrier. While the commanders were looking for the leader who stepped up to calm the team down, I could never have competed with an Israeli's mother tongue understanding of the language.

We continued the group games (albeit with punishment each time we made mistakes), and designed a map of Israel using only items found around the trail. I'm sure this one can go down as a failure for my group in the commanders' books, our map looking more like the state of Texas than anything else.

Then, at long last, our final exercise: the masa (hike). We gathered our equipment, including the stretcher, shovels and jerrycans, and proceeded on to a hike back to the base. Parts of it were jogging, parts walking, parts uphill and parts down, and by the end of the three kilometers, I was exhausted.

We were told that we had completed the physical section, about five hours after we had begun, and given some time to shower before the interviews. Lines for the shower were out the door, leading many to use the sinks as a substitute (never a dull moment). Nonetheless, when I was finished I proceeded to my interview and waited.

When my name was finally called, I had already prepared myself. I sat down and fielded the usual questions: where did I come from, why did I move to Israel, etcetera. When they asked me why I wanted to be in Tzanchanim, I was ready. I had been ready to respond to that very question for three years.

I spoke to the two stone-faced interviewers with passion in my voice, determination and desire in my words. I described how long I had dreamed of that very interview and just how much the history of the unit, being able to participate in the tryout, and the volunteer nature of Tzanchanim meant to me. By the time I had finished, they were both smiling. It was exactly the interview I had always dreamed about.

A few days later, I received word that I had been accepted into and will be drafting to Tzanchanim!

So what does it mean?

For starters, I've always wanted to be in Tzanchanim. I've really started to feel like I've realized my dream now, earning a spot in the unit. It's still surreal to me!

The history of the unit is unbelievable, most notably being the unit to capture the Kotel during the Six-Day War in 1967. Due to its impressive history, Tzanchanim has received a lot of money in donations over the years, leading to its relative wealth among the combat units. Because of this, training facilities and conditions are generally quite a bit nicer, something I'll touch upon in the very near future.

For a soldier in Tzanchanim (as well as the other infantry units), training is eight months long. Unique to the Paratroopers are the jumps which come in advanced training, something I've looking forward to for years. The unit is also unique in the uniform its soldiers wear, the shirt being untucked with a different design.

Then, of course, training culminates in a ceremony to receive the famous red beret, something given to Tzanchanim and the elite units of the IDF at the end of a grueling masa, also something I'll discuss in the near future.

Because of an issue with my Hebrew score, something Darren touched upon very briefly in the last post, I was unsure of whether or not I would be drafting now or in March. Thanks to the incredible hard work by my mashakiot, however, an appeal of my Michve Alon (army Hebrew course) assignment was successful and I will be drafting to Tzanchanim this Thursday, the 22^nd of the month.

My last few days as a civilian will be spent relaxing and watching movies, anxiously looking forward to the days ahead...

On a very serious note, a big thank you to everyone who has checked in with me and given me words of support due to the escalation of the situation with Gaza. I appreciate the fact that so many stand with Israel and are aware of the seriousness of the issue developing on the border. I think I speak for everyone who has served, is currently serving, or will be in the very near future when I say, we will defend Jewish lives, whatever the cost. We cannot live under the constant threat of rocket fire and danger to the lives of our brothers and sisters.

Anyways, I apologize for the length of the post! I had a lot to update.

Until next time, most likely the night before my life as a soldier begins!

-Brett