School pupils given taste of marine life

Gettogether at RM Condor ‘not a recruitment drive’

Royal Marines put youngsters from eight secondary schools through their paces yesterday at the RM Condor base near Arbroath.

The pupils, aged 12-16, faced a series of challenges set by members of the elite force, from shooting at targets on the rifle range to close combat training. There was also an observation post and assault course.

The event was the sixth Spirit of Adventure day to take place in Angus with the aim of introducing children to new experiences.

It originated as part of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations in 2012 when youngsters completed six different walks through Glen Clova and Glen Prosen.

At the end of the day a pupil from each school was selected to attend a six-day summer camp at the Ridgeway Adventure Centre at Ardmore in the Highlands.

Commanding officer Lieutenant Colonel Tony Turner said: “It’s a great privilege for us as the Royal Marines to welcome you all to our camp and to show you what will hopefully be an exciting and challenging day.

“We are not trying to recruit you, you won’t be signing on the dotted line at the end of the day but we want to give you a taste of what we do.

“The Royal Marines are part of the Royal Navy. We are the Royal Navy’s soldiers, we fight from the sea, we deploy round the world on ships. If there’s a crisis or a large conflict we go ashore from those ships and fight on land.

“All of us wear a green beret. That symbolises that we’re all commando trained. That means that we’ve gone through an arduous training process that seeks determination, physical fitness but, most importantly, a sense of humour in the face of adversity.

“There will be things you face today that will be a little bit challenging, a bit testing, perhaps a bit uncomfortable.

“But we are looking for people who smile despite the challenges and try their best even if they can’t do it.”

45 Commando marked their 45th year being based at Arbroath with a march through the town earlier this year.

Picture: Steven Brown. Forfar Academy pupil Josh Smeaton, 12, attempts to lift a marine’s 50kg pack.

Left: Brodie Allan, 12, of Forfar Academy, takes cover. Right: Fellow academy pupil Bradley Hanmore, 13, practises CPR.

Pictures: Steven Brown.