A couple of weeks back, my bubbly colleague Boon Hun penned an article on a lady-exclusive NS field camp, that all but promised a scaled-down experience of Ah Boys to Men.
Honestly, I thought the whole concept would have been, for lack of a more fitting term, a blank ammo, seeing how nobody in their right mind would ever pay money to be subjected to torture. But guess what;
A whopping 1,000+ applicants applied for a spot, but only 103 had the misfortune to actually go through it.
…
Singapore’s full of masochists, huh?
Anyways, the camp has since concluded, and suffice it to say that it was one full of surprises.
Like a 13-year-old and 61-year-old partaking in it. Say what?
Young and fearless
I’m sure the guys out there are more than aware of it, but the low rope station (in the standard obstacle course), contrary to what its name suggests, isn’t anywhere close to being indefinitely easy.
As such, numerous able-bodied men cower at the mere thought of going up this terrorising rope, and instead cower behind the backs of their more fit brethen.
But not 13-year-old Athi Ramesh Athira. Scared?
Well, screw you, her attitude screams.
“Most of us struggled with the low rope too, we couldn’t pull ourselves up!” she piped.
The youngest participant in the camp, she already has designs on becoming a regular in the army, and while I’m no certified psychic…
I’m pretty sure she will go far.
Additionally, the women present went through pretty much the entire SOC course (minus the balancing bridge, apex ladder and low wall). And the reason why some of them are excluded is due to the lack of combat boots: apparently, these stations require combat boots (bet you didn’t know that, eh?).
Kudos? Kudos.
And the young at heart
There are usually two types of shooters during a live SAR21 firing session: the Rambos and the Bobos.
But during this camp, there’s a third type:
The young at heart.
Meet Mdm Patsy Chong, 61-year-old freelance teacher, as well as one of the oldest participants in the camp. And do not be fooled by her age, because she packs a mean punch.
With her SAR21 machine gun.
“Before handling the weapon, I thought that it was not that heavy,” she said. “But it’s about 4kg! I can carry a rice bag that is 4kg, but not something like this.”
Not sure why, but it’s funny how she relate a rice bag to an assault rifle. But let’s face it: a rice bag is so much more useful lah.
And that’s not the only thing the spunky teacher tried too, seeing how she dabbled in pretty much everything, including the fearsome firemen lift during a session on Casualty Evacuation.
Incidentally, she, like many of the women present at the camp, had relatives in the service, and joined the event to gain some insight into what National Service roughly entails.
The full experience
And of course, the experience wouldn’t be complete without the ol’ goody foody:
Combat rations.
Who could possibly miss those classic packs, that are bursting with so much flavour?
You can check out the video below for the full experience.
Missed this one?
Well, don’t despair, for there might be a comeback. But the decision will only be made after the organisers go through the post-event survey.
So look forward to it, people.
Because the next time round, there probably wouldn’t just be 1,000+ applicants.
Cos Singapore’s full of masochists.
And no, it’s now pretty much obvious: these women are there to experience NS life, not for Instagram.
Kudos to them all!
Watch this for a complete summary of what REALLY happened to Qoo10, and why it's like a K-drama:
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