Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Calif. -- MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, Calif.— The saying ‘Every Marine a rifleman,’ refers to the fact that all recruits are required to become basic marksman while on their way to becoming Marines.
Recruits of Company E, 2nd Recruit Training Battalion, learned marksmanship fundamentals during Grass Week at Edson Range, Jan. 15.
The purpose of Grass Week was to teach recruits the basic fundamentals of marksman shooting skills and also to learn the functions of the rifle such as how to load, unload and fire the M16-A4 service rifle.
“Shooting expert is hard. Anybody can pick up a weapon and fire it, but those who learn and apply the basic fundamentals of marksmanship are the better shooters,” said Cpl Eric A. Rauzi, primary marksman instructor, Weapons and Field Training Battalion. “Any Marine can be put in a situation where they might have to apply marksmanship, it’s just the nature of our business. That makes it important for us as PMIs to teach the recruits all of the knowledge we have as they go through recruit training.”
Each platoon within the company was assigned a PMI during the fifth week of training. PMIs gave classes on proper usage and operation of the weapon before recruits qualified at Edson Range.
Some recruits have never picked up a rifle before, but they’ll be trained with the M16-A4 service rifle and become a marksman shooter, explained 25-year-old Rauzi, a Gillespie, Ill. native.
Throughout Grass Week, PMIs taught recruits trigger control, sight picture, breathing control, sight alignment and natural point of aim. These were the basic fundamentals that PMIs taught to turn Co. E recruits into marksman shooters.
Each platoon had an outdoor classroom and area to practice what they learned. There were four primary positions recruits would shoot in: standing, kneeling, sitting and prone. PMIs gave recruits “snap-in-time” so they could practice the different position and fundamentals they were taught. During “snap-in-time,” recruits aimed, in different directions, at barrels with targets painted on them to get recruits used to the discomforts of proper shooting.
“I feel comfortable in the different firing positions,” said Recruit Colton C. Willoughby, Platoon 2110. “Breathing and trigger control is what I focus on most to assure I’ll be firing in the center of the target on qualification week.”
Recruits also face the risk of their weapon possibly jamming while at the range. Because of that, PMIs taught recruits remedial action, which is a method used to fix the rifle and continue firing.
It’s vital we learn these skills. We’re on our way to become Marines and Marines are the first to go fight wars explained, 19-year-old Willoughby, a Port Lavaca, Texas native.
“My mission is to turn recruits into efficient shooters,” said Rauzi. “It’s very satisfying when I see recruits applying the fundaments of marksmanship I taught to them and becoming qualified rifleman.”
With the basic marksmanship fundamentals in hand, recruits of Co. E. will move on to Firing Week where they will put what the PMIs have taught them to use and attempt to qualify with the M16-A4 service rifle.