I am going to buy a cheap pair of dress pants from Walmart. I have heard a lot of people showing up with only jeans, but I think you would at least try to look a little more professional if you can and it's in your budget. First impressions right 
BMQ Regular Force 2005 - 2017 [Merged]
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AGREED!Clerk79 said:I am going to buy a cheap pair of dress pants from Walmart. I have heard a lot of people showing up with only jeans, but I think you would at least try to look a little more professional if you can and it's in your budget. First impressions right
Not sure about the blouses though. I have spoken to a few girls who have recently finished BMQ and some wore blouses, some wore tasteful long sleeve shirts. I'm not a blouse girl. They said no one got in trouble for no blouse so I may just do the long sleeve.
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There's definitely a lot activity in this specific BMQ Date Topic. Hopefully this means good chances for having a lot of friendly/decent platoon members.
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I finished packing my stuff for BMQ I am bringing pretty much the entire list of stuff they want you to get at the canex to save money. (Will buy the stuff that says required to buy at the canex, when I get to the canex).
I still need to write my Autobiography, but I will likely finish that this week.
I am getting more nervous and excited as we draw near, I have only lived in 2 provinces in my life time one of which I don't remember because I was young, and have never left home for more then 2 weeks, its definitely going to make me become more independent that's for sure.
I still need to write my Autobiography, but I will likely finish that this week.
I am getting more nervous and excited as we draw near, I have only lived in 2 provinces in my life time one of which I don't remember because I was young, and have never left home for more then 2 weeks, its definitely going to make me become more independent that's for sure.
Clerk79 said:
Ahhh the autobiography ugh! It looks daunting and geared towards a high school graduate not people who have been working for a while.... I picked up my train ticket and new expense claim paperwork today heading out tomorrow to buy stuff for the kit list. I found an interesting post in another thread that may be helpful to us all. I am going to try and find it again will copy it into here as I found most of the I info to be very helpful especially since the poster was on Xmas break from BMQ
Ok so I found this info in the thread for jan 5 BMQ. Il the only comment after this info was that most of this stuff is available for free if you ask for it however, she did mention that they hand it out but not enough for the amount of ppl. Anyways this is not my info I i stated but that of a member currently on BMQ
"Hello! I am about half way done BMQ course in St. jean, I am home for Christmas but will be returning to Quebec in the new year. Being home for the holidays has given me the chance to realize that I get a second chance at packing my suitcase for BMQ and the second time around I will be able to pack all of the things I should have packed the first time! I thought I would reach out and share some information on what to bring/expect with the new recruits to help make their course a little easier.
1) Take the time to learn the NCM ranks before you arrive on base so that you can appropriately address instructors right off the hop. You will have a lecture about the ranks later on that week.
2) Be prepared to only have cell phone time for about 30 minutes in the evening around 8pm. Cell phones stay in your personal box (in your locker) all day long until cell phone/break time. you are going to find that people sneak them on the floor in the evening no matter what kind of cell phone rule there is. Just remember if one person gets caught you all get caught.
3) You are going to get sick. When you get to CFLRS you are put into a platoon with people from all over the country all walking around with different variations of the common cold that you have never been exposed to before. They call this "Shack Hack", it reaches its peak around week 3. You will remember reading this when you are trying to sleep in the barracks and everyone is coughing up a lung at 12 am. You are going to want to bring:
- cough syrup
- some kind of cough/cold/flu medicine (ie: Tylenol cold and sinus)
- Fisherman's friends/halls and lots of them
-Vic's Vapour rub may also be a good idea
-Tylenol
-Advil
Keep in mind the building itself is pretty old and there is A LOT of dust so if you have allergies bring some antihistamines! Reactine or Arius, personally I like Arius Dual because its an antihistamine and a decongestant. I am also bringing Cold FX (not sure if it actually works I guess we will find out) and some Vitamin C.
4) FEET!!!! When you finally get your boots make sure you alternate the days you wear your boots so that they are broken in equally. Breaking in your combats sucks but it must be done, you also have no choice. You should receive 2 pairs of combat boots and 1 pair of Gortex for wet weather. Make sure you also throw your gortex into your boot routine so when its in the orders to wear them they are already broken in. I made the mistake of not ever wearing my Gortex, then we were told to wear them for the 8km ruck march. Needless to say they are broken in now but my feet paid for it after. You are going to get some pretty gnarly blisters and calluses. leave them they will toughen up your feet. Don't pop your blisters unless you absolutely have to ( if they are getting bigger) . The barracks are not the most sanitary place and you can pick up an infection pretty quickly. Don't neglect your feet make sure you make time in the evening to take care of them. Also take the time in the morning to apply foot powder. I wear 2 pairs of socks... a thin pair then thicker pair over top, this will help prevent blisters. For ruck marches I wear panty hose (just the stockings/knee highs) under the first pair of thin socks this helps prevent the friction that causes blisters even more, again don't forget foot powder it will help keep your feet dry. During your first or second week your platoon will go to the MIR and get your vaccinations they will also give your platoon a "happy feet kit" this thing is a joke, its 3 or 4 second skin kits to share between 50 people. Good luck. My advice is to put together your own "happy feet kit" to bring with you, you will not regret it and will be very thankful you have it! Here is a list of things you may want to include:
-band aids
-Blister band aids
-Moleskin!
-scissors to cut your mole skin (the ones you buy in the sewing kit at Canex will last about 5 seconds, buy some real scissors)
-Foot powder
-panty hose (knee highs)
-nail clippers
-anything else you want for your feet! ( I suggest buying a small nail brush from the Canex and carry it around in your CC bag, use it throughout the day to get salt stains and scuff marks off your boots.)
Also keep in mind that you are not going to be allowed to go to the Canex for the first few days possibly a week (even then you will be escorted by your marching NCO and watched like a hawk, BRING SHOWER SHOES! I cannot stress this enough. A guy on my platoon had an open sore on his foot and took a shower without shower shoes on and he got gonorrhea from the showers... so basically just make sure you have shower shoes!!! That also goes for anything else you may need like toiletries. The first time you are allowed to go to the Canex you will be rushed, and even though you have a list you may forget something or realize you should have bought more of something. Try to make friends with someone who is off of indoc and can go to the Canex whenever they want it comes in handy. Try to buy most of your toiletries and things like that at home, you will save yourself some money the Canex is pretty expensive. Somethings you may want to bring that aren't on your list in the joining instructions are:
-Tylenol and/or Advil
-Rub A535 or some variation of it
-Refills for your reusable razor
-lip chap, it is very dry in the Mega and you will get chapped lips.. also if you get nose bleeds often this is your warning.
-quarters...the vending/candy machines on base take quarters only. You may not be allowed to use the vending machines until after your platoon is off of indoc. It all depends on your staff, I have seen it go both ways.
- a ghost kit... doubles of all toiletries you have in your layout for inspection HUGE time saver!
-Mr. Clean magic erasers ( these things are awesome for cleaning boot polish marks off the floor and for cleaning up your PT shoes)
-Swiffer cloths (awesome for last minute dusting before inspections and easy to hide in your pocket)
- instead of buying big tins of boot polish buy smaller tins. The reason for this is with the bigger tins you will find that your polish starts to dry out and crack before you can use it all up. If you buy smaller tins of the same polish you will always have fresh polish. Another thing that you can do is the penny trick. stick a penny in your tin of polish it will keep your polish fresh. The same way a piece of bread keeps brown sugar from drying out.
-stamps. Bring stamps and other supplies if you plan on writing letters home. There is a post office in the Mega, I have never actually seen somebody be allowed to go there. The Canex does not sell stamps. Also be prepared to do 25 push-ups for every letter you receive. If family is sending you care packages make sure its clear that they cant send you food. You have to open all packages in front of the instructors and your platoon so keep that in mind when your asking your family to send you stuff.
- the list says you need a 5X7 picture frame... doesn't say you need a picture although you would assume, you would not believe the amount of people that didn't actually bring a picture. I "forgot" mine HAHA and had a picture of one of the other girls and her friend in my frame for 5 weeks. The instructors didn't care for that too much. Just make sure you have a picture for your frame.
5) BED! - okay so linen exchange day is on Tuesday. That means when you wake up in the morning you pull all of your sheets off of your bed and bundle them up and bring them down on your way to breakfast they get dropped off, staff washes them, and at the end of the day there is a cart of clean linens for the whole platoon. After about the third week your going to figure out that no one actually sleeps in their bed. Here is a tip. Make your bed Tuesday night, starch your hospital corners and iron your sheets and pillow case! sleep on top of your bed and only use your fire blanket at the end of your bed. When you wake up in the mornings all you have to do is fold your 1 fire blanket and smooth out the wrinkles on your bed and maybe straighten up your corner. If you use a generous amount of starch it shouldn't be too bad, and an easy fix. This is much easier than waking up extra early to make your bed every morning and you will get used to it. Obviously everyone sleeps in their sheets Monday night.
6) It is easiest to form your beret while in the shower under warm/hot water. It will look like a chefs hat for the first little bit just keep working at it.
7) when you do the obstacle course make sure that all of your FFO is done up properly and that your gas mask especially is tight and out of the way. You are going to find that the gas mask will get caught on certain obstacles and same with the buckles on your tac vest.
8) When your folding passes inspection take all of your stuff for your bed lay out and put it into your barrack box folded, that way in the mornings of inspections all you have to do is pull it out and set it on the bed.
9) When you are polishing boots go into and empty cubicle and lay a garbage bag on the desk/floor. Polish over the garbage bag, then throw the bag away and clean up your mess.
10) Never leave your kit unlocked/ unattended if duty staff walks on the floor and you are in the shower and your closet is wide open expect to be yelled at.
11) Detail is key! Instructors stress detail throughout the course to teach us to pay attention to detail. So that we pay attention to detail in our career. This is especially important in Tech trades!
12) Never ever wear anything that looks like or even resembles any kind of PT gear to the cafeteria to eat meals. Jeans and a shirt will do fine for the first few days until you are given all of your kit. Staff sits at a table and watches you walk by with your tray of food ready to pounce.
13) UNIFORM tips!!
- lint roll your beret especially before inspection
- carry around a pair of small scissors or nail clippers to clip loose threads off of your uniform.
- use a nail brush to clean salt and scuff marks off of your boots
- leave your boot bands in your combat pants before you go to bed so you don't waste time messing around with boot bands in the morning.
- leave your combat shirt buttoned up and just pull it over when your getting dressed so you don't waste time on buttons. People also do this with jackets.
14) Don't screw around in the evenings when you are supposed to be working on sewing. Get your sewing done then help other people finish their sewing. Also labels will come off in the wash so make sure you check your kit regularly for missing labels so that you catch it before one of your instructors does!
15) Make sure you dust everything! Even under the bed and under the radiator along the wall, on top of your closet.. window sills everything!(including empty cubicles) If you dust then open a window it blows dust around so you will have to re dust.
16) Common jobs need to be done. My suggestion is work on personal stuff until 10 pm then do common jobs from 10- lights out. If you are in charge of bathrooms, clean the bathrooms then leave only one shower and one toilet open for use in the morning and one sink. Make sure everyone using that bathroom know what is open and closed. ( unless all the guys need to shave in the morning the sink thing wont work, you will have to clean every sink in the morning after breakfast there is no way around it.) That way you only have to clean one shower, one toilet and one sink before inspections.
17) Guys don't get caught not shaving. You have to shave every morning, they will check! If they catch you not shaving first time its a swipe, second time you will be charged I believe the fine is somewhere around 200 dollars.
Don't take what the instructors say to you personally its their job to yell at you and its your job to get yelled at for now anyways. Be prepared to be tired everyday. They expect you to give your 100 percent at all times even though your probably only operating at about 60 percent. Keep in mind that basic training is not what the rest of your military life and career will be like, basic is also a lot better after indoc. Don't quit right away stick it out before you decide if its for you or not because it does get better. Do what they tell you to do when they tell you to do it, give it your all and you will do fine. The things they ask you to do are not hard but at times can seem almost impossible, that is because most of the orders given require teamwork. This course is all about working together as a team and communication is key. If you try to be an individual you wont make it and you will piss people off. Remember its all just a game, play the game and good luck on your course."
Well hopefully some of us find this helpful as well I know I did
"Hello! I am about half way done BMQ course in St. jean, I am home for Christmas but will be returning to Quebec in the new year. Being home for the holidays has given me the chance to realize that I get a second chance at packing my suitcase for BMQ and the second time around I will be able to pack all of the things I should have packed the first time! I thought I would reach out and share some information on what to bring/expect with the new recruits to help make their course a little easier.
1) Take the time to learn the NCM ranks before you arrive on base so that you can appropriately address instructors right off the hop. You will have a lecture about the ranks later on that week.
2) Be prepared to only have cell phone time for about 30 minutes in the evening around 8pm. Cell phones stay in your personal box (in your locker) all day long until cell phone/break time. you are going to find that people sneak them on the floor in the evening no matter what kind of cell phone rule there is. Just remember if one person gets caught you all get caught.
3) You are going to get sick. When you get to CFLRS you are put into a platoon with people from all over the country all walking around with different variations of the common cold that you have never been exposed to before. They call this "Shack Hack", it reaches its peak around week 3. You will remember reading this when you are trying to sleep in the barracks and everyone is coughing up a lung at 12 am. You are going to want to bring:
- cough syrup
- some kind of cough/cold/flu medicine (ie: Tylenol cold and sinus)
- Fisherman's friends/halls and lots of them
-Vic's Vapour rub may also be a good idea
-Tylenol
-Advil
Keep in mind the building itself is pretty old and there is A LOT of dust so if you have allergies bring some antihistamines! Reactine or Arius, personally I like Arius Dual because its an antihistamine and a decongestant. I am also bringing Cold FX (not sure if it actually works I guess we will find out) and some Vitamin C.
4) FEET!!!! When you finally get your boots make sure you alternate the days you wear your boots so that they are broken in equally. Breaking in your combats sucks but it must be done, you also have no choice. You should receive 2 pairs of combat boots and 1 pair of Gortex for wet weather. Make sure you also throw your gortex into your boot routine so when its in the orders to wear them they are already broken in. I made the mistake of not ever wearing my Gortex, then we were told to wear them for the 8km ruck march. Needless to say they are broken in now but my feet paid for it after. You are going to get some pretty gnarly blisters and calluses. leave them they will toughen up your feet. Don't pop your blisters unless you absolutely have to ( if they are getting bigger) . The barracks are not the most sanitary place and you can pick up an infection pretty quickly. Don't neglect your feet make sure you make time in the evening to take care of them. Also take the time in the morning to apply foot powder. I wear 2 pairs of socks... a thin pair then thicker pair over top, this will help prevent blisters. For ruck marches I wear panty hose (just the stockings/knee highs) under the first pair of thin socks this helps prevent the friction that causes blisters even more, again don't forget foot powder it will help keep your feet dry. During your first or second week your platoon will go to the MIR and get your vaccinations they will also give your platoon a "happy feet kit" this thing is a joke, its 3 or 4 second skin kits to share between 50 people. Good luck. My advice is to put together your own "happy feet kit" to bring with you, you will not regret it and will be very thankful you have it! Here is a list of things you may want to include:
-band aids
-Blister band aids
-Moleskin!
-scissors to cut your mole skin (the ones you buy in the sewing kit at Canex will last about 5 seconds, buy some real scissors)
-Foot powder
-panty hose (knee highs)
-nail clippers
-anything else you want for your feet! ( I suggest buying a small nail brush from the Canex and carry it around in your CC bag, use it throughout the day to get salt stains and scuff marks off your boots.)
Also keep in mind that you are not going to be allowed to go to the Canex for the first few days possibly a week (even then you will be escorted by your marching NCO and watched like a hawk, BRING SHOWER SHOES! I cannot stress this enough. A guy on my platoon had an open sore on his foot and took a shower without shower shoes on and he got gonorrhea from the showers... so basically just make sure you have shower shoes!!! That also goes for anything else you may need like toiletries. The first time you are allowed to go to the Canex you will be rushed, and even though you have a list you may forget something or realize you should have bought more of something. Try to make friends with someone who is off of indoc and can go to the Canex whenever they want it comes in handy. Try to buy most of your toiletries and things like that at home, you will save yourself some money the Canex is pretty expensive. Somethings you may want to bring that aren't on your list in the joining instructions are:
-Tylenol and/or Advil
-Rub A535 or some variation of it
-Refills for your reusable razor
-lip chap, it is very dry in the Mega and you will get chapped lips.. also if you get nose bleeds often this is your warning.
-quarters...the vending/candy machines on base take quarters only. You may not be allowed to use the vending machines until after your platoon is off of indoc. It all depends on your staff, I have seen it go both ways.
- a ghost kit... doubles of all toiletries you have in your layout for inspection HUGE time saver!
-Mr. Clean magic erasers ( these things are awesome for cleaning boot polish marks off the floor and for cleaning up your PT shoes)
-Swiffer cloths (awesome for last minute dusting before inspections and easy to hide in your pocket)
- instead of buying big tins of boot polish buy smaller tins. The reason for this is with the bigger tins you will find that your polish starts to dry out and crack before you can use it all up. If you buy smaller tins of the same polish you will always have fresh polish. Another thing that you can do is the penny trick. stick a penny in your tin of polish it will keep your polish fresh. The same way a piece of bread keeps brown sugar from drying out.
-stamps. Bring stamps and other supplies if you plan on writing letters home. There is a post office in the Mega, I have never actually seen somebody be allowed to go there. The Canex does not sell stamps. Also be prepared to do 25 push-ups for every letter you receive. If family is sending you care packages make sure its clear that they cant send you food. You have to open all packages in front of the instructors and your platoon so keep that in mind when your asking your family to send you stuff.
- the list says you need a 5X7 picture frame... doesn't say you need a picture although you would assume, you would not believe the amount of people that didn't actually bring a picture. I "forgot" mine HAHA and had a picture of one of the other girls and her friend in my frame for 5 weeks. The instructors didn't care for that too much. Just make sure you have a picture for your frame.
5) BED! - okay so linen exchange day is on Tuesday. That means when you wake up in the morning you pull all of your sheets off of your bed and bundle them up and bring them down on your way to breakfast they get dropped off, staff washes them, and at the end of the day there is a cart of clean linens for the whole platoon. After about the third week your going to figure out that no one actually sleeps in their bed. Here is a tip. Make your bed Tuesday night, starch your hospital corners and iron your sheets and pillow case! sleep on top of your bed and only use your fire blanket at the end of your bed. When you wake up in the mornings all you have to do is fold your 1 fire blanket and smooth out the wrinkles on your bed and maybe straighten up your corner. If you use a generous amount of starch it shouldn't be too bad, and an easy fix. This is much easier than waking up extra early to make your bed every morning and you will get used to it. Obviously everyone sleeps in their sheets Monday night.
6) It is easiest to form your beret while in the shower under warm/hot water. It will look like a chefs hat for the first little bit just keep working at it.
7) when you do the obstacle course make sure that all of your FFO is done up properly and that your gas mask especially is tight and out of the way. You are going to find that the gas mask will get caught on certain obstacles and same with the buckles on your tac vest.
8) When your folding passes inspection take all of your stuff for your bed lay out and put it into your barrack box folded, that way in the mornings of inspections all you have to do is pull it out and set it on the bed.
9) When you are polishing boots go into and empty cubicle and lay a garbage bag on the desk/floor. Polish over the garbage bag, then throw the bag away and clean up your mess.
10) Never leave your kit unlocked/ unattended if duty staff walks on the floor and you are in the shower and your closet is wide open expect to be yelled at.
11) Detail is key! Instructors stress detail throughout the course to teach us to pay attention to detail. So that we pay attention to detail in our career. This is especially important in Tech trades!
12) Never ever wear anything that looks like or even resembles any kind of PT gear to the cafeteria to eat meals. Jeans and a shirt will do fine for the first few days until you are given all of your kit. Staff sits at a table and watches you walk by with your tray of food ready to pounce.
13) UNIFORM tips!!
- lint roll your beret especially before inspection
- carry around a pair of small scissors or nail clippers to clip loose threads off of your uniform.
- use a nail brush to clean salt and scuff marks off of your boots
- leave your boot bands in your combat pants before you go to bed so you don't waste time messing around with boot bands in the morning.
- leave your combat shirt buttoned up and just pull it over when your getting dressed so you don't waste time on buttons. People also do this with jackets.
14) Don't screw around in the evenings when you are supposed to be working on sewing. Get your sewing done then help other people finish their sewing. Also labels will come off in the wash so make sure you check your kit regularly for missing labels so that you catch it before one of your instructors does!
15) Make sure you dust everything! Even under the bed and under the radiator along the wall, on top of your closet.. window sills everything!(including empty cubicles) If you dust then open a window it blows dust around so you will have to re dust.
16) Common jobs need to be done. My suggestion is work on personal stuff until 10 pm then do common jobs from 10- lights out. If you are in charge of bathrooms, clean the bathrooms then leave only one shower and one toilet open for use in the morning and one sink. Make sure everyone using that bathroom know what is open and closed. ( unless all the guys need to shave in the morning the sink thing wont work, you will have to clean every sink in the morning after breakfast there is no way around it.) That way you only have to clean one shower, one toilet and one sink before inspections.
17) Guys don't get caught not shaving. You have to shave every morning, they will check! If they catch you not shaving first time its a swipe, second time you will be charged I believe the fine is somewhere around 200 dollars.
Don't take what the instructors say to you personally its their job to yell at you and its your job to get yelled at for now anyways. Be prepared to be tired everyday. They expect you to give your 100 percent at all times even though your probably only operating at about 60 percent. Keep in mind that basic training is not what the rest of your military life and career will be like, basic is also a lot better after indoc. Don't quit right away stick it out before you decide if its for you or not because it does get better. Do what they tell you to do when they tell you to do it, give it your all and you will do fine. The things they ask you to do are not hard but at times can seem almost impossible, that is because most of the orders given require teamwork. This course is all about working together as a team and communication is key. If you try to be an individual you wont make it and you will piss people off. Remember its all just a game, play the game and good luck on your course."
Well hopefully some of us find this helpful as well I know I did
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See you soon everyone! Driving from Ottawa.
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Ei2014 said:
Double posting like that is pretty frowned upon here by staff. I'm sure you'll start getting a few responses in the coming weeks since the recruiting centers are just starting to open up again. I've only got one person in my February 9th thread that is going the same day as me so I'm still waiting for some replies as well.
Whoever posted that originally, I thank them very much. That was extremely helpful! Also ensued a bit of stress HA HA!
I am happy that we have a few people on here that have kind of connected prior to basic. There is also a site on Facebook called Canadian Forces Applicants where I have connected with a few others. Unless you're all the same people LOL.
Looks like I will be arriving in Montreal at the airport after the 2 pm pick up and I will have few hours to kill at the airport before the 7 pm pick up. Anyone else going to be stranded at the airport for a bit?
I am happy that we have a few people on here that have kind of connected prior to basic. There is also a site on Facebook called Canadian Forces Applicants where I have connected with a few others. Unless you're all the same people LOL.
Looks like I will be arriving in Montreal at the airport after the 2 pm pick up and I will have few hours to kill at the airport before the 7 pm pick up. Anyone else going to be stranded at the airport for a bit?
Was kind of accidental. I could not find my post/ thought I did not complete it as I'm posting from my iPhone. Hard to navigate at times. I got my job offer the day before my file manager went on holidays (fluke, as I called the day before to check my status.) waiting to see who else is going!
Hey guys so found out from a friend that they do practice FORCE test at the base gym (Friday's in Kingston). I stopped by this morning and spoke to the PSP staff and they have said once you are enrolled you can go in and participate (at least in Kingston) all I have to bring is my LWOP form and my drivers license. Anyone who wants some practise and is close to a base it may be worth giving them a call or stopping by to see if they will let you.
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