Monday - Wednesday, Week 11!
This week has been a whirlwind. A lot of exciting things are happening at the academy for Kev and the Junior cadets. However, during this exciting week at the academy, my dad was admitted into the hospital for emergency surgery on his back, C3-C6 vertebrae, which are high into his neck. It was very scary and sudden, so I missed a lot of call time with Kev while I was in the hospital. Thankfully, my dad is recovering from surgery now and we are just waiting for him to walk on his own and for some of the pain to subside so he can come home. I am very grateful that he is doing well and in recovery, especially after losing my grandma shortly after her surgery in February. She was looking over us through this one.
Now, let's talk EVOC!
Next to shooting a gun, it seems every cadet is either looking forward to EVOC or dreading it. In Kev's case, driving fast in a squad car is a dream come true. However, he of course had some apprehension since the risk of underperforming and going home is always present. This week has been mainly EVOC driving! Ultimately, they are shown how to drive, get a practice shot and then are tested. The process is all very fast. You either pick it up or you go home. The EVOC testing this week is all POST testing, so the cadets will still have to pass the Agency Specific testing too around week 20.
MONDAY:
Rumor has it that if your class is improving and going strong in PT that the instructors will amp it up a bit more. At least that is what Kev heard, but whether that is true or not is up for debate. Either way, it's a good mindset to get them to keep pushing I suppose. So, PT on Monday morning started with 800 jumping jacks - there is no typo there, 800!!! Followed by a run too of course. Also, in the midst of all the EVOC training, the cadets have learning domain tests. Monday the were tested on the rules for arresting juveniles and Kev passed, only missing one question!
After PT, the classroom test, and lunch the cadets began EVOC training on vehicle placement. Kev got to be in the patrol car alone and maneuver the course, switch lanes, parallel park, and other back up work. He loved the obstacle course which was in an 'S' shape serpentine with cones and being able to reverse the squad car going 50 mph! After instruction and practice, he passed the test!
TUESDAY:
Tuesday was the skid pan test! Kev learned to skid the back end of the car out around the turns and to regain control of the vehicle. The course has a few turns to practice on. I forget how many turns he got to attempt in order to pass the test but he did it! During this portion of testing he only had to go 25 mph. Skid pan POST testing, done! He also took a test in the morning on unusual occurrences, like plane crashes, and received a 100%!
WEDNESDAY:
More PT fun, aka 500 mountain climbers followed by a run too of course :) After PT torture, EVOC consisted of a driving simulator where you sit in a chair with screens and controls in front of you. Kev said all the movement and lanes flying by on the screen almost gave him motion sickness. After lunch, they went to do 11:99 and code 3 driving, the fun stuff! If you have read the book Cadet Blues, it was just like Krider describes when he talks about 'chasing the rabbit' with the squad car following close behind him. Kev described it pretty much exactly the same and said the hardest part was keeping his speed up while talking on the radio. Kev said during the test at the end of instruction, he had two officers in his vehicle because one was being evaluated or reviewed. Most of the other cadets only had one officer in the car with them, but Kev had one in the front seat and another in the back which made him a little nervous. Code 3 driving took him two tries but he passed! The cadets get one practice evaluation and if you pass it counts, if not you get one more practice run and then the test. I believe this is only the case for the POST testing of EVOC.
Kev passed all three of his EVOC POST tests and three of his learning domain tests by Wednesday of this week! He still has one more test today (Thursday)! Sadly, Kev's company did lose one guy to Code 3 driving though. The other company lost 2 cadets to EVOC. We are still going strong and Kev learning to drive for the CHP! Every time I talk to him he is on Cloud 9! The cadets even get to practice in the cars on their own at approved times.
All in all, this has been an exciting week thus far. Here at home I am looking forward to having Kev home this weekend since it was a rough week for me with my Dad's surgery but thankfully we are all doing well now. I always miss Kev, but seeing him on the weekends only is starting to feel more normal. I'm doing really well with my diet and exercise and I've been focusing on that a lot during the week in addition to work in order to continue to better myself while Kev is doing the same at the academy :) We are looking forward to the 80 degree weather in the Bay this weekend and getting some sun BBQing poolside! We may have to pull out a few notecards and practice arrest techniques while we are at it, but it shouldn't be too bad studying out in the sun. Only a couple more days to wrap up week 11!
- Mimi
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