Couple Q's before going to BMQ

[SeanPaul_031]

1)I checked in the archives and there seemed to be many diff answers to this so here it is: Would it be a problem to bring a 5lb bucket of whey protein? And if not, where would I keep it?

2)A couple guys suggested bringing a combat knife for the field. I have a legal one, but how would I bring it with me to St. Jean if im travelling by air (as Im assuming it would not be allowed on the plane).?

3)Are all the items in the kit list, availabe for purchase at the Canex? Things like the shoe shining kit Im hopeing I can buy on base as I want to get the right type of brushes.

4)Combination locks. Some ppl are telling me to bring 3, other ppl are saying dont bring any because they have to give you specific ones there?

5)Shaving cream. It says in my kit list "not to be transported by air". Im assuming that means that they wont let me bring shaving cream on the plane and I have to purchase it at the Canex? Ye this is a dumb question but I dont want to have to dry shave for my first week there....

 

[NavComm]

Once you get to bmq they will check everything you have with you. I don't know about the protein but I know that has been talked about on the board before. Maybe someone who knows that better than me can answer. It may have to be cleared by the medical staff. I know if you have any medications they have to be taken to MIR to be cleared (this includes advil, etc).

You won't need a combat knife. In fact I think they would probably take it from you and put it in the civvie lock up. If it's not on the list, it won't be in your possession.

Yes, all items are available at Canex.

Bring 3 locks. One for your locker, one for the other locker where your one civvie outfit goes and one for the gym.

I brought shaving cream on the airplane. We didn't go to Canex until a Tuesday or Wednesday and arrived on base on Saturday night. So bring what you can and what you absolutely need.

 

[SeanPaul_031]

About the combat knife, some of my buddies were telling me it was really useful in the field.

Im wondering if it was kept with the cargo luggage then would it be possible to be brought on the plane with me

 

[Lima_Oscar]

Here is a list from Canadian Air Transport Security Authority:

http://www.catsa-acsta.gc.ca/english/travel_voyage/list.htm

 

[SeanPaul_031]

"Knives or knife-like objects of any length (such as hunting knives, scuba knives, swords, sabers, meat cleavers, straight razors and religious knives)" are permitted on checked baggage.

Niiice, thanks for the link Lima

 

[SeanPaul_031]

;D hah, for all the dominatrixes out there, you are allowed to bring whips in your carry-on baggage

 

[Island Ryhno]

1) No
2) No
3) Yes
4) Bring Four
5) Bring the damn shaving cream, if you are overly concerned about it exploding and crashing your aircraft, get a lotion type or bar soap type.

 

[alexpb]

How long is the flight from Ontario to BMQ in Quebec?

(question for people who live in ontario  )

 

[honestyrules]

Reference the padlocks, on my course, we had to buy the specified padlock for our locker (the one in our cubicle, after all your weapon is in there) and give a spare key to the section commander (the instructor). We went to the canex as a group and been allowed to buy what we needed. Basically ,we had a list of stuff to get...you know (boot polish, brushes...)
It is good to bring a bit of cash, just in case (100$) or so.
3 more combination locks (if you get them before you get there, make sure you memorise the combinations). They give you little coloured stickers to put on them, so you know that the combination of the green dotted one is...makes it faster to open up in a hurry.

As mentioned ,they'll take the knife away from you and might give it back to you just before the field portion of the course (in Farnham for St-Jean). Put it this way, if you bring the big mofo Rambo knife, they'll laugh at you. By the way, you might bring a knife, but you won't require more that a basic 15$ knife for basic anyway.

As mentioned, medication will be taken away from you. If it's something like a puffer or other"prescribed" medication, they'll double check with the medics.

For the supplements ,they'll probably laugh at you and say that you won't need that stuff and they'll take care of your fitness...

Just my two cents and a heads up.

 

[canadianblue]

I was kindof wondering whether or not to buy that stuff on the list in St Jean or at home. However one question I have is this, I leave on September the 10th, and my BMQ start date is on the 12th of September. What will be happening in that extra day, and will all the BMQ recruits be on the same flight from lets say Alberta, etc.

 

[Zensunni]

I'm going to St.Jeans for BMQ on Sept.12th as well. I was wondering the same thing as Futuretrooper concerning whether to buy the things on the list or wait until I am in St.Jeans.

 

[Island Ryhno]

Buy as much of the stuff as you can, then when you get there, they will tell you it's all wrong and go to the canex and buy the proper stuff. Generally, the people from the same city(s) arrive at the same time. So for example, most people in southern Alberta, would leave from Calgary, and in the north Edmonton etc etc. Ontario seems to have people coming in the most in drips and drabs, big population I guess. You are confined to barracks for the Saturday and Sunday while you are waiting to start your course, with everybody else from your platoon. You can go out to eat or to the "break" room. Good luck, enjoy the mega.

 

[NavComm]

Just to add to Rhyno's comment on those first two days.....you will be in a virtual twilight zone. Although the course hasn't started yet, we got kitted up the first night with our book bags, coveralls, pens, pencils, ball caps and pt gear.

The Sunday morning we were woken up at 0530 and pretty much kept busy that entire day. It's all a bit of a fog now but I do remember thinking, "hey, I thought we weren't starting til Monday???"

Like I said, we didn't get to the Canex until the Tues or Wed so bring most of what's on the list. The only thing I needed at Canex was one boot brush, I had everything else on the list and the MS said what I had bought was fine.

Bring lots of white, green and black thread and several good sewing needles.

Put away any notions you have on what you think is a useful item. They will tell you what is useful and what isn't. And if they think that knife is not useful, you will not have it in your possession. If you choose to keep it in your possession anyways, then they will let you know when your flight for home is leaving.

 

[DrSize]

How long is the flight from Ontario to BMQ in Quebec?

(question for people who live in ontario     )

I already have a warning so I can't say anything harsh but have you ever taken a geography class or actually looked at a map????????? Ontario is a HUGE province.  It would take a good 30 hours to drive from Ottawa(eastern ontario) to Kenora(western ontario).........As for flights it probably ranges anywhere from 1-3 hours to fly to Montreal from Ontario depending on what city.

 

[alexpb]

...?

What the heck? What does having looked at a map or taken a geography class have to do with my *simple* question.

Some how i'm supposed to know by looking at a map how long it would take to enter Montreal from any place in Ontario by plane? Give me a break.
I've never been in a plane.

A simple answer would be exactly the last part of your answer, "anywhere from 1-3 hours".

Don't be an ******* about it. Maybe that's why you already have a warning?

 

[onecat]

there is no reason to bring more than one lock, as once your there you will have to buy there locks and they sell special sets of there that all have the same combo.. which is good as its hard enough to remeber one let alone 3 different ones in 4:30 in the morning.  As for cleaning kits buy wnat you will show at the canex, and then just use the stuff bought with for everyday use... for inspections you can keep it in your personal box... ( this a is shoe box so its not big) or in your side bag.  bring cd player or a mp3 player as it gets boring with no music on the weekends.

enjoy its not that hard after week 3 when your getting use the route.

as for the flight question, just look it up on the net. or on your ticket if you have that already, general 3 hours would be the rule, and on hour from montreal to St Jean.  if you ahave friends take a taxi its a 100.00 and way easier than the bus unless its waiting for you.

 

[NavComm]

there is no reason to bring more than one lock, as once your there you will have to buy there locks and they sell special sets of there that all have the same combo.. which is good as its hard enough to remeber one let alone 3 different ones in 4:30 in the morning.  As for cleaning kits buy wnat you will show at the canex, and then just use the stuff bought with for everyday use... for inspections you can keep it in your personal box... ( this a is shoe box so its not big) or in your side bag.  bring cd player or a mp3 player as it gets boring with no music on the weekends.

enjoy its not that hard after week 3 when your getting use the route.

as for the flight question, just look it up on the net. or on your ticket if you have that already.

I wasn't required to buy their locks. I brought 3 and they were fine. Three combination locks, just like the kit list says. Although 3 locks with the same combination would have been nice, I was able to manage with 3 different combinations.

cd players, etc were confiscated in Borden. The kit list explicity says not to bring them. People who did, had them taken away. In week 5 we were given one am/fm clock radio per room, to be placed at Bravo bunk and set to one specific radio station.

Also putting things in the book bag wasn't a great idea either because during week 4 inspections they decided to inspect those bags. Anyone who was storing extra kit in the book bag got it tossed across the room. Anything not issued or on the list or that can't fit in your personal box had to be stored in civvie lockup. If you do bring a cd player, you most likely would keep it in civvie lockup and only get to use it when on leave.

As for flights, just go to aircanada.ca and put in your departure and arrival cities and you will see how long the flights are. We had a long wait at the Toronto airport while recruits from all over the country arrived and we were put on one bus to take us to Borden. Make sure you have some cash or food/water with you as this can be a very long wait.

That's my .02. I realize different courses may have different rules.

 

[DrSize]

...?

What the heck? What does having looked at a map or taken a geography class have to do with my *simple* question.

Some how i'm supposed to know by looking at a map how long it would take to enter Montreal from any place in Ontario by plane? Give me a break.
I've never been in a plane.

A simple answer would be exactly the last part of your answer, "anywhere from 1-3 hours".

Don't be an ******* about it. Maybe that's why you already have a warning?

The point I was making is there would be an extreme difference in the flight if you were flying from Kenora as apose to Ottawa.  Why wouldn't you specify what city you would be flying from?? Makes a huge difference.  Ontario has more than one city you know.....  If you went as far as specifying what city you could even visit the Air Canada site and setup a mock flight that would tell you the EXACT time it would take

 

[P-Free]

alexpb and others wondering the length of their flight,

Here, check this site. http://www.expedia.ca From Pearson in Toronto it's 1 hour 10 minutes, from the Ottawa airport it is 40 minutes. Just put in your own city as the departing city and put Montreal, PQ as the arrival city.

But you could also travel by train, bus, car, you never know. It all depends on distance I think.

 

[alexpb]

Since i said Ontario, instead of the city, you would use it as a w hole and would say "anywhere from 1-4 hours depending on where you are located"

There would be an educated answer.

There is no way that all of a sudden it would turn into 1-10 hours depending on where you were located in Ontario.
You only have to give a take an hour or so depending on where it is. Ontario isn't the size of Europe.