The final test of boot camp is called the Crucible and includes a series of challenges. Private 1st Class Matthew Harvey wrote to his mother about his experience:
“Our team had to move a wounded Marine from one spot to another and then get the rest of the team to safety, with next to no materials, and the clock ticking. I suggested the team move from roof to roof to quickly escape. My team looked at me like I was crazy. I told them that in combat, we use whatever means available to achieve our objective safely, and the instructor didn’t say we couldn’t. The team finally agreed. We achieved our goal in 2 minutes, while the other teams took 15 minutes to finish. The Drill Instructor said, ‘In all these years, I have never had a team use that kind of solution. Good job, and way to think about your possibilities. You won the challenge.’
“Mom, it was all DI,” Matthew added. “In DI we worked as a team for points; now we work as a team because it is life and death.”
