Tracking Down Equipment

I will be going on active duty in late May. As a guardsman, this commitment brings about a few challenges. Before you can leave the National Guard, you must turn in all of your TA-50. For those of you who do not know what TA-50 is, it is the standard issue that every soldier receives. These are things like the rucksack, kevlar, and sleeping bag. Over the course of three years of training and ROTC events, it can be very easy to lose items. Also, there are always people who will need to borrow things here and there. As a piece of advice, be very careful about who you are loaning your equipment to. Many items will have the tendency to disappear throughout your career. There are two very important factors to keep in mind. First, you will have to pay for any items that you fail to return. Second, many items are grossly overpriced. For example, a pair of Goretex pants cost $94. Combining these two factors can make for an expensive weekend, especially if you are prone to losing things. Once you know that you will be turning equipment in soon, start consolidating it. It can wear on your mind if you keep trying to figure out where everything is. Just put everything in one place until it comes time to give it back. The last major challenge comes from having ROTC equipment in addition to the National Guard TA-50. It can be confusing, but I have a suggestion for identifying where your equipment is from. If it looks like it is from the 70's, it's ROTC equipment; if it looks like it's from the mid 90's, it is from the National Guard.