How am I doing so far?

IcedZealot

5-Year Member
Joined
Dec 3, 2013
Messages
75
I am currently a junior.
-My weighted cumulative GPA is a 4.4 (I've been ranked #1 to #2 in my junior class since freshman year)
-I'm on Varsity Cross Country and Track (I made all conference CC this year)
-I have half a dozen office positions(One is co president of math club - 3 years)
-I have +100 hours of Community Service and counting.
-I will be attending Boys State next summer
-Most of my classes are AP and Honor Courses(1 elective this year)\
-I made 1st place for writing a speech for the Veterans of Foreign Wars Locally
-I'm an A+ student(National Program)
-Clubs involved in: Art Club (Student Council Rep), Math (Co President), Class of 2015 Treasurer, Chess Club (I represented my team at the state tournament freshman year), LEAD Club (Student Council Rep & Historian), and FCCLA.
- My ACT is currently a 21. I'm working hard to bring it up.
- I'm in pretty good shape, but I need to practice the BB throw and Cadence Pull ups. (They are A LOT tougher than regular pull ups lol.
- And for the record, my dad is retired Army (20 years - Infantry)

Any input or suggestions would be very appreciated! :D
 
I am currently a junior.
-My weighted cumulative GPA is a 4.4 (I've been ranked #1 to #2 in my junior class since freshman year)
-I'm on Varsity Cross Country and Track (I made all conference CC this year)
-I have half a dozen office positions(One is co president of math club - 3 years)
-I have +100 hours of Community Service and counting.
-I will be attending Boys State next summer
-Most of my classes are AP and Honor Courses(1 elective this year)\
-I made 1st place for writing a speech for the Veterans of Foreign Wars Locally
-I'm an A+ student(National Program)
-Clubs involved in: Art Club (Student Council Rep), Math (Co President), Class of 2015 Treasurer, Chess Club (I represented my team at the state tournament freshman year), LEAD Club (Student Council Rep & Historian), and FCCLA.
- My ACT is currently a 21. I'm working hard to bring it up.
- I'm in pretty good shape, but I need to practice the BB throw and Cadence Pull ups. (They are A LOT tougher than regular pull ups lol.
- And for the record, my dad is retired Army (20 years - Infantry)

Any input or suggestions would be very appreciated! :D

Your ACT is well under the minimum so you have to bring that up. I saw a stat today that the average ACT of an accepted applicant is around a 29. Other then that, get as many leadership positions a possible and train for your CFA.
 
Yeah, I've been practicing for both like mad lol! I'm currently at 45ft for the Bb throw, and I'm working on those Cadence pull ups. I can currently do 5 at a time on a good day.
 
Yeah, I've been practicing for both like mad lol! I'm currently at 45ft for the Bb throw, and I'm working on those Cadence pull ups. I can currently do 5 at a time on a good day.

For the pull-ups nothing will help but more pull-ups! Or let-downs... if you can't manage another pull-up, climb a step-ladder, grip the bar and let yourself down as slow as you can manage. But for the BB-throw, technique is everything. Lots of good advice on here about the throw, but I think the most important thing is the launch angle. You need to either use a video camera or an observer to make sure the ball leaves your hand at very close to a 45-degree angle. If you're throwing too flat OR too high, it doesn't matter how hard you throw it, gravity will beat you every time. Good luck!
 
I took the CFA at SLE this past summer, and the pull-ups were not cadence pull-ups, just at your own pace. I would recommend rehearsing the CFA all together. I can do about 80 push-ups in 2 minutes, but after b-ball throw, pull-ups, sit-ups and shuttle run it dropped to 67. Also, my mike took about 15 more seconds than my normal mile (still under 6 minutes).
 
WCS...

This single most effective way of improving your WCS is to bring your ACT/SAT scores up. The ACT in the 30 and SAT 700, there is no compromise in these test score

Push Hard, Press Forward
 
Like everyone has said, try to increase your score as much as you can. For the BB throw, try to get over at least a 50. You're almost there.
 
For the BB throw, I heard it's"illegal" to throw the ball sideways (The whole twisting motion with your core and left hand while leaning back)? And for the push ups, when taking the test, does it matter how far you spread your hands? Because I've been training with my hands closer in so that when I take the test I can spread them farther apart so I can perform more reps. And for the pull ups, I'm doing as many as I can do about 3 times a day, so I think I'll be in better shape when the time comes. For the ACT, I've been taking practice tests every day.

USMA!!!
 
It has been a while since my CFA, but from what I can remember for the BB Throw the rules are that you must have your knees on the same plane/in line with each other, you must throw with one arm and you cannot touch your hands to the ground after the throw. Other than that you can throw it however you want to. I remember watching videos of people putting the ball into their inside elbow like a soccer goalie would and throwing it like that. Personally, I simply throw it like a football because that's my style and I got 90ft. I started at 72 ft. and after throwing the football with a buddy of mine every single day for a few months (Just for fun, not for CFA training) I raised my BB throw 18ft (from 72 to 90). Push ups hands can be wherever you want, make sure you go down to where your triceps are parallel to the ground and you are fully extended when you come up. Pulls ups, you must start from a dead hang and then pull yourself so your chin is above the bar (DONT GO ANY HIGHER, IT IS A WASTE OF ENERGY) and then go to where your arms are fully extended again. Rinse and repeat. I apologize for the copious amounts of run-on sentences that are probably within this response.
 
You can twist your torso, there is no rule against that and if there were I can guarantee you the average wouldn't be as high as it is. Twisting your torso is a natural motion as you throw, even with a grenade! HAHA
 
For the BB throw, I heard it's"illegal" to throw the ball sideways (The whole twisting motion with your core and left hand while leaning back)?

The instructions state:

" The candidate must:
Keep his/her knees parallel to and behind the baseline and on the floor during the event.
May use a 1-inch mat to cushion the knees.
Execute three trials in a 2-minute time period.
May use the non-throwing hand to steady the ball.
Not touch the floor beyond the baseline with any part of the body until the basketball has landed."

Not sure exactly what you mean by "throwing sideways", but if your knees are parallel to the baseline and you throw the ball perpendicular to the baseline, you've followed the rules. You definitely should lean back and twist at the waist, then get some momentum going forward before you finish your arm motion. But as I said before, you really need to focus on throwing the ball up at a 45 degree angle - too high or too low will take several feet off your distance.
 
+1 ^ You say you're in AP classes...use that AP Physics brain, derive a formula for maximum distance based of angle of trajectory. I guarantee you 45 degrees will be the solution! HAHA Also, avoid putting side spin on the ball, it pushes the ball left/right which also reduces distance. I put backspin on my throws which keeps it going straight.
 
I contacted the admissions office at west point, and he said the BB throw must be overhand... it's gna be tougher that way, but I'll just have to practice, practice, practice. And thanks for the tips. I'll definitely use them! And did you get accepted to west point, WestPoint2017? Thanks again for the guide. It'll help me prep accordingly beforehand :D And yeah, I'll work on the backspin and 45 degree shot. I'll have my training buddy watch to see if I'm off.
 
And I read something about how West Point accepts you according to your district? So I live in Missouri, will my current district make it easier for me to get accepted? Like, will my Candidate overall score even be compared against those up in New York?
 
I contacted the admissions office at west point, and he said the BB throw must be overhand... it's gna be tougher that way, but I'll just have to practice, practice, practice. And thanks for the tips. I'll definitely use them! And did you get accepted to west point, WestPoint2017? Thanks again for the guide. It'll help me prep accordingly beforehand :D And yeah, I'll work on the backspin and 45 degree shot. I'll have my training buddy watch to see if I'm off.

I was fully qualified with a nom but not selected (QNS). I am reapplying though as a sophomore in college. Currently I am fully qualified once again, with a nomination and LOE. Overhand is easier in my opinion, but like I said that's my style haha.
 
What is your gpa and act/sat? And good luck to ya! I know the Fitness test is only 10%, but does it really make a huge difference between you and the man who didn't perform as well? And good luck to you!
 
And I read something about how West Point accepts you according to your district? So I live in Missouri, will my current district make it easier for me to get accepted? Like, will my Candidate overall score even be compared against those up in New York?

You apply for a nomination from your senators (Blunt & McCaskill) and your Representative (from your specific congressional district). Also, since your father was career Army you would likely be elligible for the Presidential nomination.

I too live in MO. I can tell you that the strength of your district will differ depending on where you are in the state. StL, KC, Springfield produce the largest number of service academy cadets/midshipmen. My district, which is located in one of those urban areas, is fairly competitive. I have a 35 composite ACT, my good friend who lives nearby and is also applying has a 34 composite ACT (both of us have 4.2 GPAs and extracurriculars). From glancing at a name sheet during my nomination interview I would guess that there were at least 50 kids in my district that had completed a nomination application (for any academy, not necessarily USMA). I would wager that a decent number of those kids had over a 30 on the ACT.

On Senator Blunt's website it says that the average ACT for people that have won his nomination the past few years was a 29.

I also attended SLE, and from briefings I would guess that there were about 7-9 candidates from MO present. 4ish from StL, 3ish from KC, and I think there was a kid from Columbia or Jeff City
 
There are multiple phases to the competition. For each nomination you have, you compete against the folks who have that same nomination. So all of a Senator's nominee's are competing against one another. One of them gets selected and others who are qualified go on the national waiting list and compete again from there. If you have multiple nominations, you get multiple chances to win this competition in the same manner. If you make it to the national waiting list you will be compared to folks across the nation (eg. in NY etc.)
 
You can receive a maximum of 800 points for the CFA in regards to your WCS. So yes, every point matters, if you are placed on the NWL it can get as close as one point separating you from the guy that gets an appointment or doesn't get one!
 
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