Food at the Citadel

[eagleman]

Okay, so I did the pre-knob program at the Citadel and loved it. I am strongly considering going there, but I have one concern. This may sound a bit weird, but when we were eating in the mess halls with the knobs I tried eating about the same amount as the knobs around me.

Anyway, I noticed I was hungry throughout the program. However, I am a pretty skinny guy (6 ft. 150 lbs.) So it is not like I am a big dude and consuming a ton of food a meal.

So my questions is: are knobs only able to eat a certain amount, or can they eat as much as they want? It does not seem like this would be since your are burning calories throughout the day.

I am just concerned I will lose weight unhealthily if I go through such an experience.

 

[SCcandidate2015]

Depends on how much your mess carvers follow the rules. The mess carvers are the guys at the ends of the tables. Their official role is to uphold good order and discipline, and that is ALL. They are supposed to allow the Knobs to eat whatever they want and however much of it they want, and they are not supposed to make them eat anything if they don't want it. Furthermore, Knobs are supposed to get food before the mess carver gets food. Knobs are also supposed to be granted unrestricted access to condiments of any sort.

With that said, how much these rules are followed is dependent upon the individual mess carver. Many of them, if not most of them, are good at following the rules "to the t." Mine was great. I never had a single problem during mess. I mean, the food absolutely sucked, but, I ate whatever I wanted and however much of it I wanted. Mess carvers have to undergo "certification," and this certification is generally presided over by the Battalion TACs (commissioned officers in charge of battalions). This consists of a Powerpoint presentation, a lecture, and a Q&A thing. My TAC was really good about impressing upon potential mess carvers the fact that they would follow the rules, or face the consequences. So, most mess carvers in my battalion were good to the Knobs and followed the rules. But, there were a few bad apples.

But, ultimately, it just depends on if your mess carver is a DB or not, and if he is, if anyone's going to be ballsy and tell someone about it.