Roller coaster I: Get Us (The Parents) Through Plebe Year - Class of ‘26 🎢

[USNAhopeful2025]

DS reported his room faces away from the PEP field. However he will to adjust his workout schedule as the Plebes will be using Farragut. Oh well, he is only Yard for a few more days as they prep for YP cruise. However I bet he will enjoy this weekend better than the Plebes although he did talk about doing a 6 mile hike tomorrow with a group and stopping by the NEX??

Mine is doing YP this block too.

 

[Don't Give Up the Ship]

Mine is doing YP this block too.

We will wave Navy Flags from the shore of the Cape Cod Canal when they transit. My ultimate plan is to get a Navy Flag hung on the RR bridge...not sure the Army will like that...

 

[Heatherg21]

Mine is happy to be training for offshore for block 2. They changed the acronym for it, can't recall what it is now. Looking forward to his 2/C year.

 

[F14Weeds83]

Ah ...follow ze man in the red Corvette (detailers wearing Red tshirts)
Where are ze Zupers (Supers !)

Don't forget the "Go Hard! Go Hard! Saturate doz muscles wit blood!"

 

[IronmanDaremo]

Somehow, the upper class parents have hijacked our Plebe thread.

 

[Huursoldaat]

I don't want to get off on a rant here ...
but I'm a member of the 2026 Parents FB group and honestly I am surprised how many parents remain on the yard. I left Annapolis early Friday and didn't attempt to run down to catch a glimpse of my sleep-deprived, stressed Plebe. I thought it was frowned upon and my son wouldn't want me around anyway and I don't want to be there being "that parent". I am grateful for some of the videos being posted as I've been able to see that he is still upright, but really I wonder if it's healthy for the development of the Plebe to have your parents hanging out videoing around every corner.
Anyhow, end of rant. Thanks for listening.

 

[Small Team Bacsi]

“I am grateful for some of the videos”

Some are spending hours at home looking at those photos and videos.

I can’t express how delighted and happy I am that I went thru this process the first time as a parent before social media, before FB, before cell phones, and before all those photos and videos.


IMO it was much less stressful for the parents and grandparents then. We were to a great extent isolated from the process. Now parents seem to be right smack in the middle of the process.

 

[Capt MJ]

“I am grateful for some of the videos”

Some are spending hours at home looking at those photos and videos.

I can’t express how delighted and happy I am that I went thru this process the first time as a parent before social media, before FB, before cell phones, and before all those photos and videos.


IMO it was much less stressful for the parents and grandparents then. We were to a great extent isolated from the process. Now parents seem to be right smack in the middle of the process.

All that does is unhealthily impede the natural separation process.

 

[OldRetSWO]

I don't want to get off on a rant here ...
but I'm a member of the 2026 Parents FB group and honestly I am surprised how many parents remain on the yard. I left Annapolis early Friday and didn't attempt to run down to catch a glimpse of my sleep-deprived, stressed Plebe. I thought it was frowned upon and my son wouldn't want me around anyway and I don't want to be there being "that parent". I am grateful for some of the videos being posted as I've been able to see that he is still upright, but really I wonder if it's healthy for the development of the Plebe to have your parents hanging out videoing around every corner.
Anyhow, end of rant. Thanks for listening.

When I was back for I Day as an alumni parent in the late 00's, I heard about the parents who lingered from some USNA leaders and they said that it was a tough problem for them as parents would scream "Hi Johnny!" or "Smile Susie!" etc as the plebes were marching or doing other evolutions and that it was difficult for both the embarrassed plebes as well as the upperclass who were trying to get things done in what is actually a fairly tight timeframe.

 

[Capt MJ]

When I was back for I Day as an alumni parent in the late 00's, I heard about the parents who lingered from some USNA leaders and they said that it was a tough problem for them as parents would scream "Hi Johnny!" or "Smile Susie!" etc as the plebes were marching or doing other evolutions and that it was difficult for both the embarrassed plebes as well as the upperclass who were trying to get things done in what is actually a fairly tight timeframe.

And the plebes aren’t seasoned enough adults to know it’s the parents who should be embarrassed, not them. Time to slip into game face, eyes of stone, no reaction, wall them out mode and focus on task at hand.

 

[Huursoldaat]

Yeah if no videos or pictures were available I would not really miss them. USNA has the process well refined and will get the vast majority of kids through. I would not want to be there mucking things up, causing issues by distracting plebes (my son included) from fully benefiting from the transition taking place.

@Capt MJ hit the nail on the head - I would be embarrassed to be there lurking looking for a Waldo sighting.

 

[Rarely27]

They get lunch and dinner. The idea that they "need" lunch and dinner is a parent thing and not connected to the actual Mid experience.

Following this I didn’t get her much, just a wrap from the coffee shop and gummy bears from Walgreens. She had water in the canteen but we had cold ones in a little cooler so she refilled with that, It was plenty i ended eating the chips that came with the wrap. We saw people with really large coolers!! I think that’s unnecessary

 

[Capt MJ]

Yeah if no videos or pictures were available I would not really miss them. USNA has the process well refined and will get the vast majority of kids through. I would not want to be there mucking things up, causing issues by distracting plebes (my son included) from fully benefiting from the transition taking place.

@Capt MJ hit the nail on the head - I would be embarrassed to be there lurking looking for a Waldo sighting.

Sadly, some do not know when to be embarrassed. I feel my over-judgey-drive kicking in, so I will stand down. People are going to convince thrmselves that what they are doing is just fine, a story as old as time.

 

[Huursoldaat]

Following this I didn’t get her much, just a wrap from the coffee shop and gummy bears from Walgreens. She had water in the canteen but we had cold ones in a little cooler so she refilled with that, It was plenty i ended eating the chips that came with the wrap. We saw people with really large coolers!! I think that’s unnecessary

My son said his lunch was making his own sandwich in company area. He said it was "ok". We had a sandwich and chips for him (from Big Cheese) and he ate most of it, as well as a cold gatorade we had for him. I think he would have liked more Gatorade. Yes I saw somebody with the full on rolling cooler, it looked unnecessary. I went for the lighter approach and it was fine for us.

 

[Rarely27]

Parents will be congregating around T-Court well before 1600 (and saving spots on the bleachers with blankets, which I do not approve of).

Not only towels on the bleachers. Some people printed “reserved” signs and stick them to the chairs, others had sticky notes with their last name, not one or 2 but 6-8. I find this completely disrespectful, what’s even worse is that this was advised by a moderator in one of the FB groups, you will think that the moderator knows better. Closer to oath ceremony a few groups of chairs on the front sides were open and parents “without reserved sits” were able to take them and have way better view. Us one of those. We sat a few feet from our DD when they marched in and have the most amazing first row pictures of that moment.

 

[Usnavy2019]

Just like most colleges, USNA experiences helicopter parenting. PS is a transition period for both sides. Mids learn that they are rank and file now. Parents also deal with not being there every step of the way in their child's life journey.

The parent-Academy dynamic is an interesting one. I think it is a good example of the civil-military divide present within society. Besides those parents who are AD, Reserve, Guard, or veterans, most either do not have or have only tangential knowledge of how the military works. The civil-military divide is not like a political divide. There is no adversarial relationship. The term simply covers the gap between the the culture of society and the culture of the military that protects said society. Currently, while the majority of society is supportive of the military, they aren't well-versed in how the military functions. There is no requirement to, but a select few make no effort to understand it. So every negative or weird decision/policy/situation turns into a rant, a call to Congress, etc. There are a lot things that happen at USNA that are normal/reasonable at a military command, but wouldn't make sense out of context or in the civilian world.

Regardless, the Parents' Group is really good at knowing things. They would know the Brigade had a snow day before the Brigade would learn about it.

And if anyone needs a new hobby or thing to research, look at civil-military relations. The US military is in a unique place in American culture. I find it really interesting to see the different dynamics at play in this unique relationship.

Disclaimer: This is not in any way an attack. Simply, this is just pointing out an underlying reason why some parents might go a bit overboard. The parents here are not at all part of the "select few." Just by y'all making an account on SAF, you are taking an interest in learning about how the Academy and the military does business. Dialogue is how to close the gap. So, props to you!

 

[FutureAcademyDad?]

Not only towels on the bleachers. Some people printed “reserved” signs and stick them to the chairs, others had sticky notes with their last name, not one or 2 but 6-8. I find this completely disrespectful, what’s even worse is that this was advised by a moderator in one of the FB groups, you will think that the moderator knows better. Closer to oath ceremony a few groups of chairs on the front sides were open and parents “without reserved sits” were able to take them and have way better view. Us one of those. We sat a few feet from our DD when they marched in and have the most amazing first row pictures of that moment.

If you want to reserve seats at a general admission event, regardless of the venue, the only acceptable way is to have someone physically present. And there is an upper limit of 4-6 seats allowable.
JMHO

 

[JaxGolfGuy]

Not only towels on the bleachers. Some people printed “reserved” signs and stick them to the chairs, others had sticky notes with their last name, not one or 2 but 6-8. I find this completely disrespectful, what’s even worse is that this was advised by a moderator in one of the FB groups, you will think that the moderator knows better. Closer to oath ceremony a few groups of chairs on the front sides were open and parents “without reserved sits” were able to take them and have way better view. Us one of those. We sat a few feet from our DD when they marched in and have the most amazing first row pictures of that moment.

We had the same fortune. We had found a spot on the red beach where we could see DD march in. (Thankfully some told us which side 29th would be sitting). Happened to be right next to the seats when they were "uncovered". Grabbed two and enjoyed the ceremony.

 

[Huursoldaat]

I admit I had reserved 2 seats (me and wife). In hindsight, I should have just showed up and grabbed something on the sides or just sat on the ground in the front. Many people just filled in any open spot and had better views than I did. I also wasn't sure if those seats on the side entrances were open to parents, but they were and are probably the best seats, especially the East ones since they were in the shade. Live and learn. I might go back some day for an I Day where I don't have a kid. It would be cool to watch as an observer.

We took a tour of the yard on I Day with a family who just happened to be there touring the day with their son who wants to go. He is 14. I said what a great day to choose. He got to see a lot of interesting stuff and seemed really into the I Day proceedings.

Here's a picture of the reserved seats ( I saw one family reserve 11 seats!)

 

[Small Team Bacsi]

All the plebs at Mass today wore masks. Is that standard now?

In the pictures I saw from the last few days I only saw a few masks.