What Else to Pack + Bring to I-Day?

All of your replies and info has been super helpful -endless thank!! :)
 
Oliverdad said:
My DS wears contacts, but it said no CONTACTS at all. So do they give him the glasses or can he wear his glasses?
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They should submit their optometrist prescription and will provide glasses. If your DS has glasses, bring and wear them to I day. My DS wears contacts as well and we added a couple cheap glasses straps in his bag for when they’re doing physical stuff: take the contacts, they can use them after basic.
 
Does anyone know if the USAFA really cares if they bring cotton underwear? My daughter would rather wear something more sports-performance type underwear. Cotton actually sounds terrible to me. But the Appointee Handbook clearly states cotton underwear and sports bra. Any guidance on this? Thanks in advance.
 
teksmith said:
Does anyone know if the USAFA really cares if they bring cotton underwear? My daughter would rather wear something more sports-performance type underwear. Cotton actually sounds terrible to me. But the Appointee Handbook clearly states cotton underwear and sports bra. Any guidance on this? Thanks in advance.
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The one thing on the packing list cadets don’t fully follow is the underwear portion. They don’t really need to be white and they are ok to be compression type just make sure they don’t go lower than the PT shorts.
 
teksmith said:
Does anyone know if the USAFA really cares if they bring cotton underwear? My daughter would rather wear something more sports-performance type underwear. Cotton actually sounds terrible to me. But the Appointee Handbook clearly states cotton underwear and sports bra. Any guidance on this? Thanks in advance.
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Performance fabrics are fine. Just don't spend a fortune on them as they will be trash-worthy by the end of BCT. (In other words, hold off on Lululemon)
 
My DS showed up with his backpack and mandatory paperwork in a Manila envelope. He wore his boots with shorts and a collared shirt. He tied his sneakers outside to the top of his backpack. USAFA issued a second pair of boots that he wore out to JV. He didn’t sway from the list outside of lip sunblock.
 
Tagging along the question for the underwears... So all the underwears need to mark the 9 digits ID? Only underwears? Does anyone know why they want to mark the ID onto the underwears?
 
Oliverdad said:
Tagging along the question for the underwears... So all the underwears need to mark the 9 digits ID? Only underwears? Does anyone know why they want to mark the ID onto the underwears?
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Honestly, I don’t think it’s a big deal. Worst case they lose their chonies in the laundry. Mostly it’s fine. If they’re lost, I doubt the numbers will get them back much faster. Probably the least thing to worry about!!
 
FH76 said:
Thinking back on last years items, one thing that was suggested to us and we found very helpful was an inking stamp to label your DS / DD
T Shirts and underwear instead of having to mark it with a sharpie. Hope this helps!!

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This is a great suggestion thank you!
Did anyone use it?
Was it durable?
And is the number on his portal?

Don’t want to order the wrong number. Thank you so much!
 
2026 said:
This is a great suggestion thank you!
Did anyone use it?
Was it durable?
And is the number on his portal?

Don’t want to order the wrong number. Thank you so much!
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My DS just used an old school Sharpie laundry marker and wrote his ID number on his tshirts and compression shorts/underwear. They don’t bring much so it was pretty fast/easy. As I recall, the number was on his appointee paperwork.
 
2026 said:
This is a great suggestion thank you!
Did anyone use it?
Was it durable?
And is the number on his portal?

Don’t want to order the wrong number. Thank you so much!
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Yes, I did this for my C2C. Ordered on Amazon and the numbers stayed through basic, although a lot of those items were tossed after basic. Go cheap on the white shirts. You can get iron on ones as well for dark colors. Their number is in their portal.
 
skyfox said:
The lighter a basic packs, the better. I showed up with my paperwork, a few $20 bills, three pairs of extra socks and skivvies, a toothbrush, my cell phone (turned off) and charger, and two pairs of glasses in a backpack. They gave me everything else. The lighter you are that first day, the better....lots of running around. And you don't want to be "that" guy or gal touting lots of luggage as it draws negative attention from the cadre.

I ran a lot back in those days and I decide to wear my good running shows on day #1, made things much more comfortable with all the scurrying and standing around.
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We are trying to decide what running shoes to buy. What did you bring?
 
Osprey123 said:
We are trying to decide what running shoes to buy. What did you bring?
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Go to your local running store and get properly fitted. They should be able to do a gate analysis for free so that you get the right shoes for you. If they don’t have a neutral color of the shoe you like, they should be able to order something online.
 
Oliverdad said:
Tagging along the question for the underwears... So all the underwears need to mark the 9 digits ID? Only underwears? Does anyone know why they want to mark the ID onto the underwears?
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You don't need the student ID on underwear. The way laundry works is you put all your smaller stuff like underwear and socks in a mesh bag and they just wash the whole mesh bag. That stuff rarely gets lost. But your shirts will be washed outside of any bag, and they get lost all the time, so make sure your student ID is super clear on those. Funny story - my first time doing laundry, I turned in 4 shirts with my name super clearly marked. I got back 4 shirts with 4 different names on them - none of them my own. I asked my cadre what to do and they just responded, "Don't worry about it - that's the best service you'll get from the laundry!"
 
My DD commented last year that her feet got super stinky during BCT because of the cotton socks issued. (It had never been an issue before). If allowed as part of your toiletries I’d bring a small thing of baby powder or something similar to help curb that.
 
Just to check: it says “Hand Carry these items outside of luggage” and we assume that means paperwork and ID’s etc in something like a Manila envelope? And the rest in the luggage/backpack?

And then it says “a customized checklist based on your responses will be generated”. My son has not gotten a personalized checklist yet. I’m not even sure if he will? Is the only thing to focus on for the packing list is this page 15 in the handbook?

And he has not gotten his squadron or mailbox yet…..still waiting on that.

I-Day t minus 2 weeks!
Good luck all as appointees and families get ready for this journey :)
 
My advice to my appointees is that if you can't fit everything into a typical average-sized gym bag (not one of those oversized ones), you have too much.

Pack the list - make sure you have good running shoes, and recommend one good pair of boots that you have broken in. My DS wore his boots on I-Day since his running shoes were lighter in his bag.
 
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