APREP - I passed!

Well, that's one more step done out of a long list of steps on the path to employment with the LRPS. I only had one class on Friday at 10:00 AM, and I had my wife and a bunch of my school friends show up to support me for my APREP test at 11:30. They waited downstairs while I went up to the Molson room and signed alot of paperwork which said I could run the test. After this, we all went downstairs to the gym where the obstacle course was all set up and ready to go. The Be Fit for Life is the organization who runs the police physical fitness exams for the LRPS and the RCMP. The lady wouldn't remember me, but the test administrator is the same one who ran my PARE exam when I applied for the RCMP back in 2009. Funny how our paths crossed again, huh?

Before we could run the test, we had to listen to the test administrators talk about each stage and watch them demonstrate how to properly do each stage. I was the third person in line to run the obstacle course. Each of us had to wear a 15 lb belt during this portion of the test. For those of you who watched the video in my last post, you will know what I am talking about. It's heavier than it looks to wear that belt! It didn't make a big difference for me during the course; I've been going to the gym religiously during the past couple of months, and it has definitely been helping me become stronger and have greater endurance. I am actually sad and feel like I am being lazy when I don't get to go to the gym in the morning! I love going now because I am seeing such a great return for all my hard work. I highly recommend everyone to spend some time on themselves in working out - it makes a big difference on your energy level throughout the day!

Anyhow, back to the APREP.The pass time for running the obstacle course is 2:10. I was happy to see the administrator mark 1:26 down on my paper! I couldn't believe I ran that fast! It was great to see that number and to know that one stage was done and there was only one stage left to do. The other half of the APREP test is to do a 20 meter shuttle run, or "Beep Test". This is also described on the CPS recruiting website from my last blog post. I was a little nervous about this stage, not that I normally wouldn't be able to finish it, but that my legs felt like jello from running the obstacle course. Because I was near the first of the pack in running the obstacle course, I was given extra time to rest before I had to run the beep test. The passing stage for the beep test for the LRPS is stage 7. You basically run back and forth between two lines which are 20 meters apart. Every time the CD player beeps, you have to be across the other line. After a stage finishes and another one starts, the beeps become closer together, which means you need to constantly be increasing your speed as the time goes on. I was told the beep test we were being tested on sets each stage up to be completed in one minute; that equals seven minutes of running getting progressively faster. As I got to level 3.5, all I could think of is, "I'm half way there, don't give up now!" This wasn't just some test for my gym classes, like the ones I have had all semester; this was essentially my career on the line. There was no way in the world I was stopping before I hit stage 7, cramps or no cramps!

It was a really good experience to run this test. I think the reason I loved running it was because it was great to see my level of fitness improving. It was also fun to have the recruiting officer, his assistant, a patrol member and two detectives from the LRPS there to watch us run. My guess is they were coming to see the "possible recruits" in action. I'm hoping the next stages of the application go as smoothly and great as today's did. I'll post some more of what's going on when I hear the next step in the next week or two.