Ludovic, from Artillery to Welkit Paris.
Our dear customers of the Parisian store have surely already met Ludovic, this tall guy over 2 meters. Ludovic has been working at Welkit for several months now but has a rich background as he spent almost 2 years in the Army before serving in the Gendarmerie for 5 years. We took advantage of a small visit to the store to ask him a few questions about his experience and memories as a soldier and gendarme afterwards...
David Murphy: Hi Ludo, can you tell us a bit about your background and why you wanted to become a soldier?
Ludovic: It's actually something I wanted to do since I was little, and I joined the army as soon as I could, at the age of 17 and a half. I specifically chose the Army because I wanted to move and I was looking for action. At the time, the army decision-makers found me a bit young to go into the infantry, so I was integrated into the artillery.
DM: I imagine you had to undergo rigorous training before you could join a division. What comes to mind when you remember those moments?
L: The cold and the mud (laughs)! I actually have a pretty funny anecdote: we were in the Ardennes and one evening, we got scolded by our Sergeant, for a reason I prefer to keep to myself (laughs). What I haven't forgotten, however, is that we ended up in our underwear, marching, in the snow. At one point, they put us between 2 buildings, so we could really feel the drafts. Then our Sergeant looks at us and asks: "And now? Do you feel the cold?" One of my comrades tried to say something but the Sergeant cut him off and said, "No, you are soldiers. And soldiers don't feel the cold. Cold is a civilian sensation." We all froze in place (laughs). At the time, I didn't really appreciate that moment but today, it's a good memory.
DM: Were the first months of integration difficult?
L: Not really. The training lasted 6 months in total: 3 months of basic and 3 months of specialization. What struck me the most, however, was the "formatting". I don't mean that in a pejorative sense, but when we arrive, we are made to understand that we are all equal. No matter your past, your education, your physique, your religion, your family, or your origin. We all have the same haircut, do the same tasks, and are all dressed in the same uniform. Personally, I learned a lot about the spirit of mutual aid, respect, and camaraderie. I think experiencing this could help a lot of young people, unfortunately a bit lost these days. It provides a framework and it's something that still serves me today, in my everyday life.
DM: In six months of training, you must have learned and done a lot of things...
L: Absolutely. The first 3 months allowed me to learn the basics, both physical and tactical. You go through a lot but you learn to aim, shoot, mark a spot on the ground, the phonetic alphabet... it's the basics of being a soldier! Conversely, in the last 3 months, you really start to have fun because it's training specific to your specialization. And it becomes, therefore, much more concrete...
DM: Did you have any apprehensions when you were "officially" engaged after the 6 months of training?
L: Not really. Everything happens very quickly and you get into the rhythm quickly. As a result, the lifestyle in the barracks becomes a habit. Without really realizing it, you are as precise as a clock: you get up at the same time every day, make your bed like every day, go to breakfast, then to the assembly and you are ready at the same time, you know how to choose and configure your equipment... we would go to shooting practice like others go shopping, without apprehensions! And if you make a mistake, you are made to understand that it was the first, only, and last time you made it (laughs). After 6 months, you are really set and structured. I learned a lot about cohesion in the army, but even more in the gendarmerie afterward!
DM: You stayed in the army for several years, and after an injury (double calf tear), you decided to stop. After a bit of rest, what pushed you to join the Gendarmerie?
L: I needed action! I realized that I missed it way too much. And since I was physically fit again... I went for it!
DM: Did you feel big differences during your integration into the gendarmerie?
L: Differences yes, but especially in terms of people and profiles. I knew a guy in the army who was a cleaner before joining. He didn't know how to write and sometimes asked me to fill out his papers. But we all helped him, we didn't leave anyone behind. We were a real family because we all lived together in the same barracks, under the same tent, we hung out in the same mud... I think the army brought a lot to people who came from nowhere and had nothing, or who had lost everything. Often, these are people without diplomas who struggled to find a job or their place in civilian society. The gendarmerie was a bit different. The people there already had at least a high school diploma, so a more advanced education from the start. We were more "brothers" than a family. It's also normal because we didn't spend as much time together. For example, even if we lived under the same roof, we each had our own apartment. It remained a military cohesion, but different, each with its specificities, its advantages, and its "flaws"... at least, that's how I experienced it!
DM: Did you have a specific goal when you joined the Gendarmerie?
L: Yes, initially I wanted to join an intervention platoon. That couldn't happen so I joined the Republican Guard where I stayed for 5 years, in Paris. I did, among other things, barracks surveillance and close surveillance. I also took the parachute packer training at the G.I.G.N., but unfortunately, my tear reappeared. During a march, with all my gear on my back, the doctor came to see me and advised me to stop immediately, as my calf was about to tear definitively. I didn't want to risk being in a wheelchair for a year so I stopped, hoping to come back a bit later. Unfortunately, I never could...
DM: In hindsight, do you have any bad memories of your time in the army and then in the gendarmerie?
L: When you're struggling in the field, you think it's going to be a bad memory. But with a few years of hindsight, it's always the hardest moments, where you complain for weeks, that turn out to be the best! I remember once, crossing a river at -10° degrees... my wet uniform was turning into an ice cube, and so was I, by the way! At the time, I hated it. And then 6 months later, when you're on guard duty, you think back and realize that actually, we had a lot more fun in the snow (laughs). After a while, it becomes a game.
DM: You must have fired a number of weapons during your career...
L: Oh yes! I fired the FAMAS with its grenade launcher (APV40, anti-personnel and AC58, anti-tank), G36, UMP45, MP5, shotgun, tear gas launcher, mortar, HK USP, Sig 226 and 2022, Beretta, Colt, PAMAC, Minimi, and even the AT4! I also fired once with a P90 in the gendarmerie. But the most intense sensations I had were with the Browning M2 heavy machine gun and its 12.7 mm ammunition. The noise is impressive, as are the damages on light vehicles and walls... and seeing all the shells... it felt like being in a movie!
DM: Finally, do you have any advice for a young person wishing to become a soldier, whether in the army or the gendarmerie?
L: Do sports! A lot, a lot of sports! You have to prepare physically and mentally. Staying awake from 7 am to 7 am the next day, even if you're just sitting on a chair, is not that easy. You have to keep in mind that you will be men or women of action, that you will sometimes be far from your family, and that it will often be difficult, if not impossible, to have fixed hours like in civilian life. But if you feel that you are made for this, go for it!
Thank you, Ludovic, for sharing your experience with us. Feel free to visit him at the Welkit Paris store, 4 rue Louis Lejeune, 92120 Montrouge.
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