Is Pfc. Nathaniel Laprade the shortest service member of all time? It’s hard to say for sure.

A 4-foot-7-inch man completed Marine boot camp in September, possibly making him the shortest U.S. service member ever.

Pfc. Nathaniel Laprade graduated from Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, South Carolina, on Sept. 1, as the Marine chosen to carry the guidon representing his entire series, according to a Marine Corps news release Tuesday.

  • @CandelestineEnglish
    8•7 months ago

    I feel like being a smaller target is a huge advantage for a modern rifleman. Until it comes time for a long hike with an 80lb pack or something, that’s probably a lot harder just due to physics. Shorter legs means each mile hiked consumes more energy than a taller marine would.

    • @SalamendaciousOP
      9•7 months ago

      Your right, from the article:

      The hikes were tougher. As the lead guide for his series, Laprade led the formation alongside the lanky guide of his platoon, according to the release.

      “Little legs with a little body weight, a lot of weight in the pack and a lot of miles in the hikes,” Laprade said. “That was the hardest part for me, the hikes.”

      • @CandelestineEnglish
        6•7 months ago

        Yeah, I saw a vid yesterday by Civ Div, a volunteer fighter with a youtube, who failed to complete his 4 year term in the Marines. One of his major problems being unable to adequately keep up on the long hikes under heavy load.

        Got me thinking about it. And lo-and-behold, today an article about another short marine. lol

        edit: In the interest of not disrespecting Civ Div, who I admire for how he does good, important work today, I like to think that perhaps the Marine Corps is slowly changing how they integrate new recruits that are particularly short. I wonder if that is the case though.

        Regardless, the accomplishments of both short guys are very respectable imho.