The largest Army ROTC program in the United States is gearing up this weekend for its biggest event of the year.

About 500 cadets will spend this weekend at Fort Indiantown Gap, a training area for active and reserve army units, said Major Jim Fulbrook, an Army instructor and a student adviser in Penn State's Army ROTC program.

"The weekend is our major training exercise for the year," Fulbrook said.

The cadets leave today on a two-hour bus ride to Fort Indiantown Gap and return Sunday afternoon after a weekend of intense training, he said.

Cadets will live in the barracks for the weekend and eat "real Army mess hall food," Fulbrook said, including meals ready to eat, or MREs.

Cadet Major Aaron Keirn (senior-civil engineering), who participated in the weekend last year, said the MREs were awful.

"If I was stuck in the jungle maybe I could live on them," he said.

But he said the weekend is a good experience for the cadets, adding, "It takes up a lot of time but it's worth it."

The training includes an obstacle course, day and night land navigation and M-16 rifle qualification. Many cadets will fire their rifles for the first time, Fulbrook said.

The training is run entirely by seniors, Fulbrook added. "This weekend represents the culmination of their leadership training."

Cadet Ranger Sergeant Major Bob Nesbit (senior-exercise and sports science) will be one of the seniors in charge this weekend. Nesbit said he will evaluate one squad during the weekend by following the squad around, evaluating its leaders, and giving pointers.

Nesbit said the weekend requires much planning because of the number of people involved.

"It's a good training experience that you don't get all year around," Nesbit said. "You really get to see what people are made of."

This will be the first time Sheila St. Clair (freshman-dairy and animal sciences) participates in the weekend. She said she is looking forward to the training.

"It puts what you've been learning all along into practical experience," St. Clair said. "You have to think on your feet."

Mollie Hogan (sophomore-psychology) participated in the weekend last year and will go again this weekend. She said although the cadets don't sleep much, they have a lot of fun.

Hogan said that last year as a freshman she was really scared, especially when she was made platoon leader. "They really put you on the spot," she said, but added that she benefited from the experience.

Fulbrook said this weekend is the only event during the year when the Army ROTC programs at all Penn State campuses get together. Eleven Commonwealth campuses in addition to University Park have Army ROTC programs, he said. More than 200 cadets are enrolled in Army ROTC at University Park and about 700 at the Commonwealth campuses, he added, making it the largest program in the United States.