Training Academy No. 13: Week 13

March 30-April 4, 2025
Author: 22-year-old, from Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan

Week 13 marks the halfway point of Conservation Officer Training Academy #13. We all agreed that the first half had gone by in a flash. At the end of week 12, we were told to expect that the following week would be long, but it would also be the best week of our time at the Michigan State Police Training Academy facility. We were excited when we found out Sunday evening that Week 13 was emergency vehicle operation training. We were briefed on how we needed to operate as a class throughout this week and moving forward.

Photo caption: Recruits operate a CO patrol truck through a cone course setup on a drive track (photo from 2018).

Monday after physical training, we reported for our first class of EVO. We were all excited for EVO throughout our first 13 weeks at academy, but nobody knew just how the week would go. During our safety brief, we were informed that EVO would not be like our normal classes. During EVO, we were allowed to enjoy snacks and refreshments such as coffee. We all were hesitant to help ourselves because we had not been exposed to anything like this up until that point, but then we took advantage of the opportunity. During our first portion of EVO, we spent time in the classroom going over what the class structure would be like and what we would be doing throughout the week. Our second half of the day was on the drive track in MSP Tahoes. We drove the Tahoes because of their similarities to the Chevrolet Silverado patrol trucks we will operate in the field. We started our week with evasive maneuvers and precision driving. This involved navigating around cones, swerving and braking, and driving through tight spaces like the two-tracks we will be on when patrolling.

For Tuesday morning PT, we divided into teams and were instructed to run a lap around the track in-step as a team, then to complete as many repetitions as possible of an exercise within 10 minutes. These exercises always motivate us to compete and push ourselves.  When we arrived at EVO, we were instructed to prepare all the vehicles for the day, including checking the oil, tire pressure, lug nut torque, lighting and making sure vehicles were in good operational condition. When we are in the field, we will be required to inspect our own patrol trucks. We began operating MSP Dodge Chargers on the skid pad (a portion of the drive track that is a slippery surface) to practice maintaining vehicle control. We switched to MSP Chargers because they were equipped with special braking technology that put the vehicle into a skid by the push of a button, controlled by the instructor. Later in the day we got back in the Tahoes and began practicing our performance driving at 25 and 40 mph, making sure we are laying a strong foundation before we picked up the speed. Performance driving consisted of laps around the MSP drive track, perfecting how to navigate different types of turns at high speeds. 
Wednesday for EVO, Mother Nature threw us a curve ball, raining all day. Rain did not stop us from completing our skid track evaluations and picking up the speed in our performance driving – doing laps up to 60 mph.

We can almost always count on at least one morning PT in the tank, and this Thursday I think we all knew that’s what we were getting. We swam and treaded water with bricks as well as completing our usual tank circuit. I am part of the half of the class that prefers to hear we are getting in the tank in the morning compared to lining up for a run. Thursday, we prepared to be tested on our performance drive skills. Each student is evaluated to drive within 80% of their capabilities to leave 20% for error while driving. A few students were nervous with performance driving. It pushes us to find our driving capabilities. Some of the recruits found that fine line of being on and off the road throughout the week but all recruits remained calm and completed the course. After we all completed our performance driving evaluations, we got into the DNR patrol trucks and practiced evasive maneuvers and performance driving. Recruits were excited to get behind the wheel of the DNR trucks. Thursday evening, EVO staff set up a pursuit scenario in the dark. Recruits were assigned pairs of two cars to locate and pull over a suspect in a vehicle being operated by someone pretending to outrun the police, (driven by our EVO staff and instructors). This pretend traffic stop turned into a pursuit scenario on the drive track in which we navigated different courses that simulated being on real streets. We had to avoid obstacles and safely navigate intersections. The focus of this scenario was for recruits to maintain a safe pursuit and stay within their capabilities while maintaining composure in the heat of the moment.

While we are not usually at the academy on Friday, after our long night of pursuits, we were instructed to only report to chow and class on Friday to cap off our week. When we reported to EVO at 0800, we took our written EVO exam and then conducted our final driving assessment. For this assessment, we were to demonstrate all we had learned throughout the week to pass the Michigan Commission on Law Enforcement Standards requirements using our DNR patrol trucks. Everyone in the class felt a sense of pride when we were informed that we had all passed and completed EVO.

I feel that taking the role of class commander this week has made me more confident in my abilities and what I am capable of. I thank my fellow recruits who gave me their all this week and helped me when I turned to them for advice. I was proud of the week we had and proud to see how far we have come. We all learned a lot about driving, but I believe we all had some time to learn more about each other and grow closer since we were able to be in a more relaxed environment. We are halfway into our academy, and I feel how we are operating as one unit and have become the family we were told we would become. 

Read Week 14.