What are the Marine Corps CFT events?

The order of events and the test period

Chapter 3 of the order calls the CFT a complement to the PFT. It measures added functional elements of fitness, including agility, coordination and anaerobic capacity. The three events are MTC, AL and MANUF. The order allows no deviation from that sequence.

All three run in a single session of no more than two hours. Rest between events must be at least five minutes.

The test window for active duty Marines runs from 1 July to 31 December each year. The order gives the same window to Reserve Marines.

The only authorized uniform is the Marine Corps Combat Utility Uniform and boots. A watch cap, kneepads or elbow pads, a sweatshirt and gloves may be worn. For the lift, Marines wear a green short-sleeve t-shirt so the monitor can see the elbows lock out. The blouse is worn for MANUF, and commanders may allow it off for the run.

Movement to contact: 880 yards

The MTC is a timed run over 880 yards on a measured course on reasonably level ground. It can be held on a track or another measured surface, indoors or outdoors. A treadmill is not authorized.

The order calls for a wide turnaround point so runners do not have to slow down.

Ammunition lift: a 30 pound can for 2 minutes

The AL is a repeated lift of a 30 pound ammunition can from shoulder height to overhead. It has a 2 minute limit, and the score is the number of correct repetitions.

The Marine holds the can sideways at shoulder height with both hands and the handle facing away. A repetition counts when the elbows lock out for a moment and the can then comes back down until its top is at or below chin level. The can does not have to go directly overhead. Its top stays parallel to the deck.

Using the legs is allowed, and so is resting, with the can held at the shoulder or set on the deck. A can set down must be lowered in a controlled way, not thrown or dropped. Nobody may help return it to the starting position.

A partner counts from the side at about a 90 degree angle so they can see the lockout. Partners are matched by weight to within 10 pounds and by about the same height.

Maneuver under fire: the tasks in order

The MANUF is a timed 300 yard shuttle run with combat tasks. It runs outdoors or on an indoor turf field at least 100 yards long. Each Marine has a partner who sits at the 75 yard line as the simulated casualty. Partners are matched by weight to within 10 pounds and by height to within six inches.

The tasks run in this order:

1. Start lying prone, then sprint to the 25 yard line and make a turn around the marker.
2. High crawl 10 yards to the 35 yard line.
3. Modified high crawl 15 yards to the 50 yard line, on hands, knees and feet.
4. Run a 25 yard network of cones to the 75 yard line.
5. Drag the casualty 10 yards through the first two cones at the 65 yard line.
6. Carry the casualty in a fireman's carry 65 yards straight back to the start line.
7. Lift two 30 pound ammunition cans and carry them to the 75 yard line through the cones.
8. Set the cans down beside the dummy grenade, throw it from standing, then do five push-ups.
9. Carry the cans back to the start line.

The five push-ups are graded to the same standard as the hybrid pull-up and push-up test.

The grenade rule and the 5 second change

A throw counts as a hit if it lands directly in the grenade pit or strikes the line marking the area. If it lands in the pit area and rolls out, it is still a hit. The field monitor reports the result after the MANUF.

Five seconds come off the overall time for a hit, and five seconds go on for a miss. The order's example is a Marine with a MANUF time of 2:42 and a hit. That Marine reports "2:42 with a hit", and the time marked is 2:37. No sentence in the order states that the minimum is read from the adjusted time.

Minimums, maximums and the 150 total

The order's Table 3-1 lists the minimum for every event, age group and sex. The score tables print a Max row and a Min row for each column. A time or count at the Max row earns 100 points, and the Min row earns 40.

Marine Corps CFT maximum and minimum results by event, ages 17 to 20 and 36 to 40 (MCO 6100.13A)

Event	Ages 17 to 20, men	Ages 17 to 20, women	Ages 36 to 40, men	Ages 36 to 40, women
MTC max and min	2:40 and 3:45	3:19 and 4:36	2:45 and 3:58	3:18 and 4:55
AL max and min	106 and 62	66 and 30	110 and 67	70 and 30
MANUF max and min	2:07 and 3:17	2:55 and 4:53	2:16 and 3:42	2:53 and 4:56

The minimum combined score to pass is 150. Three events at their minimums earn 120 points, so a Marine must earn more than the minimum in at least one event. Missing the minimum in any one event fails the whole test, whatever the total.

The classes are 1st at 235 to 300, 2nd at 200 to 234 and 3rd at 150 to 199. At 4,500 feet or more above sea level the MTC and MANUF have their own altitude tables. The AL has no altitude compensation.