One of the men talks about going further that others with a heavier pack. What would they be carrying that would make their load that much heavier than an average load out?
I saw an interview on I think the History Channel with Carlos Hathcock. He mentioned one suicide mission where his target was a North Vietnamese officer and it took him 3 days to crawl across a heavily patrolled field without being detected in order to get in killing range. Of course the only equipment he had was his rifle.........but still, no eating, no peeing and no pooping........
“One...talks about going further than others with a heavier pack. What would they be carrying that would make their load that much heavier than an average load out?”
More of a boastful catchphrase or unofficial motto than a quantitatively rigorous statement about the logistics of soldiering.
Every branch has coined a number of such phrases or adopted the words of others for their own purposes. Many have been borrowed from recruiting advertising, especially since World War Two. Not all retain their intended meaning; some take on ironic twists and inverted significance. Many hint at darker aspects of military service; some employ jargon to the point where civilian onlookers fail to decipher meanings.
Few such phrases are literal. But there may be some accuracy and authenticity, in the isolated cases of USMC scout-snipers and U S Army long-range snipers. Since the specialty of both is scoring hits at extended ranges, they are typically armed with rifles chambering 7.62mm NATO or larger cartridges; round for round they are heavier than 5.56mm NATO, so a soldier or Marine thus armed must hump a heavier load to obtain an equivalent round count.
The phrase might also hint at elitism. Special forces, recon troops, snipers and the like are drawn from the rank and file and undergo additional lengthier, more-demanding training. More is expected of them in training and in the field.