Driving In The Dark: Another long, strange trip

I just returned from a trip up north the Anaconda. Anaconda is one of the super bases here in Iraq. that I wrote about it earlier this summer. I had to attend an Intel meeting so I decided to go there by the Saber Squadron's preferred means on transportation: a convoy.
One of the reasons I went was to go on one of our convoy escorts. Its one of our regular missions and it’s our biggest one. The trip from COB Adder to Anaconda is just under 300 miles and we do it in one night: a long, dark night. From start to finish we drive the trip in about 10 hours with only one scheduled stop. Sometimes we have to stop to check out things on the road or get a quick pit stop but generally we knock it out in two ‘legs.’

We drove this mission with the Commando 1-6 escort team. On this trip I was the driver. Our Brigade S2, Major Christianne Ploch was the vehicle commander (this was her first trip), and our gunner was one of my intel analysts, SGT Samuel Murphree. This was Murph’s second trip to Anaconda.
There are no positions on military convoys that are comfortable. The seats are slightly cushioned, you are surrounded by radios, gps trackers, computers, jammers, and you wear all of your stuff. By stuff I mean our helmets, body armor, protective eyewear, bulky headphones and a few other things. On top of all that we are strapped in like an astronaut on the space shuttle. There isn’t much wiggle room.

These trucks are built for missions…not for comfort. Military vehicles are designed around engines and weapons. People are given a space but ask any soldier about that space and he or she will say it isn’t enough. There is adequate room for a person in uniform to sit but the designers failed to factor in the extra space the body armor takes. It is tolerable but not very comfortable (I’ll have some cheddar with my whine thank you).
The trip was all at night. We left about sundown after a quick meal on our Hummvee hood. We drove for hours, keeping each other alert by talking on the radios and drinking Gatorade and a few Red Bull type drinks called ‘Rip-Its’. Our A/C didn’t work very well so we downed a lot of Gatorade. You have to pace your fluid intake so you don’t risk fluid outflow if you know what I mean. Pulling over and finding a suitable latrine isn’t very easy or common. You just have to pace yourself.

This was my 4th trip on the road since I’ve been here. This also happened to be my second blown tire. I guess I’ve got a knack for destroying tires. On this night’s mission I happened to be the trail, or last, vehicle in a 50-vehicle convoy. When my tire blew it wasn’t immediately noticeable so the rest of the convoy pulled ahead of me before I realized I needed to stop. When I stopped, it was my truck, my wingman, and a sea of darkness….we were in southwest Baghdad. Not the best place to have a flat.
We set up security, turned off all the unnecessary lights and had another gun truck come back to assist. Our crew was new so it was a slow process. It also didn’t help that we were wearing all of our body armor which is somewhat cumbersome. It took us about 30 minutes to get the 15,000 pound truck jacked up, wheel replaced, and put the truck back in service. We couldn’t have done it without the help of some of our KBR Trucker friends we were escorting. They had some special equipment which helped us get the tire changed.

After the 4am tire change we got back on the road and proceeded north through Baghdad and on to Anaconda. The sun began to rise as we made the final leg to the base. We hit the gate at about 6am after 11 hours on the road. We were smoked but we did make it. When our heads finally hit the pillows at about 10am we quickly found deep sleep.
That was a long trip. Since I was at Anaconda for a conference I got to rest up. I broke contact with Commando 1-6. I would ride back with another escort team. Commando 1-6 was due to return that night after a quick 7 or 8 hours of sleep. It’s what my Squadron does here in Iraq. We escort convoys. We have gotten pretty good at it.

SABER 02,
Out.

White socks and Spam: Mail Call

Mail = Morale. Mail always has been, and always will be, a great thing to receive. You just can’t beat the feeling of receiving a letter or package from a loved one or someone who cares. We get our share and we can’t get enough.
In this day and age of texting and e-mails letter writing is somewhat of a fading art. Not many people take the time to write. It’s the same for us. We don’t write home that much either. The convenience of technology has made us lazy. We are all guilty I suppose. This blog is a perfect example; one blog = hundreds of letters....right?

But, it is much more exciting when we get U.S. snail mail. The days of troops gathering around a jeep and listening for their name to be called have almost vanished. At COB adder that has been replaced by the mail clerk coming around our office and saying, ‘Sergeant Johnson, you have mail.’ It doesn’t make for a great Hollywood war film moment but it gets the job done.

There are quite a few organizations that send care packages to ‘Any Soldier.’ They stuff boxes full of things and mail them to a list of soldiers whose churches or families have signed them up to receive stuff. SGT Sam Murphree, one of my Intelligence Analysts, has managed to get his name on a couple of these lists. Every few weeks or so he gets boxes filled with things from chapstick to toothpaste, popcorn and tuna, gold bond powder and soap….anything you can imagine. We make sure it is all distributed to all our soldiers. by the way, I want to thank all the hotel chains across America for unknowingly donating a zillion mini-bottles of shampoo and tiny little soap bars. We get a lot of those.

White socks seems to be a popular item. For some reason America thinks the deployed soldier needs white socks. We get them all the time. White socks. Most of the time we wear Army-issued green socks. Only with our fitness uniform do we wear white socks. Believe me when I tell you we don’t do that much PT…but we’ve got plenty of white socks if we ever choose to workout more. Hey, I’m not looking a gift horse in the mouth but we do get a lot. Thanks America! Thanks for those white socks.

My friends the Cannons from Minnesota always send some great stuff. Rich is also a soldier and he’s a good friend from High School. He and his family helped raise a lot of school supplies for Iraqi children during OIFII in 2004. They know some really great stuff to send soldiers: energy drink mixes, vitamins, unusual snacks, and other useful stuff. But amazingly enough….Rich and his family have never sent me any socks.

The mail also brings us hand drawn pictures and thank you cards from kids. They are always fun. You get everything from hearts and crosses to army soldiers and oddly striped American flags. The Cannon and Lynch girls’ artwork is proudly scotch-taped to my CHU wall. We also get Kid’s questions like, “How big is your tank”, “Have you killed all the teroists?” “What’s it like to live in a fox hole?” and all kinds of crazy, funny, innocent stuff like that. Art Linkletter would have had a ball with our letters from elementary school kids.

I genuinely thank all of you who have taken the time to write a letter, send a package or donate to an organization that sends us packages. You’ve really helped us out. Our morale is high and the postal clerks are eating their Wheaties because mountains of Christmas mail is right around the corner.

America, keep the artwork coming, never stop sending spam and you can throttle back on those white socks. I think we’re good.

SABER 02,
Out.

Worshipping in the War Zone

Ok…religion and politics…something you should stay away from but I’m going to touch on both.
Did you notice there is an election coming up? Even 8,000 miles away we noticed. We only have one television news outlet and it is loaded with cable news shows that ramble on and on about the election. I imagine you’ve seen it too.

One thing I’ve noticed that really bothers me is the way the news media has dealt with the candidates’ religious preferences. Particularly Palin’s. Some reporters who appear to be a bit less tolerant of Christianity really bother me. In the end I trust Americans to filter out the reporter’s opinions and campaign marketing gimmicks and make a good choice.
Religion is important to many of us. Freedom of religion is one of our basic principles. It is definitely something the military takes seriously. On COB Adder we have about a dozen Chaplains and a variety of religious services to support a soldier’s right to worship.

Many of our National Guard Chaplains have left their churches back home to serve with us. Chaplains are a unique breed. By nature they are preachers but leading church services is not the only thing they do. Chaplains look after our spiritual well-being. They not only give soldiers and families religious support but also morale support. Sometimes we just need someone to talk to or counsel us in tough times. Our Chaplains are trained consellors and are very good at it. Chaplains are champions of confidentiality…..they rival lawyers in keeping things to themselves.

Another thing about Chaplains is they are the only soldiers that don’t carry weapons. None. They have a Chaplain Assistant that helps them out and carries a weapon. The CAs are kind of like the Secret Service. If there’s danger around their job is to protect the Chaplains.

The best church services I remember were not in a church but in the woods lead by an Army Chaplain. Cammo paint on his face in front of a jeep, out in the woods, leading songs with an acoustic guitar. Simple is better. Church on COB Adder is also very simple. Lots of singing. Lots of praying. We have a couple of different soldier bands playing everything from drums to guitars to horns. They are pretty good. Of course we pray. Pray a lot. Prayer is popular when the building you are worshiping in is surrounded by sandbags. And finally we have a message.
We have Protestant, Catholic, and Jewish services. Muslim is available but we don’t have a regular guy to cover that. The Christian community is very open here at Adder.
I belong to a very large church back home but here the audience in a service is about 30 or 40. Most of us know each other either from working together, going on missions together and eating together. Chapel brings us closer together. Here the services are very open to interaction between the soldiers. Testimonies are encouraged, community prayer is very common and singing…wow we sing. Just the closeness of the service encourages everyone…including me to participate and share.

Of course I want everyone to know God and experience worshipping him. I think by going to church it helps reinforce what is right and wrong and it helps us make good choices. I don’t hold it against anyone if they choose not to go to church….but I think it’s a good thing.

So I do want to know if my Presidential Candidates go to church. It tells me a lot about them. It just irritates me when a reporter says a candidate may be whacko if they attend church.
Ill continue to go and make sure my soldiers have the opportunity to do so as well. And we will sing. And we will pray. And we will be tolerant of other’s choices of how they worship or even f they worship.

One thing is for sure; here on COB Adder if we want a Chaplain there’s a man without a gun nearby.

SABER 02,
Out.

8,000 MILES In 3 Days

The trip from Iraq to the front porch takes awhile. It’s a little more than 8,000 miles from my trailer to my house. To get from one to another is somewhat of a pain but the reward at the end of the road is worth it. Here’s how it goes.

Day 1: Moving around
I waited around for most of the day for my plane. The Air Force works on a different kind of schedule than the army. The Army has SPs (starting points) LDs (Lines of Departure) and we plan for exact times that we cross each. Apparently, when the Air Force flies for the Army they use WWDWFLITs (When We Damn Well Feel Like Its). Anyway, they damn well felt like it about mid afternoon. I shuffled across the 140 degree tarmac, loaded the C-130 (ugly Air Force cargo plane) and strapped in for the 45 minute trip to Kuwait……nice ride.


When we get to Kuwait we ‘in-process’ with many briefings, turn in gear, assign first class accommodations (sarcasm), eat chow and continue to wait for that next ‘time hack’…the next time you have to be somewhere or do something. That’s all we really care about. My first time hack isn’t until 7am so I’ve got time to call home and go to the McDonald’s at the base. Yes…McDonald’s for the first time in months.

The operation in Kuwait is actually pretty impressive. Servicemembers from Afghanistan and all parts Iraq come though their ‘Gateway’ and get their orders approved, book a civilian flight for the next day, eat, sleep, kill time, store equipment and unwind. All of it is done with the intent of reversing the process and getting a soldier back to his unit with all of his stuff in about 2 or 3 weeks. They do this every night or so for about 200-300 Soldiers/Airmen/Sailors/Marines and a few civillians. They are Pogues* but very proficient Pogues.
*a Pogue is a rear echelon person. Also known as a REMF. They don’t fight the war but they run the war…or at least part of it. Often looked down upon by the actual trigger-pulling soldier.

Day 2: Airborne
After we kill some time in the USO and MWR facilities our flight arrives the next evening. It’s a civilian 767. Nice ride. During the 18 hour journey I see 4 movies (all date movies) eat 3 airline meals, drink several non-alcoholic beverages (no drinking aloud) sleep off and on for about 6 hours, read, stare out the window, stop for refueling in Germany and try to do the math on what time it is where I’m at. We cross 8 time zones. It’s a long trip.

Day 3: Texas Patriots Ambush Soldiers
Then we arrive in Dallas. Dallas is great. They have a cheering line that greets servicemembers when we get off the plane. They’ve been doing it for 5 years now and it’s amazing. Picture 200 tired jet-lagged Soldiers dragging their gear off the ramp, walking to their next flight then when they least expect it dozens of fine Americans ambush them with clapping and cheering and patting on the back. It’s amazing. Just like a football team taking the field….but waaaaaay better.

After a few hours in the DFW Airport I finally get on my connecting flight and fly to Shreveport. That’s a great 45minute ride. Can you imagine sitting in one place and just smiling for an hour? That’s what that leg of the trip is like.
8,000 miles, 3 days, 4 date movies, 1prize: I see my family for the first time in months.
I’m a lucky guy. I made it.

SABER 02
out.

Takin' a break

Hey folks. Sorry for the absence of blog entries. As many of you have guessed I am currently enjoying a couple of weeks of leave time and 'getting my mind right' at home. I'll be back in Iraq by Labor day. When I get plugged back in I'll be back with a few updates on my time in Iraq.

Take care.

SABER 02,
out.

God, Steely Dan and the Swiffer: Gettin’ your mind right.

Here in Iraq the missions run 24-7. Our Squadron’s mission, escorting logistics convoys, runs every day no matter what the day of the week, holiday, or if the weather sucks. Come hell or high water (usually it’s the former) somebody is always on the road somewhere.

But from time-to-time everybody needs a break or he’ll go nuts. Notice I said break, not day off. Staff Officers don’t get days off and we don’t post a schedule anywhere that lists a ‘day off.’ That’s a great way to get stomped by the Sergeant Major. ‘So Captain, you don’t have enough to do? Well, let me find something to keep you busy.’ Nope, I’m not taunting that man. Smart leaders and managers work downtime or ‘minimum manning’ days into the schedule. We call that Fighter Management (no kidding, the Army actually has a bureaucratic name for a day off).

I give the guys in my section a real day off every other week or so when we can swing it. My intent for them is to not come in at all. Go do laundry, watch TV, go to the gym, listen to music…whatever they want but don’t come into work. Sometimes mission tempo doesn’t allow for them to be gone but we try. The mission always comes first. I work a half day off every week or so. I never take a whole day off. I can’t. I don’t. However my day ‘not off’ is Sunday. That’s the day when most non-essential soldiers lay low to sleep in and go to church. We don’t have a morning meeting that day so it’s the only day I can swing it.

On my typical Sunday I get up, check some email, maybe catch up on some news. Its a typical lazy Sunday like back home. Mood setting music is a must. Usually its something jazzy or more laid back like Steely Dan or Pink Floyd. Something like that. It’s ‘get your mind right’ music.
A big event for me is cleaning the room. It doesn’t take long. I live in a 10’x10’ room with no carpet. All I can do is sweep the floor and push my little Swiffer Sweeper around. Those things are really popular for a deployment. Mopping without a mop bucket…a soldier must have invented that.

And finally I end my morning with what you should do on a Sunday…go to church. Our chapel has several services during the day..all religions and styles. That’s one thing they do well here at COB Adder. They give everyone an opportunity to worship and there are about a dozen chaplains or more to assist. The Lord is definitely represented in ACUs here.

After church I head across the street, eat a really good Sunday meal then I go to work. It will be about 1230 or 1300 by the time I get in to the office. Then the break is over. I’ll put in 5 or 6 hours after that.

That’s a Sunday for me here on COB Adder. It’s a break. Not a total escape. Darn sure not a ‘day off’ (did you catch that Sergeant Major?). It’s a time to take care of a few things and do like Strother Martin says in Cool Hand Luke* ‘Get my mind right.’

SABER 02,
out.

*Cool Hand Luke, (1967). Prison movie with Paul Newman and George Kennedy. One of the greatest movies ever!!! http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0061512/

Daddy, What’s A Bed-Win?

Even while we are here in Iraq doing the mission we still have to conduct training on various subjects. EO, common skills, annual certifications in various subject areas and weapons training. In the military, as in most civilian jobs, you never stop training. Today was range day for me. A chance for me to refresh my skills on the M240B machine gun.

The Army has some very sophisticated shooting ranges in the states to develop and hone our marksmanship skills. We shoot pop-up targets, shoot indoors, shoot outdoors using electronic scoring, speakers, lights, thermal targets and various daytime targets. We have ranges you can walk up to, run up to, drive on, drive through, fly above, shoot and scoot…all kinds of ranges.
Near COB Adder we have Bardia range. It is equipped with…..sand. Yup, that’s about it. Sand. Bardia range is an open-desert area near Adder that is not too far away and it allows us to shoot our weapons safely but there isn’t much in the way of training aids.

CPT* Forrest Tuckett and SGM* Doug Pettit were in charge of the range. They have the most difficult job which is planning all aspects of the shooting event. Rotation of troops, ammo requirements, safety, communications, range ‘throughput’ or how we move troops onto and off of the range, everything to do with the range is what they plan. Forrest and Doug are two of the best soldiers I’ve ever known and I’ve known them both for years. They are real pros. They know infantry tactics, soldier skills and they are both real good friends. Sherrie and I know their families and have been with them on many occasions. One other quality Doug and Forrest have in common….they are both former Marines and both veterans of the first Gulf War.

So, according to plan, we drug some old pieces of metal and wood and put them at various distances away from a road. That at least allows us to have something to shoot at. And really, that’s all we need at this point. If a soldier arrives in the combat zone lacking shooting skills he’s kinda screwed. We develop those skills before we ever get here. Today is just what we call ‘trigger time.’

The M240 machine gun, the MK19 automatic grenade launcher and the M2 .50cal machine gun are my Squadron’s weapons of choice. Those are what we fired at Bardia. We shoot them all from the turret on our vehicles while driving down Bardia road. Its pretty simple really. Load the gun…drive the truck….aim the gun….shoot the gun….hit a target.

One reason we don’t have fancy targets at the range is they will be stolen if we leave them there. Anything of value is stripped from the desert by the Bedouins. Yes, Virginia, there are Bedouins, they exist in the desert, and they are a pain in the ass when you are trying to shoot in the open desert.

Our Army has a lot of stuff and the Bedouins know it. If you leave something unsecure it will be taken. If you leave an old car for a target they will drag it off. If you leave a piece of plywood for a target it will be taken. If you leave an MRE or a bottle of water on the ground it will be snatched in a heartbeat. Like I said they are a pain in the ass.

They are also a concern for safety. It is not unheard of them to come out on the range while we are firing and take things off of the firing lane. We post security at the edges of the range and we use interpreters to help keep them away. Like a child, they will mind if they are being watched but when you look the other way they steal your stuff. It’s what Bedouins do.

One good thing about the Bedouins is as soon as we leave they pick up all the expended brass casings. They can have it…it’s trash to us. They sell it somewhere. One man’s trash is another man’s treasure…literally. I’m okay with that.

So I braved the blowing dust, shot my hundred rounds and didn’t drop any Bedouins then I went back to Adder. That was my day. It was a good day. Hopefully it will be the last time I pull a trigger in Iraq.

SABER 02,
Out.

*CPT is a Captain *SGM is a Sergeant Major