For the past week and a half or so, we have been doing a series of classes designed to get us back up to speed with the equipment and techniques we will be seeing during our mission.
For those of you unfamiliar with our mission (our's as in the team that I am on mission) we are going to be combat advisers for an Iraqi National Police Brigade. We will be working very closely with our Iraqi counterparts as they work to establish security in their corner of Iraq. We will also be working closely with a US Brigade Combat Team and it's Battalions as they work with the Iraqi's to secure Iraq. The overall goal is to transition the mission to Iraqi's, so we will be coaching and advising them to assume the overall mission.
The team that I am on is based on the tried and true SF team: 11 guys, with various specialties. There is me, a LTC as the leader, an executive officer, MAJ D, an operations officer MAJ L, an Intelligence Officer, CPT F, two logisticians CPT P and SFC R, two operations NCOs SFC C and SFC T and a Commo guy, SSG W. We have been together for a few weeks and are forming pretty well as a team. (there are pictures of most of us in the IV Training section of the blog)
The training that we have done so far: First Aid, Commo, some vehicle training (nothing intense), an intro to all of the radios we are going to be using in theater, some admin classes (how to deal with the press), culture, language and now we have started up our weapons training.
The first thing that popped into my mind when we started off most of our training is "wow, the Army has changed a whole lot since I was a Battalion Executive Officer." the next thing was "Hmmm, most of this equipment is new to me" and my final thought was "how am I going to learn all of this before we go to Iraq?". A couple of examples: When I was leaving my battalion at FT Bragg in 2002, we were on some of the first generations of radios, last week we were training on the fourth generation of a radio system, I can find the ON switch, recognize the hand mike, and the antennae looks about the same, that is about it. That was just one radio. When they broke out the other 3 radios, I was quickly overcome. I am thinking we will get some more hands on training before we get into Iraq.
During the vehicle introduction we were introduced to the latest generation of HMMWVs, we had HMMWVs when I was an XO, but nothing like this. The first thing they emphasized was the vehicles weight - - when I was an XO they were around 9-10,000 pounds, now with all of the armor and turret on them, that is up around 13,000 pounds. I think the steering wheel was about the same and the lightswitch, that was about it. Bigger engine, bigger transmission, beefier suspension, more powerful brakes and a whole lot of armor plating. We will actually drive them next week, I can imagine they handle a lot different that anything else.
All in all, it is an eye opener for me. SFC C has been taking pictures, I will hit him up for the shots and hang them on the blog in a few days.
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Friday, July 25, 2008
NPTT Update - Two Generals Talking
We had the opportunity to talk to two Iraqi National Police generals today, I really had no idea what to expect and was pleasantly surprised. Because it made me miss physical training (my favorite part of any day) I was a bit on the grumpy side going into the Video Teleconference (VTC), but left the VTC in a pretty good mood.
One of the things that the training unit is big on is VTCs with folks in theater, this morning we had a VTC with the Iraqi general in charge of the National Police and one of his division commanders. Yesterday, we (all of the NPTT commanders in our class) were given a list of about 20 canned questions that the folks working with the generals thought we should ask the generals, most of them were softball type questions - how is your training going, how are your operations going, do you like working with Americans - we pretty much ignored them.
The VTC started off with an introduction of the two generals, they both seemed to be nice guys, very happy to be talking to us and very happy that we were going to be spending a year working with their units. They made it a point to say that even though we were leaving our families back in the US, we were coming to a family in Iraq and that we would be very welcome. I wasn't really paying attention to them until then (just like when I was an LT in the Infantry and knew everything I needed to know - - I was pretty sure I knew everything I needed to know about the NP, arrogance on my part, I guess, maybe I should listen to folks every now and then). After that, we used our limited Arabic on them and stumbled around with a few questions.
The generals pleasantly answered our questions, thanked us for trying to use their language and then asked us a whopper, that really made me think. "What do you know of the Iraqi National Police?" We gave up the book answer, 3 divisions, kind of like the army, but not really, focused on internal security, etc, etc. They took that answer a bit further and explained what the goal of the NP was: Eliminate the insurgencies in Iraq, not just one or two, but all of them. After that become a force that would work within the government of to promote stability in the nation and prevent what was currently happening from ever happening again. The way they were talking impressed me, they sounded very genuine and wanted to make a difference in their country.
We asked another question or two, they answered them until we asked a question about their training status. They launched on us. They gave a very detailed description of the training an Iraqi National Policeman goes through, starting from his initial selection, basic training and assignment to a unit. They emphasized their selection process, how they worked hard to root out undesirable elements before they could get in the NP and cause problems and were very candid about their shortfalls. They went to lengths to explain how they were having problems getting junior officers and how they were trying to fix that problem. I thought is was interesting (and admirable) how they talked about their organizations challenges and what they were doing to solve those challenges. One of the things that they talked openly about was that all of their units were engaged. In our Army, we rotate units in and out of Iraq and Afghanistan and have the luxury of training up for missions. Their units are conducting operations 6 days a week and have the 7th for training. Very different.
They also talked about how they were serving the people of Iraq, and how they were accepted in many of the neighborhoods that they were working in. They rattled off many of the successes that they have had to date and some of the statistics concerning their casualty rates and how they have declined dramatically over the past several months.
All in all, I was happy to have had the opportunity to hear from these gentlemen how they see things and the progress they are making.
One of the things that the training unit is big on is VTCs with folks in theater, this morning we had a VTC with the Iraqi general in charge of the National Police and one of his division commanders. Yesterday, we (all of the NPTT commanders in our class) were given a list of about 20 canned questions that the folks working with the generals thought we should ask the generals, most of them were softball type questions - how is your training going, how are your operations going, do you like working with Americans - we pretty much ignored them.
The VTC started off with an introduction of the two generals, they both seemed to be nice guys, very happy to be talking to us and very happy that we were going to be spending a year working with their units. They made it a point to say that even though we were leaving our families back in the US, we were coming to a family in Iraq and that we would be very welcome. I wasn't really paying attention to them until then (just like when I was an LT in the Infantry and knew everything I needed to know - - I was pretty sure I knew everything I needed to know about the NP, arrogance on my part, I guess, maybe I should listen to folks every now and then). After that, we used our limited Arabic on them and stumbled around with a few questions.
The generals pleasantly answered our questions, thanked us for trying to use their language and then asked us a whopper, that really made me think. "What do you know of the Iraqi National Police?" We gave up the book answer, 3 divisions, kind of like the army, but not really, focused on internal security, etc, etc. They took that answer a bit further and explained what the goal of the NP was: Eliminate the insurgencies in Iraq, not just one or two, but all of them. After that become a force that would work within the government of to promote stability in the nation and prevent what was currently happening from ever happening again. The way they were talking impressed me, they sounded very genuine and wanted to make a difference in their country.
We asked another question or two, they answered them until we asked a question about their training status. They launched on us. They gave a very detailed description of the training an Iraqi National Policeman goes through, starting from his initial selection, basic training and assignment to a unit. They emphasized their selection process, how they worked hard to root out undesirable elements before they could get in the NP and cause problems and were very candid about their shortfalls. They went to lengths to explain how they were having problems getting junior officers and how they were trying to fix that problem. I thought is was interesting (and admirable) how they talked about their organizations challenges and what they were doing to solve those challenges. One of the things that they talked openly about was that all of their units were engaged. In our Army, we rotate units in and out of Iraq and Afghanistan and have the luxury of training up for missions. Their units are conducting operations 6 days a week and have the 7th for training. Very different.
They also talked about how they were serving the people of Iraq, and how they were accepted in many of the neighborhoods that they were working in. They rattled off many of the successes that they have had to date and some of the statistics concerning their casualty rates and how they have declined dramatically over the past several months.
All in all, I was happy to have had the opportunity to hear from these gentlemen how they see things and the progress they are making.
Monday, July 21, 2008
Combat Lifesaver Training
Today was an interesting day, anytime needles and blood are involved, folks pay attention in class. We had our first day of Combat Lifesaver Training (CLS) today - - quite the day. The first part was Casualty Evaluation (what to look for first and what to do when someone is first injured), Casualty Evacuation (Litters, carrying injured soldiers, how to call for a MEDEVAC) and an introduction to giving an IV (Intravenous Infusion).
Prettiest post IV bandage: CPT P, pride of Tennessee, they didn't have any orange tape.
WARNING: NEEDLES, BLOOD AND THE APPLICATION OF SUCH ARE DISCUSSED AFTER THIS; IF YOU ARE A BIT SQUEAMISH, DON'T READ IT and DON'T LOOK AT THE PICTURES (yes Mom, that is my blood).
An IV is used when a soldier/person loses a lot of body fluids in the circulation system (hypovolemic shock) caused by sweat, dehydration, and much worse, but more common bleeding. Starting an IV in a person replaces the fluids so the body can continue to move oxygen and other things through the body. The class was in the morning (most folks were paying attention to this one) and we gave IVs to each other after lunch(that is why folks were paying attention).
The class was pretty good, but of course there was a bit of aprehension when we moved to the practical application portion of the training. The basic steps are the same as when I learned them 16 or so years ago in the SF Qualification Course - - find a good vein, get your bag of IV fluid and its associated tubing ready, get the needle/catheter ready, and go to town . There are a few more steps, but the basic principle is the same: Stick a hole in someone's vein, slide a small tube (catheter) into the vein, connect the bag of fluid to the catheter and let it flow on in as fast as it can go. The hardest part is getting the needle in the vein to begin with and getting over the fact that the person is bleeding AND YOU CAUSED IT.
My partner in this operation was SFC R (trust me, SFC R, I am a Green Beret, we can do anything, honest), he gave a pretty good stick and only let a little bit of my blood out: it looked much worse than it felt. I think I gave him the same treatment. During the training SFC S and SFC C were taking pictures, I will post them to the blog, but, there are some clear winners in several categories:
Best facial expression: Hands down, I won. Even though SFC R was doing a good job, nobody likes needles. Yeah, needles are no good.
Most blood lost during training: Don't worry, Mrs. F, he lived. There is even blood on the floor, what is up with that SFC C?
Prettiest post IV bandage: CPT P, pride of Tennessee, they didn't have any orange tape.
All in all, a good day of training, the good thing was that we all know how to do stick an IV and all did it with no real hesitation or goofiness. We have more CLS training tomorrow, I will also blog up some earlier photos from our introduction week and Culture training.
Team note: SFC S, a flight medic has been moved off of the team to join a TT that focuses on training Iraqi aviators. Good guy, he will be missed. Don't sweat it though, we will not be without a medic, SFC J joined us today.
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Body Armor and Fritz
We have now put together all of our body armor and took it out for its first little walk. To be honest, I had never seen any of this stuff until I got here, so, it is a new facet of the adventure.
My first experience with body armor was during the invasion of Panama, when I was but a pup of a LT in the 7th ID (L). We were issued body armor, but never wore it during training, just occasionally during PT or something if the company commander was feeling froggy. When we were gearing up for Panama word came down from higher to start using our body armor and make sure we packed it when we invaded the joint. Every mission we executed in Panama we were covered from our head to our hips with Kevlar. This was probably the second generation of body armor, it probably wouldn't have stopped any rounds, maybe some fragments if the Panamanians would have been in the mood to do that sort of stuff, luckily they weren't and our body armor was never put to the test.
Side Bar:
Panama was where I decided to become a Green Beret. One of my best friends had just come to the battalion, Tony M, he received his commission through Army Officer Candidate School (OCS) and was a Special Forces NCO before he went to OCS and came to the battalion. He was incredibly tactically proficient, I figured if all Green Berets were as smart as him, I wanted to be in that club.
The other thing that tipped the scales was the missions we were doing in Panama. Most of our missions were cordon and searches, our battalion would surround a town and a SF team would go to the town to look for Panamanians on the capture list. We would roll up to the town in our HUGE, LUMBERING trucks, no stealth involved, unload, and set up our security positions. Every mission we did we wore all of our Kevlar: Including a helmet and the body armor that may or may not have stopped anything. We also coated any of our exposed body parts with green camouflage paint, as per 7th ID (L) SOP.
Coated in green paint, wearing about 25 lbs of kevlar, weapons, full load of ammunition and our bayonets we would stand around in the 100 degree heat, 99.99% Panamanian humidity. We thought we were pretty cool. Once we got the cordon set up, the SF guys would show up. They would drive up in these little red pickup trucks, wearing BDU bottoms, a T-shirt, patrol cap, and their weapon. When I saw that my first thought was "now, they are cooler than us", my second thought was "dang, they look comfortable", my third thought was "I bet those trucks have air conditioning", my final thought was "I want to be one of them."
My next body armor experience was when we invaded Haiti. Once again, we were familiar with the concept of body armor, but did not possess it in the SF battalion I was in. When were getting ready for the invasion, body armor magically showed up and we were told to make sure we brought it to the Haitian Invasion, which we dutifully did. Haitians were slightly less fierce than Panamanians, and to be honest, we could have gotten away without the body armor, but we were working with the rest of the army, so, we wore it when the rest of the army was around or when we were going to one of the big bases where the rest of the army lived. After we got done with the invasion, the body armor disappeared.
Fast forward 7 or so years, we were getting ready to go to Afghanistan, and once again, body armor didn't show up until we got there. Now, because Afghans are a bit more fierce than Panamanians and Haitians, there was no problem convincing folks to wear their body armor, as a matter of fact, folks couldn't get enough of the body armor AND routinely wore their helmets, which was a very un-SF like thing to do.
The Army has made great strides in the body armor development and we have just received the fifth or sixth generation of body armor, very good stuff, specifically designed to stop rounds from the front, sides and back, as well as fragments from just about anywhere else you can imagine. Now, this stuff is not light, which goes against everything in my hiking background, but I have no problem wearing it. When we get to Kuwait we will receive even better stuff, it is supposed to be more comfortable and have more protection, which is a good thing.
My first experience with body armor was during the invasion of Panama, when I was but a pup of a LT in the 7th ID (L). We were issued body armor, but never wore it during training, just occasionally during PT or something if the company commander was feeling froggy. When we were gearing up for Panama word came down from higher to start using our body armor and make sure we packed it when we invaded the joint. Every mission we executed in Panama we were covered from our head to our hips with Kevlar. This was probably the second generation of body armor, it probably wouldn't have stopped any rounds, maybe some fragments if the Panamanians would have been in the mood to do that sort of stuff, luckily they weren't and our body armor was never put to the test.
Side Bar:
Panama was where I decided to become a Green Beret. One of my best friends had just come to the battalion, Tony M, he received his commission through Army Officer Candidate School (OCS) and was a Special Forces NCO before he went to OCS and came to the battalion. He was incredibly tactically proficient, I figured if all Green Berets were as smart as him, I wanted to be in that club.
The other thing that tipped the scales was the missions we were doing in Panama. Most of our missions were cordon and searches, our battalion would surround a town and a SF team would go to the town to look for Panamanians on the capture list. We would roll up to the town in our HUGE, LUMBERING trucks, no stealth involved, unload, and set up our security positions. Every mission we did we wore all of our Kevlar: Including a helmet and the body armor that may or may not have stopped anything. We also coated any of our exposed body parts with green camouflage paint, as per 7th ID (L) SOP.
Coated in green paint, wearing about 25 lbs of kevlar, weapons, full load of ammunition and our bayonets we would stand around in the 100 degree heat, 99.99% Panamanian humidity. We thought we were pretty cool. Once we got the cordon set up, the SF guys would show up. They would drive up in these little red pickup trucks, wearing BDU bottoms, a T-shirt, patrol cap, and their weapon. When I saw that my first thought was "now, they are cooler than us", my second thought was "dang, they look comfortable", my third thought was "I bet those trucks have air conditioning", my final thought was "I want to be one of them."
My next body armor experience was when we invaded Haiti. Once again, we were familiar with the concept of body armor, but did not possess it in the SF battalion I was in. When were getting ready for the invasion, body armor magically showed up and we were told to make sure we brought it to the Haitian Invasion, which we dutifully did. Haitians were slightly less fierce than Panamanians, and to be honest, we could have gotten away without the body armor, but we were working with the rest of the army, so, we wore it when the rest of the army was around or when we were going to one of the big bases where the rest of the army lived. After we got done with the invasion, the body armor disappeared.
Fast forward 7 or so years, we were getting ready to go to Afghanistan, and once again, body armor didn't show up until we got there. Now, because Afghans are a bit more fierce than Panamanians and Haitians, there was no problem convincing folks to wear their body armor, as a matter of fact, folks couldn't get enough of the body armor AND routinely wore their helmets, which was a very un-SF like thing to do.
The Army has made great strides in the body armor development and we have just received the fifth or sixth generation of body armor, very good stuff, specifically designed to stop rounds from the front, sides and back, as well as fragments from just about anywhere else you can imagine. Now, this stuff is not light, which goes against everything in my hiking background, but I have no problem wearing it. When we get to Kuwait we will receive even better stuff, it is supposed to be more comfortable and have more protection, which is a good thing.
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Ahhhh, the rest of the Army
For the past 16 years I have been sheltered from what we Green Berets call "the rest of the Army". When I got to FT Riley, that shelter was ripped away, and I have been exposed to the rest of the Army. First the dreaded black beret was forced upon my proud head, today, I ran in the 1st Infantry Division's Victory Run - - a division run. I faintly recall doing division runs when I was a pup of a lieutenant at FT Ord in the 7th Infantry Division (Light), but that sort of stuff is not done on the special side of the Army.
Part of our training group are folks from the Air Force and Navy, they were probably kind of shocked at the early hour and concept of 5 or 6 thousand people all running in the same direction and in formation just because some general wanted us to do it. They may have a point. Navy people standing around, you can tell they are in the Navy because it says so on the back of their shirts.
All in all, good fun was had. The run ended up, none of my guys got lost, and I got to see the rest of the Army. I am putting a few more division run pictures on the weblinks to the right hand side of the blog, there are some good shots, especially of the sunrise and a 105mm howitzer, pretty cool shots. Please check them out.
I was actually kind of excited to be doing the run, outside of the fact that it took up some training time, it was actually fun. I took my trusty digital camera and broke formation a few times to snap a few photos, I mean, what are they going to to do me? I am a very senior LTC, on my way to Iraq and when I get back, I will be once again sheltered from the rest of the Army by USASOC Headquarters.
The run started out for us at about 0445, when we got on the bus. The special part of the Army is not really concerned about which bus specifically, because we are confident that any bus in the parking lot at 0445 will more than likely be going to the Division Run festivities. The rest of the Army, however, is very specific about what bus you ride on. My team got on the wrong bus and we were told by the Charlie Company officer in charge of yelling at people that the bus that we were currently on was for Charlie Company, and Charlie Company only, so we needed to go find the bus that was for Delta Company, which is our training company. I commend the Charlie Company officer in charge of yelling for doing his job so well.
Once we got on the correct bus (pictured here) we settled on down for the ride to main post. Most folks in the Army have a magical ability to fall asleep on any moving vehicle, I learned that in basic training in 1983 and it has served me well. As you can see, my teammates also have that ability. The bus ride was mostly uneventful, and we arrived safely at Custer Field to assemble for the festivities. Upon arrival at Custer Field, the Battalion Command Sergeant Major put us in the proper formation and we just kind of stood around for about an hour or so until things started to happen.
Part of our training group are folks from the Air Force and Navy, they were probably kind of shocked at the early hour and concept of 5 or 6 thousand people all running in the same direction and in formation just because some general wanted us to do it. They may have a point. Navy people standing around, you can tell they are in the Navy because it says so on the back of their shirts. One of the folks that is here at FT Riley for the training is COL Sam T, also from USASOC, you 
may recall COL T ran the Boston Marathon at the same time I did, just not with me. He wandered by during the standing around this morning and we had out picture taken by a very confused private in front of the Battalion Guidon (flag) which was being held by another confused private. Normally, folks don't carry cameras on these sorts of deals, but there was no way I was going to let this photo op slide by and not capture the pageantry of a Division run digitally. Well worth the extra 9 ounces or so.
may recall COL T ran the Boston Marathon at the same time I did, just not with me. He wandered by during the standing around this morning and we had out picture taken by a very confused private in front of the Battalion Guidon (flag) which was being held by another confused private. Normally, folks don't carry cameras on these sorts of deals, but there was no way I was going to let this photo op slide by and not capture the pageantry of a Division run digitally. Well worth the extra 9 ounces or so. 
Once we started running, it was a lot of stop and go sort of stuff, while all the units in the Division got in line and in the proper place. One of the fun aspects of it all is that some soldiers aren't really very good runners, so they fall out of the run. To be honest, some soldiers fall out after the first half a mile or so. Now, these soldiers fully understand that what they are doing when they fall out is not acceptable and they are going to be be harassed by every soldier that passes them up. I am a gentleman about it, I was just there for the run. One of the main points about the people falling out is that they really should fall out to the left or right of the formation behind them, if they fall out in the middle, it messes the formation up. One of the duties of the folks running up front is to make sure fall outs know where to go. This is a pic of one of my teammates gently telling a Naval fall out that he really should move to the left and fall out there:
All in all, good fun was had. The run ended up, none of my guys got lost, and I got to see the rest of the Army. I am putting a few more division run pictures on the weblinks to the right hand side of the blog, there are some good shots, especially of the sunrise and a 105mm howitzer, pretty cool shots. Please check them out.
We are in the first week of our training, focusing mostly on language and culture training, it is going ok, but I am having some problems staying awake in class. Tomorrow I will try cutting out some of the sugar in the chow hall diet and see if that helps, if not, the instructor should note my constructive criticism and work to make the classes a bit more lively.
Friday, July 11, 2008
Hello from the land of Black Berets
I have linked up with my team, pretty good guys so far, very senior NCOs and officers, most with experience in the box, which is a good thing. There are a couple of tankers on the team along with a Military Police officer, so there is a lot of vehicle expertise, which I think will be important. My senior NCO is an Infantry Master Sergeant from Franklin, NC - - The same town that I got off of the Appalachian Trail back in June, pretty cool.
We have spent the past two days in-processing, which is Army slang for torture. Basically you hand a very nice person your ID card, give them the same four or five bits of information (name, SSN, birthday, date you came in the Army), they punch it in the computer and start asking you questions. I probably could have put that information on a name tag and stuck it to my forehead to make it easy for them. Day one of in-processing we were all crammed into a church that had very little air conditioning. Beings how we are in FT Riley, KS, and the humidity is hovering around NC levels, we were a sweaty mess. After four hours of briefings, we were released to knock out little tasks that we had to get done. I had to get a new ID card and finish off some transportation stuff, so that was a good thing.
Day two was more inprocessing: Medical, JAG (army lawyers), Finance, Personnel Files and other bits and pieces of admin stuff that has to be done before we deploy. This was truly a miserable day. All of the people that were doing the inprocessing were great folks, good attitude and really knew their stuff, BUT, there weren’t a whole lot of them. So each station we went to we had to wait in a line for an available admin person to review our records from their area of expertise. Good example: There were about 250 of us inprocessing, there were three folks at the finance station and maybe 3 nurses to give the shots. Of course I had to get more shots, because lord knows I have not had enough of them in my 21 year Army career. Who knows what toxic mess is floating around my system now, I am very comfortable knowing that there are very few diseases that I can get.
As you can imagine, there were a few bottlenecks and a little bit of frustration boiling up (I know my morale was sinking by about 5pm). I told the team to be patient and passed on the Boston Marathon mantra: “This too shall pass.”
Yesterday was a much better day, we received all of our personal equipment and gear. It was pretty much like Christmas when you were a kid, everytime you turned around, someone was giving you something cool. Beings how I was a staff pogue for the past 6 years, I was pretty much familiar with the canteens and the poncho liner, but that was it. All of the gear we got is brand new and has gone through about 6 years of live testing in theater, so it is good stuff. When I went to Afghanistan in 2002, we had none of this. As a matter of fact, we didn’t even have body armor because the Army was so short on it. I got that in spades now: The full set from the Army, pretty cool.
The other big event yesterday was I broke down and bought a black beret. For those of you unfamiliar with Army headgear lore and legend, the black beret is about at the bottom of the pile as far as coolness goes. As a Special Forces guy, I wear a Green Beret, which in my humble opinion is the top of the heap of head gear, coveted, hard to earn and very cool. Below that are the Brown berets the Rangers wear, the Maroon berets that Airborne units wear, the venerable Patrol Cap, then the black beret (which doesn’t even rate capitalization in my book). Everyone in the Army has a black beret, alls you have to do is sign up for the Army and they give you one. No Special Forces Selection or Qualification Course, no Airborne or Ranger School, just walk up and buy one. Because the unit we are attached to is not an Airborne unit, and not a Special Forces unit, we are supposed to wear the black beret. I held out until the units Command Sergeant Major busted us out, then went out and bought a black beret. Funny thing is, tomorrow we start tactical training and will only be wearing patrol caps, so, I may have to spend a total of 2 or 3 days in my black beret. If the folks at USASOC could see me now . . . . I am sure I will survive the indignity of it all.
We have spent the past two days in-processing, which is Army slang for torture. Basically you hand a very nice person your ID card, give them the same four or five bits of information (name, SSN, birthday, date you came in the Army), they punch it in the computer and start asking you questions. I probably could have put that information on a name tag and stuck it to my forehead to make it easy for them. Day one of in-processing we were all crammed into a church that had very little air conditioning. Beings how we are in FT Riley, KS, and the humidity is hovering around NC levels, we were a sweaty mess. After four hours of briefings, we were released to knock out little tasks that we had to get done. I had to get a new ID card and finish off some transportation stuff, so that was a good thing.
Day two was more inprocessing: Medical, JAG (army lawyers), Finance, Personnel Files and other bits and pieces of admin stuff that has to be done before we deploy. This was truly a miserable day. All of the people that were doing the inprocessing were great folks, good attitude and really knew their stuff, BUT, there weren’t a whole lot of them. So each station we went to we had to wait in a line for an available admin person to review our records from their area of expertise. Good example: There were about 250 of us inprocessing, there were three folks at the finance station and maybe 3 nurses to give the shots. Of course I had to get more shots, because lord knows I have not had enough of them in my 21 year Army career. Who knows what toxic mess is floating around my system now, I am very comfortable knowing that there are very few diseases that I can get.
As you can imagine, there were a few bottlenecks and a little bit of frustration boiling up (I know my morale was sinking by about 5pm). I told the team to be patient and passed on the Boston Marathon mantra: “This too shall pass.”
Yesterday was a much better day, we received all of our personal equipment and gear. It was pretty much like Christmas when you were a kid, everytime you turned around, someone was giving you something cool. Beings how I was a staff pogue for the past 6 years, I was pretty much familiar with the canteens and the poncho liner, but that was it. All of the gear we got is brand new and has gone through about 6 years of live testing in theater, so it is good stuff. When I went to Afghanistan in 2002, we had none of this. As a matter of fact, we didn’t even have body armor because the Army was so short on it. I got that in spades now: The full set from the Army, pretty cool.
The other big event yesterday was I broke down and bought a black beret. For those of you unfamiliar with Army headgear lore and legend, the black beret is about at the bottom of the pile as far as coolness goes. As a Special Forces guy, I wear a Green Beret, which in my humble opinion is the top of the heap of head gear, coveted, hard to earn and very cool. Below that are the Brown berets the Rangers wear, the Maroon berets that Airborne units wear, the venerable Patrol Cap, then the black beret (which doesn’t even rate capitalization in my book). Everyone in the Army has a black beret, alls you have to do is sign up for the Army and they give you one. No Special Forces Selection or Qualification Course, no Airborne or Ranger School, just walk up and buy one. Because the unit we are attached to is not an Airborne unit, and not a Special Forces unit, we are supposed to wear the black beret. I held out until the units Command Sergeant Major busted us out, then went out and bought a black beret. Funny thing is, tomorrow we start tactical training and will only be wearing patrol caps, so, I may have to spend a total of 2 or 3 days in my black beret. If the folks at USASOC could see me now . . . . I am sure I will survive the indignity of it all.
Saturday, July 5, 2008
In KS, Dorothy . . .
I am officially in Kansas now, and I must say, it is kind of strange. First of all, Manhattan is truly in the middle of nowhere. I drove down HWY 77 from Lincoln, and there was next to nothing before I hit town. Literally, one minute, rolling Kansas terrain, next minute, I was in town. It was a little tough driving by the stadium where the wildcats first beat the Huskers and broke our 26 year string of football dominance. Everything here is purple and white, making things a little tougher. I will have to be humble until Bo Pelini returns the Huskers to their proper place.
I will report to FT Riley tomorrow, about noon. I am enjoying my last evening of leave in Manhattan. Once you get past all of the purple and white, it is a pretty nice town. I found a good pizza parlor, NY style thin crust, very good stuff. I am a little concerned about reporting in tomorrow, I realized I haven't reported to a "new" unit since I first came to FT Bragg. Every job I had on FT Bragg I knew someone there or someone there knew me, this is the first time I will be walking into a new unit away from FT Bragg in 16 years. Hmmmmm. I will also be reporting into a unit that is not a Special Operations unit. As my former boss COL P told me, ". . . you will be working with the REST of the Army." I have been in a Special Operations units for the past 16 years. Double HMMMMMMMMM.
I will let you all know how it goes.
I have also posted some of my hiking photos from my different section hikes to the blog. Let me know what you think.
I will report to FT Riley tomorrow, about noon. I am enjoying my last evening of leave in Manhattan. Once you get past all of the purple and white, it is a pretty nice town. I found a good pizza parlor, NY style thin crust, very good stuff. I am a little concerned about reporting in tomorrow, I realized I haven't reported to a "new" unit since I first came to FT Bragg. Every job I had on FT Bragg I knew someone there or someone there knew me, this is the first time I will be walking into a new unit away from FT Bragg in 16 years. Hmmmmm. I will also be reporting into a unit that is not a Special Operations unit. As my former boss COL P told me, ". . . you will be working with the REST of the Army." I have been in a Special Operations units for the past 16 years. Double HMMMMMMMMM.
I will let you all know how it goes.
I have also posted some of my hiking photos from my different section hikes to the blog. Let me know what you think.
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Next Chapter in the Adventure of Fritz
Howdy folks, I have not been blogging for a while, there have been a few changes in my life since the Boston Marathon. The first change is that I am no longer at FT Bragg (no running on the sisters for a while), I am on my way to FT Riley to do some training prior to deploying to Iraq. I will be an Iraqi National Police Transition Team Leader starting in October. There will be a small team working with me, we will be working with an Iraqi National Police Brigade for a year. We haven't met as a team yet, but will meet up on Monday for the first time, I am definately looking forward to that. I have corresponded with a few of them via email, they sound fairly motivated.
I am looking forward to the mission, it should be a good one. I hope that we can help make the Iraqi National Police Brigade better, this will be a very small part of the larger mission of turning over the running of Iraq back to the Iraqis.
I have been spending the past couple of weeks at my sister Melissa's house in Nebraska, visiting with the kinfolk prior to going to FT Riley. Before that, I spent a week hiking on the Appalachian Trail, hiking from Springer Mountain in GA (the southern end of the trail) to Franklin, NC. That was about 100 miles of serious hiking, some of the fiercest terrain I have hiked, EVER. Big ups to Blood Mountain and Albert's Mountain, they kicked my ass. There were some wicked hard gaps there too, you hike down to the bottom of the gap, then back up to the ridgeline, check the map, and look for the next gap or big ass hill.
This is the big rock that is at the start of the trail, I guess I was expecting a bit more of a set up, but, nothing but a rock, an information kiosk and the ubiquitous White Blaze. I guess all of the good stuff is at Amicola State Park in GA, sure was kind of a "Hmmmmmm" starting.
Two super sweet ladies helped me out with the logistics of the hike, Joyce and Sally. They live in Hiawassee, GA and moved my truck around for me and gave me a ride to Springer. They also made the appropriate noises of concern when they saw the blisters on my feet, Very much appreciated. If you are hiking the southern end of the AT give them a call ((706) 896-9339 or via email at: dirtft2001@yahoo.com). Ask Joyce about her garden, it was a good conversation.
One of the stops along the way was at Neels Gap, it is a Hostel/Outfitters that the trail goes through. Nice place, I had a pizza there and a couple of free hot dogs (amazing what you will eat when you are hungry). Hiker tip: Get there about 5:30 PM, the folks there will give you the hot dogs if you are just haning around, so they don't have to throw them out. Me and a couple of other hikers took full advantage of that.
One of the views from the hike, on this day, it was raining all day, but it cleared off for a second while I snapped this photo. I love seeing the valleys full of fog while I am walking, very cool. That view actually reminded me of one of our missions in Ranger School - - A segment of Ranger School is run out of Camp Merrill, near Dahlonega, GA. We were doing an air assault out, flying low over the mountains, when I looked down, all of the valleys had fog in them, so we saw green mountains with white fog, very pretty. I actually spent a nigt at Camp Merrill, they were nice enough to let me camp by one of the planning bays (same ones we used 20 years ago). Very cool.
I have been spending my time here visiting kinfolk and helping Mark out with his barn. It should have a roof on it this summer. Tomorrow is the 4th of July, probably go watch some fireworks somewhere.
It is my intent to keep blogging during the mission, not sure how that will work, or how frequently I will be able to update the blog, but check it out if you have a slow saturday morning or something.
I am looking forward to the mission, it should be a good one. I hope that we can help make the Iraqi National Police Brigade better, this will be a very small part of the larger mission of turning over the running of Iraq back to the Iraqis.
I have been spending the past couple of weeks at my sister Melissa's house in Nebraska, visiting with the kinfolk prior to going to FT Riley. Before that, I spent a week hiking on the Appalachian Trail, hiking from Springer Mountain in GA (the southern end of the trail) to Franklin, NC. That was about 100 miles of serious hiking, some of the fiercest terrain I have hiked, EVER. Big ups to Blood Mountain and Albert's Mountain, they kicked my ass. There were some wicked hard gaps there too, you hike down to the bottom of the gap, then back up to the ridgeline, check the map, and look for the next gap or big ass hill.
This is the big rock that is at the start of the trail, I guess I was expecting a bit more of a set up, but, nothing but a rock, an information kiosk and the ubiquitous White Blaze. I guess all of the good stuff is at Amicola State Park in GA, sure was kind of a "Hmmmmmm" starting.
Two super sweet ladies helped me out with the logistics of the hike, Joyce and Sally. They live in Hiawassee, GA and moved my truck around for me and gave me a ride to Springer. They also made the appropriate noises of concern when they saw the blisters on my feet, Very much appreciated. If you are hiking the southern end of the AT give them a call ((706) 896-9339 or via email at: dirtft2001@yahoo.com). Ask Joyce about her garden, it was a good conversation.
One of the stops along the way was at Neels Gap, it is a Hostel/Outfitters that the trail goes through. Nice place, I had a pizza there and a couple of free hot dogs (amazing what you will eat when you are hungry). Hiker tip: Get there about 5:30 PM, the folks there will give you the hot dogs if you are just haning around, so they don't have to throw them out. Me and a couple of other hikers took full advantage of that.
One of the views from the hike, on this day, it was raining all day, but it cleared off for a second while I snapped this photo. I love seeing the valleys full of fog while I am walking, very cool. That view actually reminded me of one of our missions in Ranger School - - A segment of Ranger School is run out of Camp Merrill, near Dahlonega, GA. We were doing an air assault out, flying low over the mountains, when I looked down, all of the valleys had fog in them, so we saw green mountains with white fog, very pretty. I actually spent a nigt at Camp Merrill, they were nice enough to let me camp by one of the planning bays (same ones we used 20 years ago). Very cool.
I have been spending my time here visiting kinfolk and helping Mark out with his barn. It should have a roof on it this summer. Tomorrow is the 4th of July, probably go watch some fireworks somewhere.
It is my intent to keep blogging during the mission, not sure how that will work, or how frequently I will be able to update the blog, but check it out if you have a slow saturday morning or something.
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