PS.com Brothers,

Nothing ruins a good story like facts! I am sure if the story (which I assure you did happen) had happened to CSM Hodge, he would remember. At the time, I didn't know then SSG Hodge, but he was the one that someone ID'ed as the unlucky individual.

I have PM'ed CSM Hodge and apologized for the misinformation, as well as deleting his name from that part of the post. I would not want that story to color his membership in our website, as I am sure he will have a lot to add.

Thanks...

1 - Major Budge Williams as our Class Tac Officer. He and us student officers would be drinking beer in Moon Hall until closing, then he would lead us out on long runs the next day. I didn't know his history then, he was smart, very SF, and made Major after his return from the incident, so was surprised that he never made Lieutenant Colonel and had to leave the Army. It probably didn't help that he groused on occasion that his silenced pistol was now residing in the MP museum at Ft. McClellen.

2 - The gratuitous distribution of demolition materials, including a ruck full of 1/4 lb blocks of TNT for "noisemakers" during Robin Sage. No signature, no accountability, we just passed them around, rigged them with blasting caps and "made noise." Had one go off about five feet away from my left ear, which made it about three feet from my G's left ear. He was bleeding from the ear. Hope he got some disability from it.

3 - The obstacle course at Camp Mackall. It didn't have a name then. It did have concertina wire under the obstacles. You really didn't want to fall.

4 - The delicious goat.

5 - Our first jump from Combat Talon, wondering what exactly was behind the curtains.

6 - "Chargin' Charlie Beckwith" popping up at any time during the course to tell a story about "ma' patchy-pants guerillas ... in Laos ... in White Star ...".

7 - The overall "if you break your leg, don't come running to me" attitude about training and operations. Other than the minimums needed to pass a standard JMPI, you rigged your ruck the way you wanted to rig your ruck. Same on the range, where about the only rules were you shoot it, you clean it, and you shoot it, you load the damn thumb busting magazines. Exception: the demo range, where they were super strict over electric systems, we weren't even allowed to have electric wristwatches on the range. Still a lot of bad memories of the ring main that went off in the hands of a team.

- While waiting for Phase I we were sent to the 82d Recondo School area for fun and games; in December. We had to do the 40 foot rope drop.. after they chopped a hole in the ice. We were told "Don't yell anything before you fall". Of course that meant I had to yell "Airborne" as soon as I received permission to drop. Unfortunately, I had my hands turned wrong and did a 40 foot belly slap onto the water and busted my lips and nose. The blood had frozen to my face and my clothes were frozen by the time I made it to the Senior Tac for my a-chewing and was immediately sent back up to do it again.. correctly.

- Falling asleep in class during Phase I and the TACs making me run laps around the building and doing a rope climb after each lap during every break for the rest of the course.

- Having tincture of benzoin injected into my blisters.

- Daily ruck marches around the Camp McCall Airfield.

- "Pilot Course" Phase I and being alone in Uwharrie for several days doing timed cross country night movements from Point A to Point B (I was 19) humping a full ruck, LBE, and weapon, and the entire time more worried to death I was going to fail than anything else. The TAC checked with you at the end point of each leg, annotated your time, checked your ruck contents, and then came back that evening and gave you your next leg and time hack for that coming night.

Yeah, that will tighten your ass up, won't it?:D

TR

Burning down my hooch with 1 day of Survival left.:mad:

Losing my map (dummy cord pulled out) on Land Nav, going back and finding it, and running so fast to the next checkpoint my ruck messed up my kidneys so bad I pissed blood and had to go to the TMC for a needless finger wave.:mad:

Getting a "No-Go" on my first mission in Patrolling because I set up a dangerous support field of fire, then basically having to do nothing on my subsequent Recon mission because my buddies did it all for me. :cool:

Gaining weight during Patrolling and getting the nickname "Earth Pig".:cool:

swimming bones fork creek enroute to my last point.. realizing that I didn't have my map after my swim, and being less than 200m from my last point.

Yep, "N" is for Nowledge, I did the Ranger thang with the shortest distance between 2 points.. Got me a 2nd chance at Star....

2nd time. couldn't figure out why I kept drifting to one side on my last couple of points. Finally at the end, with my boots and socks off airing my feet. Someone asked when I lost my boot heel. I was walking fine until then, but then felt like a cripple when I tried to walk to the truck for exfil.

If I remember nothing else, its the Cadre saying "Don't Swim Bones Fork"!!!! But what did they know??

The Weapons Instructor having an AD with the guard weapon in the Classroom. Only a couple of us were in the room. Round went right thru a desk where someone was sitting. We were told to keep our mouths shut.

Is that the one where the guy got a cement fragment in his eye?
'Cause I was told later the same instructor put three bullets in his foot with an MP5K.

I not sure I remember someone getting hurt. But we were taken out of there pretty quick. I don't want to name anyone if I haven't already.

Burning down my hooch with 1 day of Survival left.:mad:

LOL, were you in my class?

We had a CPT burn more than his hooch, he also burned his sleeping bag and a few other things and it was January......;)

A guy in my class did the same thing.

Funny thing was, he tried to blame it on the Klan. :D

TR

Watching a M1919A6 cook off, and take out one of the students.

Kinda weird, he was trying to put the flash suppressor back on the weapon, after another student had cleared the weapon.

At one point the barrel was in his chest area, but had moved off to an angle while trying to put it back on.

As soon as the cadre asked of the gun was cleared, it cooked off.

Really Bad Day. Luckily Rob is still with us.

I used up so much pine straw my A.O. looked like the moon. :D

Since we're now telling on ourselves...

Falling asleep during Phase III and having my rifle taken from my hands while I layed in my defensive position, then being woken up and told to report to the TAC with my rifle...which had been replaced with a stick!:(

BTW...I still had a good prone firing position complete with cheek weld.

With the M14s, the TACs would simply unlock and take the trigger housing group so that the trainee would awake - often due to a grenade or artillery simulator going off and your patrol having to employ their IAD - and find himself stuck smack dab in the middle of a simulated firefight with a rifle which could not be fired.

Having to go ask a TAC like Bear Martin or the Big O or George Beach for your trigger housing group was a fearful task and, if you were lucky enough to not be dropped from the course, a painful one to boot.

Richard :munchin