Professional Soldiers ® - View Single Post - What do you remember most about the Q Course/Training Group?

magician · 12-21-2004, 02:36

can't really remember my class date...and all my orders and stuff are in storage, in the states, packed away in boxes.

I think I may have gone through with TR, though, as he remembers an O from my class who became a real good friend of mine, and a couple of the other guys from my class, like Cory F, and Robin M, who later went across the fence, and a couple of young guys (Steve C, and "Mac") who went to 1st Group with me, and later on went to the dark side.

Another funny story.

We were done with the course....just waiting to do some civil affairs work, or something, on the very last day, while we were waiting for extraction....so we were on this...plantation....and we were supposed to clean up this area, straighten up a bunch of deadfall and pine cones and pine straw and stuff....and the owner of the place....he was classic, he came down in a GOLF CART in bright green golf pants and a purple Izod shirt, some crazy country club outfit like that....and he had his lady with him, a real Southern belle, all dressed up in lace and finery with a freakin' PARASOL. We were grouchy, in a rebellious mood, and this guy, he just rubbed us the wrong way. He was treating us worse than hired help. It was like he came down from his mansion, complete with columns and statues and fountains and old mossy trees all over the place, to make sure his "boys" were doing the manual labor correctly.

So anyway, I will never forget this, things came to head when one of the NCOs on my detachment told the guy to get on his golf cart and high-tail it out of there, and while he was kicking up dust leaving the AO, my buddy, a West Point O, threw a pitch fork at the golf cart, bouncing it off the back of it. It was funny as hell. I really felt bad for our detachment commander...he was a great guy, a lot of you guys probably know him, his knickname was "Maddog," he had commands on Okie, and retired out of the Schoolhouse as a light colonel back in the mid-90's. I think he had his first detachment in 5th Group.

My buddy...was amazing, a Ranger-qualified signal officer out of West Point, he later went on to be the C&E officer at 1st Group, and later did a lot of black box work before he got out and went to work for the government doing computer stuff. I have not talked to him in a long while....last I heard, he was down in the Research Triangle. Good guy. I really miss him. He totally changed my opinion about West Pointers. Got to figure....any officer who can hurl a pitch fork at a stuffed shirt in a purple Izod shirt with a snooty girl carrying a parasol is alright with me.

I seem to remember graduating around September, 1984, and signing back into 1st Group around October. My dates may be off here, as it is all from memory, and this was a long time ago. I was one of the first guys to sign into 1st Group, back when there was just a shack with a counter and not much else. I drove from 2/75 to North Fort after extending for the Q-Course, signed in, and drove right out to Bragg. I went to the Q-course TDY from Ft. Lewis. Totally awesome deal. I remember buying a stereo when I got back.

Then I went to ODA 151, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Good times.

12-21-2004, 02:36	#20
magician Quiet Professional Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Bangkok Posts: 856	can't really remember my class date...and all my orders and stuff are in storage, in the states, packed away in boxes. I think I may have gone through with TR, though, as he remembers an O from my class who became a real good friend of mine, and a couple of the other guys from my class, like Cory F, and Robin M, who later went across the fence, and a couple of young guys (Steve C, and "Mac") who went to 1st Group with me, and later on went to the dark side. Another funny story. We were done with the course....just waiting to do some civil affairs work, or something, on the very last day, while we were waiting for extraction....so we were on this...plantation....and we were supposed to clean up this area, straighten up a bunch of deadfall and pine cones and pine straw and stuff....and the owner of the place....he was classic, he came down in a GOLF CART in bright green golf pants and a purple Izod shirt, some crazy country club outfit like that....and he had his lady with him, a real Southern belle, all dressed up in lace and finery with a freakin' PARASOL. We were grouchy, in a rebellious mood, and this guy, he just rubbed us the wrong way. He was treating us worse than hired help. It was like he came down from his mansion, complete with columns and statues and fountains and old mossy trees all over the place, to make sure his "boys" were doing the manual labor correctly. So anyway, I will never forget this, things came to head when one of the NCOs on my detachment told the guy to get on his golf cart and high-tail it out of there, and while he was kicking up dust leaving the AO, my buddy, a West Point O, threw a pitch fork at the golf cart, bouncing it off the back of it. It was funny as hell. I really felt bad for our detachment commander...he was a great guy, a lot of you guys probably know him, his knickname was "Maddog," he had commands on Okie, and retired out of the Schoolhouse as a light colonel back in the mid-90's. I think he had his first detachment in 5th Group. My buddy...was amazing, a Ranger-qualified signal officer out of West Point, he later went on to be the C&E officer at 1st Group, and later did a lot of black box work before he got out and went to work for the government doing computer stuff. I have not talked to him in a long while....last I heard, he was down in the Research Triangle. Good guy. I really miss him. He totally changed my opinion about West Pointers. Got to figure....any officer who can hurl a pitch fork at a stuffed shirt in a purple Izod shirt with a snooty girl carrying a parasol is alright with me. I seem to remember graduating around September, 1984, and signing back into 1st Group around October. My dates may be off here, as it is all from memory, and this was a long time ago. I was one of the first guys to sign into 1st Group, back when there was just a shack with a counter and not much else. I drove from 2/75 to North Fort after extending for the Q-Course, signed in, and drove right out to Bragg. I went to the Q-course TDY from Ft. Lewis. Totally awesome deal. I remember buying a stereo when I got back. Then I went to ODA 151, and the rest, as they say, is history. Good times.
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