What is your best 'shaking my head' moment in your time in?

LTC Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 25 Sep 2014 00:27:54 -0400

What is your best shaking my head moment in your time in? Was it something that someone said or did?

Mine is properly when I was in Afghanistan and I walked outside the TOC door to see an Afghan's foot in the hook of a crane and standing there holding onto the chain being lifted in the air about ten feet over a new building they were working on. I literally stopped and had two people run into me and one said "well you don't see that everyday".

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 25 at 2014 12:32 AM

SSG Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 25 Sep 2014 00:32:23 -0400

Well... there was this one time at BAF... a handful of us were coming out of the "Pink Palace" where all the big dogs were.. and this one kid comes busting out the door with his M4 at the low ready looking like he's raiding the place..

And then there was the time it snowed at BAF... and there was one guy driving a gator while another sat on the rack on the front trying to use a shovel as a plow...

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Sep 25 at 2014 12:37 AM

LTC Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 25 Sep 2014 00:37:12 -0400

SSG Private RallyPoint Member in BAF I was walking down Disney Ave and heard a thump and knew it was not outgoing, but hey everyone else was walking so I kept going. I got back to my sleeping quarters and the guys were out at the smoke shed so I joined them in conversation when the sirens went off. I then saw a guy in full battle rattle run and literally dive head first into the bunker......

Response by Capt Seid Waddell made Dec 2 at 2016 12:28 PM

Capt Seid Waddell — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 12:28:43 -0500

When I was at Eglin AFB in the late '60s they hauled barge loads of out-dated small arms ammunition (.30-06, .45 Auto, 7.62, etc.) out into the Gulf of Mexico and dumped them there rather than let the ammo be sold on the civilian market.

Response by SFC Pete Kain made Dec 2 at 2016 12:36 PM

SFC Pete Kain — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 12:36:51 -0500

Came through the gate at Camp Gates in Germany and heard a loud bang, Found out it was the sound of an ammo trailer falling on the front of my 113.
All I could do was shake my head and help unload the trailer.

Response by SGT David A. 'Cowboy' Groth made Dec 2 at 2016 12:57 PM

SGT David A. 'Cowboy' Groth — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 12:57:01 -0500

Not enough time or space to write it down.

Response by SSgt Terry P. made Dec 2 at 2016 3:50 PM

SSgt Terry P. — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 15:50:44 -0500

LTC Private RallyPoint Member Nothing to do with your post---but--
Congratulations, Major !!! Haven't viewed one of your comments since you were promoted.

Response by SGT Philip Roncari made Dec 2 at 2016 7:50 PM

SGT Philip Roncari — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 19:50:26 -0500

While assigned as a patrolling instructor upon my return from Vietnam we were required to give a written test upon the trainees completion of their day and night patrols,invariably some of these young troops would deliberately flunk or give absurd answers hoping against hope a failing grade would get them out of going to the "Green place"unfortunately for them,it did not matter at all they were going!

Response by SFC George Smith made Dec 2 at 2016 8:26 PM

SFC George Smith — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 20:26:09 -0500

in the 90's we had a Bn Commander who wanted push to talk with the Company in Thailand via Sat com...
the commander told Us to Use a 463-L pallet as a Reflector for the Sat antenna...
to hit the PaCom Bird we had a 10 degree take off angle
in short we used KL-43/Stu-3 Phone Links because there was no way to Hit the Sat ...

Response by PVT Mark Brown made Dec 2 at 2016 8:39 PM

PVT Mark Brown — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 20:39:24 -0500

I think it has to be the day while in Korea when the battery commander stole and NIKE Hercules missile and took it to the village with his jeep and trailer. Rumor had it that he sold it on the black market. What else can you do. Hard part for me was that I was still in BN S-2 at the time. The MP's (who guarded the launcher area) were on it before anyone could even react.

Response by SSG Steven Mangus made Dec 2 at 2016 9:07 PM

SSG Steven Mangus — Fri, 02 Dec 2016 21:07:44 -0500

Back in 2001 in the "land of not so right," South Korea for the uninformed..I was asked to take charge of a convoy to pick up ammo for a gunnery. Well the convoy had to various ROK camps to pick up the .50 cal and 2.75 rockets. Well we had to hand load the ammo on to 2 hemmits and an LMTV. When completed, our route back to KTC took up through Ujonbu on MSR 3 (right along Camp Red Cloud) at around 5 pm, which was rush hour so the grid lock was on. Needless to say we made it back and the Squadron Commander and CSM were waiting for us..I thought they were going to say we did a good job, wow was I 180 out on that one..needless to say, apparently there was a report that our convoy was speeding which came from the CG. So as all the enlisted on the convoy were in the command tent getting a collective ass chewing. The CSM asked what we had to say for ourselves..not passing a moment to voice my opinion, while my 1SG was giving the sign to not say a word, I asked the simple question of "sergeant major have you been to Camp Red Cloud at 5 pm?" He of course responded yes he had and I then stated "if that is the case how could we be speeding with fully loaded vehicles and in heavy traffic and not kill anyone." He responded "the CG said you were, so you were.." I was totally dumb founded..

Response by MSG Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 3 at 2016 5:14 PM

MSG Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 03 Dec 2016 17:14:38 -0500

OIF 08-09, taking the logpac to green zone, one of the security members on that convoy, well all I can say is when are your quadruplets due, this guy was so fat that 10 of me couldn't fit his pants and I weighed 187 pounds, same time frame night mission checking out lights for soccer field new 2n lt, comes out of the vehicle like don knots on meth, team sgt looks at me and says stay with him so he doesn't hurt himself, and with all due respect to the CSM's the flag pole CSM's at the chow hall after you've been out 10-12 hours on patrol, your hungry and heading back out but your uniform looks like crap, your dirty and smell, and he's chewing your ass off for the way you look

Response by SPC James Anderson made Dec 3 at 2016 7:12 PM

SPC James Anderson — Sat, 03 Dec 2016 19:12:29 -0500

NTC think it was March of 2000. Just got done with hours of briefings on TOC security and how not to trust anyone, check credentials of all civies and so forth. Was on perimeter security when a civie truck pulls up and 2 people get out pretending to be media. I go through all the regs and call in to my Btry TOC, within seconds my 1SG shows up and asks what they want. They want to see the Battalion TOC vehicle. Without a moments hesitation or any checks of any kind my 1SG walks them directly to the Bat Commanders TOC. I just stand there shaking my head. About 3 hrs later we move the entire Bat TOC about 2 klicks.

Response by SSG Eddie Helmling made Dec 3 at 2016 7:19 PM

SSG Eddie Helmling — Sat, 03 Dec 2016 19:19:57 -0500

Being woke up at 0930 in the field with the tent I walked into at 0400 missing folded and on the truck and me still asleep in my bag

Response by SGT Roland McHoes made Dec 3 at 2016 9:38 PM

SGT Roland McHoes — Sat, 03 Dec 2016 21:38:05 -0500

I had a PSG my last tour in Iraq that I didn't exactly get along with, for reasons you will probably deduce below. One day after a mission, I forgot my Oakley's on the dash of the MRAP after doing recovery and when I went back to get them, they were gone. So I knocked on the PSG's CHU and asked if anyone else in the PLT had found some Oakley's in the MRAP and then described them, very precisely (they did not have the original lenses because the original lenses had been damaged). He said "No, but I'll let you know if anyone does." ....He was wearing them on top of his head. Instead of getting into it with him, I just shook my head and walked away.

Response by MSgt Richard Randall made Dec 4 at 2016 1:14 PM

MSgt Richard Randall — Sun, 04 Dec 2016 13:14:42 -0500

Sitting in maintenance job control at Vandenberg AFB late one afternoon and I get a call from division command post. They patched the Kern County Sheriff’s office through to my phone. Seems as if a local had found a “missile” on the desert floor and had planned to slice it lengthwise with a band saw so he could mount it like a monster bass or something. The sheriff’s office said there was some writing on it but had a hard time making out what it said because he didn’t want to get too close. I told him to have everyone evacuate at least 2,500 feet away and farther if possible. Contacted Air Force EOD at Vandenberg and they, in turn, contacted Army EOD at Fort Ord. Both EOD teams choppered to the location where the “missile” was found. Turned out to be an AIM-9 Sidewinder that had somehow either failed to ignite or had fallen off an aircraft. The EOD teams pinned and safed the thing so it could be transported back to Fort Ord. Found out a few days later the Sidewinder had fallen off a Navy aircraft out of Lemoore but was assumed to be lost on the range.

Response by SrA Michael Webster made Mar 29 at 2019 9:36 PM

SrA Michael Webster — Fri, 29 Mar 2019 21:36:42 -0400

When I was stationed in Germany, doing weather support for the 3rd ID, we single folk lived in the barracks of one of the brigades. One day as I was heading to the little commissary on post, the First Sergeant was behind me yelliing, "Soldier! Soldier!"

He ran up to me and got in front of me. "Didn't you hear me calling you?, Soldier?"
I reply, "I'm not a soldier. I'm an Airman."
"When you are on an Army base, you are a Soldier!"
"If that's true, Sergeant, then the 341st Replacement Battalion on Rhein-Main AB . . . are they Airmen? Good day, Sergeant."
I walked away as he was thinking it over.
I related this story to my Station Chief, and he just shook his head chuckling.