Photo Dump

Here's some pics from NIACT, the week in Virginia, and the trip over.

This was my favorite rifle range.  Targets popped up behind the different mounds.

At the 'petting zoo' learning about IEDs

 

On the bus in battle gear

Getting geared up after breakfast and it's still not 0600!

All those years playing with GI Joe as a kid pays off in the Army

IED training...very sleepy

Bus rides are a great time to nap

This was Dan's Oscar-worthy performance

Charlie Company

Charlie Company 1st Platoon

Shoot or no-shoot scenario training

Army guys love to write on the inside of porta-pottys whether it's about going home,  boasting about their hometown, or confessing their love to their girlfriend

Eyebrawl had lots of fun in Virginia.  Here he is going on his first rollercoaster

About to take off from Virginia

Rota, Spain

Boots on ground

The last week in Virginia was nice and relaxing.  Able to live life at my own pace, I stayed up late and slept in most days.  One day I went to Busch Gardens with Steve and Mike and rode every roller coaster there.  They had a few news ones since I was there last with Peggy and they were lots of fun.  I also got a few runs in and bowled a few games.  My last game was my best and I bowled a 153, which is not great but good enough to be fun.  I'd like to try bowling with Peggy and the kids when I get back.

Two days ago it was time to begin the trek to Djibouti.  We loaded up on buses at 1400 and went to the airport to wait six hours for our flight to depart, with nothing to do but hangout in the small Air Mobility Command terminal.  The first flight was to Rota, Spain, and we took around seven hours to get there arriving the next morning.  We stayed on the ground for two hours in another small little terminal.  We were told they had wifi and I guess that's technically true, but it didn't have near the capacity required to support all the passengers off a 767 looking to check in with the rest of the world.  After loading back up our next stop was Sigonella, Italy, where again the wifi didn't work well.  Our next leg took us to Bahrain.  People were offloading at each stop along the way and after this stop the plan was less than half full.  The last leg brought us into Djibouti at 0400, so it was right at a 24 hour journey.

Right away, even that early in the morning the heat is palpable.  We had some quick indoc briefs and then met with our sponsors who showed us around.  My sponsor changed and my job position has changed and it may still change again before things are settled.

I'm in a CLU or containerized living unit and it will be home for the next four months or so.  I have a roommate and there's a communal shower nearby that we use.  Eventually I'll move into the West End CLUs where I'll have one all to myself and it will include a private bathroom.

Now that I have boots on the ground (BOG) my counter will start counting down the 330 days that I'll be here before heading back to the States.

Well, even though I've caught some naps here and there, it's getting late and I'm hoping to pass out and wake up and be on schedule for the new time zone.  I'll try to upload pictures tomorrow.

Narmy Strong!

We left NIACT and South Carolina behind today and arrived at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek, Virginia.  The last couple days at NIACT we actually pretty cool.  We'd finally grown pretty accustomed to wearing the body armor and we were very fortunate to only have one day of weather in the upper 80s.  Our drill sergeants repeatedly told us on those last two days that we were the best group they'd seen go through NIACT because we all got along and did what we were supposed to without complaint.  I assure you, we complained about things among ourselves (a complaining sailor is a happy sailor) but nothing important enough for others to hear.

Those last few days we practiced quick reaction shooting, went through another simulator with a shoot or no shoot scenario, ran through an obstacle course where we fired both the M4 and M9 from multiple positions, and learned and practiced a room clearing technique.  Our last day we rode HMMWVs (Humvees) and MRAPs through a humanitarian mission convoy scenario where we had to put some of our previous training into practice.  This training has nothing to do with anything that I expect to be doing in Djibouti and I don't really think I should have had to go through it, but I'm glad to have done it.

Back to Work

After having most of the weekend off and an easy day in the classroom on Monday, we were back at it Tuesday and Wednesday.  Both days we were up at 0400 and on the way to the rifle range by 0600.  Yesterday we shot a practice rifle qualification and had the real thing today.  Aaron, an officer in our class shot a perfect 40 of 40 targets yesterday qualifying him as a Hawkeye and getting his name up on the sign at the range.  The last person to shoot a perfect score on that course was 10 years ago!  Our Cadre (Army drill instructors running our day-to-day training) said that we've have more qualify expert in this group than any they've seen.  I shot a 34, just two short of Expert, but good enough for Sharpshooter.

We also had some really great Tactical Combat Casualty Care training where we learned the latest techniques being used to save lives on the battlefield, and it can also be put to use in other life-threatening situations.  Our final exercise is going to be a convoy simulation and we've been practicing for that as well.  Today we went through a simulator that was like a multi-million dollar video game where I drove a HUMVEE.  It was pretty neat, but honestly modern PC games look and respond better.

Up until today, the weather has been nice and cool with clouds overhead and rain threatening most of the day.  Today the weather turned warmer and it's supposed to stay that way for the rest of the week.  Some were glad for the change, but I think they're crazy!  This might be nice weather for hanging out at a lake, but for running around with an extra 50 lbs in pants and long sleeves I'll take the cool weather every day.

Friday Photo Dump

We've been fortunate to have a Erik, a Navy chaplain in our group this week.  Fortunate because of the fact that he's not able to handle the weapons, so he's become our resident photographer (he's also a pretty good guy even though a snorer!)  These are just some of the pictures he's taken over the past week.

Weapon dis-assembly and cleaning.

Gear issue.

And everybodys hands go up!

 

Gun Shoot

The last few days have been busy and tiring.  Wednesday was the first day of wearing the "battle rattle"  and we did so while moving through some drills to prepare us for rifle qualification.  Yesterday was a long day where we went through some convoy drills, rode a vehicle rollover simulator, and had MREs for lunch.  After lunch we used the rifle range simulator which is a lifelike video game followed by a practice run through the M9 qualification course and Table 3.  The M9 qualification is straightforward stand and shoot at the target, but Table 3 is an Army qualification course where it's under stress (Drill Sergeant yelling at you) and you run to four different stations and fire at three different targets.

We had an early start today, up at 0350 and on a bus to the range by 0500.  There we actually shot our weapons for the first time, qualifying on the M9 and zeroing our rifles.  Even with six years of active duty, I'd never had the chance to shoot for ribbons until today.  And though I didn't shoot as good as others like Dan next to me, I still scored in the highest range to make Expert and earn the Marksmanship Medal!

I've been trying to 'embrace the suck' and have found that it pays to do so.  Not only does the day go faster if you have a positive attitude, but if you're first in line for everything it leaves room for some down time to rest and relax that others may not be able to enjoy.  There's no getting away from the discomfort of all the gear and that can be distracting, but I just keep telling myself it will only last for so long.

Embrace the Suck!

The unofficial motto of NIACT is 'embrace the suck' and up until this point there hadn't really been much suck.  Sure, I'm sleeping in barracks and have noisy snorers on either side of my that make it hard to sleep, and there have been boring powerpoint presentations that make it hard to stay awake but those things aren't too bad.  And there's been good things.  I've met a good group of guys that will be with me for the next year,  the food isn't too bad and I'm probably eating healthier, and I've been issued some cool gear like a Leatherman and a Camelbak.  We've also been issue an M-4 rifle and M-9 pistol!

Unfortunately, we were also issued our 'battle rattle'- a 50lb vest with ballistic plating, a helmet, elbow and knee pads, and gloves.  Today was the first day to wear that gear and oh my god is it heavy.

If you get it set up right, you don't carry all of the weight on your shoulders but everyone is slamming "vitamin M" and the end of the day for a sore back and shoulders.

We've been lucky with unseasonably cool weather in South Carolina and I can only hope that it lasts the next two weeks because it would be miserable in hot weather.  The next two weeks we'll probably never be comfortable, so we just make it as comfortable as possible and embrace the suck that remains.