The Desert Cowboys settle in:
December snuck up on us all so fast that we were on the flight over here faster than we knew what was going on.
Once we said our sad goodbyes to our love ones we were rushed into buses and shuttled into a secure area for briefings and accountability. The bus ride from that point was about 10 minutes long and we drove right up to the plane and loaded. The seats were very comfortable; perhaps it was the fact that we were all very tired. As far as the flight went it was very uneventful and I for one slept several times. The movies that played were The "Dukes of Hazard", "The Fantastic 4" and I cannot recall the last movie. (I think I slept threw the entire thing.)
We touched down in the morning and unloaded the plane. Once again we were rushed into another secure area. We had to wait on Kuwaiti police to show up to escort our convoy to our temporary base camp. This is where we would continue to train and finalize any questions we would have prior to moving up into Iraq.
While training the "
Desert Cowboys" were selected to run two different operations.
- Run the Battalion thru a Zero verification range.
- Conduct a live fire Convoy lane.
The Zero range was just to verify that everyone's weapon were still sighted in properly. This consists of sending 18 rounds down range. Well the "
Desert Cowboys" never like to meet the standard, they love to increase the standard and show off when it comes to the Battalion. (A little back-story on this is that our company is separate from the rest of Battalion, which is stationed down at Fort Hood, Texas.) We ordered enough rounds so everyone got 27 rounds, another 9 rounds each; we separated the nine rounds into three separate magazines. After each soldier sent their 18 rounds down and verified zero, they were issued three magazines, which was used to teach them how to change the magazines fast and to fire in different positions. The first magazine was to be shoot in the standing position, the second in the kneeling and the third from the sitting position. The range went off without a hitch and we were even recognized for "the sexiest range I ever saw" by the Command Sergeant Major of our battalion, CSM St. Cyre. LT Thornton, SSG Anderson and SSG Lohr earned a battalion coin for conducting the range. Good Job guys.
When we were selected for the 'Live Fire Convoy" lane we were disappointed. We had just finished the range and several other training events back to back. We were tired and sore and had blisters everywhere. I didn't know I could get blisters in some of those spots. Anyway we packed up and headed out to the location of the training a two night, three day, event. A squad of five members from the other three platoons joined us and it made it a large group. The first night was training on terminology and basic set up of a typical convoy. The next day was close quarters combat and vehicle issue. The Third day was walk thru phase and the live fire. This had to be the best training we had conducted since we heard of our deployment. I would like to say thanks to the MPRI guys who instructed us. They had the most recent knowledge and experience that there was. Good job to all of you.
Once all the training had been complete we loaded everything up and headed out to our permanent new homes for the next year. It was like heaven sent when we showed up. First we had our own trailers that we shared with a roommate. The next was the latrines instead of porta-johns and to boot they were clean. There was also a shower inside one of the trailers. The only complaint there is the water surges on you. You either get burnt or freeze to death, there is no in-between. We only hope that KBR (Kellogg, Brown & Root) can fix this problem and the problem of paper towel shortage that happend. Now on to the best part of everything that is here, the mess hall. In Kuwait we had the worst chow hall and now we go to the best chow hall it is excellent. The food has flavor!!
Our work area is an open gravel motor pool. It was fine until the rains starting in. Then it turned into the biggest mud hole I have ever seen. Those who love to go mudding would have been proud of the site. Supporting the Engineers you would figure we could have gotten a lot done as far as drainage goes or getting more gravel to spread in the area, but instead we got it to where most of them just avoided the place until it started to dry out. Now we have reports that it is supposed to rain for the next three days. I wonder what it will look like then. Anyhow we jumped in on the second day here and kicked the outgoing motor pool out. By the fourth day we were up and running reports and all. The rest of the battalion was right behind us by two weeks. Not bad guys. Leading the way from Hazmat, PLL, Deadline reports, to having a functional tool room. These guys all stepped up their pace and focused on getting it done. '
Get-r-Done' as they say. To all the family members of the "
Desert Cowboys" you should be proud of your sons, daughters, husbands and wives. This is the group that the rest of the Battalion(s), yes plural, are looking at and trying to emulate.
This battalion has what is called, "Hero of the Week." Once again the "
Desert Cowboys" led the way. SPC DeJesus one of our own, a mechanic, was selected for all the hard work that he put in on our crane to get it operational. The Battalion Commander presented him with a battalion coin and SSG Anderson (the motor sergeant) presented him with a set of gel filled CAT gloves. Good job SPC DeJesus.
A note to
America: There has been a lot of response on the "
Cowboy Crew" website to us being over here. The overwhelming thanks and gratitude towards us left us awestruck. Thanks to all of you back in the states for all you have done and all that you are doing. There are more ways to support us than by joining the
United States Army. There are those who choose to live like us. Joining the military and spending years away from their family and there are those who support those who choose to live it. The "
Desert Cowboys" are made up of mostly support element personnel. Is this due to the fact that most
Cowboys are supporters? Is this due to the fact of the way we are raised and what we take pride in? I do not have the answers that we really need. I do not know why it is that way, it just is. So you see you are already doing just like we are;
Supporting. Once again thank you
America we
'Love You'.
Desert Cowboys.
