Gettin' stuck is gettin' stuck. It doesn't matter whether you're in your hometown or on the other side of the world doing what you can to bring peace to the planet. Off-road accidents happen when you're off-road. And every time one of these brave guys and gals gets in a situation like this, it only hones their driving skills even further, because nothing teaches like experience. We've got some really good entries for you this year from the field of combat. Our guys and gals have been busy in the Middle East, but not too busy to get an occasional shot off for us (the photographic kind). Thanks again to all our military service men and women. We want to see you home soon!
I am a soldier stationed in Germany and was deployed during OIF 2 in 2004. I love seeing the military uh-ohs that have been submitted to your magazine. I love reading it every month, and love seeing that not all green-suiters are great drivers.
After a mission in northeast Iraq, this driver felt as if he could make it out past the extremely narrow canal crossings on his own and did not need to listen to the advice coming from the truck behind him. Two hours and two M1114s later we were able to pull him out of the canal. Luckily no one was injured and they just had a little waterlogged ammo and wet seats for their troubles.
1st Lt. Michael Martin, via 4wheeloffroad.com
Here's a picture from the 1-128th INF (from Eau Claire, Wisconsin) taken near Samarra, Iraq...a little north of Baghdad. It was a stinky situation, since the HUMMV was stuck in a septic field. I'll bet the first sergeant can smile about it now that they are home. I'm presently over here with the 2-127th INF (Appleton, Wisconsin). So far I've no Whoops! photos of us, and I hope it stays that way. Love the magazine, keep the good stuff coming.
Sfc. Douglas Daniels, Operations NCO, HHC 2nd BN 127th INF
This was a USMC MTVR that went for a swim in a canal for more than 30 hours.
David Christiansen, Fallujah, Iraq
We were on a "route clearance" mission in Tal Afar, Iraq, and it had rained the day prior but who would have thought that this much water would be in Iraq? Route not clear! It did look passable. We hit it a little too hard and took some water in the intake. Our mechanics had it running again in two days.
Staff Sgt. Harper, 82nd Airborne Tal-Afar, Iraq
During the night portion of our off-road driving course, our captain was riding in the lead IFAV (a Mercedes G-Wagon essentially). Looking through their night-vision goggles they could see a fork in the trail. "Go left," said the captain. Maybe we should have gone right....
Sgt. Garret E. Dean, via 4wheeloffroad.com
ere is a picture from a recovery mission we went on a few weeks ago. What we did to get it out was pick it up with the crane on our wrecker. It was easier than it looks. Hope you like the picture.Sgt. Mathew Davis, Spc. Micheal Myers
U.S. Army OEF 7, via 4wheeloffroad.com
This is a pic of my friend Kimmi McT off-road in Iraq last year. Unfortunately she thought that she was in her Jeep back home and thought that the Army's Armored Security Vehicle (ASV) could go through anything. This turned out to be a four-hour expedition and she had to be winched out by another ASV. Keep up the good articles.
John Perry, 65th MP Co. (ABN), Ft. Bragg, NC