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Cold War Reenactors? REFORGER anyone?


T-Bone
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Here I am in March 1978. I had about a month and a half to go before I got out. The rest of the Battalion went on maneuvers so they left me behind. Ended up pulling guard duty at the ammo dump at Panzer Kaserne. It was cold! I still remember being issued 9 rounds of ammunition, no more, no less. The other guy I was with was at the front gate with his 9 rounds of ammo.

I'm sitting in this shelter facing the big entry door to the ammo enclosure. In looking at this picture, I found all the graffiti scratched into the walls so many years later kinda interesting!

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Salvage Sailor

Could have been worse, we only had three rounds, then it was bash 'em with the butt of the Colt .45

 

Nice photo, thanks for sharing it.

 

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When I was up at West Point for the Summer training augmentation, I pulled guard on the ASP in a shack no bigger than a phone booth and I had an axe handle...

 

Guess the ammunition wasn't all that important to guard, since I had a stick, or maybe it was to keep the bears at bay...

 

Leigh  

 

 

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Salvage Sailor
On 3/21/2009 at 11:18 AM, gwb123 said:

The problem I see in reenacting the Cold War or Reforger is that it is not a scenario that is prone to small unit actions. In Europe, it was a mech heavy environment, full of tanks, APC's and artillery. That is a bit much for a weekend reenactment.

 

I am sure there were some recon units in US Army Europe (USAREUR), and maybe if the balloon had gone up you might have seen some platoon and company level actions. But everything over there was geared towards large mass and fast moving formations. (Although I do understand the Berlin Bde. practiced small unit urban combat with the goal of delaying a Soviet take over of the city).

 

I have my own personal thoughts on REFORGER, and most of them should probably be kept to myself. I was never one of the unfortunate souls who had to load up stateside, arrive, draw gear from a prepositioned depot, roll across a strange country in convoy, set up operations and then got into a training exercise. I got to watch it from the perspective of already being in country and just watching what had previously been neat and orderly turn into chaos.

 

I am sure our friends from the Warsaw Pact were watching every detail. I always wondered if they were in awe at our ability to move so much material so fast, or if they were laughing their boots off at some of our gaffs.

 

So what would be your scenario for a fun filled weekend of reenacting the Cold War?

 

Border Patrol duty: Spend endless hours walking along a path 10 meters back from the border post looking for signs of activity. (Much more exciting would be the Korean version of DMZ patrol, where you might actually get shot at). Or you could spend rotating shifts in a sandbagged bunker watching farmers on the other side of the fence tend their fields.

 

Convoy: Get at least 12 military vehicles, mount large orange rotating lights on the top of them along with yellow signs that say CONVOY AHEAD, and then drive for hours on the interstate no faster than 45 mph. You will make lots of new friends with the other drivers who will signify their approval of you being there by ducking in and out of your column and making friendly gestures towards you.

 

Convoy, part II: The Maneuver Damage add on module. Run the bumper of your 2 1/2 ton truck against the soft side of a Mercedes. When the driver gets out, explain to him in a language he does not understand that you are here to protect his country.

 

Where are we now? Dispatch your team to various points on the map. Move your headquarters without telling anybody. Lose radio contact because of fog, hills and other odd terrain features unique to the country. Ask the locals for directions in a language they do not understand. Buy a new map at the local gas station because the military map you were issued was drafted in 1968. Finally regain contact with headquarters by using the payphone located in the center of the local town. Miss your connection with your chow, and end up feeding your platoon with bread and lunchmeat bought from one of the local vendors. Stay out of sight of your higher command until the exercise is over and then convoy back to your home base.

 

Darn its cold! Sleep in a drafty tent while it snows at least 8 inches. At 2am do everything you can to relight the heater. Put your feet into your cold boots which you forgot to put inside your sleeping bag. Put cold water in your steel pot and shave with just soap. Walk over to the mess tent and find out the cooks could not get the fires started this morning. Eat C-Rations that were stored outside on a truck after placing them inside your field jacket for 20 minutes to warm them up. Look forward to another 15 days of this and swear you will never complain about your quarters back at post ever again.

 

Out on the town: show up at a local civilian bar or restaurant dressed in civvies that you have owned since high school. Speak awkwardly and slowly in a language the locals cannot understand. Gaze longingly at the local women, including the underaged and married. Drink lots of beer and get loud. When asked to behave loudly remind the manager who won WWII and that if it weren't for you the Russians would be there instead. Leave before the MP's show up.

 

Gamma Goat Maintenance Weekend: Your CO says all vehicles are to be up and running by Monday morning or everyone is losing a stripe. Find a Gamma Goat and fully replace all of the hydralic lines and field test. Have fun!

 

I just had to bump this...

 

Expand and read the whole thing, it will 'blow your mind' in the vernacular of our time

 

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Thank you Salvage Sailor.  

 

I took this and ran it on a veteran's website and got some pretty funny add on suggestions.

 

The best one was to the effect of "Get drunk on a night on the town to where you can barely walk, get on a train in Frankfurt and see where you end up in the morning."

 

It sounded like the voice of experience!  (Prague would have been interesting with a US Military ID and a hangover! LOL!)

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Salvage Sailor

456942060_STANAVFORLANT001.jpg.58a1dcd4847746c91142284f61041499.jpg

 

The NATO Naval version of REFORGER was 'Ocean Safari' & 'Northern Wedding', the immediate reinforcement of Norway & Northern Europe with reserves, equipment & ammunition.  We played chicken with tankers & destroyers, i.e. 'bumper ships' for two weeks in the North Sea and the Arctic Ocean. 

 

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Playing Bumper Ships with the Com....uh, Soviets

 

On the conclusion of Ocean Safari our STANAVFORLANT multinational squadron & our Soviet adversaries steamed into the neutral port of Helsinki, Finland for liberty.  Everyone started carousing with each other, trading parts of uniforms and western gedunk while drinking everything in the city bars.

 

One of our 'intelligence' staff passed out amongst the Ivan's in the wee hours of the morning.  He was dutifully delivered to the American Embassy by our adversaries who placed him in the street elevator and pressed the up button...  Now there's a photo I wish I had, when the doors opened by the Marine guard post.

 

I've showed my souvenir of this night before.  Traded with a Russian sailor for a pair of old Levis.

 

1355853493_SovietNavalEnsign000.JPG.5973c640d553de5cbf1f543e71ed35d5.JPG

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Salvage Sailor

I used to play this a lot after it came out in 1984

 

REFORGER - The Defense of the Fulda Gap '88

(i.e. bye bye tripwire 11th Armored Cavalry, the Commie steamroller is coming)

947183302_ReforgerAtari001.jpg.09f92868ac7829b216f532c62592694b.jpg

 

1345464614_ReforgerAtari002.jpg.90f9606d7934bbb3595776a24f255afa.jpg

 

1147716326_ReforgerAtari003.jpg.b918f1f5cf514a729ee299acd6737dd0.jpg

 

184786152_ReforgerAtari004.jpg.1da4f9af60ab4ea7fc4fe989026a1460.jpg

 

8486758_ReforgerAtari005.jpg.319a724a5ede3ee77699087e6355ac36.jpg

 

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