From: Michael Mabee
Sent: Tuesday, July 13, 2004 1:07 AM
Subject: 12 July 2004 FRG Update

12 July 2004
FOB Speicher
Tikrit, Iraq

Families,

The news is reporting 3 soldiers killed yesterday in two separate attacks in our area. These three soldiers were from units in the167th CSG and we are all deeply saddened by the loss of three soldiers from the Group. I can't provide any more details right now other than what has been reported in the news. The news is reporting that there were IED attacks on two separate convoys, one in Samarra resulting in two deaths and one in Baiji (Bayji) resulting in one death. Several other soldiers were wounded. That's really all I can say right now.

I will get the names, units and details to the FRG when they are publicly available. I would deeply appreciate if at the next FRG meeting, you could have a moment of silence for the 5 soldiers from the 167th CSG who have been killed in action since we took over the mission. They are every bit as much members of our family as the soldiers from HHC. It was truly a horrible day yesterday and we are shaken, but not deterred. All 3000 soldiers of the 167th CSG make us proud everyday with their hard and dangerous work and the professionalism and motivation they display.

(The rest of this letter was written before yesterday which is why I still had a sense of humor and babble on like my usual self. I assure you that I don't have much of one today.)

It is quite warm over here, well over 110 degrees every day now, and the wind is like camel's breath - hot and stinky. It does get down to about 80 degrees by 4:30 a.m. So we enjoy cool, brisk early mornings here. But it's back over 90 degrees by 8:00 a.m. and usually back over 100 degrees by 9:30 a.m. But I haven't heard one person say they miss being at Fort Drum at 20 below zero either. Sad to say, but I'll take Iraq over Fort Drum - weather wise anyway.

On June 25, 2004 I rode for 5 days on a mission with three of our companies: the 283rd Truck Company, the 25th Truck Company and the 590th Quartermaster Company. The mission was to move thousands and thousands of gallons of critical fuel. The 283rd is a fuel hauling unit with big tanker trucks. The 25th and the 590th both supplied gun trucks to escort the tankers. There was SGT Boles, SPC Alcide and I in our little Humvee among all these big tanker trucks and 5-ton gun trucks. Our Humvee kind of looked like the little kid hanging around with the big kids as we drove down the highway. We traveled over 1300 miles with them on this mission. Those were 1300 very hard miles.

There is a long stretch of dirt road in southern Iraq that we bumped and bounced over for two hours on each trip (and we made several). The Humvee was jostled so badly that one of the fans fell from the ceiling and the radio mount shook loose. Did I ever mention that I'd like to have a long talk with the guy that invented the Humvee seats? Anyway, at some points the dust was so thick that we had to look out the side windows and just watch the side of the road to make sure we were still on it - you couldn't even see the front of your own truck. On one of the trips, I clocked the distance on my GPS, thinking that it must have been 100 miles or so. It was less than 50. Those are the 50 hardest miles I have seen. And as bad as it was for us in the Humvee, the ride was twice was bad for the 283rd soldiers in their fuel trucks. The soldiers endured this torture without a complaint. Okay, that's an exaggeration. There was a little complaining. In fact, maybe a little more than a little. But these great soldiers from the 283rd, 25th and 590th did this trip again and again and again and accomplished an important mission. It was an honor (though not a pleasure) to ride with them.

On the sides of the road we would frequently see both children and sometimes adults waving at us and trying to get the soldiers to throw them food. This is forbidden because it causes the people to run out into the road and is very dangerous for them. It's hard to drive by these kids who live in mud huts and tents and not throw them food, but that is what we have to do. There were miles and miles through the desert where we could not see a hut or a tent anywhere and yet there were still groups of people on the side of the road waving to us. Where do these people live?

We passed a huge herd of camels (Flock of camels? School of camels? Pack of camels?) in southern Iraq. There must have been over 50 of them. What does one do with a herd of camels? Do they have camel shows over here? I know that I did see a sign in Kuwait for camel races. I wonder if there is a camel triple crown. Anyway, we were all very interested in this large group of camels. Not something you see everyday. They are really pretty cool animals if you don't get close enough for one to breathe on you. They are a bit on the ornery side, but the same has been said of me, so I don't hold it against them.

We also passed by all the salt farms (called salt pans, I believe) that I told you about when we first came to Iraq. By the sides of the roads, women wading into these ponds and harvesting salt to sell. It is interesting that salt was one of the earliest forms of currency and this area of Iraq (once Mesopotamia), was the cradle of civilization. When you look at these women laboring to harvest salt from the ponds by the side of the road, or a shepherd with his flock of sheep, it doesn't seem like life has changed a whole lot for some people over the years.

On each leg of the mission when we arrived at our destination, we slept outside or on the trucks. Some of the solders are quite creative and set up hammocks between two parked trucks. My crew slept on cots that we carry in the back of our Humvee (something I learned early on - always bring a cot). After traveling down these rough roads and driving for sometimes up to 9 or 10 hours, there is nothing more pleasant than sleeping under the stars. Although it was still 110 degrees at 10:00 p.m., it was a lot more pleasant than roasting in our vehicles during the day. (I have clocked the temperature at up to 139 degrees in cab the vehicles). I really can't complain though. My Humvee has an air conditioner which generally brings the temperature down to between 100 to 109 degrees. They don't make air conditioners for the fuel trucks or the 5 tons yet and these soldiers and airmen will endure for hours (remember we are wearing this body armor and Kevlar helmet, so add another very hot 24 pounds) driving down the road in the cab of a truck at 130 degrees. I make sure that I ride in other vehicles regularly so I remember how hard their job is.

SGT Boles brought a watermelon (don't ask me where he got that!) so the first night we had some nice warm watermelon before we went to sleep. Remind me to never make fun of a soldier who brings a watermelon on a convoy again. That really hit the spot.

Most mornings we were awake before dawn and ready to roll. Well, I say ready to roll but no coffee. That's the one thing I ask of the Army: don't send me out into a war zone without a cup of Joe. Is that too much to ask? Well, after a few mornings of dealing with my camel-like attitude, SGT Boles found that he could get coffee from some of the Third Country National (TCN) drivers from Sri Lanka. So I finally did start getting a cup of coffee in the morning before we headed out. Watermelon and coffee - SGT Boles knows exactly how to operate on a convoy in Iraq. I was really glad to have him with me on this trip.

One morning at 4:30 a.m., (only 80 degrees out), I was shaving with my electric razor using the side mirror of the truck and a flashlight. All the sudden, a bat started flying in fast erratic circles around me. I think it was attracted by the sound of the razor and must have thought that I was a big juicy mosquito. I decided to wait until after dawn to finish shaving. By the time we got back to Speicher, the whole five days was a blur and it's hard for me to remember what happened on which day. I have a huge respect for the soldiers and airmen in our truck companies who go out for days and sometimes weeks at a time on these convoy missions. It's not the Generals or the Colonels or the Sergeants Major over here that make things happen. It's the Private behind the wheel of a tractor trailer, or the Airmen on the 50 caliber machine gun in the back of a gun truck. They are the real heroes out here.

On July 7, 2004 I rode with the 454th Truck Company for 2 days on a mission to escort tanker trucks to the Marines in Southern Iraq. The 454th is a reserve unit out of Ohio, but like the 283rd, the soldiers came from all over the country when the unit was mobilized. The mission was to escort fuel trucks down a dangerous stretch or road (about a 6 hour drive each way). We did this convoy at night, slept during the day and returned the following night. The 283rd also joined us in this mission, running fuel out to the Marines. While doing this mission, our convoys came under some small arms fire and one IED attack, but the 167th CSG units completed the mission over several days with only two minor injuries. I can't say enough about the conduct and professionalism of our great fuel truck companies and gun trucks outfits.

Now, on a lighter note...as 1LT Orr, the HHC Commander, informed you a few weeks back, we now have an air conditioned "latrine trailer" with flush toilets installed at HHC here at Speicher. It's been there for about a month, but I am so conditioned to using the porta-johns that I had never bothered to go in there. Well, the other night, I suddenly awoke with an emergency mission to perform (if you get my drift). I stumbled outside in the dark and realized that I had forgotten my flashlight. Then I saw the light from the new trailer and decided that I could get there faster than I could get my flashlight and back out to the porta-john. Well, I must say, for a bathroom trailer, it is very nice. Air conditioned and flush toilets just as advertised. However, nobody warned me that the toilets are not bolted to the floor. After concluding my mission, the toilet tipped to the side and I sprained my wrist catching myself on the stall. 5 months and 9000 miles through Iraq without a scratch and I was almost killed by a flush toilet. My wife is going to be ticked when I come home and have a porta-john placed in the back yard because I'm too paranoid to use the regular bathroom.

On June 16, 2004, several of us visited the Saint Matthew Monastery in Northern Iraq. This monastery was established in the 4th century A.D. (Saint Matthew died in 411 A.D.) Parts of the structure actually date back that far. Portions of it were built in the 4th century, portions were built around 700 years ago and one wing was built 20 years ago. The monastery is located on top of Mount Maqluub and there is a stunning view from the mountain top. Two monks, a bishop and a nun live there. One of the monks told us the story of Saint Matthew and the miracle he performed, curing a king's daughter of leprosy. There are catacombs and the tombs of several Saints. We were given a tour, including one of the Churches which was built hundreds of years ago.

Here is a picture from our trip up to the monastery. An HHC 167th CSG gun truck negotiates a herd of cows in the road on in Northern Iraq. In the rear of the gun truck are LTC Corkery (left) and SPC Alcide. Not visible in the cab are SGT Boles (driving), SPC Gallant (front passenger seat). The cows, camels and donkeys over here feel that they have the right of way and we usually let them have it. Why argue?

Mike
"Granite 7"

Michael Mabee
Command Sergeant Major
167th Corps Support Group
Tikrit, Iraq