Prior to joining the Guard, I deployed to Kuwait with the 1st Cavalry Division. As a member of the Texas Guard I deployed to Bosnia, Afghanistan, and now Iraq. While in Iraq, I earned an Army Commendation Medal supervising an eclectic squad monitoring traffic on Route Irish. While still in Iraq, I enlisted in the active Army and will be assigned to Fort Hood.

With the National Guard NASCAR racer

Fresh from Iraq, I am still decompressing and analyzing my year away. These pictures tell a part of the story of our squad and tasks.

Reenlisting in front of “Victory over America” palace. This palace was supposed to be built to celebrate what Saddam Hussein called a victory in Desert Storm. The palace will not be completed. You can also see a bit of the “Flintstone Palace” in the background.

My platoon passes time in Kuwait before entering Iraq

The year passed quickly because we stayed so busy and there was so much to learn. Deciphering the pass system, learning to effectively search vehicles and personnel, and identifying different factions occupied much of our time. Searching about 300 Iraqi citizens a day required a new tolerance and patience and attention to detail. One time my squad found a cell phone hidden in a loaf of bread carried by an on-post worker. [Cell phones are often used to detonate roadside bombs.]

While driving an Iraqi bus full of Soldiers on a mission across the desert, I hit a camel that abruptly ran across the road. The animal had escaped from a racetrack and ran across six lanes of traffic. The crew of the bus saw the camel running and shouted into the confusion while I concentrated on other carcasses lying on the side of the road. Laughing now, the Soldiers are reminded of how many tasks must be accomplished all at once and how serious the outcome of failure can be.

These camels were part of another herd. Getting close enough to allow my First Sergeant to photograph them gave the entire busload of Soldiers a start when the herder drove a pack camel in front of them

There are pictures here of Iraqi children selling new and counterfeit equipment and trinkets. Goggles sold for eighty dollars in a PX can be bought on the Iraqi street for thirty. Kids will be kids – in America or in Iraq. Especially given the level of violence in Iraq, I was surprised by the smiles of the children as they approached American GIs.

Iraqi Children below a guard tower at my FOB (forward operating base)


On leave in October, I returned to Iraq only a month and a half before redeployment to the US.

Much of my adventures must be kept out of the public view until I have fully in-processed and debriefed. New rules on electronic publishing and operational security have been put in place and as an active duty Soldier – I have to be careful about postings.

If I could change one thing about my tour in Iraq it would be to adjust the Rules of Engagement to make sure Soldiers could enter any place from which they were threatened or attacked.


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