The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner

Posted on | April 11, 2022 | Comments Off on Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner

Team 41 crosses the finish line.

FORT BENNING, GEORGIA
OK, Team 41 did not win the 38th annual Best Ranger Competition. They finished 14th place, but if you know what’s involved in this three-day ordeal, you understand why merely finishing the event counts as a win. On Saturday night, they completed a land navigation exercise, then started Sunday morning at the Warrior Training Center obstacle course.

It is safe to say that more than 90% of the U.S. population Bob’s age could not complete even that one event, let alone do it near the end of a three-day competition during which the participants maybe got a total of three hours sleep. Sheer exhaustion takes its toll, and in one of the final events — at Red Cloud Range, where they shoot the big stuff — Bob had a brain-freeze and suddenly couldn’t remember how to clear a jam on the .50-caliber machine gun. However, he did score a direct hit with the anti-tank weapon, so there’s that much to brag about. And the video of the epic “don’t break the box” episode now has 300,000+ views on Twitter.

At last night’s awards dinner — the chicken was excellent — we found ourselves in line behind one of the teams from the 101st Airborne Division and struck up a conversation. One of the team members remembered Bob being his instructor at the Mountain Phase of Ranger School. So then I checked on my phone and realized this guy was a first lieutenant, a West Point graduate. Our boy is training future generals.

Very proud of him. Rangers Lead the Way!

Category: Family

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