The men of Item Company braved the elements and headed down to Camp Clark, Missouri for our annual winter battle on Friday, January 15th. The further south we drove the snow seemed to melt away, but the fog grew more and more ominous. We awoke Saturday morning to a thick blanket of fog covering the barracks and the grounds at the old National Guard base. At 0700 we downed some coffee and donuts and then geared up for a long day of battling the Germans. This first photo is Gus, Sean and Dave gazing out over the bleak and foggy fields. Wow, what a great day for a Battle of the Bulge reenactment!
This next scene is a great shot that I captured as a platoon of the 84th Division "The Railsplitters" marched past. Seeing a full platoon of young men dressed up in authentic World War II uniforms and gear marching past you can really give you goosebumps.
At 0830 we fell in for authenticity checks, weapons inspection and instructions for the day. In attendance at the event were roughly 150 Allied soldiers and 120 Germans. The Allied and German groups were both broken down into three platoons each for the day's battle scenarios. It was pretty impressive to see that many dedicated reenactors all out on that field together.
This photo was taken during our platoon's first scenario of the day. The day began with a long brisk march uphill and then into the field to patrol for contact with the Germans. Staff Sergeant McCue took charge and moved us out to track down the hidden hun.
He's a great photo of our little squad early in the day. We had just gotten done sweeping a hill of Germans with some soldiers from the 36th Division. As you can see there was still some snow on the ground. From the left are David Jameson, Sean Cheek, Kirk Gustafson, Jeff McCue, me and Casey Sill.
Here's a cool photo of a jeep and trailer that was attached to our platoon throughout the day. Be sure to note the name "MARIE" painted just below the windshield. We saw plenty of jeeps, a German motorcycle and a Kubelwagen zipping through the roads and fields of the battle.
We broke for a quick lunch in the field around 1130. We hunkered down just outside of the village of Malmedy where the Germans had gunned down a bunch of G.I.s about a month earlier. Here's a picture of me washing down my K-Ration with a swig of water from my favorite canteen.
Here's a really neat photo of a bunch of soldiers and airborne from different units showing off a captured Nazi flag. Check out the .30 caliber light machine gun laying in front of the flag. The tall G.I. standing in the center of the flag was a guy named Jordan from K.C. This was his first World War II reenactment and he seemed to enjoy it a lot!
This photo was taken from a little hole where we fought off the Germans just south of the bridge. Gus stands resolutely watching the line for any oncoming enemy.
Here's our squad after the battle for "Heartbreak Bridge". Sean is looking over some of our hand grenades which came in handy more than once throughout the day. Our new grenades are really awesome because we just have to pull the ring and they instantly begin to shoot smoke.
Here's a rather serious looking photo of me at "Heartbreak Bridge". I'm wearing my M43 Field Jacket which I loved wearing in the field. You can pretty much load the pockets up with so much gear and ammo that you don't need a pack. Our squad fought the battle with light gear and no haversacks so that we could be more maneuverable.
And finally, a charming photo of our beloved "Wilhelm von Yukon", otherwise known as Cody Williams. Cody went to the battle dressed as a German and he fought with the regular German Heer platoon. We met up with him at the bridge and had a few chuckles about the day's events. It was an awesome battle and we had a lot of fun. I have to tip my cap to the 137th Infantry Regiment who puts on this event every year. They do a great job and are extremely well organized and friendly hosts.
This next scene is a great shot that I captured as a platoon of the 84th Division "The Railsplitters" marched past. Seeing a full platoon of young men dressed up in authentic World War II uniforms and gear marching past you can really give you goosebumps.
At 0830 we fell in for authenticity checks, weapons inspection and instructions for the day. In attendance at the event were roughly 150 Allied soldiers and 120 Germans. The Allied and German groups were both broken down into three platoons each for the day's battle scenarios. It was pretty impressive to see that many dedicated reenactors all out on that field together.
This photo was taken during our platoon's first scenario of the day. The day began with a long brisk march uphill and then into the field to patrol for contact with the Germans. Staff Sergeant McCue took charge and moved us out to track down the hidden hun.
He's a great photo of our little squad early in the day. We had just gotten done sweeping a hill of Germans with some soldiers from the 36th Division. As you can see there was still some snow on the ground. From the left are David Jameson, Sean Cheek, Kirk Gustafson, Jeff McCue, me and Casey Sill.
Here's a cool photo of a jeep and trailer that was attached to our platoon throughout the day. Be sure to note the name "MARIE" painted just below the windshield. We saw plenty of jeeps, a German motorcycle and a Kubelwagen zipping through the roads and fields of the battle.
We broke for a quick lunch in the field around 1130. We hunkered down just outside of the village of Malmedy where the Germans had gunned down a bunch of G.I.s about a month earlier. Here's a picture of me washing down my K-Ration with a swig of water from my favorite canteen.
Here's a really neat photo of a bunch of soldiers and airborne from different units showing off a captured Nazi flag. Check out the .30 caliber light machine gun laying in front of the flag. The tall G.I. standing in the center of the flag was a guy named Jordan from K.C. This was his first World War II reenactment and he seemed to enjoy it a lot!
This photo was taken from a little hole where we fought off the Germans just south of the bridge. Gus stands resolutely watching the line for any oncoming enemy.
Here's our squad after the battle for "Heartbreak Bridge". Sean is looking over some of our hand grenades which came in handy more than once throughout the day. Our new grenades are really awesome because we just have to pull the ring and they instantly begin to shoot smoke.
Here's a rather serious looking photo of me at "Heartbreak Bridge". I'm wearing my M43 Field Jacket which I loved wearing in the field. You can pretty much load the pockets up with so much gear and ammo that you don't need a pack. Our squad fought the battle with light gear and no haversacks so that we could be more maneuverable.
And finally, a charming photo of our beloved "Wilhelm von Yukon", otherwise known as Cody Williams. Cody went to the battle dressed as a German and he fought with the regular German Heer platoon. We met up with him at the bridge and had a few chuckles about the day's events. It was an awesome battle and we had a lot of fun. I have to tip my cap to the 137th Infantry Regiment who puts on this event every year. They do a great job and are extremely well organized and friendly hosts.
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