D-Day at Ft. Atkinson

Scott, Matt and I headed up to Ft. Atkinson on Saturday, June 1 to participate in the monthly living history weekend at the fort.  We dressed in D-Day inspired uniforms representing the 325th Glider Infantry of the 82nd Airborne, the 8th Infantry Regiment which landed at Utah Beach with the 4th Division, and the 23rd Infantry Regiment with the 2nd Division, landing on D+1.  We set up a shelter half tent filled with some equipment and spent the day talking with a number of the fort's 1820's living historians.  We were treated to a nice meal for lunch, compliments of the fort's cooks.  The highlight of the day was taking part in a Memorial Day ceremony to honor the fallen.  The three of us represented World War II alongside Ft. Atkinson's 1820's reenactors and some local VFW members.  It was a nice event for us and we always enjoy getting out the special D-Day uniforms and equipment.

Pvt. Hazard in his 325th Glider Infantryman impression. 

We set up a lonely two-man shelter with some field gear inside. 

Hazard trusts the M1 Rifle to do his talking!

My new 4th Infantry Division D-Day impression.

Slung over my left shoulder is a demolition satchel bag.

Just smiling in the rain. 

Hazard takes to the field. 

Zeroing in on a target... 

Our hosts provided us with a great noontime meal. 

Scott and Matt enjoying their chow.

Armed Forces Day 2013

The men of the 2nd I.D. Living History Association gathered at Cabela's La Vista to celebrate Armed Forces Day on Saturday, May 18.  Our display was positioned right outside the front doors of the store so we had a steady stream of visitors all day long.  There were several Jeeps and armored vehicles on display positioned around our area.  For this event I represented a trooper from the 101st Airborne in Vietnam from 1968.  I have been growing my Vietnam collection for quite a while so this was the first time out for a number of my newer items.  But as cool as I looked in my jungle fatigues, it was Will and his typewriter and newspapers that caught the attention of the crowds as the old drill sergeant worked at his field desk.  The weather was great for an outdoor display and we all enjoyed Cabela's warm hospitality.

My first time out with the new rifle.

The highlight of the day was Will reading us the latest war news.

A pretty nice World War II jeep on display.

Looks like an M38 Jeep from the 34th "Red Bull" Division.

Spectators checking out some armored vehicles.

Manning my Vietnam War display and answering questions.

Hazard and Dave shooting the breeze.

Standard web gear worn by U.S. Army personel in Vietnam.

New for this display were my M18 smoke grenades and C-rations.

Some of my Marine Corps items. The M1955 Flak Vest is a recent find.

That's a whole lotta gear!!!

Will typing a love letter on his typewriter.  Who needs computers?

Jeff in his MP impression for the day.  Khakis are the way to go!

A full shot of my new jungle fatigues.

I treated this one like an old photo from the 60's.  Looking pretty serious.

Spring Muster Day 2013

The Men of the 2nd Infantry Division Living History Association gathered at Ft. Atkinson State Historical Park on Saturday, April 6 for our annual Spring Muster Day.  In attendance were Dave, Jeff, Eric, Kevin, Tyler, Avery (our newest member) and our pal Casey on loan from the 502nd Parachute Infantry.  The weather was overcast for most of the morning and rather cool with some light rain off and on.  Up at the fort's parade ground we covered everything from facings, marching and saluting to rifle drill and the manual of arms.  After a little administrative meeting, we headed down into the valley east of the fort for some field training.  We went over field formations, use of hand signals, and how to tackle linear obstacles.  It was a awesome day and a great chance to get out and knock some of the winter rust off.  Our group has a pretty exciting spring and summer itinerary lined up so watch for more posts to come.

The guys hanging out along the north wall of the fort.

Kevin gives some helpful instruction on dealing with linear obstacles.

Where's Casey?  Between the tall grasses and the trees, a soldier can be
pretty hard to spot sometimes.

Jeff on the lookout for any Krauts in the area.

Another self portrait from arms length away.  Guess I should have smiled!

One little, two little, three little Indianheads...

So awesome to get out in the field!

Our group after our field training.  Ready to march back up to the fort. 

Battle of the Bulge 2013

Will Green and I headed down to Camp Clark, Missouri for everyone's favorite winter reenactment, the Battle of the Bulge!  We got down to the event site on Friday night, checked-in and then headed off to the traditionally meal before battle day... Subway.  The battle on Saturday was great with temperatures in the 50s.  We were pulling off layers all day long, so my giant puffy pockets filled with shirts and gloves and scarves made me look like a historical parade float.  Will and I dressed in our Class A uniforms for the Saturday night dinner where we received a lot of great compliments on our classiness.  We headed back to Omaha before sunrise on Sunday morning.  There are some great event pictures here.  I took about 65 photos, so narrowing it down was a little difficult.  I opted to show some in full color but to do some as black and whites as well.  My favorite photo is the second one from the end with the foreground soldier holding a cigarette and the soldiers chatting in the background.  Be sure to click on the photos to see them at a larger size.