WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.680 --> 00:00:03.200 Hey, guys, welcome to the Team House. I'm Jack Murphy 2 00:00:03.240 --> 00:00:07.320 here today with our guest Dave Harris. Dave had a 3 00:00:07.519 --> 00:00:10.480 nice long army career here. He served in the eighty 4 00:00:10.480 --> 00:00:14.400 second Airborne before transitioning over to third Special Forces Group, 5 00:00:14.599 --> 00:00:19.120 where he spent seventeen years lots of Afghan deployments in 6 00:00:19.199 --> 00:00:22.480 different contexts, and then he was part of the Crisis 7 00:00:22.519 --> 00:00:25.879 Response Force when it kind of took over responsibility for 8 00:00:25.920 --> 00:00:29.280 the African continent, and then finished out his career as 9 00:00:29.320 --> 00:00:33.520 a sophalic instructor and today works with a training company, 10 00:00:34.479 --> 00:00:38.000 you know, through Vortec's Optics. So, Dave, thank you for 11 00:00:38.119 --> 00:00:39.280 joining us on the show today. 12 00:00:40.039 --> 00:00:41.960 No, thank you for having me. I'm happy to be 13 00:00:42.000 --> 00:00:42.439 here man. 14 00:00:43.320 --> 00:00:46.000 So Dave, the first question I always ask folks is 15 00:00:46.320 --> 00:00:47.880 if you tell us a little bit about kind of 16 00:00:47.920 --> 00:00:50.200 like your upbringing and sort of like how that took 17 00:00:50.280 --> 00:00:52.560 you towards military service, Like what was it like for 18 00:00:52.600 --> 00:00:53.280 you growing up? 19 00:00:55.399 --> 00:01:00.000 So I grew up in the Bay Area, Richmond, calif 20 00:01:00.479 --> 00:01:04.760 To be exact, I've always had a affiliation with guns, 21 00:01:05.319 --> 00:01:07.680 loved them to death my whole life, so much so 22 00:01:07.799 --> 00:01:10.560 that my family wouldn't let me play with them, so 23 00:01:11.640 --> 00:01:14.319 like I loved guns my whole life. I always wanted 24 00:01:14.319 --> 00:01:17.120 to be like military, I mean more like law enforcement. 25 00:01:17.719 --> 00:01:20.239 When I was growing up, my mom was a single 26 00:01:20.280 --> 00:01:21.599 mom had me when she was eighteen. 27 00:01:22.239 --> 00:01:24.840 I will say my dad went to prison and was away, 28 00:01:25.079 --> 00:01:25.879 so he was gone. 29 00:01:25.920 --> 00:01:28.200 I don't really know him, didn't have much contact. 30 00:01:28.359 --> 00:01:30.799 So when people say like a village, like my mom 31 00:01:30.840 --> 00:01:33.000 had me at eighteen, I was the first grand baby, 32 00:01:33.159 --> 00:01:36.480 so like my uncles and my aunties and my grandparents. 33 00:01:35.879 --> 00:01:38.959 Like, everyone raised me like I was the only one. 34 00:01:38.799 --> 00:01:41.359 For like seven years, so everyone chipped in and raised 35 00:01:41.400 --> 00:01:44.000 me so like we lived with my grandparents, so they 36 00:01:44.040 --> 00:01:47.000 had the most influenced by my uncle Donald, my mom 37 00:01:47.680 --> 00:01:50.599 from Grandpa Be. Everyone just chipped in and raised me up. 38 00:01:50.879 --> 00:01:54.480 And then I was in. I went to college playing basketball. 39 00:01:54.560 --> 00:01:57.359 Somewhere I got off the gun thing and I went 40 00:01:57.400 --> 00:02:01.400 to college playing basketball. And so I was playing basketball 41 00:02:01.439 --> 00:02:04.680 in college at Western New Mexico University, and I realized 42 00:02:04.680 --> 00:02:06.640 that it was levels to this basketball thing and I 43 00:02:06.719 --> 00:02:09.360 wasn't gonna go pro. So I was like, man, what 44 00:02:09.400 --> 00:02:12.599 am I gonna do? So I decided I was sitting 45 00:02:12.639 --> 00:02:14.599 there and I'm not gonna lie to you'all. Was sitting 46 00:02:14.639 --> 00:02:17.400 in my dorm room and I was watching up black 47 00:02:17.400 --> 00:02:19.719 Hawk Down and I'm so simple minded. I walked him 48 00:02:19.759 --> 00:02:21.719 black Hawk Down and I was like, I'm gonna go 49 00:02:21.759 --> 00:02:24.680 do that. And the next day I walked down in 50 00:02:24.759 --> 00:02:27.080 the recruiter and I was like, hey, man, I want 51 00:02:27.080 --> 00:02:29.599 to go do that and he was like, okay, you 52 00:02:29.599 --> 00:02:32.800 want to be infantry. And then I went to MEPs 53 00:02:32.800 --> 00:02:36.479 in New Mexico, got into New Mexico, went to maps, 54 00:02:36.960 --> 00:02:38.639 and this is what I mean by simple minded. They 55 00:02:38.639 --> 00:02:40.560 were like, hey, how long do you want to do 56 00:02:40.800 --> 00:02:42.680 and I was like, just sign me up for twenty 57 00:02:42.759 --> 00:02:48.360 let's go. She was like about three. I was like, 58 00:02:48.520 --> 00:02:52.759 all right, three it is. And so she said, oh, 59 00:02:52.800 --> 00:02:54.719 what do you want to do? And I told her, look, 60 00:02:54.800 --> 00:02:56.879 I want to put on a ruck and I want 61 00:02:56.879 --> 00:02:59.199 to run. She was like, you want to rock and run. 62 00:02:59.240 --> 00:03:01.039 I was like, yeah, job, you got this, gonna let 63 00:03:01.080 --> 00:03:05.039 me do those two things and she was like okay. 64 00:03:05.080 --> 00:03:07.080 And they didn't put me infantry. They made me a 65 00:03:07.120 --> 00:03:12.479 fourteen Sierra Stinger missileman. So I got to that. And 66 00:03:12.520 --> 00:03:14.479 then you want me to keep going about the army piece? 67 00:03:15.039 --> 00:03:19.159 Yeah? Sure, I mean I think you know it's it's yeah, 68 00:03:19.240 --> 00:03:20.039 definitely go ahead. 69 00:03:20.840 --> 00:03:21.199 Okay. 70 00:03:21.240 --> 00:03:24.280 So when they put me as a fourteenth Sierra, I 71 00:03:24.360 --> 00:03:28.639 went to Korea for my first duty station. When you're 72 00:03:28.680 --> 00:03:30.599 in Korea, and I was sitting in Korea and I 73 00:03:30.639 --> 00:03:32.960 was like, this is nothing like black Hawk down, so. 74 00:03:33.280 --> 00:03:36.240 I'm getting out right. So I was like, I'm getting out. 75 00:03:36.560 --> 00:03:37.960 So I went. 76 00:03:38.560 --> 00:03:41.400 My first artan was like, hey, you're going airborne. You 77 00:03:41.439 --> 00:03:43.280 were high speed private. I want to put you in 78 00:03:43.319 --> 00:03:44.000 airborne school. 79 00:03:44.039 --> 00:03:44.400 Get you in. 80 00:03:44.680 --> 00:03:46.639 So a month in the Korea, I knew I was 81 00:03:46.680 --> 00:03:48.879 going to the Airborne school, going to that eighty second. 82 00:03:49.360 --> 00:03:51.759 My first sarten had called and that's before I knew 83 00:03:51.759 --> 00:03:53.759 about calling DA and talking to. 84 00:03:54.120 --> 00:03:56.159 Your branch manager. And I didn't know any of that. 85 00:03:56.199 --> 00:03:58.199 First art took care of at all, just because I 86 00:03:58.240 --> 00:04:02.400 sang Cadence on some runs like oh you're good. I 87 00:04:02.599 --> 00:04:02.800 like you. 88 00:04:03.280 --> 00:04:06.159 So he pulled some strings and got me there. I 89 00:04:06.680 --> 00:04:08.879 did a year in Korea, went to the eighties. I 90 00:04:08.960 --> 00:04:13.000 went to Airborne school en route, married my wife while 91 00:04:13.039 --> 00:04:16.560 I was a walk en route to airborne school. Hit 92 00:04:16.639 --> 00:04:19.519 Airborne school, and then went straight to the eighty second 93 00:04:19.560 --> 00:04:21.279 and I never left Fort Bragg after that. 94 00:04:21.399 --> 00:04:26.439 Oh man, Yeah, you were flying. I mean, you were 95 00:04:26.439 --> 00:04:28.879 a recruiters dream too, to like walk through the door 96 00:04:28.920 --> 00:04:30.639 and be like, yeah, man, I just want to carry 97 00:04:30.680 --> 00:04:32.839 a rucksack, Like what can we do here? They're like, yeah, 98 00:04:33.160 --> 00:04:34.160 I got something for you. 99 00:04:34.959 --> 00:04:38.199 Yeah. Like my recruiter would leave me in the recruiting. 100 00:04:37.759 --> 00:04:40.160 Station by myself because he knew I was the type 101 00:04:40.199 --> 00:04:41.800 of kid like cause he was like, dude, I don't 102 00:04:41.800 --> 00:04:42.639 even have to sell you. 103 00:04:42.639 --> 00:04:43.600 You already a believer. 104 00:04:45.759 --> 00:04:48.360 I was like, look, man, I'm like, if I'm gonna 105 00:04:48.399 --> 00:04:49.279 do it, let's just do it. 106 00:04:49.600 --> 00:04:51.759 So what year did you arrive? In the eighty second? 107 00:04:52.439 --> 00:04:55.199 So I got to Fort Bragg in two thousand and three. 108 00:04:55.519 --> 00:04:59.560 Okay, okay, cool. So now the war is popping off 109 00:05:00.240 --> 00:05:03.639 and you're going to, you know, a rapidly deploying airborne unit. 110 00:05:04.279 --> 00:05:06.240 What was it like, Well, where did you touch down 111 00:05:06.279 --> 00:05:07.040 the eighty second? 112 00:05:07.839 --> 00:05:10.680 So I touched down in the eighty second I got there. 113 00:05:10.879 --> 00:05:13.839 I uh so, I touched down right on our dens. 114 00:05:13.920 --> 00:05:15.839 It was I want to say, five to five eighty 115 00:05:15.879 --> 00:05:19.040 eight second brigade at the time before they used to 116 00:05:19.079 --> 00:05:22.399 break everything to those BCTs, and uh so I got 117 00:05:22.439 --> 00:05:26.079 there and uh my unit had just got back from 118 00:05:26.160 --> 00:05:28.639 Iraq literally like two months before I showed up, So 119 00:05:28.639 --> 00:05:30.399 they had a year train up before we were going 120 00:05:30.439 --> 00:05:32.959 to go to the next trip. So uh, we had 121 00:05:33.000 --> 00:05:36.560 a lot of combat experience uh through that. And that 122 00:05:36.639 --> 00:05:39.079 was during the time where people were making rank real fast. 123 00:05:39.399 --> 00:05:41.439 So I was in for maybe two years and I 124 00:05:41.480 --> 00:05:44.079 was in E five. Wow, right, So I was going 125 00:05:44.120 --> 00:05:47.279 to Iraq as an E five And then we took 126 00:05:47.360 --> 00:05:50.959 our unit to Iraq as an E five and then uh, 127 00:05:51.000 --> 00:05:53.600 they took half the half the guys they took and 128 00:05:53.639 --> 00:05:56.720 put in prison because it's no air defense mission in Iraq, 129 00:05:57.040 --> 00:05:59.160 So half the guys just got cut and they became 130 00:05:59.199 --> 00:06:02.000 prison guards. And I don't know how they determined who 131 00:06:02.079 --> 00:06:05.319 was going to be the PSD combook convoys and all 132 00:06:05.360 --> 00:06:07.639 that stuff, but I got put as convoy. 133 00:06:07.519 --> 00:06:09.920 Escorts and all that good stuff. 134 00:06:09.959 --> 00:06:12.240 So I just did that all the whole time, PSD 135 00:06:12.360 --> 00:06:15.759 missions and convoy escorts, and I was like and the 136 00:06:15.800 --> 00:06:17.040 whole time, and uh. 137 00:06:17.279 --> 00:06:20.800 We used to we used to. I had a SF 138 00:06:20.839 --> 00:06:21.680 major who used. 139 00:06:21.519 --> 00:06:24.800 To ride with us, and we used to bring him 140 00:06:24.800 --> 00:06:26.800 and he would do all these meetings and like the 141 00:06:26.839 --> 00:06:31.079 capitals and everywhere, and uh, we do that for a 142 00:06:31.160 --> 00:06:33.759 while and me and him would be because he would 143 00:06:33.800 --> 00:06:36.079 plug into our comms right in the car, like he 144 00:06:36.120 --> 00:06:38.240 would have his own Peal Tours plug in, so we 145 00:06:38.240 --> 00:06:40.199 couldn't talk shit about him or nothing because he was 146 00:06:40.240 --> 00:06:42.759 plugged into the net right he plug in, and we 147 00:06:42.800 --> 00:06:45.000 would be because you could talk internally, and you could 148 00:06:45.040 --> 00:06:48.680 talk internally, and we're talking internally, and I'm just like, look, man. 149 00:06:48.600 --> 00:06:49.160 Here's the deal. 150 00:06:50.120 --> 00:06:52.519 I don't mean to talk bad about it, but I 151 00:06:52.600 --> 00:06:54.639 was like, I was like, I can do more than 152 00:06:54.639 --> 00:06:55.560 this for my country. 153 00:06:56.920 --> 00:06:58.000 I was like, I get it. 154 00:06:58.439 --> 00:07:01.040 I don't understand because I'm a five but I've been 155 00:07:01.040 --> 00:07:03.399 in the army two years. I don't understand by taking 156 00:07:03.480 --> 00:07:07.959 him to meet to provincial governor, the implications of that 157 00:07:08.079 --> 00:07:09.160 meeting and all that stuff. 158 00:07:09.199 --> 00:07:10.160 I don't understand that. 159 00:07:10.399 --> 00:07:13.480 I'm just like, I'm just a taxi driver, bro, I 160 00:07:13.519 --> 00:07:17.079 can do more than this. And that's so he was like, well, 161 00:07:17.079 --> 00:07:18.519 if you feel you could do more than this, you 162 00:07:18.519 --> 00:07:20.399 should go ahead and try out for SF and blah 163 00:07:20.480 --> 00:07:21.800 blah blah and all this stuff. 164 00:07:22.240 --> 00:07:24.000 So we were. 165 00:07:23.839 --> 00:07:26.519 Doing missions and I bump into fifth Group Crift guys 166 00:07:26.600 --> 00:07:28.879 in Iraq and me and him are talking and I'm 167 00:07:28.920 --> 00:07:32.279 like hey man, what do you do? And he's saying, 168 00:07:32.800 --> 00:07:34.800 I do SF and I'm like, I don't really know 169 00:07:34.839 --> 00:07:37.279 what that is. By this point, black Hawk Down is 170 00:07:37.319 --> 00:07:38.879 not even on my head no more. I'm like, dude, 171 00:07:38.879 --> 00:07:41.120 I'm getting out right. So I was like, I don't 172 00:07:41.160 --> 00:07:43.560 know what that is, blah blah blah. But by the 173 00:07:43.680 --> 00:07:46.879 end of IRAQ, right because the bonuses were real good, 174 00:07:47.240 --> 00:07:48.759 I was like, okay, I want to I want to 175 00:07:48.879 --> 00:07:51.800 re enlist, and I want to go cascout. But my 176 00:07:51.839 --> 00:07:54.439 intentions was when I get back to the States, I'm 177 00:07:54.439 --> 00:07:56.879 going to SF Like I already knew I was going 178 00:07:56.959 --> 00:08:01.079 to do this selection and if it wouldn't have worked out, 179 00:08:01.079 --> 00:08:03.759 they would have screwed me, right, Because he was like, well, 180 00:08:03.800 --> 00:08:06.240 just take the bonus because if you if you reclass, 181 00:08:06.240 --> 00:08:09.519 you're going to owe that new MOS sometime, right. So 182 00:08:09.680 --> 00:08:11.120 I was like, okay, I don't want to do that. 183 00:08:11.199 --> 00:08:13.199 So he was like, just stay your old MOS, get 184 00:08:13.199 --> 00:08:16.319 your reenlistment bonus, and go sl and I was like, 185 00:08:16.680 --> 00:08:18.040 you know what, that sounds like a plan. 186 00:08:18.120 --> 00:08:20.560 So I reenlisted and if I went and got selected, 187 00:08:20.600 --> 00:08:22.879 I'd have hated life as an air defense guy still. 188 00:08:24.639 --> 00:08:28.800 So you went to SFAs and like four five. 189 00:08:29.360 --> 00:08:31.560 As soon as we got back from that trip. So 190 00:08:31.600 --> 00:08:34.639 I got there in two niney and three six oh six. 191 00:08:34.720 --> 00:08:39.120 Okay, And so did it sounds like maybe you didn't 192 00:08:39.120 --> 00:08:41.360 have a lot of time to like prepare for SFAs 193 00:08:41.399 --> 00:08:41.919 before you went. 194 00:08:43.000 --> 00:08:43.200 No. 195 00:08:43.279 --> 00:08:46.919 So I we were doing missions in Iraq, but when 196 00:08:46.919 --> 00:08:49.120 we were like go on a convoy, we take them 197 00:08:49.159 --> 00:08:51.200 to like major places, like we go to the embassy 198 00:08:51.759 --> 00:08:53.679 or we go to a major compound so they can 199 00:08:53.720 --> 00:08:56.840 meet this governor. Well, they had gems and everything, so 200 00:08:56.919 --> 00:08:59.600 I would do I would do like work out there, 201 00:08:59.720 --> 00:09:02.399 lift and stuff, and then when we come back, I 202 00:09:02.440 --> 00:09:04.879 would just be like, okay me and I actually had 203 00:09:04.879 --> 00:09:07.759 a captain, well lieutenant at the time who was training 204 00:09:07.879 --> 00:09:10.480 up to He was like our XO and we would 205 00:09:10.519 --> 00:09:12.440 put on our rucksack and just walk around camp. 206 00:09:12.639 --> 00:09:15.440 I think it victory at the time, yep. So I 207 00:09:15.480 --> 00:09:16.720 was just like, all right, let's do that. 208 00:09:17.000 --> 00:09:19.480 And then my opportunite starting at the time was really 209 00:09:19.519 --> 00:09:22.360 a good guy and he could and it's eighty second, 210 00:09:22.440 --> 00:09:24.639 so he could run like crazy, so he would just 211 00:09:24.960 --> 00:09:27.480 like an eighty second that's all you do. So so 212 00:09:28.159 --> 00:09:30.320 I would he would make us run all the time 213 00:09:30.320 --> 00:09:32.720 because he didn't believe in like not doing PT test 214 00:09:32.720 --> 00:09:35.679 because we were deployed, so we were doing every six 215 00:09:35.759 --> 00:09:38.039 months we were doing a PT test or something, so 216 00:09:38.320 --> 00:09:40.759 like we were still working out, but I was like, 217 00:09:40.840 --> 00:09:43.360 I'm going to do this, so I would like get up, 218 00:09:44.320 --> 00:09:47.840 do our mission, go lift weights, come back from that, 219 00:09:48.000 --> 00:09:49.559 and then I would do my cardio at night. 220 00:09:50.600 --> 00:09:52.440 Yeah, you kind of had to when it was like 221 00:09:52.480 --> 00:09:54.320 one hundred and ten degrees during the day. 222 00:09:54.919 --> 00:09:57.919 Oh yeah, oh yeah, oh definitely. 223 00:09:58.360 --> 00:10:01.320 So how did how did SFA when you got there? 224 00:10:02.200 --> 00:10:04.639 So we got back from our deployment. 225 00:10:04.879 --> 00:10:09.159 I put in my packet the like during leave and 226 00:10:09.200 --> 00:10:11.559 I literally we came off of leave and I already 227 00:10:11.559 --> 00:10:13.799 had my selection date and my opportunity s are And 228 00:10:13.879 --> 00:10:15.399 I remember him being like, when you were going to 229 00:10:15.480 --> 00:10:17.480 tell me that you were going to selection next week? 230 00:10:17.519 --> 00:10:20.600 And I was like, I'm telling you now, I'm leaving 231 00:10:20.600 --> 00:10:25.440 next week right for selection. So I went to selection 232 00:10:25.840 --> 00:10:31.200 and uh, I always tell people it was it was doable. 233 00:10:31.360 --> 00:10:35.039 I'm not something special, Like I don't believe like I'm 234 00:10:35.039 --> 00:10:38.720 super special. I believe like God just gave me one 235 00:10:38.759 --> 00:10:40.919 thing is like I'm going to work hard, right, I 236 00:10:41.039 --> 00:10:43.519 just want to keep going. So it's just like, yo, dude, 237 00:10:43.559 --> 00:10:45.720 as long as you don't quit, you may not make 238 00:10:45.759 --> 00:10:48.639 the times, but don't quit. You don't know who times are, 239 00:10:48.679 --> 00:10:51.720 so just keep going. So that was my mentality, just 240 00:10:51.759 --> 00:10:54.279 like don't quit, don't quit. So I just was like, 241 00:10:54.320 --> 00:10:56.279 all right, here we go, and I was like, I 242 00:10:56.320 --> 00:10:59.080 just don't want to be I don't want to be last. 243 00:10:59.440 --> 00:11:01.759 I don't know what is good. And then I had 244 00:11:01.799 --> 00:11:05.159 this thing, I don't know fear because you know, in selection, 245 00:11:05.279 --> 00:11:07.639 you know what everyone you They don't let you know 246 00:11:07.679 --> 00:11:10.840 what everyone units are, but you find out, yeah, they're 247 00:11:10.879 --> 00:11:13.039 from Ranger bat and they're from this and they're from that, right, 248 00:11:13.639 --> 00:11:15.559 So on all the rucks, all I would do is 249 00:11:15.600 --> 00:11:17.600 like run and I look at a guy, I be like, okay, 250 00:11:17.600 --> 00:11:20.600 I'm gonna catch him, and then I'd run and catch him. 251 00:11:20.840 --> 00:11:23.440 And I remember to this day, anytime someone caught me, 252 00:11:23.720 --> 00:11:25.240 I would look and I'd be like, oh shit, he's 253 00:11:25.240 --> 00:11:25.960 a Ranger back guy. 254 00:11:25.960 --> 00:11:27.679 I must mean, like all of them are right behind me. 255 00:11:27.679 --> 00:11:34.159 I'm gonna run like whatever I'm doing, just stay running. 256 00:11:35.879 --> 00:11:39.080 I mean I went to selection from Ranger Battalion and 257 00:11:39.240 --> 00:11:41.720 like even I remember thinking, you know they have you 258 00:11:41.759 --> 00:11:44.200 fill out that form, like, you know, asking you what 259 00:11:44.240 --> 00:11:46.879 do you bring to Special Forces? What skills do you have? 260 00:11:46.919 --> 00:11:49.399 Blah blah blah. There were guys there who grew up 261 00:11:49.399 --> 00:11:51.799 speaking Russian in the house, had all these like advanced 262 00:11:51.799 --> 00:11:56.120 skills in language and cultural know how, And I'm like, uh, 263 00:11:56.440 --> 00:11:58.360 I was a ranger. I know how to shoot guns, 264 00:11:58.399 --> 00:12:01.039 and as I felt like an adequate you know, I'm like, 265 00:12:01.120 --> 00:12:03.039 I don't know if I really stack up. But then 266 00:12:03.039 --> 00:12:04.720 when I went back to the barracks and listen to 267 00:12:04.799 --> 00:12:06.679 the guy's talk and some of them wrote like I 268 00:12:06.720 --> 00:12:09.360 can carry heavy things. I was like, well maybe I'll 269 00:12:09.360 --> 00:12:09.840 be okay. 270 00:12:10.480 --> 00:12:13.399 Yeah, yeah, they make you do those questionnaires and stuff. 271 00:12:13.440 --> 00:12:15.200 You just like, I don't even know what you want me, Like, 272 00:12:15.240 --> 00:12:17.879 what do you want from me? Bro yep. 273 00:12:17.919 --> 00:12:20.360 Well, my my favorite was an old school SF guy 274 00:12:20.480 --> 00:12:23.360 told me the story on the psych exam. One of 275 00:12:23.399 --> 00:12:26.320 the questions was do you prefer it when people speak frankly? 276 00:12:27.080 --> 00:12:28.679 And the guy went up to the proctor of the 277 00:12:28.679 --> 00:12:30.000 exam and said, who's. 278 00:12:29.759 --> 00:12:33.600 Frank that's a good one. 279 00:12:33.919 --> 00:12:35.799 You may have failed the exam at that point. I 280 00:12:35.799 --> 00:12:36.080 don't know. 281 00:12:37.240 --> 00:12:39.720 Well that so the only thing that happened to me 282 00:12:39.759 --> 00:12:42.440 at selection that was iffy at all was a my 283 00:12:42.639 --> 00:12:45.840 psychic vow. They pulled me aside because on my psychic 284 00:12:45.919 --> 00:12:49.799 vow I said, I get angry with my wife and 285 00:12:49.840 --> 00:12:51.759 they said, well, do you ever hit her? And I 286 00:12:51.799 --> 00:12:53.919 said no, and she was like, They were like, well, 287 00:12:53.919 --> 00:12:55.720 what do you mean you get so angry cause she's 288 00:12:55.759 --> 00:12:58.879 the only person that I have to actually listen to it, Like, 289 00:12:58.919 --> 00:13:03.159 I can't get away, he's. 290 00:13:03.039 --> 00:13:05.440 Yelling at me. I can't be like this conversation's over 291 00:13:06.320 --> 00:13:08.200 or walk off or it could just be done. 292 00:13:08.399 --> 00:13:10.720 Jesus gonna follow me from room to the room and 293 00:13:10.879 --> 00:13:12.240 keep this conversation going. 294 00:13:13.039 --> 00:13:18.559 Yeah, exactly. The psychological exam was kind of messed up 295 00:13:18.600 --> 00:13:20.919 in the sense that there were questions on there like 296 00:13:21.000 --> 00:13:23.759 it's written for civilians, but now you have all these 297 00:13:23.759 --> 00:13:26.080 combat veterans coming through taking the test, and there are 298 00:13:26.159 --> 00:13:28.919 questions on there like I know who is trying to 299 00:13:29.000 --> 00:13:31.679 kill me? Now, as a civilian, if you answer yes, 300 00:13:32.000 --> 00:13:34.279 you sound like a lunatic, and maybe you are. But 301 00:13:34.360 --> 00:13:36.399 if you're a veteran and you just came out of 302 00:13:36.440 --> 00:13:38.679 a war zone, yeah, I know who's trying to kill me. 303 00:13:38.679 --> 00:13:39.559 It's al Qaeda, you know. 304 00:13:40.480 --> 00:13:44.879 Yeah, yep, I agree. I agree the guy with the gun. 305 00:13:44.960 --> 00:13:48.519 Yes, yeah, probably, yeah, it's not it's not a hypothetical. 306 00:13:48.600 --> 00:13:51.159 You know, you're not schizophrenic, like people really are out 307 00:13:51.159 --> 00:13:51.559 to get you. 308 00:13:52.279 --> 00:13:52.480 Yep. 309 00:13:54.039 --> 00:13:59.159 Okay, So you get through SFAs and what mos do 310 00:13:59.200 --> 00:14:00.679 you get in line? Which do you got? 311 00:14:01.840 --> 00:14:02.159 Okay? 312 00:14:02.200 --> 00:14:06.080 So I get through UH, I get through uh SFAs 313 00:14:06.080 --> 00:14:08.200 and I'm sitting there and there asking me about all 314 00:14:08.200 --> 00:14:11.080 these different moss and he's like starting to talk to 315 00:14:11.159 --> 00:14:14.440 me and he gets to like Delta, and I've never confused, like, 316 00:14:14.480 --> 00:14:17.120 I'm not that dude. I was like, look, man, stop, 317 00:14:17.600 --> 00:14:20.080 how about you just put Bravo on that paper in Spanish. 318 00:14:20.679 --> 00:14:23.879 We'll call it good on all the stuff you're talking. 319 00:14:24.200 --> 00:14:25.480 Just put Bravo in Spanish. 320 00:14:25.480 --> 00:14:25.720 Man. 321 00:14:26.240 --> 00:14:30.919 Afterwards, in the medical book, I probably couldn't read stop right, 322 00:14:31.240 --> 00:14:34.120 So he puts uh. He's like, okay, Bravo Spanish. So 323 00:14:34.159 --> 00:14:38.120 I get eighteen Bravo. But I get Indonesian. Okay, So 324 00:14:38.240 --> 00:14:41.879 I get eighteen Bravo on Indonesian and then UH. 325 00:14:41.919 --> 00:14:44.080 So I knew I didn't want to go to UH. 326 00:14:44.159 --> 00:14:46.240 I'm not nothing against first group, but I had been 327 00:14:46.279 --> 00:14:48.559 at BRAGG my whole time, and my daughter was born 328 00:14:48.600 --> 00:14:49.519 with sebral pozli. 329 00:14:51.120 --> 00:14:53.840 So she had already had all the medical attention. 330 00:14:53.919 --> 00:14:56.279 We had already been to doctors at Duke and she's 331 00:14:56.679 --> 00:14:59.000 seeing physical therapists and all this stuff. So I was like, 332 00:14:59.039 --> 00:15:03.360 I'm not going to open. I can't do that, right, 333 00:15:04.200 --> 00:15:07.159 So I wasn't gonna do that. So I'm going through 334 00:15:07.200 --> 00:15:09.120 the Q course and I'm talking to my cadre every 335 00:15:09.120 --> 00:15:11.399 and I passed. I didn't fell any phases. I go 336 00:15:11.480 --> 00:15:19.320 through everything. Only issue I had was swimming. Hah, that's true. 337 00:15:20.240 --> 00:15:22.120 It's a stereotype because it might be true. 338 00:15:22.919 --> 00:15:26.080 Yeah, because you guys, you have barbecues instead of pool parties. 339 00:15:27.919 --> 00:15:28.960 Start it starts young. 340 00:15:29.639 --> 00:15:32.200 Yeah, So that was my only issue I had. 341 00:15:32.519 --> 00:15:35.480 But of course I passed all the phases and uh, 342 00:15:35.759 --> 00:15:37.879 every phase, I would come back to Cadre like I 343 00:15:37.919 --> 00:15:40.320 can't like go to first group. I just can't go 344 00:15:40.360 --> 00:15:43.000 to Okinawa. My daughter has this, and he was like, 345 00:15:43.039 --> 00:15:45.759 not a problem. So I was the I got done with. 346 00:15:45.960 --> 00:15:48.039 I passed it all and then they put me if 347 00:15:48.200 --> 00:15:49.120 only Indonesia and. 348 00:15:49.159 --> 00:15:52.039 Speaker in third group, that's hilarious. 349 00:15:54.080 --> 00:16:01.159 And then they switched me over to Darry and respect 350 00:16:01.200 --> 00:16:02.159 the language to learn that. 351 00:16:04.000 --> 00:16:10.720 So you are a Indo speaking eighteen Bravo in third group. Yea, 352 00:16:10.759 --> 00:16:15.320 and what what team? What was your first team? And uh, 353 00:16:15.440 --> 00:16:17.559 I mean you told me earlier you went out the 354 00:16:17.559 --> 00:16:19.159 first trip was a J set. 355 00:16:19.440 --> 00:16:22.120 Yes, So I went to three two three one, a 356 00:16:22.159 --> 00:16:24.600 mobility team, Charlie Company's second battalion. 357 00:16:25.000 --> 00:16:27.759 I went to three two three one. I got on 358 00:16:27.799 --> 00:16:28.240 that team. 359 00:16:28.279 --> 00:16:31.200 They were a mobility team at the time, and we 360 00:16:31.200 --> 00:16:34.120 were they were half the half of the teams were 361 00:16:34.120 --> 00:16:36.840 in Afghanistan and this team was back. So I went 362 00:16:36.879 --> 00:16:39.799 to that team that was back, and then instead of 363 00:16:39.840 --> 00:16:42.120 going to join the rest of the battalion in Afghanistan, 364 00:16:42.440 --> 00:16:45.559 they had J sets and we got hit with Pakistan. 365 00:16:46.320 --> 00:16:47.080 That's pretty cool. 366 00:16:47.720 --> 00:16:49.120 Yeah, so we went to Pakistan. 367 00:16:50.000 --> 00:16:52.600 Uh, what was the mission in Pakistan? Were you guys training? 368 00:16:52.720 --> 00:16:56.080 I think it's the SSG. Is there SF guys, Yeah. 369 00:16:55.919 --> 00:17:00.279 I think it's their Tier one element yeah or Tier whatever, Yes, 370 00:17:00.360 --> 00:17:05.000 their special operations. We were training them and they had 371 00:17:05.240 --> 00:17:07.519 It was weird because we didn't even get interpreters, so 372 00:17:07.559 --> 00:17:11.519 we were using their like basically their intel dudes were 373 00:17:13.000 --> 00:17:16.519 saying their intel dudes that were there taking the class, 374 00:17:16.559 --> 00:17:19.680 they were our interpreters to like get everything to go through. 375 00:17:20.039 --> 00:17:22.079 So that was it was. It was very interesting. 376 00:17:22.240 --> 00:17:24.799 Uh. Sign note on that is you know, you make 377 00:17:24.839 --> 00:17:26.960 your E and E plan if you need to get away, right. 378 00:17:27.359 --> 00:17:29.640 So we're sitting there and we make our plan, and 379 00:17:29.960 --> 00:17:31.759 the plan for our E and E is like, if 380 00:17:31.759 --> 00:17:34.119 something goes wrong, we're gonna E and E to Afghanistan. 381 00:17:34.319 --> 00:17:35.920 And our medic says, so we're gonna E and E 382 00:17:36.079 --> 00:17:39.920 to the war. We were like, yeah, we're running to 383 00:17:41.119 --> 00:17:41.640 nothing else. 384 00:17:44.079 --> 00:17:46.279 But I mean that's a technique. Yeah. 385 00:17:46.640 --> 00:17:49.599 Yeah, So we did our jaset to Pakistan. Uh. We 386 00:17:49.839 --> 00:17:53.200 were there for almost five months and uh, then we 387 00:17:53.240 --> 00:17:53.759 came back. 388 00:17:54.319 --> 00:17:56.720 How do you think the training program went? Do you 389 00:17:56.720 --> 00:17:59.240 think like we've seen some good positive results with the 390 00:17:59.279 --> 00:18:00.680 guys by the end of five months. 391 00:18:01.319 --> 00:18:03.400 Yes, and they were doing ops as well while we 392 00:18:03.400 --> 00:18:05.920 were training. They would go do ops so and then 393 00:18:05.960 --> 00:18:08.400 they would come back. So it was going well. I 394 00:18:08.440 --> 00:18:10.759 think it went real well. I'll be honest with you, 395 00:18:10.839 --> 00:18:13.119 I would say that that was the first time that 396 00:18:13.240 --> 00:18:16.640 I understood, like, you know. 397 00:18:16.559 --> 00:18:18.799 How everything's always being assessed. 398 00:18:19.200 --> 00:18:22.079 So I remember giving a class on small unit tactics 399 00:18:22.279 --> 00:18:23.680 and like everyone. 400 00:18:23.319 --> 00:18:25.039 On the team just standing there watching me. 401 00:18:25.160 --> 00:18:27.720