Udairi Range

The sandstorm abated enough after 24 hours that we finally made it up to Udairi Range for our close quarter marksmanship (CQM) and convoy training...

Close quarter marksmanship training is exciting simply because they put 50-60 people on the firing line at one time and have them walk in different directions and turn in different directions (quarter turns both ways and half turns one way) and fire live ammo... exciting because who knows if the bozo next to you is really going to be as safe as you hope they are! In the pre-range safety brief the range safety officer noted that this was his last range because he was going home after 9 months here and he had never had a medevac from the range... in the ER or the hospital one NEVER says words to that effect: "my goodness it is a quiet night in the ER..." or "gosh, I haven't seen a heart attack come through the door in days..." These things only bring BAD luck. So, my level of apprehension on the range was higher than normal--I don't like blood! Turns out that no one got shot--thank goodness. However, someone did develop breathing problems (peri-tonsillar abscess) that required medevac... Lesson learned (again)... don't say things like that!

BTW, the CQM was fun even though I only had my 9mm pistol and most were shooting their M-16 rifles. A bit of fire power envy I guess. But, once I am safely ensconced in Baghdad and have to carry my weapon with me everywhere I go, I will be thankful that the 9mm is much lighter and more compact... Of course, if one actually needs a self-defense weapon (medical--self-defense only thank you very much!), then the M-16 makes a significantly more powerful defense!

But, if you hear me say "gosh, it's been a long time since I actually needed to use my weapon in self-defense" then, please, shoot me!