So just because I learned how to shoot a gun doesn’t mean I actually know what I was shooting. I realized that in my last blog I mistakenly said I shot an M-16 but I’m pretty sure it was an M-14. I’m surprised no one has contacted me in anger and disgust which is usually what happens when I make a mistake on my blog. I guess I was paying attention to the target not the gun.

Unfortunately I don’t remember a lot of details on the equipment that we were shown. We saw a lot of military equipment. We had the opportunity to tour a maintenance facility where they repair Strykers which are very large ground combat vehicles mainly used in Iraq. We got to sit in and learn about Apache helicopters, A-10 fighter planes, and F-15s, and others. We were given briefings about ammunition, IEDs, and other weapons. It was all very interesting and I listened but I guess I should have taken notes. I was more interested in learning about the people who fly the apaches, or pilot the A-10, or the Strykers. I like to know what’s going through their mind when they launch a rocket. I like to know where they’re from and how they got to where they are. I remember the stories and the people more than I remember the details about the stuff. I couldn’t get enough of the war stories, the firsthand accounts, and the realities behind the war.

For example, we got an extensive briefing on arocket launcher. I believe it was a G-777 but I could be completely wrong. There was about 8-10 guys whose whole life revolves around this apparatus. They demonstrated to us how they would fire a rocket. It’s a strategic and carefully orchestrated routine that they go through. Obviously, they take a lot of pride in their job. It’s not just a job to them. They had a huge amount of respect for the equipment. One guys described that rocket launcher as though it was his significant other. Talking to those guys reminded me a lot of my top fuel team and how everyone works together. Only instead of a rocket launcher we have a dragster.

Anyway, I’ll tell you a little about J-bad now. This was the place where we met the Special Forces. They have their own area on the base and they are definitely special because they had really nice accommodations compared to other areas of the base. We had dinner with them one night and they were having fresh crab and steak that night. Those guys were eager to share a lot of information with us. They even brought is into a weapon room. Of course I snuck a picture. We could have hung out with them for days.

I did have to hang out with those NASCAR guys for days. It’s a good thing they were cool because we all had to spend a lot of time together and sometimes the lack of sleep and the crazy travel schedule affected our moods. Randy kept the mood light and kept us laughing. He always had something funny to say about someone or something. He draws a fine line between being extremely hilarious but almost inappropriate. Ricky is a two-time NASCAR Busch Series champion. He also owns The Joie of Seating, which is a racing seat company for race cars. Jeff Fuller had a way of making us all laugh too. He made everything into a contest but he would find a way to cheat. He even beat me in volumes of coffee consumed. I would have to say that Ricky was the most popular of the group. Everywhere we went, people would ask about his crashes. I guess he had some pretty nasty ones in his career. It’s funny how people are so fascinated by crashes when there are a lot more positive things to talk about it. Ricky won the Winston Cup race at Martinsville in 2001 and Darlington in 2003 among other great racing accomplishments. Randy, Jeff, and Ricky said they are going to our NHRA race in Atlanta so I hope they do. We also had a really cool tour director. Carmen Clem of Pro Sports MVP did all or our scheduling and made sure we got to where we needed to go. This is a pretty big task seeing as how we had to fly somewhere new everyday. She went everywhere we went and I guess you could say she was our babysitter. But she was a cool one. Now she is trying to talk us all into doing another tour in Iraq.

My favorite part of the trip was our last evening in Afghanistan. We all did a question and answer session at Bagram Air Base. We even went on an Armed Forced Network radio show earlier in the day to promote it. There was a good crowd there with service men and women of all ages. They asked a lot of good questions. Everyone was really engaged and interested in what we had to say. Then they didn’t want us to leave, even though I’m sure they all had to work early the next day. I think I turned more people into drag racing fans which is always my goal. We stayed and signed autographs for every last person.

I could keep writing. I have a ton more stories but I better end here for now.