Posted on 02/08/2006 5:06:48 PM PST by SandRat
Task Force Fury and Task Force Catamount soldiers gathered to cheer on their teams or simply enjoy "a small slice of home."
FORWARD OPERATING BASE ORGUN-E, Afghanistan, Feb. 8, 2006 — As the Pittsburgh Steelers and Seattle Seahawks battled for American football supremacy in Detroit, around 60 of the U.S. soldiers in eastern Afghanistan’s Paktika Province celebrated the United States’ biggest sports spectacle halfway around the world early Feb. 6.
"Of course, you’d have your family and friends with you if you were watching the game in the states, but this is great too. I have no complaints at all."
U.S. Army Sgt. Bo Boyd
The infantrymen, military policemen, and staff and support soldiers from Task Force Fury and Task Force Catamount gathered around large screen televisions in the forward operating base’s Morale, Welfare and Recreation and dining facilities to cheer on their teams or simply enjoy “a small slice of home.”
The Morale, Welfare and Recreation and dining facilities remained open throughout the late night and early morning to accommodate fans prepared to watch the preliminary events as well as the big game itself. The dining facility staff provided traditional American football fare ranging from chicken wings, potato chips and (nonalcoholic) beer to French fries and onion rings as well as soda, coffee, pie, candy and cafeteria staples.
Scarcely a seat remained in either facility, as Task Force Fury soldiers, joined by Catamounts from 2nd Battalion, 87th Infantry Regiment of the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, enjoyed the culmination of the NFL season amid conversation, eating, cheering, revelry and good-natured ribbing.
Fans adopted a variety of time-management strategies, some staying up all night to bid a long farewell to the football season, others waking up dark-and-early for the contest.
Several serious students of the game remained transfixed throughout the pre- and post-game activities as well as the game itself, while soldiers on mission dropped by the dining facility to check the score and grab an early-morning bite to eat. Some arrived individually while others attended as staffs, squads or sections. Fans donned authorized apparel ranging from combat duty uniforms, even “full battle rattle” to Army physical fitness uniforms and Task Force Fury garb.
Casual as well as diehard football fans chose sides or hoped simply for a good game as soldiers from Washington and Pennsylvania looked on with particularly keen interest.
“I’m exited they finally got there,” U.S. Army Spc. Cory Kline, a squad automatic weapon gunner with Company A, 1st Battalion, 508th Infantry Regiment and Seattle native, said during the third quarter. “Hopefully, they can pull it out and win.
“It would be the first Super Bowl championship in their history – that would be nice,” Kline continued. “Everybody back home is watching the game.”
While Pittsburgh’s 21-10 victory in Super Bowl XL dashed Kline’s hopes of a Seahawk championship, the game ended on a more pleasant note for other fans.
“Almost everyone back home is watching the game,” U.S. Army Spc. Michelle Langhorst, an military police officer with the 212th Military Police Company, said during halftime. “I live right outside Pittsburgh, so everyone teases me about the game. I’ll probably never hear the end of it if they lose.”
“I’m pretty excited about the game,” added U.S. Army Pfc. George Koches, a military police officer with the 92nd Military Police Company and Sharpsville, Pa., native. “My family likes the Steelers. They’re all big fans. Right now, they’re probably going crazy.”
Fans of either and neither team called the event a morale and team builder.
“It picks up morale a little bit,” said Langhorst, who watched her team progress through the playoffs at Forward Operating Base Orgun-E after missing most of the regular season on duty elsewhere. “It gives you something to look forward to when there’s not so much going on. It was nice of them to keep the dining hall open and serve food and everything.”
“This is great,” added U.S. Army Sgt. Bo Boyd, another military police officer with the 212th.
“Last time, we didn’t have (access to the Armed Forces Network), so we couldn’t see games or anything,” continued the Tuscaloosa, Ala., native, whose unit served in Kabul, Bagram and Shindand as well as Orgun-E. “Of course, you’d have your family and friends with you if you were watching the game in the states, but this is great too. I have no complaints at all.”
“It raises (soldiers’) morale,” U.S. Army Staff. Sgt. Darren Hiller, a weapons squad leader with Company A, 1st Battalion, 508th Infantry Regiment, said of the event. “It allows them to bring some home fare to Afghanistan.”
Infantrymen with the 2nd Battalion, 87th Infantry Regiment welcomed the hospitality and camaraderie of Task Force Fury soldiers. The Fort Drum, N.Y.-based troops expressed solidarity with the men they will soon replace “on point” in Paktika and Ghazni provinces, and prepared to place a Catamount stamp on the mission.
According to U.S. Army 2nd Lt. Michael C. McGarrigle, the 2nd Battalion, 87th Infantry Regiment chemical officer, watching the Super Bowl at Forward Operating Base Orgun-E “is a lot better” than watching the game at home.
“It’s nice to watch it in the atmosphere around here,” said the Wildwood, Ill., native and Chicago Bears fan. “They have a good thing going.”
“They’ve been here for a year,” McGarrigle said of his Fury counterparts. “For them, it’s a slice of home. We were home last week, so it isn’t quite the same for us. It means a lot for them after a year away.”
“I think it’s nice how they created a home-like atmosphere for the game,” added U.S. Army 1st Lt. Dan Gordon, the assistant 2nd Battalion, 87th Infantry Regiment fire support officer. “They did a real nice job, especially the food they served and the nonalcoholic beer. They made it seem like home.”
“I’m sure the Catamounts will carry on this tradition,” the Whitehall, N.Y., native said with a smile.
Unfortunately the whole thing sucked.
The caliber of play on the field sucked.
The officials sucked.
The halftime show feature the Geriatric Walking Skeletons sucked.
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