By TIM UNRUH

Salina Journal

A patrol of Humvees was moving slowly on a dirt road lined with heavy timber and brush when the bomb went off.

The lead truck, full of Kansas National Guard trainees pulled forward, stopped, then pulled forward again.

"Stop!" yelled Sgt. Maj. Tony Bennett, who bolted from his hiding place.

He repeated the order twice more.

Four confused and stressed-out soldiers hopped out.

More stern words followed from the Kansas National Guard soldier from Garden City, who spent Friday at the Kansas National Guard's Great Plains Joint Regional Training Center west of Salina, detonating fake bombs.

"Why didn't you stop? You lost your leg. Your passenger has no right arm. They need medical care, man. Let's go. What are you going to do?" Bennett said.

The injuries weren't real, but the rattled egos were after the simulated ambush, courtesy of the Guard.

"They had no clue. They were lost," Bennett said.

The convoy of troops were part of the Wichita-based 287th Sustainment Brigade, who were in their third day of work at the joint training center located at the Smoky Hill Weapons Range.

Duplicating reality

All 247 members of the brigade are receiving the same treatment as soldiers who have been in combat try to duplicate real-war experiences.

"They throw every scenario at you," said Lt. Jeff Mincks, 35, Clay Center. The physician's assistant has been in the Guard for 181âÑ2 years, and he's preparing for his first deployment overseas.

"This training is geared around lessons learned after being involved in Iraq for the past seven or eight years," Mincks said.

As the smoke cleared and the convoy moved on to its next challenge, Sgt. Christopher Self, 32, Dodge City, an Iraqi insurgent imposter, emerged victorious from the brush.

"I'm a certified life-taker. Good times," he said, celebrating his "kills" with a comrade. Both were dressed in white shirts.

"They didn't even see me comin'. I felt bad for them," Self said.

Soldiers in training learned how to guard a forward operating base, deal with civilians, secure a village and operate in convoys.

They were told to walk into a mock village, secure it and clear the buildings.

"The bad guys don't come out and say, 'Hey, I'm a bad guy,' " Mincks said. "You walk into a village you believe is friendly, and all of a sudden, it's not friendly."

Throughout the training compound, experienced veterans were throwing huge firecrackers, containing about half a stick of dynamite.

The whistle signaled soldiers to holler "incoming," followed by a bone-chilling boom.

"It does increase your pucker power," said Lt. Col. Allan White, a Salina audiologist and former chairman of the Saline County Democratic Party.

Preparing to ship out

White, a member of the Guard for 32 years, was training for his first duty overseas. His job is in medical services.

The 287th will leave Salina next week for Fort Lewis, Wash., for 45 days of training. In November the group will head for Iraq.

"I'm going to miss opening day of pheasant season. Bag a bird for me," said White, 58. He plans to vote in the Nov. 4 election before leaving the States.

"It's excellent training, absolutely fantastic. Every day is a learning opportunity," White said.

It's fun to be bad

Soldiers playing the bad guys have fun with their work but take it seriously. The Guard is using about 18 troops to role-play, said Command Sgt. Maj. James Moberly, 41, Salina.

"They're all over the place and they're magic. They come back to life," he said.

Moberly is commander of training at the joint training center. As a civilian, he is an engineer for Wilson and Company.

Back at the mock forward command post, Sgt. James Hintz, 38, Fremont, Neb., strutted in black garb through the ranks after crawling through a bank of trees, darting across a road and into tall weeds. He sneaked to within 20 meters of a legion of troops guarding the perimeter.

"I popped up and started shooting. I took some rounds in the back. After that I decided I was pretty much definitely dead," Hintz said.

Despite being cut, scratched and sore from playing an insurgent, he thoroughly enjoyed the duty.

"Where else can you go where you get to blow stuff up for free?" Hintz said.

And, he said, there is no better cause than preparing troops to keep themselves alive.

"Think about it. The more training we give them here to be safe, the more they're going to be safe over there," Hintz said. "I want to give them the worst-case scenario."

After each mission, the groups of soldiers meet for an "after action review," to discuss with the observers what went wrong and what went right, Bennett said.

A lot was wrong with the convoys Friday, "but that's why we do this," he said. "We elevate the situation so they can really get an eye-opener."

n Reporter Tim Unruh can be reached at 822-1419 or by e-mail at tunruh@salina.com.

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