I packed a small gym bag. I put two pairs of socks, five pairs of underwear, one pair of shorts, and three t-shirts in the bag. I packed it just like the Army Recruiter suggested. I wore a pair of tennis shoes, long blue bell bottom jeans and my red tie-dyed shirt.

I combed my long blonde hair that was feathered back and parted in the middle. It hung down half past my back. I had the longest hair of anyone in my high school. I was proud to be a hippie. And yet, I was proud to serve my country. It was May 25, 1978, I graduated high school 10 days before.

My mother and I got into our 1970 Ford LTD and headed to the motel outside of town so I could catch the Greyhound bus. My mother waited until the bus pulled up. She leaned over to hug me and told me she loved me. I told her, I loved her too. Then I boarded the bus.

The bus stopped at the next small town where a man named James Street boarded and sat beside me. I was a little apprehensive because I had never been to Army Boot Camp before and did not know what to expect. At the same time, I was excited and ready to get started with my life after high school. James started talking to me. As we rode, he talked, and talked. He told me everything he was going to do when he got to boot camp. By the time we arrived in Louisville, Kentucky, I knew his autobiography. You would have thought he already won the Medal of Honor by the way he presented himself.

I rode the bus from Washington, Indiana, to Louisville, Kentucky. I boarded a Delta flight to Newark, New Jersey. I rode another Greyhound bus to Fort Dix, New Jersey. Then I started 14 weeks of Boot Camp. It was the long version of Vietnam Boot Camp. It was an extra course for Infantry men that were being sent to Vietnam. The war had ended. I was in the last unit to have to go through 14 weeks before it was reduced to eight weeks. Lucky me.

We got off the bus after arriving at Fort Dix. We were shuttled to what they called cattle cars. They were semi-trucks with open window trailers and two doors on the sides. The trucks took us to a building on the fort where we were issued our duffle bags with all our gear. Then we had to get our hair cuts. I got up in the chair to get my hair cut and the man took the shears and made a swath right down the middle of my head. I saw my hair drop to the floor and he said, "O.k., you are done".  I thought, "What?" So, I started to get up and he pulled me back in the chair and finished shaving my head. He thought he was funny playing around like that. I was so mad. I hated losing my beautiful hair. Then they loaded us into the trucks and shuttled us to the barracks. There we were met by our Drill Instructors. They started yelling, “Get your goat-smelling asses off my trucks!”

 We had our duffle bags on our backs. I stood up to get off and one of the straps on my duffle bag came loose and it slipped sideways. There was a pole between the doors and my duffle bag. I was stuck. I could not move. Men shoved me from behind, but I could not get out. Then I looked up and there was my Drill Instructor with his arms folded. He just looked at me and said, “That’s alright baby cakes. Take your sweet time. We have all day”. I thought, “Damn, I screwed up and he is going to remember my name”. Someone shoved me from behind and I fell out the door.

There were two yellow footprints painted on the pavement and we stood there at attention. Then the Drill Instructors got in our faces and started yelling commands. These men fought in Vietnam. They were proud. And they were hard. They did three or four tours and were highly decorated. All of them had at least one Purple Heart. Some had two or three. That’s the medal for being wounded or killed in action.

I knew a lot about the Army, and I knew what to expect from boot camp. I had five uncles who fought in WWII and three of them were wounded. I had an 18-year-old cousin who was a Marine. He was killed in Vietnam. So, I was well versed on what to do.

We started with 136 men. We were assigned to Echo Company, 2nd Battalion, 5th Combat Infantry Brigade, E-2-5. Training started the minute we arrived. We were led to a physical fitness training field and immediately started doing push-ups, jumping jacks, and other calisthenics. This went on everyday for the next 14 weeks! They whipped us into shape quickly.

During my fourth day at boot camp. I was told to go to the medical building and check on my medical records and dental records. This was proper protocol to make sure our records had been processed. I saw James Street sitting in a chair like he was in pain. I asked, “What’s wrong James?” He said, “My feet hurt!” I said, “Mine do too”. He said, “Well, they are sending me home because my arches are flat”. That was that. I never saw James again. The man who was going to win the war by himself could not even get through the first week of boot camp.

The following day we did our first five-mile run in combat boots and fatigues. Most of the first week was physical training. They were trying to get us in good physical shape. They told us if we were heavy, we would lose weight. If we were skinny, we would gain weight. I was 6 feet, 2 inches tall, and weighed 140 pounds. I never gained or lost a pound during those 14 weeks. The Drill Instructors could not believe it. They said they had never seen anyone come to boot camp and stay the same weight all the way through. However, I did. My physical appearance was different because I was all muscle, but no added weight. I had one percent body fat.

We had five physical routines we did daily. The one-mile run, the run, dodge and jump, the crab crawl, monkey bars, and sit-ups. We did not know it at the time, but towards the end of our training we had to take a physical fitness test and it was combined of these five routines. The test was based on a perfect score of 500. However, if we received a score of 475 or above, we were awarded a small blue square badge that had our first initial and last name on it with E-2-5 and the words “SUPER JOCK”. The winners of this badge would get to go first in the chow line until we graduated boot camp. You only got to wear this award on your uniform while at Fort Dix.

I really wanted that badge because I was very hungry! It proved you had passed the U.S. Army Physical Fitness Test with an above average score. A score many soldiers could not achieve.

The physical fitness test was scheduled for September 8, 1978. Our 14th week of training. I was an athlete in high school. I ran track, played basketball and football one year. So, I was always in good shape. The Army training was the icing on the cake for me.

During our training, I never ate candy, junk food, etc. The Army would not let us eat these things. The Army food was actually very good. I always heard about how bad the food was. However, I did not see it that way. I drank milk during every meal. We had peas, carrots, meat, healthy food. I looked good, I felt good, and I was healthy. I was in the best shape of my life. I was ready for this test. I was ready to graduate boot camp and move on to my Army career.

However, when the day came for us to take the Army Physical Fitness Test, we had already lost 40 men. Some were discharged for lawful violations, medical reasons, mental reasons, etc. Only 96 men remained in our company.

We started with the other four events during the physical fitness test. They saved the mile run for last. They wanted to make sure we were very tired before we ran that mile. We had to make the mile run in five minutes and 15 seconds or better. That didn’t sound hard to do. However, after the other four events, it was tough.

As the day evolved, we were pushed to our limits. We were soldiers and we wanted to prove it by passing the test and winning that little blue badge of honor. As it turned out, after all the sweat in the New Jersey heat, only three men were awarded the Super Jock Badge that day. The first man received a score of 478. I received a score of 477 and finished second. The third man received a score of 475. That was it. Out of 96 men, only three won the badge that day.

I was proud to be one of the three. This would go in my Army record that I achieved an above average score on the U.S. Army Physical Fitness Test! Not bad for a skinny kid from Indiana. I graduated Army Boot Camp the next week and received orders to the First Calvary Division at Fort Hood, Texas.

During my 27-year military career, I earned many military awards. People have often asked me about my most cherished military award. I always answer. My Blue Super Jock Badge. Of course, then I must explain what that is because most people have never heard of it.