12593 Ld Strath pgs spr04 - Lord Strathcona's Horse

Once Upon A Time There Was A Subaltern(The following is the tenth in a seriesof reflections penned by a Strathcona(who for now will remain anonymous)regarding his service during which heconsidered were the “Golden” years withthe Regiment. Ed)Sometime in February, 1945, Major SidneyRadley-Walters, Squadron Commander,Sherbrooke Fusiliers observed thatwhen men work together, fight together,and get drunk together, they develop confidenceand respect for each other. (RCACIllustrated History).When I left Bremerhaven for Montreal,1959, the Ferrets of 2 Troop had eachlogged some twenty-five thousand miles(over forty thousand kms). A lot of revolutionson these Michelin tires. Our “patch”or “playground” was extensive: from southof Kassel to the Luneburg Heide, fromthe Ruhr (over the Weser River, betweenBeverungen-Hoxter) to the Curtain. Perhaps60% was on paved roads, 20% onunpaved tracks, and 20% cross-country. Alot of map reading, a lot of maps (evenwhen 1:100,000).Rations varied: “deluxe” when in harbours,WWII and Korean “left overs”(both Brit and Cdn) when travelling.These latter were ‘modified’ by either prepurchasesfrom the MLS (sardines, beans,coffee) or bartering with ‘the locals’ (fresheggs, ham, sausage, bread, potatoes). It wasfortunate that these local folk found ourcans of mutton and chutney delicious. Thecans of ‘fags’ were also virtually given away.Refrigeration for the fresh rations was spacious– simply remove the hubcap to thespare tire and use the recess. The onlyproblem arose when the rations crowdedout the cans of Dortmunder-Union …before they were to be used.An ocean away from Ottawa, the carsunderwent several modifications of ourdesign. The first was the “panic bars” weldedto the floor – to be seized by the CrewCommander if the vehicle should try to misbehave.Our RCEME magician, Sgt GerryMoreau, devised these (who knows wherethe materials came from). They replacedD.N.D.’s solution, which had been a lapbelt, installed after Cpl Arsenault’s deathnear Wainwright (June ’51). This belt hadanchored the C.C. to his seat (read plank).It wedged his back into the 19-Set andmade it impossible to get observation to therear. The “solution”: don’t buckle up/remove for other uses or suffer crippling.An Aside: ‘Pat’ Patterson recalls thecontest of wills between the SSM ‘Billie’May and Sgt Gerry Moreau regardingdress when doing maintenance on the carswhile in camp. Guess which one demandedboots and puttees be worn?The second modification was a windscreenof plexi-glass for each car to protectthe C.C. from the elements, flying insects,and other objects at highway speeds. Easilyremoved for storage, they were muchappreciated. The third modification was ananswer to our limitations re distances wewere expected to cover before replenishmentfrom “B” echelon. Again our solution– a bracket welded to the rear of each carcarried two Jerry cans of gas. Water we carriedin canvas “camels” hung over a headlight(always cool for man or beast).Our signal failure was to convince our“masters” that we represented a sizeableinvestment (both in trained personnel andequipment) which was under-armed with aBren Gun. Rather like arming the Centuriontank with a 2-pdr. We carried StenGuns, a 9mm pistol, and a Very pistol toaugment our ‘master-weapon’ – it was to be“seek and peek” for us, ’57-’59.An Aside: I remember when Lt Ed. Taylor,RCEME, labelled us as the “Kiddy-Kar-Kommandoes” in his column SpannerSpeaks, in The Beaver, the Bde newspaper.The name stuck, and led to cartoonsand further denigration in Tiller Bar, theRCD’s column. We were noticed. (Interesting,how we took such with humour, andaccepted an uncensored press as normal.Political Correctness wasn’t even on thehorizon then.)The clothing/dress of those in “F” echelonunder-went a rapid metamorphosis. Wefroze in coveralls, no matter what we woreunderneath. Berets provided no protectionfrom the elements. Tank suits, whichallowed the wearer to waddle, provided noflexibility in the car. They hung unused inS/Sgt McIndoe’s QM Stores. Our salvationlay in a Belgian War Surplus Storenear the Mohne See. In short order (i.e. asmoney allowed) there appeared camouflagejackets (Br., Bel., Fr.), green combat jacketsUS – mine was from Korea), a variety ofcaps w/ear flaps and visors, serviceable goggles…andso it went. Footwear varied: tankboots, running shoes, engineer boots,“brothel creepers” (desert boots), etc.An Aside: I understood clearly that the“price” to be freed from the 2i/c and SSMcame high. We had to excel in the field, inall tasks. Only then could we flaunt dressregulations. We were Bde Recce – Strathconas– Ian’s boys (I. MacD. Grant)An Aside: ‘Pat’ Patterson recalls anexercise w/US Recce near Bad Hershfeldwhere their jeeps w/50 cal, APC’s, andtanks were pitted against our Ferrets w/Brens. We did very well. At the conclusionwe RV’ed for a 5AM breakfast. We were fallenin and marched into their camp by theSSM. As we went through the gates I heardthe one US guard say to his buddy, “Wheredo these guys get their kit? From Castro?”‘Pat’ Searle also left an impression ofhow much a hungry Canadian could putaway: two chickens and a pizza…for breakfast.The Ferret was fitted w/ the 19-set. Whata marvellous workhorse. Its range was toolimited for our purposes, and the new C-42sets remedied this problem. In its turn itresulted in many “dead spots” which resultedin some convoluted relaying of information.Almost immediately after our arrival,the Russians were toying with our frequencies.They flitted through the area (illegally)in their Volkswagens and jammed ourtransmissions w/ verbal nonsense and“news from home”. They must havebelieved us important, for they were on ournets by the time were clearing the campgate. Our solution was to become proficient(?) in Morse code.An Aside: ‘Colby’ Yeomans remembersCpl J.B.Davis, RCCS giving thecourse … “we were pretty thick”. We didmanage to send fairly competently, but veryfew were ever skilled in receiving. Thesetransmissions couldn’t be jammed by voice,so it was up to Capt ‘Bill’ Ward and Bde todecipher our messages. My own recollectionsare painful. Mercifully, the C-42 eliminatedour reliance on Morse code.Paint must be mentioned before leavingthese “car memories”. The cars arrived fromCanada w/ a glossy brown paint, which weimmediately re-painted with a dull, “constipation-brown”.We became braver (couldhave been Sgt ‘Scotty’ Miller) and used 2-3 brown-greens (we mixed) applied insplotches. Sand was thrown on fresh paintrather successfully. Crews were pretty goodat individualizing their cars. Then disasterstruck. The PM of Canada, the Rt-HonJ.G.Diefenbaker, and a covey of 20-40hangers-on were to inspect the Bde. Wewere to parade en masse then the vehicleswere to be inspected in each camp. We wereordered (Ottawa) to strip and re-paint thecars in gloss. (Morale was at an all-timehigh). Within hours after inspection wewere re-camouflaging the cars for serviceand were operational within 48 hours.An Aside: I remember we were “stooddown” by BAOR while this nonsense wasgoing on. Our Brigadier, D. Cameron(‘Hasty-Pees’ during WW II) provedagain that “the brass” was indeed veteranswith real qualities of leadership. He orderedat least two rum rations for all ranks at theconclusion of these parades/inspections.When one considers the gallons of glossfrom Canada, the gallons of other paintscrounged/bartered from the Brits, the costof time/man-hours expended – anotherglimpse into the political mind. Think of allthe Dortmunder-Union we could have purchased...As Radley -Walters said, we’d workedtogether, trained for war in a theatre of war,and got drunk together. We certainly hadconfidence, and respect, and affection foreach other. We were privileged to be RecceSqn, LdSH (RC), 1957-59.And to think that we were actually paidfor all those hours ‘tripping’ about in WestGermany.Page 10Strathcona’s Newsletter