Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Mad Padre On The March

This is me on the left, at Canadian Forces Base Suffield, a few weeks back, doing our annual Battle Fitness Test. The BFT is a 13km march with a 60 pound load plus weapon, helmet and webbing, to be completed in 2 hours 20 minutes with some silliness (a casualty evac drag test and a trench dig test) at the end. As a noncombatant I paid homage to one of my favourite war films and carried my trusty umbrella, vice the 9 pound rubber rifle everyone else carried. I made up for the weight of the rifle with a few fat books and my communion kit strapped to the back of my rucksack. I was pleased at how many young soldiers got the umbrella reference.

If any figure sculptors see this and are insppired, feel free to contact me offline. I think this pose would make a dashing addition to any contemporary warfare range.

25 comments:

  1. Good show Mike, I will have a look around the figure pile to see if I can make your day.

    Nice pic and well done.

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    1. Thanks Paul. I wouldn't want to distract you from your productivity and amazing painting work, but if you ever produced a Mad Padre bod, I'd be tickled pink.
      Cheers,
      Mike

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    2. Done and dusted:http://plasticwarriors.blogspot.co.nz/2012/10/mad-padre-mike-on-march-challenge.html

      Enjoy!

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  2. Replies
    1. Thanks old chap! Chin chin, eh wot? I was smiling in that photo bcause I was thinking of my Posties Rejects dice. Way to kill my dreams.

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  3. Ahhh, but can you remember the password? Great way to make up for the lack of weight of a rifle. Mind you, with the communion set that could be a reference to another film.

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    1. Thanks Tamsin. I forgot about the scene in Longest Day with the para padre looking for his communion set when I was strapping mine on my ruck. That's one of my favourite scenes. Actually, my communion set is WW2 issue, and identical to the ones that Canadian and British padres carried on D- Day, though mine was issued to a navy padre who was a mentor's father.

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  4. Mike

    There's something wrong here - the Canadian Forces actually scheduled an exercise on a day with good weather? I am afraid I am less well educated than your squaddies - what's the brolly reference?

    Cheers
    PD

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    1. Hi Peter:
      I think it was just sheer blind luck that had good weather, but we usually schedule it in the fall, between the worst of summer humidity and the onset of winter.
      The umbrella reference is to A Bridge Too Far - one of Col. Frost's officers carried one because he could never recall the password of the day and wanted to be recognized as the only fellow mad enough to carry a brolly on the battlefield. In my case, as a noncombatant, while I could carry one of the rubber rifles we use for this march, it seems wrong to carry a fake weapon when I can't carry a real one, so, the brolly seemed like a good compromise. And, it never hurts one's reputation as a padre to be seen as a little eccentric. :)

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    2. Yes, that description of the umbrella in A Bridge Too Far was excellent and so perfectly British. I also like the use of the hunting horns. How very droll...

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  5. Brilliant stuff - I take it that's the start of the march? You all look far too cheerful! Interesting times as well, the British Army ones are 8 miles in 2 hours with 25kg + weapon, webbing and helmet (not sure how that translates into pounds and shillings). I wish I was a sculptor, that's a classic pose!

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  6. Well done as 60lbs plus battle-rattle is not to laughed at.

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  7. That umbrella seems a dangerous weapon!!... happy that you were not identified with mary Poppins and put to jail!!!
    You really did 13km in that time?

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    1. Thanks Benito, and thanks for mentioning this post on the TFL list and for calling me "charismatic"?? That's a bit of a stretch but I'll take it. :)
      The umbrella is indeed a deadly weapon, provided one knows the proper drills for clearing jams and stoppages. But I don't think anyone who has seen me would confuse me with Mary Poppins.
      I think my completion time was 2 hrs 5 minutes. Some of the younger guys run the whole thing and pride themselves on times around 1hr45mins. Not me. :)

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  9. Good show Mike! Nice picture.
    There is a figure in the Old Glory 15mm British para command carrying an umbrella. Probably an easy conversion at that scale.

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  10. Ahh the good old BFA (Australian version) ours is very similar, 15km march, a run, dodge, jump (short obstacle course)and a 6m rope climb, fun stuff, I remember the first one was hell (never wore underwear again in my military career after that day), but the rest got easier, is the umbrella from "a bridge to far"? do you do the whole thing on bitumen? we used to do most of ours on dirt tracks, better in the heat, bitumen gets hot and is hell on the feet.

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    1. Hey Dan. The BFA sounds like bloody hell. I believe it when I hear that you Aussies are crazy tough dudes. We did the first three k of our route on a dirt track, and it was fine, but as soon as we got to the hardtop for the last 10k it was rough. By 5km I could feel the heat and friction on my feet. I always blister doing the BFT, every time, even wearing gucci private purchase SWAT boots this time, but the blistering wasn't as bad as some years.

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    2. Have you tried cutting the feet off womens stockings, and wearing them under your socks, it sounds funny, but will stop the blisters.

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    3. Actually I remember incorrectly, our was call the CFA, combat fitness assessment, the BFA was the basic fitness assessment, push ups, sit ups, and 5km run, (later shortened to 2.4km)

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    4. We had to do each twice per year.

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  11. As I said on Paul's Plastic Warriors blog...this photo makes my feet sore Padre!
    Reminds me way too much of the monthly 12 miler...but at least yours wasn't in
    Korea...that county has no top, I know I looked lol.

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  12. Well done Old Bean - nothing like a bit of shared misery to bonds with the Lads eh?

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  13. By the way padre - check out my blog, you've won a Liebster Award!

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