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Robert J. Arrotta--The Mightiest Corporal in the Marine Corps
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Photo by Charles J. Schneider, courtesy of Joanne Schneider
Description: Robert J. Arrotta .Author: Beth Crumley
“Close air support was considered the most important mission of Marine aviation, and the Marine Corps focused the lion’s share of its aviation effort on refining and developing its close air support capabilities. As the senior aviator in the Marine Corps [Major General Keith B. McCutcheon] put it just months before the siege of Khe Sanh, ‘Marine aviation is a tactical air arm. Its sole mission is to provide support to ground forces.’ ”
—LtCol Shawn P. Callahan,
“Close Air Support and the Battle for Khe Sanh”
Marine Corps History Division, 2009
At no time would Major General Keith B. McCutcheon’s words about the importance of close air support ring truer than during the siege of Khe Sanh Combat Base and the surrounding, strategically important hills during the Vietnam War.
By December 1967, the North Vietnamese presence around Khe Sanh Combat Base had grown considerably. The 304 and 325C divisions had crossed into South Vietnam and were approaching from the west. To the east was the 320th Division, operating near the Rockpile, as well as an enemy regiment and an additional battalion whose mission it was to prevent movement along Route 9.
This buildup in enemy strength was monitored closely by Lieutenant General Robert E. Cushman Jr., the commanding general of III Marine Amphibious Force. By 9 Dec., 3d Battalion, 26th Marine Regiment was diverted from another mission and sent to Khe Sanh. Elements of the battalion strengthened key hilltop outposts. Company K, 3/26 was positioned atop Hill 861 and immediately began patrolling west of Khe Sanh.
Farther to the west was Hill 881S. The highest of the surrounding hills, it was key to Khe Sanh Combat Base defense. Khe Sanh was dependent upon resupply and reinforcement by air. Should the NVA hold the hill, aircraft taking off or landing from the west would be extremely vulnerable to enemy fire. The mission of holding the hill fell to the men of “India” Co, 3d Bn, 26th Marines. Among them was Corporal Robert J. Arrotta, who, during the 77-day siege, would earn the title “The Mightiest Corporal in the Marine Corps.”
In 1967, Arrotta had finished a disappointing freshman year in college when he received his draft notice. He volunteered for service in the Marine Corps, telling his family, “If I am going to go to Vietnam, I want to go with the best.” He arrived in country 15 Aug. 1967, assigned as a radio operator to Headquarters and Service Co, 3/26. He began training as a tactical air controller.
The North Vietnamese Army had launched a series of assaults against Marine positions in and around the Leatherneck Square area, a roughly square piece of ground bordered by Con Thien and Gio Linh to the north and Cam Lo and Dong Ha to the south. By the end of August, 3d Bn was ordered to Con Thien. Enemy ground activity in the area had increased significantly. It was there, during Operation Kingfisher, that Arrotta had his first real taste of combat. Hit hard in heavy fighting with the 812th NVA Regiment, 3d Bn sustained more than 240 casualties, including 56 killed in action. Arrotta later wrote about his experience:
“On 10 September I was with Mike Company when the battalion was attacked … by an entire NVA regiment. No medevacs could get into my landing zone because of overwhelming enemy firepower. I spent the night in the LZ with the battalion’s most seriously wounded and all of the dead that were able to be brought to the LZ. The next morning we had to retrieve the dead that couldn’t be brought to the LZ. … To carry these bodies and put them on waiting helicopters was the hardest thing I had to do in my life.”
Badly mauled, 3/26 moved to Camp Evans to rebuild. During that time Arrotta received additional training that would make him a legend on Hill 881S. During the heavy fighting near Con Thien, the battalion had lost its forward air controllers. In late September a CH-46 pilot, First Lieutenant John Root, was assigned to 3/26 to serve as a forward air controller. Root used the extended time at Camp Evans for training the radio operators in the fundamentals of bringing in close air support, aiding Marines on the ground. In late 1967, when the battalion deployed to Khe Sanh, Arrotta and his best friend, Cpl Terry L. Smith, both radio operators, were assigned to Hill 881S.
On 20 Jan. 1968, Captain William Dabney, commanding officer of India Co, 3/26, conducted a reconnaissance-in-force up Hill 881N. India Co engaged an entire NVA battalion moving south. The siege of Khe Sanh and the surrounding hills had begun. Both the combat base and the hills were completely dependent on resupply by air and close air support to keep enemy forces at bay.
A few days into the siege, the forward air controller on 881S was hit by shrapnel from an incoming mortar and was medically evacuated. Dabney later stated:
“At about the same time, the weather socked in, and it was several days before [we] could bring in helicopters. When it did clear, we got the radio batteries we needed to talk to the close air support aircraft but no new forward air controller. When I remarked on the lack of a FAC, Bob [Corporal Robert J. Arrotta] told me he could handle it. I had nothing to lose, plenty of targets, and all the CAS aircraft we could use, so I stood by and watched as he ran the first few missions—flawlessly. I was impressed not only with his technical knowledge but also with his demeanor as a corporal giving instructions to officers through the rank of lieutenant colonel. He was assertive and unfailingly professional.”
It wasn’t long before the Marines of India and Mike companies began calling Bob Arrotta “The Mightiest Corporal in the Marine Corps” for the vast amount of firepower he could bring down upon the enemy. First Lt Richard Dworsky, Weapons Platoon, I/3/26, recalled: “Bob and a couple of others looked like Energizer bunnies moving around and coordinating multiple air and fire support missions. It was dangerous, but always needed, work. … The hardest part was trying to keep all the fire support in order to prevent midair collisions.”
Despite the skill of the young corporal, there was at least one close call. Both Dabney and Arrotta trusted the close air support skills of Marine Corps pilots. As a rule, however, they usually ran both Air Force and Navy flights on targets two or more kilometers from the hill. Early on during the siege, an Air Force pilot dropped his ordnance without being “cleared hot” by Cpl Arrotta. As Dabney and Arrotta stood together on the hill, someone shouted a warning. The two Marines looked over their shoulders to see the aircraft coming right at them on the hill.
“Just as we caught sight of him, four bombs dropped from under his wings, and we dove for the bottom of the trench with Arrotta calling, ‘Abort! Abort!’ on the radio. Too late. Dust, shrapnel, tree stumps flying all over the place, both of us—and many others—were deaf for hours. Had he been accurate, we’d have lost perhaps 100 Marines. I lost my cool instead,” Dabney remembered.
In February, Arrotta suffered a loss that would impact the rest of his life. In a recording made on Hill 881S he stated, “I grew up a lot today. My best friend died in my arms.”
Cpl Terry Smith was in a bunker with Arrotta when a helicopter approached the landing zone where the North Vietnamese had registered heavy mortars. Approaching the hill without prior notice, the helicopter’s mission was to pick up resupply nets that had been dropped the previous week. The two young Marines usually took turns running out to the landing zone to attach the external slings to the “birds.” Enemy mortars registered on the hill were lethal.
“We could usually hear the [mortar] tube pop, and we had about 25 seconds from pop to impact, so it was vital to get the birds out in 20 seconds maximum, then take cover,” Dabney explained. Realizing the danger to the helicopter crew, Arrotta attempted to contact the pilot by radio, but was unsuccessful. Smith prevented Arrotta from leaving the safety of the bunker and ran across open ground, signaling to the helicopter to take off immediately. As the helicopter took off and before Smith could take cover, he was hit by shrapnel from the incoming mortar rounds.
Many years later Arrotta wrote, “I held onto Terry and yelled and screamed into the radio for the helicopter to come back and pick Terry up. The chopper returned and the corpsman and I picked Terry up and threw him on the chopper while the mortars were impacting all around us. … I don’t believe there has been one day in the last thirty years that I haven’t thought about that horrible day. I remember how helpless I felt and how it should have been me lying there dying, and not Terry.”
Dworsky noted the toll that day took on the young corporal. “I was wounded late in February and had to go to the small hill [where Mike Company was] to get medevacked. Bob and I carried another wounded Marine to the LZ. We all got out, although [we] took quite a bit of fire on the way. I asked Bob … why he went to the new LZ especially since they already had another team there. He told me that he didn’t want the wounded and dead to be alone. He believed that it was part of his duty as a Marine to perform that simple act of faith. He never was satisfied that he could do enough to help.”
Years later, Colonel Dabney, who was awarded the Navy Cross for his leadership on Hill 881S, commented on the service of Arrotta. “During the Siege of Khe Sanh, an operation called Niagara was in place. Essentially, it required that any close air support aircraft returning from aborted missions in the general area check in with the Khe Sanh Direct Air Support Center [DASC] before pickling [dropping] their ordnance.
“Since it was the end of the monsoon season and there were many bombing missions along the DMZ [Demilitarized Zone] and in North Vietnam that had to be aborted because of bad weather, plenty of aircraft with all sorts of ordnance [was available almost] every day. The base at Khe Sanh itself was in a bowl, so [they] couldn’t use [that ordnance] unless they had an airborne forward air controller, so they’d often pass them off to us … sitting atop a 3,000-foot hill, we didn’t need an airborne FAC, and we always had plenty of targets.
“Several times we got two or three flights of bombers passed off to us simultaneously. Bob got quite adept at ‘stacking’ them based upon how much fuel they had left and using them based on the ordnance they were carrying. Sounds simple, I guess, but under fire, without prior notice, it took superb organizational skills to both manage the air assets and direct the marking rounds our mortars fired to designate the targets for the bomber pilots.
“Bob did all of that in his head, sometimes juggling as many as three flights at once. My input was simply to tell him what targets to hit. He’d take it from there, stack the flights, range the mortar marking rounds and run the bombers in. In effect, he was his own DASC.”
In his 77 days on Hill 881S, Cpl Robert Arrotta had the tactical call sign of “India 14,” identifying him as the close air support representative of the company. During this long siege, he directed some 300 close air support missions, all resupply of the hill by helicopters, and in coordination with the helicopter support team, all medical evacuations.
Arrotta left the Republic of Vietnam in the autumn of 1968. During his tour he was awarded a Bronze Star medal, as well as a Navy Commendation Medal.
The latter’s citation states: “Assigned to Company I, Third Battalion, Twenty-Sixth Marines as a Forward Air Controller while that unit was located on Hill 881 South during the siege of the Khe Sanh Combat Base, he repeatedly distinguished himself by his courage and composure under fire. On numerous occasions, he fearlessly exposed himself to enemy artillery and mortar fire in order to direct Marine tactical air strikes on hostile positions and coordinate vitally needed helicopter resupply and medical evacuation missions. As a result of his diligent and tireless efforts, the combat effectiveness of his unit was greatly enhanced.”
Years later, still carrying the emotional wounds of Vietnam, Arrotta wanted to be close to a Marine Corps base, and in 1980, he moved to Southern California.
“It was at that time I realized the effect helicopters had on me. All sorts of military aircraft fly up and down this coastal community. But it’s always the Hueys, or the sound of their rotors, that causes me to flash back to Vietnam. I stop whatever I am doing and stare at the sky, waiting to see the ‘bird’ and remembering.”
In 2006, Major William C. Hendricks, assigned to the Air Officer Department, Marine Aviation and Weapons Tactics Squadron 1 at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Ariz., invited Arrotta to speak to the Air Officer Course. Arrotta agreed and suggested that former Sergeant Glenn Prentice, an artillery forward observer, also be included. The presentation, which included a series of photographs depicting life on 881S and the critical role played by close air support in their survival, was successful, and they were invited to speak to numerous classes.
Arrotta was extremely proud of his continued service to the Marine Corps, and, in addition to his work at MCAS Yuma, he addressed a number of fixed-wing and helicopter squadrons prior to their deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. To those in the audience, Arrotta “knew what it was like. Having him speak to us tied together the legend of the Marine brotherhood.”
Robert J. Arrotta died unexpectedly in November 2009, at the age of 64. He had been scheduled to speak at MCAS Yuma in April. Instead, prior to a brief given by Glenn Prentice, Maj Thomas Campbell asked everyone in attendance to take a few moments to reflect on the service and sacrifice of “The Mightiest Corporal in the Marine Corps.”
Col John Root said, “Bob was almost relaxed on 881S even as he was dealing with mortar fire, small arms and sniper fire, trying to get helos in and wounded out. He was very composed and a highly professional Marine who lived up to the highest traditions of the Marine Corps.”
Staff Sergeant Nathan Jacobson, who met Arrotta at MCAS Yuma, said simply, “He was a living legend, an inspiration, a real man who did amazing things. I was humbled to be in the same room as Robert J. Arrotta.”
First Lt Richard Dworsky, who also served with India Co, said, “Bob was honored by the love of the people who attended his funeral. All were veterans and Khe Sanh survivors. There was a flow in how Bob lived his life and how he viewed the Marine Corps. Duty, honor and teamwork were bigger than the individual.”
A buildup of thunderstorms just to our east. Thunderstorms were popping up around California thanks to a unique weather setup over the region, let alone the unusually high dew points for our standards here. For days, high pressure was in the middle of the country while a low pressure area was parked just offshore of California, helping to draw in monsoonal moisture from the southeast. Loving this tropical-like weather! Pic taken from around Fremont, CA. (Thursday late afternoon, August 17, 2023; 4:36 p.m.)
London is the capital and most populous city of England and the United Kingdom. Standing on the River Thames in the south east of the island of Great Britain, London has been a major settlement for two millennia. It was founded by the Romans, who named it Londinium. London's ancient core, the City of London, largely retains its 1.12-square-mile medieval boundaries. Since at least the 19th century, "London" has also referred to the metropolis around this core, historically split between Middlesex, Essex, Surrey, Kent, and Hertfordshire, which today largely makes up Greater London, governed by the Mayor of London and the London Assembly.
The 4th SteineWahn happens in Berlin last weekend. There was a lot of work to be done previously.
I think this is a very important part of an exhibition for the participants. Everyone is concentrate to make sure that his moc is presented well. But everybody also helps each other. So i take my time to make some pictures of those moments.
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The G20 was the biggest police buildup Hamburg has ever seen. 23.000 riot police from all over Germany and numerous anti-terror squads from Germany and Austria were also on scene. Around 45 high tech water- cannons , armoured police SUVs as well as dozens of helicopters and patrol boats were also deployed. In Hamburg-Harburg a detention center for 400 people was erected at costs of about 3 Million Euro.
Weeks before the summit police conducted training with helicopters, road-blocks and anti-terror practice. During the summit-week police, beside establishing the red zone near the summit center, also installed a blue zone as a demonstration and gathering free area that stretched out about one thirds of the city area and covered 38km².
In many ways the police build-up was exceptional in a dense populated City like Hamburg. The lessons learnt after the Genua G20 riots in 2001 in summit policing did not much apply in Hamburg. Instead Hamburg minister of the interior proclaimed a “festival of democracy” and a police acting with low threshold of intervention.
The Hamburg police tactic can for sure be described as “zero tolerance”. Order was given for a hardline approach, preventing any breach of law promptly. This lead to a series of confrontations and feelings of besiegement among protesters and citizens of Hamburg - all in advance of the actual summit-riots. Weeks before the summit people all around the city were stopped and strip-searched, because “they looked suspicious”. Days before the summit, protest- camps, in some cases legally approved by courts, were blocked and disturbed by the police. For days police helicopters were hoovering above the city day and night. Main streets were blocked for “convoy-practise” and during the summit deliveries of goods and services were significantly disturbed.
During the summit-protests, police stuck to their hardline approach, leading to a significant escalation at the “welcome to hell” demonstration on Thursday the 6th, when police stopped and broke up the demonstration, before any physical violence occurred on side of the protesters.
From this point on, Hamburg saw 3 days of massive peaceful protests, as well as significant rioting and looting, which lead to the deployment of special forces (SEK) with hand held grenade launchers and assault rifles against rioters on the night of the 7th and 8th of July.
Police claims about 500 injured policemen, half of them probably due to friendly teargas fire, exhaustion and illness, others through injuries on duty and in riot. Many police had insufficient accommodation and many were on duty for 3 days without sleep.
There are no official numbers of injured protesters so far, but it is estimated that it must be more than a thousand, some with life threatening conditions, many broken limbs and head- injuries.
The question wether police could have prevented the worst is now widely discussed. Also in question is the fact that riots in the Schanzenviertel could spread for hours without any police present on Friday night. Also no police was on the scene when a group of hundred marched through the City of Altona burning cars and smashing shops on Friday morning. People of Hamburg are asking why 23.000 police were not able to prevent what was happening and why the police was conducting violence on peaceful protesters too.
The Hamburg Senate coalition of Social-Democrats and Green Party, so far, see no evidence of a failed police- tactic nor any evidence of police violence. It will be to the civil rights movements to investigate.
The promised “Festival of Democracy” and the safety of the citizens of Hamburg was a joke. The police failed to prevent mass riots and failed to handle the situation in many cases. The costs of all this is not just a money issue, but also an issue of basic democratic rights, that have been suspended for the safety of 20 world leaders.
Around 100.000 peaceful protesters on more than 80 events, were basically not represented in the public view. Instead police and media reports, in most cases, only focused on the riots.
Probably the best agate I found at Tapado on October 21, 2009. I had just been showing other members of our group how to recognize the better agates and particularly this type and was carrying a handfull of agates back to where I had left my backpack laying on the ground at the edge of the arroyo, when I spotted this agate, only a foot or two from my backpack. Some color was showing throught the pale green skin of this agate, which became more obvious as the sunlight became brighter.
The G20 was the biggest police buildup Hamburg has ever seen. 23.000 riot police from all over Germany and numerous anti-terror squads from Germany and Austria were also on scene. Around 45 high tech water- cannons , armoured police SUVs as well as dozens of helicopters and patrol boats were also deployed. In Hamburg-Harburg a detention center for 400 people was erected at costs of about 3 Million Euro.
Weeks before the summit police conducted training with helicopters, road-blocks and anti-terror practice. During the summit-week police, beside establishing the red zone near the summit center, also installed a blue zone as a demonstration and gathering free area that stretched out about one thirds of the city area and covered 38km².
In many ways the police build-up was exceptional in a dense populated City like Hamburg. The lessons learnt after the Genua G20 riots in 2001 in summit policing did not much apply in Hamburg. Instead Hamburg minister of the interior proclaimed a “festival of democracy” and a police acting with low threshold of intervention.
The Hamburg police tactic can for sure be described as “zero tolerance”. Order was given for a hardline approach, preventing any breach of law promptly. This lead to a series of confrontations and feelings of besiegement among protesters and citizens of Hamburg - all in advance of the actual summit-riots. Weeks before the summit people all around the city were stopped and strip-searched, because “they looked suspicious”. Days before the summit, protest- camps, in some cases legally approved by courts, were blocked and disturbed by the police. For days police helicopters were hoovering above the city day and night. Main streets were blocked for “convoy-practise” and during the summit deliveries of goods and services were significantly disturbed.
During the summit-protests, police stuck to their hardline approach, leading to a significant escalation at the “welcome to hell” demonstration on Thursday the 6th, when police stopped and broke up the demonstration, before any physical violence occurred on side of the protesters.
From this point on, Hamburg saw 3 days of massive peaceful protests, as well as significant rioting and looting, which lead to the deployment of special forces (SEK) with hand held grenade launchers and assault rifles against rioters on the night of the 7th and 8th of July.
Police claims about 500 injured policemen, half of them probably due to friendly teargas fire, exhaustion and illness, others through injuries on duty and in riot. Many police had insufficient accommodation and many were on duty for 3 days without sleep.
There are no official numbers of injured protesters so far, but it is estimated that it must be more than a thousand, some with life threatening conditions, many broken limbs and head- injuries.
The question wether police could have prevented the worst is now widely discussed. Also in question is the fact that riots in the Schanzenviertel could spread for hours without any police present on Friday night. Also no police was on the scene when a group of hundred marched through the City of Altona burning cars and smashing shops on Friday morning. People of Hamburg are asking why 23.000 police were not able to prevent what was happening and why the police was conducting violence on peaceful protesters too.
The Hamburg Senate coalition of Social-Democrats and Green Party, so far, see no evidence of a failed police- tactic nor any evidence of police violence. It will be to the civil rights movements to investigate.
The promised “Festival of Democracy” and the safety of the citizens of Hamburg was a joke. The police failed to prevent mass riots and failed to handle the situation in many cases. The costs of all this is not just a money issue, but also an issue of basic democratic rights, that have been suspended for the safety of 20 world leaders.
Around 100.000 peaceful protesters on more than 80 events, were basically not represented in the public view. Instead police and media reports, in most cases, only focused on the riots.
Marchand covered bridge over Coulonge River is 152 metres long and was built in 1898 for $6000. It was almost destroyed several times during floods and buildup of ice but was repaired and remains open to traffic today.
I drove by on my way to Coulonge Falls.
The G20 was the biggest police buildup Hamburg has ever seen. 23.000 riot police from all over Germany and numerous anti-terror squads from Germany and Austria were also on scene. Around 45 high tech water- cannons , armoured police SUVs as well as dozens of helicopters and patrol boats were also deployed. In Hamburg-Harburg a detention center for 400 people was erected at costs of about 3 Million Euro.
Weeks before the summit police conducted training with helicopters, road-blocks and anti-terror practice. During the summit-week police, beside establishing the red zone near the summit center, also installed a blue zone as a demonstration and gathering free area that stretched out about one thirds of the city area and covered 38km².
In many ways the police build-up was exceptional in a dense populated City like Hamburg. The lessons learnt after the Genua G20 riots in 2001 in summit policing did not much apply in Hamburg. Instead Hamburg minister of the interior proclaimed a “festival of democracy” and a police acting with low threshold of intervention.
The Hamburg police tactic can for sure be described as “zero tolerance”. Order was given for a hardline approach, preventing any breach of law promptly. This lead to a series of confrontations and feelings of besiegement among protesters and citizens of Hamburg - all in advance of the actual summit-riots. Weeks before the summit people all around the city were stopped and strip-searched, because “they looked suspicious”. Days before the summit, protest- camps, in some cases legally approved by courts, were blocked and disturbed by the police. For days police helicopters were hoovering above the city day and night. Main streets were blocked for “convoy-practise” and during the summit deliveries of goods and services were significantly disturbed.
During the summit-protests, police stuck to their hardline approach, leading to a significant escalation at the “welcome to hell” demonstration on Thursday the 6th, when police stopped and broke up the demonstration, before any physical violence occurred on side of the protesters.
From this point on, Hamburg saw 3 days of massive peaceful protests, as well as significant rioting and looting, which lead to the deployment of special forces (SEK) with hand held grenade launchers and assault rifles against rioters on the night of the 7th and 8th of July.
Police claims about 500 injured policemen, half of them probably due to friendly teargas fire, exhaustion and illness, others through injuries on duty and in riot. Many police had insufficient accommodation and many were on duty for 3 days without sleep.
There are no official numbers of injured protesters so far, but it is estimated that it must be more than a thousand, some with life threatening conditions, many broken limbs and head- injuries.
The question wether police could have prevented the worst is now widely discussed. Also in question is the fact that riots in the Schanzenviertel could spread for hours without any police present on Friday night. Also no police was on the scene when a group of hundred marched through the City of Altona burning cars and smashing shops on Friday morning. People of Hamburg are asking why 23.000 police were not able to prevent what was happening and why the police was conducting violence on peaceful protesters too.
The Hamburg Senate coalition of Social-Democrats and Green Party, so far, see no evidence of a failed police- tactic nor any evidence of police violence. It will be to the civil rights movements to investigate.
The promised “Festival of Democracy” and the safety of the citizens of Hamburg was a joke. The police failed to prevent mass riots and failed to handle the situation in many cases. The costs of all this is not just a money issue, but also an issue of basic democratic rights, that have been suspended for the safety of 20 world leaders.
Around 100.000 peaceful protesters on more than 80 events, were basically not represented in the public view. Instead police and media reports, in most cases, only focused on the riots.
The building that housed the Installation Management Command at Fort Campbell was built in 1942 during the buildup for World War II. The building was constructed using a standard design that was employed by the U. S. Army Quartermaster for divisional headquarters and administration headquarters buildings that were constructed at Army bases and camps throughout the country. The building was given the designation "T-39." The "T" indicated the building was temporary--built to last a maximum of five to twenty years. It was thought that when the war ended the building would no longer be needed. However, for over 50 years the building was in service. In the early 2000s, T-39 was scheduled to be razed. In 2006, the Garrison Commander, Colonel Frederick Swope recognized the building's historical significance and made plans to save it. For nearly three quarters of a century, during which it underwent numerous updates and retrofits, the "temporary" building was in service in 2016, when the photograph was taken. T-39 is an iconic reminder of the past.
Indian River quarterback Dominique Brooks beats his old school… sweet revenge!
All week long, he heard the buildup surrounding the big Southeastern District showdown between No. 2 Indian River and No. 1 Oscar Smith. He also was going against his former team as he was the starting quarterback during the Tigers’ run to a third consecutive state championship game last season.
But Brooks handled the pressure as he threw for 206 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Braves to a 28-16 win over Oscar Smith in front of more 5,000 fans. It was the Braves’ first win over the Tigers since 1998. And the win also put Indian River in the driver’s seat to the district title, which they haven’t won since 1996. The Braves finish the season against Grassfield (4-4) and Western Branch (0-8).
Brooks overcame early jitters that included two penalties and back-to-back incompletions on his team's first possession, but he settled down with throws of 25, 15 and 24 yards.
Ahshawn Moore completed the drive with a 1-yard touchdown run to help the Indian River take a 7-0 lead.
The Tigers, who have lost just two Southeastern District games since 2007, answered when quarterback Cam’Ron Kelly threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to Kenny Etheridge.
Indian River (8-0, 7-0) regained the lead in the second quarter when Brooks threw an 85-yard touchdown pass to Rasheen Brooks for a 14-7 lead.
Oscar Smith cut the deficit to 14-10 on Austin Benoit’s 27-yard field goal with 3:04 left in the half.
The Braves added to their lead before the half on Carmello Sweat's 69-yard touchdown run to make it 21-10.
The second half started well for Indian River as the Braves capitalized on a muffed snap on a punt to get the ball on the Oscar Smith 31. Three plays later, Brooks threw a 19-yard touchdown pass to Moore, who made an incredible one-handed catch in the corner of the end zone. The Braves led 28-10 with 5:33 left in the third quarter.
But Indian River coach Glenwood Ferebee couldn’t relax. He remembered 2015 when the Braves led 14-2 in the fourth quarter, only to watch Oscar Smith score 13 points in the final 3:24 to beat them.
He thought about it even more after Kelly's 24-yard touchdown pass to Etheridge to help cut the deficit to 28-16 with 6:08 left in the game.
And the Braves held on as Ferebee beat Oscar Smith for the first time in his career.
All of the pictures were taken by Kirk Allen of RWM Sports | Red Weasel Media. Sponsored by King Neppy Clothing www.kingneppy.com
Lots of weight there, heavy wet snow yesterday, turning to rain in the evening and a light rain all night. This is a pile from the start of the snow season.
The very cold weather has caused the buildup of beautiful ice formations on the Brunswick Dam on the Androscoggin River. It is used for electric power generation and connects Brunswick and Topsham Maine. It is owned by Florida Power and Light one of the largest power utilities in the state of Florida. This is not a very Florida-like scene which is more commonly associated with sun and sand and a retreat for Mainers in the winter.
Indian River quarterback Dominique Brooks beats his old school… sweet revenge!
All week long, he heard the buildup surrounding the big Southeastern District showdown between No. 2 Indian River and No. 1 Oscar Smith. He also was going against his former team as he was the starting quarterback during the Tigers’ run to a third consecutive state championship game last season.
But Brooks handled the pressure as he threw for 206 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Braves to a 28-16 win over Oscar Smith in front of more 5,000 fans. It was the Braves’ first win over the Tigers since 1998. And the win also put Indian River in the driver’s seat to the district title, which they haven’t won since 1996. The Braves finish the season against Grassfield (4-4) and Western Branch (0-8).
Brooks overcame early jitters that included two penalties and back-to-back incompletions on his team's first possession, but he settled down with throws of 25, 15 and 24 yards.
Ahshawn Moore completed the drive with a 1-yard touchdown run to help the Indian River take a 7-0 lead.
The Tigers, who have lost just two Southeastern District games since 2007, answered when quarterback Cam’Ron Kelly threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to Kenny Etheridge.
Indian River (8-0, 7-0) regained the lead in the second quarter when Brooks threw an 85-yard touchdown pass to Rasheen Brooks for a 14-7 lead.
Oscar Smith cut the deficit to 14-10 on Austin Benoit’s 27-yard field goal with 3:04 left in the half.
The Braves added to their lead before the half on Carmello Sweat's 69-yard touchdown run to make it 21-10.
The second half started well for Indian River as the Braves capitalized on a muffed snap on a punt to get the ball on the Oscar Smith 31. Three plays later, Brooks threw a 19-yard touchdown pass to Moore, who made an incredible one-handed catch in the corner of the end zone. The Braves led 28-10 with 5:33 left in the third quarter.
But Indian River coach Glenwood Ferebee couldn’t relax. He remembered 2015 when the Braves led 14-2 in the fourth quarter, only to watch Oscar Smith score 13 points in the final 3:24 to beat them.
He thought about it even more after Kelly's 24-yard touchdown pass to Etheridge to help cut the deficit to 28-16 with 6:08 left in the game.
And the Braves held on as Ferebee beat Oscar Smith for the first time in his career.
All of the pictures were taken by Kirk Allen of RWM Sports | Red Weasel Media. Sponsored by King Neppy Clothing www.kingneppy.com
The 4th SteineWahn happens in Berlin last weekend. There was a lot of work to be done previously.
I think this is a very important part of an exhibition for the participants. Everyone is concentrate to make sure that his moc is presented well. But everybody also helps each other. So i take my time to make some pictures of those moments.
---
More information and pics up: THE BRICK TIME
Be sure to visit the BrickLink-Shop: THE BRICK TIME - Store
The G20 was the biggest police buildup Hamburg has ever seen. 23.000 riot police from all over Germany and numerous anti-terror squads from Germany and Austria were also on scene. Around 45 high tech water- cannons , armoured police SUVs as well as dozens of helicopters and patrol boats were also deployed. In Hamburg-Harburg a detention center for 400 people was erected at costs of about 3 Million Euro.
Weeks before the summit police conducted training with helicopters, road-blocks and anti-terror practice. During the summit-week police, beside establishing the red zone near the summit center, also installed a blue zone as a demonstration and gathering free area that stretched out about one thirds of the city area and covered 38km².
In many ways the police build-up was exceptional in a dense populated City like Hamburg. The lessons learnt after the Genua G20 riots in 2001 in summit policing did not much apply in Hamburg. Instead Hamburg minister of the interior proclaimed a “festival of democracy” and a police acting with low threshold of intervention.
The Hamburg police tactic can for sure be described as “zero tolerance”. Order was given for a hardline approach, preventing any breach of law promptly. This lead to a series of confrontations and feelings of besiegement among protesters and citizens of Hamburg - all in advance of the actual summit-riots. Weeks before the summit people all around the city were stopped and strip-searched, because “they looked suspicious”. Days before the summit, protest- camps, in some cases legally approved by courts, were blocked and disturbed by the police. For days police helicopters were hoovering above the city day and night. Main streets were blocked for “convoy-practise” and during the summit deliveries of goods and services were significantly disturbed.
During the summit-protests, police stuck to their hardline approach, leading to a significant escalation at the “welcome to hell” demonstration on Thursday the 6th, when police stopped and broke up the demonstration, before any physical violence occurred on side of the protesters.
From this point on, Hamburg saw 3 days of massive peaceful protests, as well as significant rioting and looting, which lead to the deployment of special forces (SEK) with hand held grenade launchers and assault rifles against rioters on the night of the 7th and 8th of July.
Police claims about 500 injured policemen, half of them probably due to friendly teargas fire, exhaustion and illness, others through injuries on duty and in riot. Many police had insufficient accommodation and many were on duty for 3 days without sleep.
There are no official numbers of injured protesters so far, but it is estimated that it must be more than a thousand, some with life threatening conditions, many broken limbs and head- injuries.
The question wether police could have prevented the worst is now widely discussed. Also in question is the fact that riots in the Schanzenviertel could spread for hours without any police present on Friday night. Also no police was on the scene when a group of hundred marched through the City of Altona burning cars and smashing shops on Friday morning. People of Hamburg are asking why 23.000 police were not able to prevent what was happening and why the police was conducting violence on peaceful protesters too.
The Hamburg Senate coalition of Social-Democrats and Green Party, so far, see no evidence of a failed police- tactic nor any evidence of police violence. It will be to the civil rights movements to investigate.
The promised “Festival of Democracy” and the safety of the citizens of Hamburg was a joke. The police failed to prevent mass riots and failed to handle the situation in many cases. The costs of all this is not just a money issue, but also an issue of basic democratic rights, that have been suspended for the safety of 20 world leaders.
Around 100.000 peaceful protesters on more than 80 events, were basically not represented in the public view. Instead police and media reports, in most cases, only focused on the riots.
The title is the buildup to the punchline of a terrific joke...I'll try and post it here in the future.
.
Гітара -- Ukrainian for Guitar. I figured that since I'm making an everyday familiar object look so foreign to the visual senses that I needed a foreign language to describe the set too.
More here in my set, "Гітара:"
www.flickr.com/photos/motorpsiclist/sets/72157630600730218/
.
My photographs and videos and any derivative works are my private property and are copyright © by me, John Russell (aka “Zoom Lens”) and ALL my rights, including my exclusive rights, are reserved. ANY use without my permission in writing is forbidden by law.
.
Der Hausbau hat richtig Spaß gemacht. Bis Mini etwas übermütig wurde. Passiert ist nichts. Mini war nur etwas erschrocken.
The process of building that house was really fun. Until Mini just wanted too much. Nothing happend. Mini just was a little bit scared.
Ice buildup on the berries of a flowering shrub. The winter storm of February 2014 is wreaking havoc on the entire Southeastern US. But, the ice is also beautiful, even if it is destructive.
The 4th SteineWahn happens in Berlin last weekend. There was a lot of work to be done previously.
I think this is a very important part of an exhibition for the participants. Everyone is concentrate to make sure that his moc is presented well. But everybody also helps each other. So i take my time to make some pictures of those moments.
---
More information and pics up: THE BRICK TIME
Be sure to visit the BrickLink-Shop: THE BRICK TIME - Store
Hot springs are sites where groundwater emerges at the surface and the water is hotter than the human body. In many cases, hot spring water is boiling hot, or close to it. At Yellowstone in Wyoming, most hot spring water precipitates opal (hydrous silica, SiO2·nH2O), resulting in buildups of geyserite, a chemical sedimentary rock. Some Yellowstone hot springs precipitate calcium carbonate (CaCO3). Seen here is a hot spring in Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas. The algae-covered rocky buildup is calcium carbonate. Chemical sedimentary rocks of calcareous composition formed by hot spring water include "calcareous tufa" and "travertine". I'm not entirely convinced there is a difference - the terms are often used interchangeably. My understanding is that "calcareous tufa" (a horrible term, by the way) is a porous, friable precursor to travertine. Travertine also forms in caves (calcareous speleothem) and at some cold springs.
Supposedly, the original tufa/travertine deposits here have long since been destroyed and the layout of hot springs and the drainage patterns are all artificial. The modification took place to accommodate the need to pipe hot water to nearby bathhouses in early days. Tufa/travertine deposits now at the site are probably all secondary.
-------------------------------------
From park signage:
Thermal Cascade was designed to recreate the natural scene of hot spring water cascading down tufa cliffs. In cool weather the vapor is reminiscent of the clouds that once billowed from open springs along the lower slope.
---
Tufa Terraces
Before the bathhouse era, this lower side of the mountain was covered with massive terraces of tufa (travertine). Tufa is mostly calcium carbonate, which precipitates out as the spring water cools. In 1834 a British geologist observed that “The travertine . . . sometimes presents abrupt vertical faces of from 15 to 25 feet high.” Tufa formations are still visible along this trail.
After a short ascent past tufa outcroppings and the Thermal Cascade, Tufa Terrace Trail crosses the Grand Promenade. From there you can reach the Peak Trail and continue up Hot Springs Mountain.
---
THIS VALLEY, LONG KNOWN BY THE INDIANS AS “TAH-NE-CO,” “THE PLACE OF THE HOT WATERS,” AND ACCORDING TO TRADITION REGARDED BY THE DIFFERENT TRIBES AS NEUTRAL GROUND, WAS FIRST VISITED BY WHITE MEN ON SEPTEMBER 16, 1541, WHEN HERNANDO DE SOTO AND HIS MEN CAMPED IN THIS VICINITY AND WERE LED HERE BY THE INDIANS. ACCORDING TO RECORDS OF RODERIGO RONJEL, SECRETARY TO DE SOTO, AND THE “GENTLEMAN OF ELVAS,” WHO WAS ALSO A MEMBER OF THE COMPANY, THEY BATHED IN THE HOT WATERS AND DEPARTED OCTOBER 5, 1541.
THIS MARKER IS PLACED HERE BY THE HOT SPRINGS, ARKANSAS, CHAPTER OF THE DAUGHTERS OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
APRIL 30, 1932
-------------------------------------
Locality: Display Springs, next to Fordyce Bathhouse & east of Central Avenue, Hot Springs National Park, Arkansas, USA (34° 30’ 50.63" North latitude, 93° 03’ 11.23" West longitude)
-------------------------------------
Info. at:
Hot springs are sites where groundwater emerges at the surface and the water is hotter than the human body. In many cases, hot spring water is boiling hot, or close to it. At Yellowstone in Wyoming, most hot spring water precipitates opal (hydrous silica, SiO2·nH2O), resulting in buildups of geyserite, a chemical sedimentary rock. Some Yellowstone hot springs precipitate calcium carbonate (CaCO3). Seen here is a hot spring in Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas. The algae-covered rocky buildup is calcium carbonate. Chemical sedimentary rocks of calcareous composition formed by hot spring water include "calcareous tufa" and "travertine". I'm not entirely convinced there is a difference - the terms are often used interchangeably. My understanding is that "calcareous tufa" (a horrible term, by the way) is a porous, friable precursor to travertine. Travertine also forms in caves (calcareous speleothem) and at some cold springs.
Supposedly, the original tufa/travertine deposits here have long since been destroyed and the layout of hot springs and the drainage patterns are all artificial. The modification took place to accommodate the need to pipe hot water to nearby bathhouses in early days. Tufa/travertine deposits now at the site are probably all secondary.
-------------------------------------
From park signage:
Thermal Cascade was designed to recreate the natural scene of hot spring water cascading down tufa cliffs. In cool weather the vapor is reminiscent of the clouds that once billowed from open springs along the lower slope.
---
Tufa Terraces
Before the bathhouse era, this lower side of the mountain was covered with massive terraces of tufa (travertine). Tufa is mostly calcium carbonate, which precipitates out as the spring water cools. In 1834 a British geologist observed that “The travertine . . . sometimes presents abrupt vertical faces of from 15 to 25 feet high.” Tufa formations are still visible along this trail.
After a short ascent past tufa outcroppings and the Thermal Cascade, Tufa Terrace Trail crosses the Grand Promenade. From there you can reach the Peak Trail and continue up Hot Springs Mountain.
---
THIS VALLEY, LONG KNOWN BY THE INDIANS AS “TAH-NE-CO,” “THE PLACE OF THE HOT WATERS,” AND ACCORDING TO TRADITION REGARDED BY THE DIFFERENT TRIBES AS NEUTRAL GROUND, WAS FIRST VISITED BY WHITE MEN ON SEPTEMBER 16, 1541, WHEN HERNANDO DE SOTO AND HIS MEN CAMPED IN THIS VICINITY AND WERE LED HERE BY THE INDIANS. ACCORDING TO RECORDS OF RODERIGO RONJEL, SECRETARY TO DE SOTO, AND THE “GENTLEMAN OF ELVAS,” WHO WAS ALSO A MEMBER OF THE COMPANY, THEY BATHED IN THE HOT WATERS AND DEPARTED OCTOBER 5, 1541.
THIS MARKER IS PLACED HERE BY THE HOT SPRINGS, ARKANSAS, CHAPTER OF THE DAUGHTERS OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION
APRIL 30, 1932
-------------------------------------
Locality: Display Springs, next to Fordyce Bathhouse & east of Central Avenue, Hot Springs National Park, Arkansas, USA (34° 30’ 50.63" North latitude, 93° 03’ 11.23" West longitude)
-------------------------------------
Info. at:
Indian River quarterback Dominique Brooks beats his old school… sweet revenge!
All week long, he heard the buildup surrounding the big Southeastern District showdown between No. 2 Indian River and No. 1 Oscar Smith. He also was going against his former team as he was the starting quarterback during the Tigers’ run to a third consecutive state championship game last season.
But Brooks handled the pressure as he threw for 206 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Braves to a 28-16 win over Oscar Smith in front of more 5,000 fans. It was the Braves’ first win over the Tigers since 1998. And the win also put Indian River in the driver’s seat to the district title, which they haven’t won since 1996. The Braves finish the season against Grassfield (4-4) and Western Branch (0-8).
Brooks overcame early jitters that included two penalties and back-to-back incompletions on his team's first possession, but he settled down with throws of 25, 15 and 24 yards.
Ahshawn Moore completed the drive with a 1-yard touchdown run to help the Indian River take a 7-0 lead.
The Tigers, who have lost just two Southeastern District games since 2007, answered when quarterback Cam’Ron Kelly threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to Kenny Etheridge.
Indian River (8-0, 7-0) regained the lead in the second quarter when Brooks threw an 85-yard touchdown pass to Rasheen Brooks for a 14-7 lead.
Oscar Smith cut the deficit to 14-10 on Austin Benoit’s 27-yard field goal with 3:04 left in the half.
The Braves added to their lead before the half on Carmello Sweat's 69-yard touchdown run to make it 21-10.
The second half started well for Indian River as the Braves capitalized on a muffed snap on a punt to get the ball on the Oscar Smith 31. Three plays later, Brooks threw a 19-yard touchdown pass to Moore, who made an incredible one-handed catch in the corner of the end zone. The Braves led 28-10 with 5:33 left in the third quarter.
But Indian River coach Glenwood Ferebee couldn’t relax. He remembered 2015 when the Braves led 14-2 in the fourth quarter, only to watch Oscar Smith score 13 points in the final 3:24 to beat them.
He thought about it even more after Kelly's 24-yard touchdown pass to Etheridge to help cut the deficit to 28-16 with 6:08 left in the game.
And the Braves held on as Ferebee beat Oscar Smith for the first time in his career.
All of the pictures were taken by Kirk Allen of RWM Sports | Red Weasel Media. Sponsored by King Neppy Clothing www.kingneppy.com
The G20 was the biggest police buildup Hamburg has ever seen. 23.000 riot police from all over Germany and numerous anti-terror squads from Germany and Austria were also on scene. Around 45 high tech water- cannons , armoured police SUVs as well as dozens of helicopters and patrol boats were also deployed. In Hamburg-Harburg a detention center for 400 people was erected at costs of about 3 Million Euro.
Weeks before the summit police conducted training with helicopters, road-blocks and anti-terror practice. During the summit-week police, beside establishing the red zone near the summit center, also installed a blue zone as a demonstration and gathering free area that stretched out about one thirds of the city area and covered 38km².
In many ways the police build-up was exceptional in a dense populated City like Hamburg. The lessons learnt after the Genua G20 riots in 2001 in summit policing did not much apply in Hamburg. Instead Hamburg minister of the interior proclaimed a “festival of democracy” and a police acting with low threshold of intervention.
The Hamburg police tactic can for sure be described as “zero tolerance”. Order was given for a hardline approach, preventing any breach of law promptly. This lead to a series of confrontations and feelings of besiegement among protesters and citizens of Hamburg - all in advance of the actual summit-riots. Weeks before the summit people all around the city were stopped and strip-searched, because “they looked suspicious”. Days before the summit, protest- camps, in some cases legally approved by courts, were blocked and disturbed by the police. For days police helicopters were hoovering above the city day and night. Main streets were blocked for “convoy-practise” and during the summit deliveries of goods and services were significantly disturbed.
During the summit-protests, police stuck to their hardline approach, leading to a significant escalation at the “welcome to hell” demonstration on Thursday the 6th, when police stopped and broke up the demonstration, before any physical violence occurred on side of the protesters.
From this point on, Hamburg saw 3 days of massive peaceful protests, as well as significant rioting and looting, which lead to the deployment of special forces (SEK) with hand held grenade launchers and assault rifles against rioters on the night of the 7th and 8th of July.
Police claims about 500 injured policemen, half of them probably due to friendly teargas fire, exhaustion and illness, others through injuries on duty and in riot. Many police had insufficient accommodation and many were on duty for 3 days without sleep.
There are no official numbers of injured protesters so far, but it is estimated that it must be more than a thousand, some with life threatening conditions, many broken limbs and head- injuries.
The question wether police could have prevented the worst is now widely discussed. Also in question is the fact that riots in the Schanzenviertel could spread for hours without any police present on Friday night. Also no police was on the scene when a group of hundred marched through the City of Altona burning cars and smashing shops on Friday morning. People of Hamburg are asking why 23.000 police were not able to prevent what was happening and why the police was conducting violence on peaceful protesters too.
The Hamburg Senate coalition of Social-Democrats and Green Party, so far, see no evidence of a failed police- tactic nor any evidence of police violence. It will be to the civil rights movements to investigate.
The promised “Festival of Democracy” and the safety of the citizens of Hamburg was a joke. The police failed to prevent mass riots and failed to handle the situation in many cases. The costs of all this is not just a money issue, but also an issue of basic democratic rights, that have been suspended for the safety of 20 world leaders.
Around 100.000 peaceful protesters on more than 80 events, were basically not represented in the public view. Instead police and media reports, in most cases, only focused on the riots.
Remembering the remarkable buildup of sea ice at this tiny fishing village in western P.E.I. early in 2025.
Base buildup & plinth block for the Classical Craftsman Molding Style.
base
sku# WOBM003
dimensions: 3/4" x 7-1/4"
base shoe
sku# WOBS001
dimensions: 1/2" x 3/4"
plinth block
sku# WOPB001
dimensions: 1-3/8" x 8"
One of four styles in the WindsorONE Classic American Molding Collection.
Historical Background: 1900-1930
The Classical Craftsman Style is inspired by the Arts and Crafts, Bungalow and Prairie movements. These movements rejected Victorian era excesses and embraced the desire to emphasize “man-made” over “machine-made” materials.
More info on Classical Craftsman Moldings at: www.windsorone.com/moldings_Classical_Craftsman.php
The ice buildup at the base of the Canadian/Horseshoe Falls at Niagara Falls has been so heavy that the mounds rise well about 30 meters/100 feet above the base of the falls. This represents more than 1/2 of the 50 metre/165 foot height of the falls and in places peaks even slightly above that level. In this image the night illumination focuses on the side of the falls nearest Goat Island (immediately on the left of the falls and in New York State) and projects deeply coloured, tightly focused beams. As an unintended consequence, a shadow about 1/3 in from the right and 1/3 up can be seen. This is the shadow of one of the pathway lamps the Niagara Parks Commission has placed along the Canadian side. Sadly, to see this you have to put up with very cold weather. - JW
Date Taken: 2014-03-06
Tech Details:
Taken using a tripod-mounted Nikon D7100 fitted with a Nikkor 18-105mm VR lense set to 52mm lense, ISO160, Aperture priority mode, f/9.0, 4 sec with an EV-1.67 exposure bias. PP in free Open Source GIMP: load the image twice as layers, label the top layer light and the bottom layer dark, use the tone curve tool to adjust the top/light layer so the water and the highlighted ice formation areas look good disregarding the impact on the dark areas, use the tone curve tool o the bottom/dark area to bring out a bit of the detail in the darkest areas disregarding the impact on the falls and brightly lighted areas, use a very large soft-edged eraser tool to delete the dark areas al around the brightly lighted areas of the top/light layer to reveal the dark areas with detail from the lower/dark layer, create new working layer from visible result, very slight overall contrast boost, sharpen, add fine black and white frame, add bar and text on left, scale to 1800 wide for posting.
Note: I went this way because HDR processing resulted in vastly exaggerated colours and also introduce severe artifacting in the darkest areas that were brightened in the process. The approach above minimized both issues. Also, the exposure used was selected to render the colours well, not like how you see them in real life. In real life, the lights are so bright your dark-adapted yes are unable to handle the extreme brightness range and the camera sensor is even less equipped to handle the range.
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