Army Tradition: A Blister Is Born

In the last 48 hours, I have had about 5 hours of sleep. So if this post is incoherent or turns out to be a plethora of typos, then bear with me. I will edit and correct it later. I wanted to get some pictures up before I crash for the evening. (Since the entire 2-9 football team is coming over for dinner tomorrow, I need to start crashing soon.)

Last night, 2-9 held their Manchu Mile. The Manchu Mile is an overnight 25 mile tactical march, with full gear and weapon. This march commemorates the 85 mile march the 9th regiment completed in early July 1900, from Taku Bar to Tientsin for their assault on Tientsin on July 13, 1900.

I had the honor of chasing them around and taking pictures at the scheduled rest stops and at the conclusion of the march. Here are a few of the pictures:

The Chaplain prays before the march begins.

The LTC and CSM show off their blisters at mile 20.


All smiles (but off his feet) at the conclusion.


The Chaplain receives his certificate and belt buckle.

The following is a picture of the Liscum Bowl, which has been with 9th Infantry since its completion in 1903. This trophy has only recently returned to Korea after an extensive restoration in the states, and it is much more beautiful than what my 4 AM photography skills can capture. (The bold words are a link to more information about the Liscum Bowl.)

This afternoon, you could pick out the soldiers who marched last night by a very distinctive 1/2 limp and 1/2 hop gait. Whenever the chaplain would see any of them, he would hop/limp himself on over to them and congratulate them.

Manchu Feet!!