My favorite Basic training story. We had an E1 named Gook Joe. Little Vietnamese guy. Not only did we harangue the guy over his name "Gook", but he was a complete idiot. Bad English, bad hygiene, bad attitude. He HATED our big black drill sgt. Drill SGT who was a bad ass 2nd ACR vet, Ranger, Panama/Grenada/1st Gulf War vet, etc etc. .
Anyways, the contentious relationship culminated on the M72a2 Law Range. Good was trying to fire the little training rocket and his squeaky little voice couldn't say "Back Blast Area " ...it was "Black Bastard! Black Bastard!". Of course we knew Gook was trying to say Back Blast Area, but the world of hurt that DS Walker brought down was hilarious to watch. Those two got into it all the time. Every time I see an AT4, etc being prepped...I think to myself "BLACK BASTARD!" and laugh my ass off.
Oh god that’s to funny!
Something like that happened to me as well, loudly announcing “BLACK BLAST AREA CLEAR” as a black drill sgt walked the line behind me. He just laughed and shook his head at the dumb recruit.
Most of our drill sgts’ energy was taken up with a guy named Bailey, poor guy was just a Sad Sack who couldn’t do anything except serve as a bad example, always late, rumpled, unshaven, dirty and out of step.
We’d be learning a weapon, step-by-step disassembly, don’t do anything until told and “SPROING!”, a spring would shoot across the class room and three drills would be chewing Bailey’s butt like dingoes eating something alive, lol. He really caught hell for cranking the turret of a tank so that the tube smashed against a roof pillar inside a shop bay!
Something tells me that Gook Joe knew EXACTLY what he was saying.