I missed that period--was done and gone mid-1975. Was back once, with a Boy Scout troop. We took a winter camp up there (you can do it, making arrangements in advance)--and picked a weekend when the BlackHawks were exercising. The kids were awestruck.
Also happened to be an infantry/gunnery company on base, so we took the kids out to the range and they watched .50Cal machine gun barrels turn cherry-red.
Soldiers Recovering from Lightning Strike
Location: Fort McCoy
Jun 14, 2004
All the soldiers struck by lightning at Fort McCoy this weekend are out of the hospital. The soldiers were on the training field early Sunday morning when storms rolled through. Seventeen soldiers were taking shelter inside a tent. That's when the lightning hit the ground nearby. Officials say some soldiers were on metal chairs and cots. The soldiers are now back at Fort McCoy and most are on 24-hour bed rest. None of the soldiers are from Wisconsin. They're members of a reserve unit from Texas, Illinois, and Indiana.