by Derek Farwell
Columnist

When I was deployed we were assigned to and stationed on what’s called a Forward Operating Base (FOB). There were FOB’s all throughout Iraq in most large cities where coalition forces were stationed. They were of course guarded by large walls, sand berms, guard towers with snipers and machine guns, and heavily guarded gates. But within the FOB’s most were like a small functioning city. There were tents or train car like buildings as living quarters, there were chow halls, fitness centers, recreation buildings with TV’s, computers, video games, phones, pool tables, and various other forms of entertainment. There was a laundry service and other necessities of living alongside all of the military functions on the base. It wasn’t the same as being home, but by the time I was there the military had really tried to make the FOB’s as comfortable as possible. The only problem with this is that I spent most of my time outside the limits of the FOB and conducting operations in the cities.

When we were fortunate enough to spend a couple nights on the FOB I usually stuck to a pretty consistent routine. I was usually a bit of a night owl when we were not on missions as I’m not a big fan of being in the heat. During the days I would usually try to sleep, read, watch movies, or clean my weapons. Basically I would try to expend as little energy as possible. The only times I would really go out in the heat is when I had some tasks to do such as drop my laundry off or go to get some food.

Night time on the FOB was my favorite time. Despite the fact that most of our missions were extremely physically taxing, but on my free time I still enjoyed to work out. I had always been very physically active, and going for a run was always just a way to relax and get outside. I ran the same route every time. I’d run down the road outside of our tent and go past the bone yard, which is where all of the vehicles and equipment that were destroyed in combat. Every time I ran past the bone yard I could see my vehicle that was destroyed by an IED as well. Then I’d run through the sketchy part of the base. The road that ran along the back side of the FOB that wasn’t lit up due to the possibility of sniper fire from the tree line in the distance. I always turned off my light and ran a little faster through this part, but I liked it because there were no lights and the sky was really beautiful at night.

Being on the FOB was always nice, but it was a bit of a false sense of security. There was always the possibility of being attacked, whether it be mortar and rocket fire, suicide car bomb, or some dude randomly shooting a gun at the base. All over the FOB’s there were large concrete barriers that provided shelter from explosions on three sides. There were many times where daily or nightly activities were interrupted by a chaotic sprint to the concrete barriers.

I’ve written a lot about some of the more unique experiences that I had in the military and on various missions, and there aren’t many things I miss about that time. But the nights that I actually got to spend on the FOB were very nice, and one of my better memories of Iraq. It’s where I got to hang out with my best friends and relax as much as one is able to in a combat zone.

drfarwell@hotmail.com