From: Paintball Plus (pball@csionline.net)
Date: Sun May 11 2003 - 08:13:06 PDT
I am actually having difficulty putting in to words just how great the
past few days have been for me. It would take two pages just to list the
names of all those who made this voyage a trip to remember so, thank you
all!
Last minute calls and preparations were handled by both Mike Popovitch
(Column Commander) and Cabell Garbee (Yellow Serial Commander), who were
both so instrumental that without them the 2003 East Coast Convoy
probably would not have been a reality. The other Serial Commanders and
Communications Commander also insured that those who participated
remained informed. Our Convoy Commander, Jude Meehan insured that
everyone would have a safe event.
Every participant, and I want to be emphatic about this - EVERYONE who
participated in any way, shape or form enabled the 2003 East Coast
Convoy to be the spectacular event that it was. Many of you traveled
many miles to be a participant in the convoy, at you own expense, for a
few hours of enjoyment that I am certain will remain a memory for a
lifetime. Can you believe that the Canadian contingent of the Blue
Serial, who already drove a thousand miles down from Canada because they
had to be in Churchville the day before the convoy, actually drove back
up north to meet with the other members of the Blue and Red Serials?
That is dedication well above and beyond the call of duty! How do you
even say thanks for something like that? Of course, Paul Baillargeon,
who drove down from Rhode Island with his M915, M114 & his trailered
M1037. What an impressive rig this was! Some newly placed barricades in
the Aberdeen parking lot kept Paul's rig out of the staging area, and
the mud kept him out of the display area, but it nothing kept him from
being a very big part of the convoy. And, Joe Trapp, who put every
effort into getting his Deuce together and drove all the way up from
South Carolina to be with us.
All along the route, as more and more participants joined up with the
convoy it became quite impressive. Seeing the convoy in tight formation
behind me, only being able to tell where the end was by the flashing
convoy warning lights was truly a sight to behold. Having the civilians
honking, and even the State Police waving gave me the feeling that all
the work and effort that we had done was truly worth it for everyone. As
the Blue and Red Serial Units pulled into the parking lot at Aberdeen,
seeing the Yellow serial sitting in formation was absolutely thrilling.
Of course, there would have been no need for the convoy were it not for
the Churchville Rally. Tony Norton and crew, we all owe you so very
much. You gave the convoy purpose, were great hosts and, as always put
together a great event. The weather may have kept some of us from doing
all the "shopping" that we planned on, but none the less, everything was
there and available for those who trekked through the mud and rain. In
fact, the consensus of opinion seems to be that the weather added to the
Churchville mystique of rain, sun and fun! If it were not for the rain
and mud, all the fun of pulling out the stuck vehicles would not have
been possible. I can't wait to get the photos together for the web page.
I will post a notice as soon as everything is up. On that note, if you
have any photos of the convoy or rally, please send them to me so that I
can set them up for everyone to see why we did this. If you have
standard photos, I will gladly pay for you to make copies.
You can e-mail me and I will send you my mailing address.
The best news is - the 2004 East Coast Convoy is already being planned
and will be even bigger!
My sincere thanks to all,
Bruce
-- Bruce Kalin (Convoy Coordinator) The Largest Historic Military Vehicle Convoy in US History http://www.trackpads.com/webs/bkalin/convoy.html bkalin@trackpads.com
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