Friendly battles at Okinawa Airsoft Park

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Friendly battles at Okinawa Airsoft Park

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MARINES COMPLETE MOBILITY TRAINING

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VOLUME 13 NO. 36 AUGUST 29 − SEPTEMBER 4, 2019 FREESTRIPESOKINAWA.COM SUBMIT STORIES TO: [email protected] FACEBOOK.COM/STRIPESPACIFIC

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different.Johnson related his experi-

ence to something he had heard from Sgt. Maj. Bradley Kasal, a

Marine who received the Navy Cross for his actions during a firefight in Fallujah, Iraq.

“Sgt. Maj. Kasal has this

speech and he asks, ‘How many ceremonies have you seen of somebody getting a good con-duct medal?’” Johnson said. “Zero! Nobody! Nobody gets one. But that takes three years to get. But Kasal says it was three hours of his life for him to get his award.”

Johnson said the hard work that is done every day is no less important than what is done in those moments people tell stories about. He added that it’s the little things that mat-ter most, because it’s the little things that make those special moments possible.

This is a principle that has been with Johnson since his childhood, he said.

Johnson is from Johnson City, Tennessee, where he says that growing up was very simple. Discussing his favorite childhood memories, Johnson spoke about the trees, the wild-life and the pleasures of small town life instead of any extrav-agant events.

“My family owns a farm,” he said. “A small one. It’s just my grandparents. Got a few cows, but it’s mostly just stuff you eat. We grow corn, but we don’t sell a lot.”

Johnson said his family has a history of military service and that it was his turn to serve.

“On my dad’s side it kind of alternates

CAMP KINSER – “It was my-self and doggone six other motivated devils just hauling ass everywhere trying to get ammo back into the mags,” said Cpl. Patrick Johnson with a thick southern twang. “We had a purpose.”

Johnson, now an ammuni-tion clerk with G-4, Combat Logistics Regiment 37, 3rd Marine Logistics Group, was previously an ammunition technician in Camp Pendleton, California. The camp Pendle-ton experiences several wild fires every year, Johnson ex-plained.

One summer, the fire reached a hill just before the ammunition supply point, he said.

At the time, Johnson was certified to operate heavy equipment. He also had a fork-lift license and an explosives handling certificate, so the responsibility fell to him and some of his fellow Marines to move the ammunition into earth-covered magazines and out of the path of the blaze.

Johnson said that this day spent battling against the fire was his favorite memory in the Marine Corps so far, but look-ing back, Johnson was careful to clarify that that day was no better than any other day – just

CAMP KINSER,3RD MARINE LOGISTICS GROUP

The parts that make the wholeHow one Marine appreciates the logistics in life and the Corps

Photo by Lance Cpl. Carla E. O, U.S. Marine Corps

– Cpl. Patrick Johnson

“I love ammo. It’s unique because it’s small, but it does a lot of work in terms of moving parts. Everybody needs ammo and you can’t find wild 5.56 [mm ammunition].”

STRIPES OKINAWA 3AUGUST 29 − SEPTEMBER 4, 2019 A STARS AND STRIPES COMMUNITY PUBLICATION

between going to prison and serving,” he said, “So, my dad was in pris-

on, my grandfather was a sol-dier and then his father was a convict.”

Johnson removed his wire-rimmed glasses and rubbed his reddening blue eyes while talking about his family.

“I hope they’re proud,” he said with a shaking voice. “I hope so. I know my mom is.”

However, when Johnson chose to enlist after high school, it wasn’t just to avoid an alternate fate. Johnson said he had always wanted to be a Marine and joined to serve his country.

“My precious constitu-tion!” he exclaimed. “It seems like everyone only re-ally wants to follow it when it’s convenient for them and I am not a big fan of that, so I thought, ‘Hey! Might as well go to the place that will pro-tect it and preserve it.’”

Johnson enlisted on an in-fantry contract, but scored a low combat fitness score, which resulted in him re-classing to become an ammu-nition technician.

Johnson said he doesn’t think he will change back to infantry, though.

“Maybe if a war popped off and they needed the extra bodies, I’d love to,” Johnson said with a smile and eyes wide in imagination of such a possibility.

Johnson said that, in the meantime, he loves his job.

“I love ammo,” he said. “It’s unique because it’s small, but it does a lot of work in terms of moving parts,”

said Johnson. “Everybody needs ammo and you can’t find wild 5.56 [mm ammuni-tion]”.

By Johnson’s assessment, being part of the logistics combat element of the Ma-rine Corps means being part of what makes the Marine Corps the world’s finest fight-ing force.

“There are 20 percent that get to hook, jab and stab like everyone wants to,” he said. “But without the 80 percent that support them, that 20 percent ain’t gonna be as ef-ficient.”

Johnson said it would be a lie to say he doesn’t some-times wish that he were a part of that 20 percent, though – especially when he first en-tered the job field.

“I didn’t really appreciate it until I looked at the big pic-ture,” he said of working in logistics.

Again, Johnson found con-text in the words of a Marine he looks up to: the 27th Com-mandant of the Marine Corps, General Robert H. Barrow.

“Back in 1980, the Com-mandant of the Marine Corps was quoted saying ‘Amateurs talk tactics, but profession-als study logistics,’” Johnson said. “Because logistics wins wars.”

Logistics is one of the little things, he said.

Johnson said of being part of 3rd Marine Logistics Group, “It feels nice being a cog in this clockwork that is very keen on doing its job greatly.”

OKINAWA – U.S. Marines with 3rd Marine Division demon-strated the mobility and lethal-ity of the M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System during a simulated amphibious raid, Aug. 14, 2019.

The training provides an op-portunity for the U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Navy to enhance

their interoperability and de-velop new methods of integrat-ing Marine assets into the naval expeditionary force. During the operation, a HIMARS platoon from 12th Marine Regiment successfully loaded personnel and equipment onto a U.S. Navy landing craft where it was then transferred to another location and offloaded on shore for fol-low-on missions.

This capability makes HI-MARS a more lethal and ex-tensive asset. “This exercise helps showcase our unit’s mo-bility and the mobility of the HIMARS in the Indo-Pacific,” said U.S. Marine Cpl. Pablo Vil-legas, a HIMARS operator who participated in the training. He went on to say that HIMARS are typically driven over land or inserted into an area of op-erations via aircraft.

This operation is the first of many opportunities 3rd Marine Division will have to incorpo-rate HIMARS with naval as-sets. “We brought the launcher out here because it allows us to integrate with other agen-cies in the Navy and Marine Corps,” said 1st Lt. Emil Bruch, the platoon commander. “We’ve never integrated with the 31st [Marine Expeditionary Unit] and this is a way to further en-hance our relationship going forward.”

Having HIMARS in the In-do-Pacific allows U.S. forces to shape the battle space, whether in the air, land or sea. The ex-tended range and high accura-cy of the system make it essen-tial for expeditionary advanced base operations.

BY 1ST LT. CHRISTINA METZLER,3RD MARINE DIVISION

‘High Mobility’ training

A landing craft, utility assigned to the amphibious transport dock ship USS Green Bay, lowers its ramp to unload a High Mobility Artillery Rocket System from 3rd Battalion, 12th Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division. Photo by Lance Cpl. Joshua Sechser, U.S. Marine Corps


As a siren blared, the team took the offensive. Guns a blazing, they charged from the safety of a wooden bar-ricade and directly into the line of enemy fire.

“Pow, pow, pow …” It was a chaotic scene as shots rang out across the warzone. Taking cover behind a broken-down car and piles of tires, they assessed the situation. They were outflanked, outnumbered, but undeterred.

The leader motioned to one of his soldiers to advance on the tower where two sharpshooters showered the group with ammo fire. Ducking, dodging and firing back with the skill and determination of Rambo, the soldier closed in on the tower.

As he turned to motion to his team to follow, a single shot rang out.

“I’m hit!” he yelled. And with that, he raised his hand and with a mixture of smile and disgust on his face, walked off the “battlefield” as he wished good luck to the other “warriors.”

This is a common scene at Okinawa Airsoft Park, where the weapon of choice is an airsoft gun. Here, many join in on the recreational sport of airsoft, spending their time shooting at

STORY AND PHOTOS BY SHOJI KUDAKA, STARS AND STRIPES OKINAWA

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their friends in friendly battles, traversing obstacles and guarding themselves from getting “shot.”

Although it looks similar to paintball, airsoft doesn’t use paint pellets. Instead, the guns are loaded with BBs made from either biodegradable or non-biodegradable plastics (OAP uses biodegradable BBs). Since getting hit will not leave a paint mark, the rules of the game are slightly different and may take some getting used to. And, quite frankly, honesty is the best policy.

“Once you get shot, you say ‘hit’ and leave the scene,” said Tatsuya Shingaki, president of the Okinawa Airsoft Group.

“If you dare, you can pretend like you were not hit, but the game will not stand unless you voluntarily admit that in a fair manner,” he said, stressing that the game is more about having fun than winning.

At OAP, games take place one after another in short inter-vals. One game takes about 10 minutes. Participants split into a red team and a yellow team, then compete under various scenarios. In one case, one team plays offense while the oth-er plays defense. They switch roles and positions in the next game.

Other scenarios are based movies such as “Black Hawk Down,” “White House Down,” and “American Sniper.”

The park also regularly offers night sessions. In case of rain, the games continue unless the weather becomes dangerous.

Shingaki stressed that safety is the top priority of the OAP staff. Proper eye-protection must be worn at all times on the

field and beginners go through a 15- to 20-minute crash course on how to handle an airsoft gun and navigate the park.

The recreational sport draws many people to OAP, from elementary students to U.S. service-members and members of the Japan Self-Defense Force.

“It’s a great way to build comradery between the United States Forces and JSDF, or Japanese nationals and myself,” said Brock Davis, who described himself as a regular at OAP.

Marine Taylor Harp, agreed.“For us, we’ve come out here as a shop. We are enjoying this

comradery-type of thing,” Harp said. “You got other people coming in from different branches. It’s like a tactical kind of training in a sense as well.”

Shingaki sees airsoft as a great way to make friends and enjoy an afternoon of playing.

“The game can also expose your character and quickly break the ice,” Shingaki said. “Strangers become friends once they complete a mission, hugging and high-fiving each other.”

Okinawa Airsoft Park offers rental gear and several admis-sion options. Shingaki said some of the regulars help with Eng-lish instruction if first-timers don’t speak Japanese.

OAP is about a 10-minute drive away from Camp Foster’s Legion Gate and welcomes shooters of all [email protected]

GPS COORDINATES: N 26.268268, E 127.780043HOURS: 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. (Mon-Fri. Reservation required for games

after 6 p.m.); 10 a.m. – 11 p.m. (Sat); 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. (Sun)ADMISSION FEES: 3,000 yen (about $28) for ages 18 & over; 2,500

yen for ages 17 and under *For beginners, a 4,000 yen-plan is available, which includes an

admission fee, rental fees for an airsoft gun and a costume*Join Okinawa Air Soft Group Community on facebook, and

get 500-yen discounts. (https://www.facebook.com/groups/OAG2010/?source_id=500739419990608)

*First-time customers are requested to take a 15 to 20-minute crash course before joining the game.

*Ages 17 and under need to be accompanied by their guardians or submit a consent form

FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/oag.okinawa/ (Okinawa Air Soft Group)

WEBSITE: https://www.oag2010.com/home/o-a-p/

Okinawa Airsoft Park

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way to have fun, make new friendsMPETITIONLY


S tepping into Cafe Orleans feels like being transport-ed from Okinawa straight

to the Big Easy.Jazz hums from the speakers,

vibrant colors cover the walls and the aroma of spicy cuisine wafts from the kitchen of this eatery near Camp Foster.

New Orleans has a distinctive

creole mustard dipping sauce (600 yen, or about $5.40 $5.67), jambalaya (700 yen) and cornbread (150 yen), which I couldn’t pass up.

My mouth watering, I set-tled in with a soda and await-ed my meal.

Luckily, there was plenty of New Orleans parapherna-lia to keep me distracted. I loved that the owner included fleur-de-lis in the decoration choice. It’s an insignia that those who’ve visited the city might never forget.

The boudin balls — made of sausage, rice, pork, liver, onions, green peppers and seasonings all rolled together, then breaded and fried — ar-rived first. The outer shell was crisp, yet the filling melted in my mouth. The combination was divine; the creole mus-tard sauce took the bite-sized delicacies to another level.

Jambalaya is among the Big Easy’s most traditional dishes — one that I lived on while vis-iting the city. It was my go-to

hangover cure. Cafe Orleans’ version features chicken and sausage, shrimp, veggies, rice and a perfect mixture of spices. Served in a small cast-iron pot, this dish was just as I remem-ber from my travels to the city.

The cornbread was just sweet enough to offset the spice of the jambalaya.

I considered topping off the meal with a beignet, New Or-leans’ famous deep-fried pas-try. A couple sitting next me ordered one, and it looked so delicious that I found myself drooling despite the screams of my full belly. I declined this time, but it’s guaranteed I will return for that deliciousness an-other time.

Okinawa is well known for its amazing food, and Cafe Or-leans is on par with that rating. No stone was left unturned in the conception of this restau-rant: the food, atmosphere and friendly staff will definitely have me going back for [email protected]

are all featured.If something simple is what

you crave, Po’boys and muf-fulettas are also offered. The selection is huge — so large, in fact, that not eating myself into a food coma became my main concern.

I chose boudin balls with

cuisine that comes from the city’s historic melting pot of cul-tures, and Cafe Orleans has left no traditional dish untouched. The owner was born and raised in the city, which explains the amount of detail not only in the food but also the restaurant’s vibe.

The menu offers a tour of the city’s districts via the food it serves. Garden District, Ca-nal Street, 9th Ward, Off Canal Street and Lagniappe cuisines

STORY AND PHOTOS BY JESSICA BIDWELL,

STARS AND STRIPES

Mouth-watering N’Awlins cuisine

near Camp FosterCafe OrleansLOCATION: 2-33-16, Ginowan, Okinawa, Okinawa 901-2202. A short

walk from Camp Foster’s Legion Gate.HOURS: Open 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. (Tue –

Sun)PRICES: Most dishes range from 400 yen to 3,000 yen (about $3.60 → 3.78 to $26.80 → 28.33).

TEL: 098-892-8677 FACEBOOK PAGE: https://www.facebook.com/cafeorleansokinawa/

EXCLUSIVE NEWS FROM:

Stripes Okinawa is A Stars and Stripes Community Publication. This newspaper is authorized for publication by the Department of Defense for members of the military services overseas. However, the contents of Stripes Okinawa are unofficial, and are not to be considered as the official views of, or endorsed by, the U.S. government, including the Department of Defense or the U.S. Pacific Command. As a DOD newspaper, Stripes Okinawa may be distributed through official channels and use appropriated funds for distribution to remote and isolated locations where overseas DOD personnel are located. The appearance of advertising in this publication, including inserts or supplements, does not constitute endorsement of those products by the Department of Defense or Stars and Stripes. Products or services advertised in this publication shall be made available for purchase, use, or patronage without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, marital status, physical handicap, political affiliation, or any other nonmerit factor of the purchaser, user, or patron.


DID YOUKNOW?

Language Lesson

Kanji of the week

Stripes Sports Trivia

Answer

A 3-hour drive from MCAS Iwakuni, Zentsuji City is where Internet-famous cubed and heart-shaped

melons are grown. Here, farmers enclose the melons in a cube or heart-shaped transparent case. Since they are harvested before they are ripe, the taste is not very good, but they keep for a long time and are popular for displays. Each cubic watermelon usually costs about 10,000 yen ($100) and up.

SAY MY NAME! Despite producing some of the game’s greatest pitching numbers, I played for six teams during my 20-plus years in the Big League. Those teams include one that I only pitched 11 games for, one that I won a world series with in 2001, and one that has since moved and changed its name. Who am I?

Randy Johnson

kawa or ka (river/stream)

Sorry to have you kept waiting.

Omatase shimashita.

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instrument 4 Hot spot 45 Go over again 57 Cornfield 48 Grand ____ 5 Old-time 47 James or John concern50 Post and Times, expletive 49 ___-been 59 Paquin of "The

e.g. 6 Twirler's stick 50 Crown of the Piano"51 Friday dress, 7 Rile up head 60 It holds the line

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symbol 12 Rigatoni relative61 Picnic spoiler 13 Vile smile62 Common flooring 18 Not up yet

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34 "Tea with Mus-DOWN solini" actress

1 Medical fluids 35 Towel word

The Weekly Crossword by Margie E. Burke

Copyright 2019 by The Puzzle Syndicate

Answers to Last Week’s Crossword:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

14 15 16

17 18 19

20 21 22

23 24 25

26 27 28 29

30 31 32 33 34 35

36 37 38 39 40 41

42 43 44 45 46 47

48 49 50

51 52 53 54 55

56 57 58 59 60

61 62 63

64 65 66

67 68 69

L I S P M I S E R S T E PA C A I A N T S Y L I V EC O M P E N S A T E I D E AK N E E L E R R S M A R T

S L U R O R I E LI R E I N T E G E R W A YR E L I S H L E V I T A T EA B E L O P I N E A V O NT U C K E R E D R O D E N TE S T A S C E T I C S E A

O N S E T R E E FS P R A Y O V A A A R G HT O A D B R I G A N T I N EA N T I O A S I S A F A RB E E R B L A C K L E W D

Answers to Last Week’s Sudoku:


Zip on inFOREST ADVENTURE ONNAOpen since 2008, Forest Adventure offers eight zip lines on its course, with the longest one run-ning 426.5 feet with a high point of 98 feet above the ground. There are also 33 obstacle courses to challenge you in this natural forest setting. It takes approximately 1.5 to 2 hours to

TEL: 090-4739-9140 (Reservations are needed!)

ADDRESS: 1525 Maeda, Onna village, Kunigami, Okinawa 904-0417

GPS Coordinates: N 26.434074, E 127.760546

WEBSITE: www.fa-onna.foret-aventure.jp/HOURS: Open daily from 8 a.m. – 3 p.m. ADMISSION FEE: 3,800 yen ($35.89) Group rate: 3,500 yen ($33.05)HOW TO GET THERE: Take Highway 58

toward to Maeda Point. Take Highway 6 for roughly a half mile and watch for the Forest

TARZANIATarzania in Chiba has a 445m (1460 ft) – long zip line in their course, which is the longest zip line in Kanto plain. Adventure course (3,800 yen) takes about 2 hours with 6 zip lines. It is located in Seimei no Mori Resort which has tennis court, pool and restaurant facilities. It is located about 90 mins drive from Tokyo.

TEL: 0475-35-0071 (Reservations are needed!)

ADDRESS: District, Chiba 297-0202

GPS Coordinates: N 35.476537, E 140.248421

HOURS: 10 a.m. – sunset; 9 a.m. – sunset (Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays); 8:30 a.m. – sunset (Summer season)

WEBSITE: https://tarzania.jp/HOW TO GET THERE: It is located in Seimei

no Mori Resort which has tennis court, pool and restaurant facilities. It is a 90-minute drive from Tokyo.

O n Okinawa, you can hook up to a zip line at For-est Adventure Onna,

located near the famous diving spot of Maeda Point. Open since 2008, Forest Adventure offers eight zip lines on its course, with the longest one running 394 feet with a high point of 98 feet above the ground, according to man-ager Bobby Parker. There are 33 obstacle courses in total to chal-lenge you in this natural forest setting. It takes approximately 2 to 2.5 hours to finish the whole course, Parker said.

Parker said, “Besides zip line, our main attraction is a Tarzan Swing, which is a free fall that you have to jump off.”

The place is ideal for families, but because of safety issues, Parker said children must be at least 55 inches tall (140 cm). Zip liners can also not weigh more

than 287 pounds or be pregnant, he said.

“When kids come out here, they have a blast,” Parker said, adding that there are 16 Forest Adventure facilities through-out Japan. “They really have a good time. Some people may be scared a little, but once we get them to trust the harness” they are on their way to a wonderful adventure.

The park’s staff provides safety instructions in English and Japanese, but visitors navi-gate the courses on their own. Parker said traversing all the wires, bridges and trees, climb-ing rope ladders and crawling in the scramble net keeps everyone on the move.

If you ever have a chance to visit the Kanto area in the main-land, you should check out the longest zip line (1,460-feet long) in Kanto plain at Tarzania.

“The speed you get during zip lining in Tarzania is about 18.6 miles an hour,” said Tarzania manager Kaoru Furukawa. “In Japan, it is difficult to regulate something like a zip lining, but we maintain a safe course where you can enjoy the thrill of zip line. Come enjoy the slide.”

STRIPES OKINAWA

USEFUL LINK:World Wide Zip Line: www.worldwidezipline.comto know the expert zip line companies around the world.

ZIPPING ALONGON OKINAWA

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Friendly battles at Okinawa Airsoft Park

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