Call me ‘Rambo’

It’s always exciting when any player from the Green Bay Packers makes the three-plus hour drive to spend some time in the La Crosse area.  Such was the case on Wednesday when the team’s ‘Tailgate Tour’ made a couple of local stops.  If you missed my report as I followed the team around that day, click here.

Normally when a reporter is on a story you kind of just have to be a silent observer.  We just make note of all that is going on and then try to get interviews from appropriate sources.

While at our stop at Fort McCoy, I was lucky enough to take part of activities that the Packers players got to go through.  That included getting to fire an M-249 SAW rifle. 

Of course the bullets were blank because I don’t think they would of wanted me handling that weapon (the only other gun I shot off in my lifetime is a BB gun back when I was a kid).  But what an experience handling the same piece of equipment many of our brave troops overseas use on a regular basis.  We also got to watch an extremely intense exercise from the 447th Military Police performing urban warfare training, clearing out a mock Iraqi village.

A big thank you for everybody who hosted us at Fort McCoy.  Linebacker Brady Poppinga, safety Nick Collins and Packers President and CEO Mark Murphy agreed that this was the most memorable stop the team made in their 4 days touring the entire state.  I know it will be an experience I’ll remember for quite some time.