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Looks like the "pictures" link, might runaway/hide an actual AAR thread, so to prevent confusion and keep them separate see the link below for pics.
First, thank you Dan, Jason, Brad, and so many I have forgotten who put the work into this. The 4 IV/Taters who made the trip from Missouri discussed and relived the event all the way home.
The Pro's:
* Site. By now you have probably seen some of the pics from this or previous events here. They do not do the site justice. Described to us as an 800 acre hobby farm with hills/knolls, woodland, riding trails and streams, it is an incredible site. We arrived on site Friday morning, perched part way up a small hill under a shade tree, and just enjoyed the scenery and breeze.
* Pics. Not a fan of cameras at events, but like a train wreck, I'm the first to clickin on a post event link to see them. I will say I never ever saw a camera at this event until it was over, and many thanks for being so descrete.
* Horse Meat. We were not issued rations friday and saturday morning the cav came by with a bloody cloth bag. Apparently, the army had just bought a horse from a civilian he had to put down. We were hungry, the meat was tough. It took 30 minutes to fully chew 6" x 4" piece, and jaws were sore before the end. Still, a nice touch, and a period experience I have never had.
* Sutler Wagon. Saturday, while moving to the Gap, we came across a broken down sutler wagon. No sign of the driver/owner, no sign of the horses. There were many food stuffs and wares on board. One member of Co. A was arrested for partaking in violation of Lee's orders. Finally, the wagon was declared abandoned, and items were shared or blindly distributed.
* Sutler Store. Ezra Barnhouse, (Beth Crabb and daughter Skye?), had a permanent cabin established just up overlooking the cross section of the gap. Many fine wares were available via period script sold in the parking lot. The meat pie was incredible, (amazing how good everything was tasting after the horse!) While many of us were in there, one asked for something which Beth apologized and stated she was to have more on hand, but the man supposed to deliver items to her was supposed to have been there a week prior and never showed. I was reluctant to break her the news, but mentioned we earlier that day had stumbled upon what appeared to have been a sutler wagon probably ransacked by Federal cavalry. I explained, there was no sign of the driver or team, and further apologized, we did partake of the leftover spoils.
* Artillery Crew. A great deal of time, effort and more sweat was spent by the artillery crew and at many times the infantry assisting to push, steer and mobilize the gun and caisson. This even included up incredible hills in the woods. My hat's off to them and those who shouldered the burden which was way beyond anything I had seen at an event except maybe a bgr or piney.
* First Person. All were required to choose a first person name and occupation from the original roster. I was reluctant, but I was wrong. It took a few minutes in the parking lot to get everyone's names down, but this event had the best, most consistent first person of any event I have yet attended. Nothing was forced, and the lack of modern speech did so much to the experience.
* "The Scrap at the Gap." The area the 12th VA was to hold a beautiful pass with towering hardwoods within and up on the high ridges. This was a position which the terrain much favored the holder. The Federals were lured into the gap, which appeared suicide on their behalf. Prior to walking into the heart of the crossfire, they were fired upon from several stories above by sharpshooters as the Federals were occupied by CS skirmishers. Once they entered the thick valley, concealed fire poured from all sides, and the 12 lb howitzer made its presence known from up the center of the valley. The yanks took casualties but pushed up the Gap toward to howitzer. I was stationed on one of the sides just in front of the Barnhouse store. When some Federals pushed laterally to our position and I lost site of the frontal push of the Federals up and passed us, I became very concerned of being cut-off, and abandon my position, and rallied up on the road in front of the store. I then saw the Federal push toward the gun, and instinct took over.... The only way out was back up the Gap to the high ground, and I went into a sprint. The Federals were withing a few yards of the gun, and I saw the only way to survive was jackrabbit behind the gun as it was being spiked, between the limber and crew, and then bounding through the thick underbrush, rippping and tearing through vines before breaking free and running up hill. It was one of many period rushes of the weekend, and the survival rush, was unique.
* Fate Cards. Fate cards have proponents and critics. This was actually the first time I had the chance to experience them at an event. My first person persona, was and I drew, a survivor card. This influenced my 'get the heck out of here' feeling as our fortunes at the scrap went south. It was further a very emotional period experience due to the consistent first person and knowing everyone's name in the company. The rue awakening was when I ran back up the gap, I caught up with Brad our Lt, and 3 men from Co. A. I was the only one from Co. C, including the five in our ambush group which had been out in front of the store, to make it out on the retreat. It was sobering, and I actually felt guilt, anger, helplessness and despondance. Not sure if it was a combination of the comedown of the adrenaline rush, fatigue, the despairing emotions and/or the inability to see back down into the valley and the welfare of your friends. This went on for several minutes, and the morale boost I felt when one of ours made his way back after fleeing up a ridge, was short-lived. Still, I shortly returned to the 'bummed' feelings, even after Maybin (Dave West) and our 2nd sgt found their way out. This would be the sobering reality for the evening......62% of our company was dead, captured or missing.
* Saturday Evening. Aside from the sobering reality of the casualties experienced and the prevailing silence and emotions, the period moments for the evening weren't over. Jason sent out great information on the 12th VA and there was more available. In reading up on this unit, it was documented these boys dropped knapsacks and blankets prior. Knowing this, and knowing the possibilty of thunderstorms over the weekend, four of us left behind our blankets, knapsacks and groundclothes. These boys packed light, moved quick and were "in rags." The evening was spent keeping a fire going, I routinely threw broken green cornstalks to create smoke to keep the mosquitos at bay. About 2:00 a.m. the thunder and lightning ushered in. Our fire had all but gone out, but in haste everyone worked to stoke and retrieve more wood before any deluge. Soon it rained, soon it rained hard. For close to 2 and 1/2 hours, everyone stood around a fire, tired and mesmerized like a bunch of zombies. Rainwater, poured off hat brims when heads turned. Richard, (Matt) donated his gum blanket to keep the finicky '42's somewhat dry. Those who had ground clothes, covered their bedrolls, and still got soaked around the fire. After close to 3 hours all headed to bed wet , including the 4 with no blankets who stretched out, and huddle up on the wet ground. It was a miserable experience for those 4, but we all pulled through. At a higher level, if I may speak for those 4, it was a highlight of the weekend.
* Humorous. Due to a bum hand from a spent ball, I was detailed to watch the weapon stacks/traps while the rest of Co. C went back to help bring the gun up to the gap. Probably due to the horse meat, an overwhelming "natural" feeling came over me. I moved into the weeds to address the issue..... All the sudden, "drawers on the floor", I was mortified to hear shots in the valley below fearing I was a sitting duck, and alone. As my pulse raised, things got worse quicker than better.... What seemed like a swarm of mosquitos, seemed to divebomb me and all my exposed flesh... and while one diverted me and drew a slap, four of his buddies hit the other sides of me. This caused a jumping, slapping, expletive tirade and things got worse. I quickly discovered in my turning and twisting, half naked.... I was standing in a patch of stinging nettles.
Cons
* Having conquered the weather and having had our lunch 'force fed' to us at the Gap the day before, we were up for a scrap to extract a little vengence. We worked to get our '42's back in firing condition
(or so we hoped since we didn't want to fire them and tip off our position,) and headed out in skirmish order to cover as much ground as possible. We waited and waited in the hot morning sun, still wet. After a while we were reformed and marched back the direction we had come the day before. We didn't come to the event for the battle, and it certainly was not the most rewarding experience or period moment, but it sure led to some. We were all disappointed to see the company ahead of us clearing weapons near the staging area. We were approached and apologized to by a couple of the Federals in the parking lot already in street clothes who said (I think) by 4:00 a.m. all but about 10 of their guys had left. We all travel great distances to these events, and it certainly didn't ruin anyone's event that many quit before it was over, but it is undoubtedly disappointing and would have been appreciated by all, if those who bugged to have stayed to have interacted for a few short hours Sunday morning.
I'm not denigrating anyone, (actually, I have no idea who left,) but we have to understand our bailing/quitting can cause an exodus and these actions adversely impact everyone else's period experinces and put the organizers in an uncomfortable situation to explain and apologize. We are all anxious to get home, for sure. You all make a difference, positive or negative. Nuff said.
* Read. To some this may seem like nitpicking and others will say, 'you bet.' The organizers posted and even sent out great information about the units at the event. We really should take the time to read this stuff, do some research and form our impression around and understand the people we portray. The detail about blankets/knapsacks was in the mailed out documentation and would have liked to see more incorporate this into their impression. We all ended up wet anyway, and it was a benefit not carrying the extra weight, and more importantly doing what they did. I don't denigrate anyone who carried a blanket, but I think you really missed out on an aspect of the experience.
These are two minor 'con's' and no fault of the organizers. They certainly didn't ruin my event as you can tell from the many positives listed, but these hurt the experience for others and themselves.
Thanks ONV! So glad we made the trip!
Best Regards
First, thank you Dan, Jason, Brad, and so many I have forgotten who put the work into this. The 4 IV/Taters who made the trip from Missouri discussed and relived the event all the way home.
The Pro's:
* Site. By now you have probably seen some of the pics from this or previous events here. They do not do the site justice. Described to us as an 800 acre hobby farm with hills/knolls, woodland, riding trails and streams, it is an incredible site. We arrived on site Friday morning, perched part way up a small hill under a shade tree, and just enjoyed the scenery and breeze.
* Pics. Not a fan of cameras at events, but like a train wreck, I'm the first to clickin on a post event link to see them. I will say I never ever saw a camera at this event until it was over, and many thanks for being so descrete.
* Horse Meat. We were not issued rations friday and saturday morning the cav came by with a bloody cloth bag. Apparently, the army had just bought a horse from a civilian he had to put down. We were hungry, the meat was tough. It took 30 minutes to fully chew 6" x 4" piece, and jaws were sore before the end. Still, a nice touch, and a period experience I have never had.
* Sutler Wagon. Saturday, while moving to the Gap, we came across a broken down sutler wagon. No sign of the driver/owner, no sign of the horses. There were many food stuffs and wares on board. One member of Co. A was arrested for partaking in violation of Lee's orders. Finally, the wagon was declared abandoned, and items were shared or blindly distributed.
* Sutler Store. Ezra Barnhouse, (Beth Crabb and daughter Skye?), had a permanent cabin established just up overlooking the cross section of the gap. Many fine wares were available via period script sold in the parking lot. The meat pie was incredible, (amazing how good everything was tasting after the horse!) While many of us were in there, one asked for something which Beth apologized and stated she was to have more on hand, but the man supposed to deliver items to her was supposed to have been there a week prior and never showed. I was reluctant to break her the news, but mentioned we earlier that day had stumbled upon what appeared to have been a sutler wagon probably ransacked by Federal cavalry. I explained, there was no sign of the driver or team, and further apologized, we did partake of the leftover spoils.
* Artillery Crew. A great deal of time, effort and more sweat was spent by the artillery crew and at many times the infantry assisting to push, steer and mobilize the gun and caisson. This even included up incredible hills in the woods. My hat's off to them and those who shouldered the burden which was way beyond anything I had seen at an event except maybe a bgr or piney.
* First Person. All were required to choose a first person name and occupation from the original roster. I was reluctant, but I was wrong. It took a few minutes in the parking lot to get everyone's names down, but this event had the best, most consistent first person of any event I have yet attended. Nothing was forced, and the lack of modern speech did so much to the experience.
* "The Scrap at the Gap." The area the 12th VA was to hold a beautiful pass with towering hardwoods within and up on the high ridges. This was a position which the terrain much favored the holder. The Federals were lured into the gap, which appeared suicide on their behalf. Prior to walking into the heart of the crossfire, they were fired upon from several stories above by sharpshooters as the Federals were occupied by CS skirmishers. Once they entered the thick valley, concealed fire poured from all sides, and the 12 lb howitzer made its presence known from up the center of the valley. The yanks took casualties but pushed up the Gap toward to howitzer. I was stationed on one of the sides just in front of the Barnhouse store. When some Federals pushed laterally to our position and I lost site of the frontal push of the Federals up and passed us, I became very concerned of being cut-off, and abandon my position, and rallied up on the road in front of the store. I then saw the Federal push toward the gun, and instinct took over.... The only way out was back up the Gap to the high ground, and I went into a sprint. The Federals were withing a few yards of the gun, and I saw the only way to survive was jackrabbit behind the gun as it was being spiked, between the limber and crew, and then bounding through the thick underbrush, rippping and tearing through vines before breaking free and running up hill. It was one of many period rushes of the weekend, and the survival rush, was unique.
* Fate Cards. Fate cards have proponents and critics. This was actually the first time I had the chance to experience them at an event. My first person persona, was and I drew, a survivor card. This influenced my 'get the heck out of here' feeling as our fortunes at the scrap went south. It was further a very emotional period experience due to the consistent first person and knowing everyone's name in the company. The rue awakening was when I ran back up the gap, I caught up with Brad our Lt, and 3 men from Co. A. I was the only one from Co. C, including the five in our ambush group which had been out in front of the store, to make it out on the retreat. It was sobering, and I actually felt guilt, anger, helplessness and despondance. Not sure if it was a combination of the comedown of the adrenaline rush, fatigue, the despairing emotions and/or the inability to see back down into the valley and the welfare of your friends. This went on for several minutes, and the morale boost I felt when one of ours made his way back after fleeing up a ridge, was short-lived. Still, I shortly returned to the 'bummed' feelings, even after Maybin (Dave West) and our 2nd sgt found their way out. This would be the sobering reality for the evening......62% of our company was dead, captured or missing.
* Saturday Evening. Aside from the sobering reality of the casualties experienced and the prevailing silence and emotions, the period moments for the evening weren't over. Jason sent out great information on the 12th VA and there was more available. In reading up on this unit, it was documented these boys dropped knapsacks and blankets prior. Knowing this, and knowing the possibilty of thunderstorms over the weekend, four of us left behind our blankets, knapsacks and groundclothes. These boys packed light, moved quick and were "in rags." The evening was spent keeping a fire going, I routinely threw broken green cornstalks to create smoke to keep the mosquitos at bay. About 2:00 a.m. the thunder and lightning ushered in. Our fire had all but gone out, but in haste everyone worked to stoke and retrieve more wood before any deluge. Soon it rained, soon it rained hard. For close to 2 and 1/2 hours, everyone stood around a fire, tired and mesmerized like a bunch of zombies. Rainwater, poured off hat brims when heads turned. Richard, (Matt) donated his gum blanket to keep the finicky '42's somewhat dry. Those who had ground clothes, covered their bedrolls, and still got soaked around the fire. After close to 3 hours all headed to bed wet , including the 4 with no blankets who stretched out, and huddle up on the wet ground. It was a miserable experience for those 4, but we all pulled through. At a higher level, if I may speak for those 4, it was a highlight of the weekend.
* Humorous. Due to a bum hand from a spent ball, I was detailed to watch the weapon stacks/traps while the rest of Co. C went back to help bring the gun up to the gap. Probably due to the horse meat, an overwhelming "natural" feeling came over me. I moved into the weeds to address the issue..... All the sudden, "drawers on the floor", I was mortified to hear shots in the valley below fearing I was a sitting duck, and alone. As my pulse raised, things got worse quicker than better.... What seemed like a swarm of mosquitos, seemed to divebomb me and all my exposed flesh... and while one diverted me and drew a slap, four of his buddies hit the other sides of me. This caused a jumping, slapping, expletive tirade and things got worse. I quickly discovered in my turning and twisting, half naked.... I was standing in a patch of stinging nettles.
Cons
* Having conquered the weather and having had our lunch 'force fed' to us at the Gap the day before, we were up for a scrap to extract a little vengence. We worked to get our '42's back in firing condition
(or so we hoped since we didn't want to fire them and tip off our position,) and headed out in skirmish order to cover as much ground as possible. We waited and waited in the hot morning sun, still wet. After a while we were reformed and marched back the direction we had come the day before. We didn't come to the event for the battle, and it certainly was not the most rewarding experience or period moment, but it sure led to some. We were all disappointed to see the company ahead of us clearing weapons near the staging area. We were approached and apologized to by a couple of the Federals in the parking lot already in street clothes who said (I think) by 4:00 a.m. all but about 10 of their guys had left. We all travel great distances to these events, and it certainly didn't ruin anyone's event that many quit before it was over, but it is undoubtedly disappointing and would have been appreciated by all, if those who bugged to have stayed to have interacted for a few short hours Sunday morning.
I'm not denigrating anyone, (actually, I have no idea who left,) but we have to understand our bailing/quitting can cause an exodus and these actions adversely impact everyone else's period experinces and put the organizers in an uncomfortable situation to explain and apologize. We are all anxious to get home, for sure. You all make a difference, positive or negative. Nuff said.
* Read. To some this may seem like nitpicking and others will say, 'you bet.' The organizers posted and even sent out great information about the units at the event. We really should take the time to read this stuff, do some research and form our impression around and understand the people we portray. The detail about blankets/knapsacks was in the mailed out documentation and would have liked to see more incorporate this into their impression. We all ended up wet anyway, and it was a benefit not carrying the extra weight, and more importantly doing what they did. I don't denigrate anyone who carried a blanket, but I think you really missed out on an aspect of the experience.
These are two minor 'con's' and no fault of the organizers. They certainly didn't ruin my event as you can tell from the many positives listed, but these hurt the experience for others and themselves.
Thanks ONV! So glad we made the trip!
Best Regards
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