The following was written by Sgt. 1st Class Mark F. Ounan, an Active/ Guard infantry Soldier currently assigned to the 324th Military Police Btn., Chambersburg, Pa. Ounan is also the only current Soldier and Military Vehicle Preservation Association member taking place in the 2009 MVPA Convoy. Here's an exert from the journal he's keeping as he travels cross-country.
Leaving Greensburg, Pa., and driving on old Route 30 through Pittsburgh on a Monday morning is never a good idea. But if you do it on the Monday morning that the Pittsburgh Penguins have chosen to have their Stanley Cup Victory Parade it can get downright nasty. Traffic was terrible. The convoy got broken up, and some of the March units made wrong turns or missed turns all together. It took us most of the morning to get things straightened out. And again, we fell behind.
The car is running great, but I realize that the steals on the rear wheels are leaking and slinging grease onto the brakes. And that's why the car has trouble stopping. Right now, there's nothing we can do about it. So I lengthen out my interval between vehicles, and never take my eyes off the motorcycles in front of me.
We pulled into East Palestine, Ohio, about an hour and a half late, and it seemed that the whole town was there to greet us. There was a band, air show and a great meal. There was enough to feed most of the town after we had finished. This has been a great stop!
Everywhere we go we see that patriotism is alive and well in this country. Everyone has an American flag, and they all thank us for our service and for what we are doing. It puts a lump in your throat. When you're driving down a little country road and you see an elderly man on his porch who then stands up and salutes you, I know he's reliving some past memories and all I can do is wave, salute back and hope he appreciated it as much as I do.
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