Colorado & Denver News

By Tom Roeder, The Gazette
BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) ― The mechanics work day and night to keep Fort Carson's 3rd Brigade Combat Team on the road.

Facing tight deadlines, heavy demand and rigs worn by months or years of service here, the wrench crew with the 64th Brigade Support Battalion on Friday looked like they'd been dipped in 30-weight oil and rolled in the gooey mud that covers the roads of Camp Taji where the brigade is based, about 20 miles north of downtown Baghdad.

"There's not a lot you can do about the mud, so you just live with it," said Sgt. Jeremy Sanders of Victoria, Texas, as he and another mechanic pulled maintenance hatches off a heavy truck loaded with concrete barriers used to wall off roads. "There's not a day goes by that I'm not covered in dirt and oil."

Scores of mechanics like Sanders had to hit the ground running at Camp Taji to deal with the brigade's new fleet, which includes hundreds of armored Humvees and trucks.

Earlier in the war, Fort Carson units shipped their own vehicles to Iraq and took them home when the tour ended.

Now, the Army pools its resources in the Middle East, and fresh units arriving from the United States inherit trucks from soldiers they replace.

That means many of the brigade's vehicles have seen hundreds of hours of rough combat driving in sand and mud.

Staff Sgt. Bradley Johnson of Poplar, Mont., said the speed of the repairs has required his mechanics to be creative.

"We've used a lot of Band-Aids," he said, "But we're running out of Band-Aids."

With the hammering rhythms of classic rock pumping through speakers, Johnson's shop was filled with mechanics and dirty vehicles in varied states of disassembly.

The Army buys its rigs big and tough, and simple tasks like changing a pump can require the arms of two stout mechanics.

And as the war has continued, the Army has added increasing amounts of armor to its trucks. The doors on the Humvees used in the invasion were canvas and could be removed in seconds. Now, the Humvee doors are made of thick steel and require a crane to dismantle.

"It keeps our guys safe, but it makes our job that much harder," Johnson said.

Sergeants oversee youthful mechanics as they wrench away. The brigade has some high-tech tools to help, including computerized parts catalogs and repair manuals, but experience helps the newest mechanics like nothing else can, said Staff Sgt. Philip Kitchen of Brevard, N.C.

"When you have a lot of broken stuff, it's easier to learn how to fix it," he said.

Pfc. Chris Rowland, a 2006 Widefield High School graduate on his first Iraq tour, crawled under the hood of an armored Humvee on Friday, armed with a long crowbar. The rig had a blown power steering pump, a serious problem for any driver of the dumptruck-heavy vehicle.

"Everything has got to be squared away," Rowland said, peering into the tightly packed engine, which rests between massive frame girders.

Rowland works six days a week, with shifts that run from before dawn to well after dark.

"It tears on you after months on the job," Rowland said. "You get tired."

Soldiers in the brigade rely heavily on the mechanics, computer repair experts and gunsmiths who ensure their gear is ready for combat. The consequences of a mechanical failure on a mission include losing comrades.

"You don't want to break down out there," said Spc. Luke McCoy of Shreveport, La., a gun-truck crew member, as he waited for mechanics to give final checks to the new engine in his Humvee.

At the same time, units can't wait weeks to get their trucks repaired, because almost every truck has to hit the roads every day, said Pfc. Luis Gongora, a mechanic from Ogden, Utah.

"They want it as soon as possible," he said.

So the mechanics said they work, with few complaints, amid the mud and the oil.

"When it dries out, it's just dirt," Rowland said.

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