How many Airmen does it take to fix a flat tire?

  • Published
  • By Capt. Michael Daigh
  • 47th Operations Support Squadron
LAUGHLIN AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --  I never really got tired of that joke. Well, maybe a little, but not too badly.

From July 19 through 25, three Laughlin Airmen, Lt. Col. Jon Counsell, 47th Flying Training Wing plans and programs chief; Capt. Laura Nealon, 87th Flying Training Squadron, and I were absent from Laughlin on a unique TDY. We were riding our bicycles across the state of Iowa as part of the Register's Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa, joining 15,000 other cyclists from all over the country pedaling from the western border to the eastern one. We linked up with four individuals from Sheppard for the event. If you're doing the math, at the current count it could take at least seven Airmen to fix a flat.

"Fit to Fight" was a part of our ongoing task during the week. We had the privilege of riding more than 500 miles across some of the most beautiful country in America. I'm from the Midwest, so I'm admittedly biased, and I enjoyed the land filled with green grass and cornfields, tall trees and rolling hills. That last part bears repeating, rolling hills. Some of which were fairly steep. For those of you who think everywhere in the Midwest is flat, the 22,806 feet of climbing we did over the course of the week would certainly prove you wrong. We rode every day, regardless of the weather conditions. On the fifth day we all got to dig deep and test our fitness against a 105-mile hilly route, after already logging a few hundred miles that week. It was rough, no doubt, but we all pulled through.

In addition to testing our physical abilities, the AFCT participates in RAGBRAI every year as a community outreach and recruiting event for the Air Force. We had the opportunity to meet people from all over the country, and from all walks of life. We had the honor of representing the Air Force in small communities across Iowa, and worked hard to ensure that we maintained a visible presence at the countless church bake sales, where we found the best pie in the world. We would, of course, then have to pedal harder to ensure we met dress and appearance standards, which in turn drove us to further bake sale representation. It's a vicious circle.

In keeping with our visible presence, one of our teammates, Colonel Counsell, became the talk of Iowa when a dust devil picked up his tent and planted it on a church steeple. Every town we stopped at from there on out wanted to talk to the Air Force guy who lost his tent.

We also managed to do a lot of serious work handing out Air Force memorabilia while speaking with anyone interested in the Air Force.

So how many Airmen does it take to patch a tire, amongst other things? In the end about 150, which was the number of Airmen and family members who comprised the Air Force Cycling Team. The three Laughlin members were just a small part of a team gathered from around the country. The "flat fixing" joke became popular amongst all cyclists at the event, since Air Force Cycling Team members are charged with assisting other cyclists along the road, whether it be aiding at a crash site or helping with something as simple as a thorn in a tire. No one I spoke with could recall a single incident along the road that didn't have at least a couple of cyclists in AFCT uniforms on hand to help. We were the largest team at RAGBRAI, and we certainly did our jobs as the "good citizens" of the ride.

On the first day, the entire AFCT rides out in an impressive two-by-two formation. On the last, we cross the finish in that same unified manner. For the townspeople and other cyclists alike, it's one of the most talked about and anticipated parts of the ride.

And as wingmen, we wouldn't have it any other way!

For more information on the AFCT or to see Colonel Counsell's tent take flight, visit www.airforcecyclingteam.com.