Centaurs Banned from Long Binh O’Club
While F Troop was based at Lai Khe, we enjoyed our own Officers’ Club. The club, named Lai Khe After Dark, had a great bar area, table seating, a stage, and dance floor. The Troop also kept a 10-foot, or so, Rock Python housed in an enclosure next to the club. We had several USO shows in the club over the course of the 9 months the unit was in Lai Khe. The club in the evenings could get quite rowdy. After all, we were the only ones there and stress needed to be relieved. When we moved back to Long Binh in January 1972, we no longer had our own club and the Python was rumored to not have made the move with us.
The war seemed to be a remote thing for many of the troops in Long Binh. Long Binh was as close to a stateside base as you could get in what was still a war zone. Every convenience in the “world” was available on Long Binh Post. The Club was very formal with many senior officers among the patrons. For them, the war was a minor inconvenience. Needless to say, the locals were not quite ready for the Cavalry.
We were still flying combat missions in Cambodia but had a stand down the next day. The O’Club was too far away to walk to and the only way to get there was by vehicle. So that night, many Centaurs piled in the back of a ¾ ton truck and headed for the club.
We unloaded the truck and made a beeline for the bar with Cavalry hats properly in place. Upon entering the bar area we were pointedly informed that hats were not allowed and you were subject to buying a round in case of infractions. We put our heads together and asked “How much does it cost?” We took up a collection the amount of which seemed satisfactory and the Cav hats stayed on our heads.
The place was exceedingly dull and quiet, not at all like Lai Khe. After a round or two, we began to sing a few songs. These included such favorites as “Flaming Huey in an Old Oak Tree,” “We’re off to see the Wild West Show,” and a couple of other somewhat vulgar songs I no longer remember. We were told to leave by the club manager. There had been complaints. Apparently we were too offensive for the REMF’s and their female guests. We gathered up everyone and headed for home. We piled into the ¾ Ton. I remember four in the front seat, a large number in the back, and one or two guys lying on the canvas top over the front seat. The ride back to our area was fortunately otherwise uneventful as we weren’t stopped by the Post MPs.
The next day we were told that the Centaurs had been banned from the Officers’ Club as we were not welcome. This ban lasted about one or two days. We heard when the Deputy Post Commander, who was there that night, heard about the ban, he told the club manager that we would not be banned as we were the best thing that had happened in that club in quite a while. I don’t know if that’s true, but I know we continued to go to the O’Club – Cav hats and all.