The Monkey Strap Boogie
(Webmaster's note: After reading John's short but very descriptive story here I was inspired to call his adventure 'The Monkey Strap Boogie' because I can almost see the snatching and grabbing and cussing he was probably doing while he was going out the cabin in one direction while the helicopter was going in another direction. - Charlie Johnson
Date: January 1967
I remember being trained by John Cumbie to take over for him as crewchief. We were out N/E of base camp working over a small creek line, flying kinda low (150' to 200') when the A/C yells "Break right!" The pilot just nudges the craft to the left then breaks right. I was standing up firing on the creek line and the next thing I know I'm falling out. In the length of that "monkey strap" I had gathered up several hundred rounds of 7.62 and figured if I lived thru hitting the mud I would take as many of them with me as I could. Then I feel my butt bumping against the skid and look up to see John pulling me back in. All he said to me was, "You know those cargo rings have been know to pull out."
What did I learn?
Hang On.