ww2

These 11 pieces of gear keep me running (and riding my bike) through the winter. I rock and roll in everything except ice/snow (because I have a history of twisting my ankle, which sidelines me for weeks).

Thankfully, most snow doesn’t last more than a few days on the streets here.

This setup has kept me in fighting shape down into below freezing temperatures +/- windchill.

I actually used to hate running. It was my least favorite part of triathlons, and I dreaded the pavement pounding.

Trail running is a different animal, and I wish I could do more of that. But these days I’m rediscovering city running as part of my daily minimum effective dose of exercise regimen.

I don’t track mileage. I just run for the fun of it. The way that gives me joy.

Switched from heel strike to toe strike.
Reduced my stride length.
Breathe only through my nose.
Became more aware of feeling the rhythm rather than constantly wondering why I was running.

Which means a quick-paced run of a mile or so finished off with a few sprint intervals. 20-25 minutes. Fires up the endorphins and sets me up for the day.

Especially when it’s cold out and there’s no one else out. The sharp cold is invigorating. Like a Scottish shower.

Many of of these items earn usage everyday. Good gear is good for momentum.

1.Pearl Izumi Ride Pro Lobster Gloves

I dig these because the provide the warmth of a mitt format, but with as much dexterity I need usually. They have nice grippy palms.

Plus, the thumb are is a soft area perfect for swiping away any moisture/sweat with built in wipes.

My only hack on these was to sew on little buckles so they could snap together when I need to stow them together and not lose one.

2. Outdoor Research Versaliners

Two-in-one double layer gloves. These ingenious glove design comes with a waterproof shell that stows away in a pocket.

Good for autumn and cooler rainy days.

These also pull double duty as an additional inner layer inside my Pearl Izumi gloves.

3. Columbia Rebel Roamer Pants

I break these out in the really foul weather when it’s raining. These have always kept me warm and dry.

My version is packable, which is handy for days when you head out and the weather may turn nasty but not yet.

The velcro closures on the bottom are a nice touch for getting the pant cinched up around boots.

They’re also an integral part of my snowball defense armor haha.

4. Cap Comforter aka Commando Cap
Redux Commando Cap / Cap comforter

This is from my cabinet of curiosities. I made this from a military surplus wool scarf.

It’s modeled after one of the longest-serving pieces of military gear that’s been in action since WWI and originated by the British. They called it the Cap Comforter and was standard issue for soldiers. However, commando units adopted wide usage of these because of its versatility.

Commandos before the Hardelot Raid

There’s four layers of wool to fend off even the coldest winds, and also avoids the prophylactic look of most caps.

The original ones were meant to also double as a scarf, but I knew I’d never wear it as a scarf, so I trimmed it to make it less bulky. But I left enough so that it can ride higher just at the ear tips or I can pull it down when I need more coverage.

The pin is from the U.S. Army signal corp. The 124th battalion enlisted Commanche Native Americans in radio communications to befuddle German code breakers. This crew became one of the first troops to assault the shores of Normandy and provide intel for awaiting forces.

5. Smartwool Merino Wool tee

This is the baselayer. It also gets worn every day for my morning workouts.

As you can see I love wool, especially merino. I love that it doesn’t hold stink like synthetics, holds heat even when wet, dries quickly.

Also, zero itch factor and I’ve had mine for years and it shows no signs of giving up.

6. Smartwool Merino Wool Longsleeve

Modulates body temp so I’m never feeling too cold nor too hot. This is my go-to sweater most days.

Good for a run. Good at the office. Good always.

7. Eddie Bauer Microtherm 2.0 down jacket

Thin and light but mighty warm.

8. Montane Featherlite Shell

Ultralight and windproof helps cut through any wind. It does a great job of not adding almost zero bulk but blocks out the chill.

It’s also breathable so I’m not accumulating moisture and wetness as I run.

9. Altra Escalante 1.5

This shoe was a game changer for me. The wide sole and toe box changed my gait and reduced knee pain.

10. Smartwool PhD merino wool socks

Once you go wool, you can’t go back.

11. LED light belt

Weighs next to nothing and assures you and I won’t get run over. USB rechargeable, so no annoying battery changes.

I wear it crisscross my torso from my shoulder.

And green is proven to be higher visibility than red. So much more effective than those little bike lights.

We can all feel a bit like this plane some days.

Lockheed PV-1 Ventura patrol bomber, Image by McGeddon

The Allied forces in World War II suffered heavy bomber losses to enemy gunfire. Planes that survived flew back to base peppered with bullet holes.

The U.S. Military inspected the planes and found the most holes pierced wings and tails. Armor is heavy and expensive, so they had to figure out the most optimal placement.

The plan was to add armor to protect those wings and tails from enemy fire. And so more pilots could fly back to base after a mission.

However, the Naval operations research team made a different conclusion. A mathematician named Abraham Wald flipped the idea upside down.

Wald realized that planes which flew back with bullet holes actually meant they could survive those shots. But the ones that crashed and never made it back for inspection were likely shot in the engines and cockpit. And that’s where the military ended up armoring the planes.

My friend died this week in a motorcycle crash.

He was 49. We grew up together. Even when he was a college student he’d still hang out with our ragtag church youth group every weekend.

He was a big brother to me. He introduced me to comic books, yo-yos, pocket knives, made incredible drawings, helped buy my first guitar.

I always looked up to him. He pretty much did everything better than me. He wrestled and played football in school. I wrestled and played football. He was varsity. I wasn’t.

We lost touch after he moved to the West Coast for work. We only got to visit him and his family once out there.

He restored a vintage car, owned a few motorcycles, set up a special room to practice judo with his sons. He volunteered at his kids’ local elementary school teaching music because the school had no budget — even after his sons moved on.

I heard through friends there were rocky patches. I know how that goes — we all do.

We all get hit by enemy flak.

It’s the knee-jerk reaction to wonder what if he had made different choices. Maybe things could have been different.

What were his last words — to his motorcycle buddies who rode with him that day, to his sons, to his wife, his siblings, his mom?

I am reminded not to count the bullet holes.

I am reminded to pay attention to what made him soar when I knew him.

His faith, family, friends. Those are areas that need bulletproof armor.

It’s not even about his choices or his circumstances and more about a wake up call to us.

Guard your engines and cockpit.

These are non-negotiables.

These are the vulnerable areas that will shield us from enemy fire and equip us to tackle our missions and survive to fly another day.

I’m not saying we ignore the pains and hurts, mistakes and regrets. I’m saying not to drown in despair and focus on non-critical damage.

Heal, recover, press on.

Of course one day we will all land for the last time. But today we write another page in our legacy. What have we written?

The measure of who we are will be summed up not by our bullet holes but by the way we flew. And all the more when we debrief back at mission control to equip new recruits.

Rest in peace, my friend.

Fly fierce, fly true — armor up, my friends.

by Daniel Long, Nottingham Trent University

On the afternoon of May 3, 1945, a squadron of RAF Typhoons began their descent to attack Axis shipping in Neustadt Bay, Germany. Below them, the former luxury liner SS Cap Arcona was laden with over 4,500 concentration camp prisoners who had been “evacuated” to the coast – and at around 3pm, the Typhoons from the Second Tactical Air Force, launched their assault.

The result was one of the world’s worst maritime disasters, leaving the prisoners and the ship’s crew struggling for survival in the icy Baltic waters. An estimated 4,000 prisoners perished. More than 70 years on from the tragic sinking, crucial questions remain regarding the role of British forces in the final days of the Second World War.

The disaster has long been sensationalised by the print media. Headlines such as “Friendly fires of hell” have been the norm – thanks, in part, to a surprising lack of scholarly attention.

In turn, this has led to a number of conspiracy theories about the sinking. One such rumour claimed that important British records related to the incident had been sealed until 2045. In fact, all of the records were publicly released in 1972 after the Public Records Act 1967 reduced the amount of time they were to be kept secret – and I have spent a great deal of time researching them.

In the immediate aftermath of the war, Britain’s focus was on attempting to prosecute Nazi war criminals, and investigations into British misadventures were sidelined. And shortly after that, attentions shifted east, as the Cold War gathered pace.

Nevertheless, it is now possible to reconstruct what really happened – including Britain’s role in the tragedy – with a closer examination of archival files.

Endgame

“No concentration camp prisoner must fall alive into enemy hands.”

That was Himmler’s last order concerning the fate of Germany’s remaining camp prisoners. But as the Nazi camp system continued to contract in March 1945, it would be wrong to assume that it was the real driving force behind the evacuation of Neuengamme camp.

Neuengamme, near Hamburg, was largely unique within the Nazi camp system. Local politicians, in particular Nazi Gauleiter Karl Kaufmann, had developed close business links with local industrialists and supplying slave labour from the camp to nearby businesses became a profitable enterprise.

But by early 1945, the Allied advance placed increasing pressure on local politicians – and complicit businesses – to eradicate any evidence of slave labour from within Hamburg city limits. The “problem” had to be moved elsewhere.

Karl Kaufmann. Bundesarchiv Bild via Wikimedia, CC BY-SA

In the absence of another option, Kaufmann made arrangements in March 1945 to requisition a passenger liner to act as a “temporary” holding camp for Neuengamme’s prisoners. Any long-term planning was simply nonexistent. Indeed, once the camp was emptied in mid-April, the local politicians no longer concerned themselves with the fate of the prisoners now held in squalor aboard the Cap Arcona in nearby Neustadt Bay.

Nevertheless, the “prisoner hierarchy” continued on board the ship. The prisoners remained segregated according to nationality and religion. In addition, SS troops stayed on board to supervise the prisoners. This indicated that the Arcona was intended as a temporary extension of the original Neuengamme, albeit one that was largely out of sight and out of mind.

Liberation or destruction

Following the Allied Yalta Conference of February 1945, British military policy was geared towards a swift advance to the Baltic coast.

There were two reasons for this. First, Britain wished to halt the Soviet advance as it swept ever further west. To achieve this, Lübeck on the Baltic coast was considered the strategic goal.

Second, by halting the Soviets here, British forces would be able to liberate Denmark and restore the Danish monarchy. With the monarchy restored, Britain would gain a valuable ally in the months ahead.

But the speed of the Soviet advance meant that the normal protocols and procedures that had been well established throughout the war fell to the wayside as British troops raced for their objective. To make matters worse, communication lines became strained, and intelligence was not always processed in a thorough and timely manner.

Casualties of the tragedy. Imperial War Museum Image Collection

On the afternoon of May 2 and the morning of May 3, two pieces of intelligence were handed to British commanders. The first was handed to the liberating forces of Lübeck, the 11th Armoured Division, by an International Committee Red Cross delegate (ICRC). The second was presented to British forces by a Swedish Red Cross (SRC) delegate.

Both informed the British that camp prisoners were being held aboard ships in Neustadt Bay. But the warning arrived too late.

As the German Reich contracted, British forces remained heavily engaged in an important battle to reach their objective on Germany’s north coast. But while the German retreat was often marked by disorder, Britain’s military campaign also became frantic and chaotic, particularly in the final weeks. A breakdown of efficient communication and intelligence sharing meant that frontline forces were often ill-prepared for the actual situation ahead of them.

Cap Arcona Memorial, Neustadt. Author provided

In this case, the latest intelligence on the ships in Neustadt Bay never reached the pilots who attacked them. As they made their final descent, the airmen likely believed they were attacking bona fide hostile targets.

Ultimately, the fate of the Cap Arcona and its passengers was a tragic consequence of the fog of war.

Daniel Long, PhD Candidate, School of Art and Humanities, Nottingham Trent University

This article was originally published on The Conversation.

by M. Berk Talay, University of Massachusetts Lowell

Ford has doubled down on its best-selling pickup trucks. In April, Ford announced that it will be phasing out nearly all of its passenger cars in the United States.

If all goes according to plan, 90 percent of Ford’s portfolio in North America will be trucks, SUVs and commercial vehicles. Its F-150 – the most popular vehicle in America – is now poised to build on its stunning success.

The model’s ascent is really part of a larger, decades-long trend of Americans’ eschewing sedans for trucks and SUVs.

But why do Americans flock to the F-150 over the Tacoma or the Silverado?

I study how innovation drives success in competitive markets, and Ford’s emphasis on original design – together with its frequent upgrades – have allowed the F-Series to gain an edge over its peers.

A post-war truck boom

By the end of World War II, the car market in the United States, was, by and large, a seller’s market.

From February 1942 to October 1945, the War Production Board froze automobile production for civilian use, which created pent-up demand for 5 to 9 million new cars by the time the war ended.

In a race to cash in, U.S. automotive manufacturers capitalized on the expertise they had gained from manufacturing military trucks during the war and introduced trucks – in addition to cars – into the market.

In the past, trucks had been marketed to farmers and business owners. These newer trucks, advertised as a more comfortable ride with larger cabins, were designed to also appeal to suburban buyers.

In 1947 Chevrolet launched its Advance-Design trucks, while the now-defunct International Harvester launched its KB Series. The following year, Dodge released its B Series, and Ford introduced its F-Series.

With its ‘Million Dollar Cab,’ Ford sought to gain an edge over its competitors. Ford Truck Enthusiasts

With design offerings that could appeal to a range of customers, the F-Series was an instant success. The F-Series line-up included eight models with varying sizes and cargo capacities, from the F-1, a light-truck with half-ton capacity, to the F-8, a 3-ton, heavy-duty truck.

To appeal to a wider range of buyers, Ford designed a considerably more spacious and comfortable cabin. Dubbed the “Million Dollar Cab” to underscore the one million dollars the company spent on its design, this cab was wider, quieter and featured luxuries like a full interior trim, sun visors, an ashtray, and easy-to-read instrument panel.

Staying ahead of the competition

Since the earliest days of the U.S. auto industry, innovation has been a critical element for sustained success. To keep up with the evolution of consumer demands and emergence of new technologies, automakers have to invest heavily on research and development. In 2017 alone, they spent more than $100 billion globally. Companies that fall behind in this innovation “arms race” tend to either go out of business or are acquired.

Now in its 13th generation, the F-Series has been through more frequent upgrades and redesigns than its competitors, and its innovation is a big reason for the line’s enduring popularity.

We saw it in the early 1950s, when Ford updated its Million Dollar Cab by designing a “Five Star Extra Cab,” which came with foam seat padding, twin horns, and improved sound proofing. We saw it in 1987, when the F-Series became the first pickup truck to introduce rear anti-lock brakes as a standard feature. And we saw this in 2014, when Ford invested US$3 billion to replace the truck’s steel body with an aluminum one, which shed, on average, 700 pounds and drastically improved the vehicle’s fuel economy.

A 1987 print ad for the F-150 highlights the truck’s new anti-lock brakes. JOHN LLOYD, CC BY

For these cutting-edge upgrades, the company has been handsomely rewarded. In 2017, F-150 was the best-selling vehicle in the U.S. – a title it has held for the last 36 years. More than 40 million F-Series trucks have been sold since 1948, making it one of the best-selling vehicles in history.

The bigger the car, the bigger the profit

Just how important is the F-Series to Ford’s bottom line?

While Ford doesn’t disclose model-level profit data, it is estimated that each F-150 earns the company an operating profit of around $10,000 and generates around 90 percent of Ford’s global profits. In fact, the line of trucks is thought to be worth more than the entire company.

In general, pickup trucks, and their less-rugged siblings, SUVs, generate more profit per unit than passenger cars. According to Bloomberg, the average price of a full-size pickup truck is around $45,000, with a profit margin of roughly 25 percent; the average price of a mid-size sedan, on the other hand, is around $22,000 with a 10 percent profit margin.

This might explain why other car companies are also getting cold feet about their passenger cars. Fiat Chrysler has phased out the Dodge Dart and Chrysler 200 and announced that it will retool its factories in Michigan and Ohio in order to build a new pickup truck and two new SUVs. General Motors also reportedly plans to cut production of some of its passenger cars.

Car sales as a percentage of total light vehicles sales has been in steady decline since the early 1980s. In May 2018, car sales made up only 32.1 percent of all light vehicles sales in the U.S., down from a 40-year high of 83.2 percent in October 1980. According to a recent study conducted by the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute, people are switching to SUVs and pickups because these vehicles offer greater general utility and better on-road 4×4 capabilities and are safer.

Meanwhile, low gas prices, increasing wages, ongoing economic expansion and soaring consumer confidence could mean more Americans are willing to shell out extra cash for a truck or SUV.

Together, these trends indicate that the F-150’s reign as king of trucks won’t end anytime soon.

M. Berk Talay, Associate Professor of Marketing, University of Massachusetts Lowell

This article was originally published on The Conversation.

A couple weeks ago, COURG crew member T. Dorman mentioned to me he recently lost his dad, who served in World War 2. I thought it was fitting to hear more about his dad’s life and service with an opportunity to pause on Memorial Day to remember those who served and also began the difficult work of healing and reconciliation after the storms of war.

by T. Dorman

For many, including myself, WW2 is a history lesson, often portrayed in movies, but left out is the gravitas of the bravery, courage and humanity of those who served and later identified as the greatest generation.

My Father served in WWII, so the COURG watch is wonderful reminder of an important time in our history and a great man. Continue reading →

ww2

Run for Your Life (Especially in the Winter)

Stop Counting Your Bullet Holes