Outside the Wire: Riding with the "Triple Deuce" in Vietnam, 1970

by Jim Ross

Overview

This “wonderfully written” autobiographical account of a Vietnam vet’s war experiences “takes the reader to a strange time and place.” (Eric M. Bergerud, author of Red Thunder, Tropic Lightning)
 
In the summer of 1969, while America was landing on the moon or rocking out at Woodstock, Jim Ross left his home in Oklahoma to enter the U.S. Army. He arrived in Vietnam in February 1970 to serve his tour, first with the armored personnel carriers of the 2nd Battalion of the 22nd Infantry Regiment (the 2/22 or the “Triple Deuce”) of the 25th Infantry. Written from the perspective a kid barely out of high school whose mission was to kill communists and whose goal was to survive, Outside the Wire is a thoughtful, action-packed memoir of one American soldier’s combat tour in Vietnam. Ross served as a rifleman, machine gunner, tunnel rat, and demolitions man with the 25th infantry and 1st Cavalry divisions. Beginning with a tense ambush patrol,  Ross doesn't let up through a year of hair-raising night watches, soggy humps through the jungle, and deadly encounters with the North Vietnamese, including such notable campaigns as the Cambodian incursion. 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780811749916
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	06/14/2023
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	349
Sales rank:	790,437
File size:	16 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Jim Ross is a travel writer and photographer with a special focus on Route 66 and Oklahoma. His writing credits include dozens of magazine articles and the book Route 66 Sightings (978-0-9677481-8-4), which was a finalist in the 2012 Next Generation INDIE Book Awards. While in Vietnam, he received the Air Medal and two Army Commendation Medals for Valor. He lives in Arcadia, Oklahoma.

Table of Contents

Preface xi

Introduction xiii

1 Snap, Crackle, Pop 1

2 Have Gun, Will Travel 7

3 Where Every Man's a Tiger 15

4 Over the Hill and through the Woods 23

5 Jungle Fever 35

6 How to Make It Rain Fire 47

7 Time Out, Kick Out, Bug Out 57

8 Spider Holes and Boogymen 63

9 RIF 71

10 Kiss of Fire 83

11 Walk Loudly and Carry a Big Stick 103

12 Another Day Older and Deeper in Debt 123

13 Here Today, Gone Today 141

14 Strangers in a Strange Land 151

15 The Body Farm 165

16 Street without Joy 177

17 Street without Joy, Part II 189

18 Eye of the Storm 197

19 Memorial Day 211

20 The Importance of Fruit Salad 241

21 Same Question, Different Answer 255

22 REMF 267

23 We Gotta Get Out of This Place 277

Epilogue 289

General Glossary 295

Common Weapons Employed in Vietnam 299

Typical U.S. Army Unit Structure 303