GI Jeep Tale: During WWII, not always the “almighty Jeep”
10th Mountain Division “stuck in the Snow?” “High-speed” Jeep pursuit? Two tales from a WW2 Camp Hale Military Policeman who had less than adequate performance from his Jeep
When the 10th Mountain Division got "stuck in the snow"
While serving with the military police detachment at Camp Hale, Colorado, in 1942, I had the duty to transport some members of the 10th Mountain Division up the slopes to practice their skiing skills. We piled the gear into the jeep and took off in low gear with all four wheels engaged.
Driving up the snow-covered mountain road was no problem, but when I turned off for some cross-country driving, the jeep made it only 100 feet before it sank up to the axles. It took all of the troopers and myself to extricate the jeep.
High-Speed Jeep Pursuit
On a second occasion, while patrolling the base, a jeep full of officers went screaming by us, going much faster than the posted 10 mph. My lieutenant told me to follow in pursuit.
With horn blaring, our “high-speed” chase (our top speed was about 45 mph downhill) continued for about 10 minutes before we finally caught up to, and overtook, the offending officers. We issued the citation and returned to our duties.
Suffice it to say, we MPs in our jeeps were never very well-liked. Such was the life of a military policeman.
—1st Sergeant John M. Graf, U.S. Army
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Born: 1921, Caledonia, Minnesota — Died: 2015, Caledonia, Minnesota
Served during WWII at Camp Hale, Camp Lewis, and Camp Howzie. 1st Sergeant, Detached MP Co, Camp Hale, and HQ Co., 2nd Bn, 415th Infantry, 104th Division.
