Marching thru History

Although I couldn't get anyone to go with me (yes, Tristan, this especially means you), this year's Marching thur History event at Prado Dam Regional Park was quite enjoyable. There were reenactors from many different time periods, especially the American Civil War and World War II, as well as a nice assortment of military vehicles.

In past years, the MVPA was allowed to offer rides on the group's Sherman and Stuart tanks (Tristan and I rode the Sherman two years and I'll never forget the rush of charging through the underbrush and powering across a small, muddy creek. This year, there weren't any rides as the Army Corps of Engineer, which oversees the Park, had given in to pressure from the Audubon Society over the nesting habitat of a plover (or similar small bird). In fact, last year's event was cancelled, in part because of this dispute and another dispute over the rights to various aspects of the reenactment events.

Tristan and I have been considering joining a reenactment group (I used to be an active member of the 9th U.S. Division of the California Historical Group) so that we could take a more active role in events like this and Old Fort MacArthur Days. We're also looking forward to participating in one or more events commemorating the 150th anniversary of the American Civil War such as the reenactment of the Battle of Gettysburg in July 2013.

I didn't see many airsoft guns at Marching thru History, in contrast to Fort Mac, but airsoft doesn't make any guns reflecting periods earlier than WW2 anyway. The event is a great way to see history brought to life, if only for a weekend, and I saw many kids running from encampment to encampment, eager to see what the next tent held. Of course, eveyone's favorite time of day was the World War 2 batttle, in Sicily this year, and the firing of the big guns caught everyone's attention. Next year, look for me on the battlefield.

For more photos of this year's event, take a look at http://davidbakertheairsoftlawyer.shutterfly.com/.

David Baker

The Airsoft Lawyer