Summer, 1979

Well, it is true: you can run, but you can't hide. Paul Tomblin was a member of the Lorne Scots (Peel, Dufferin, and Halton Regiment) and took part in the summer training program. This wouldn't be too noteworthy, except he's posted incriminating information — including a photo — on his site.

Prizes will not be awarded for locating me in the front row of the photo (I'm the geek at the right end of the row).

Paul includes a key to the photo, identifying the troops, and there's a short "what happened to him/her" summary in the comments from Alex McKelvey.

The cryptic "loses breech blocks" note after my name needs a bit of explanation. I was the storesman for the course, responsible for issuing and receiving equipment the troops needed on a daily basis. One of the primary items of issue were the individual weapons (in those days, the venerable FN C1A1).

Because we were training in a suburban armoury, there was rarely any need for ammunition . . . and given that most of the troops were just starting to master the basics of drill (and the fine points of hating their drill instructors), they were already dangerous enough with unloaded weapons. For security, the weapons were stored separately from their breech blocks.

One fine morning, ten breech blocks turned up missing. As the course storesman, I had some 'splaining to do. To the best of my knowledge, they never did turn up, but it was sufficiently damning to derail what little military future I may have had. I wasn't formally disciplined for the loss (as I didn't have physical control over the building from which they went missing), but it became quickly apparent that I'd never need to worry about achieving higher rank or responsibility in the regiment. I lasted another four months before leaving the unit.