Hazard Ground

This week, in honor of Mother's Day, we have a very special guest. Dianne Layfield is the proud mother of Marine Lance Cpl. Travis J. Layfield, who was killed in action on April 6, 2004 during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Dianne was gracious enough to sit down with us and share Travis' story, as well as talk about her journey coping with his passing, and experiencing some unexpected and amazing discov...

What an absolutely amazing story! Driven by a keen interest in medicine & a desire to give back to his country, Karl Holt joined the Army to become a Green Beret medic. After several years of assessment, selection, & special forces training, Holt found himself in the heat of combat, putting his SF medic training to use. On one particular mission though, while trying to escape an overwhelming count...

This episode with JC Glick could have gone on for hours…That’s how good conversations with JC, especially those about leadership, can be. JC went from battle tested Army Ranger, serving over 11 combat tours between Iraq & Afghanistan, to leadership consultant, couch & author. He’s been tested in just about every way imaginable, from making it through a difficult childhood to leading special operat...

A combination of factors led Lewis Nelson to enlist in the Army after college – 9/11; a family history of military service; and a history degree with a job that was going nowhere. So Nelson enlisted to become a linguist, and after several years of specialized training found himself in Iraq on two separate deployments with the 101st Airborne Division. While deployed, Nelson ran the gamut of combat...

Matt Gallagher thought he was just keeping a regular blog of his time spent in a war zone as a way to chronicle daily life as a Platoon Leader during the Iraq War in 2007-08. Little did he know that his blog, aptly titled, “Kaboom” was a much bigger hit on the internet than he thought. His chain of command was even okay with it, until, as Matt puts it, “they weren’t.” And soon the US Army was shut...

Trey Grissom entered the Naval Academy to play football & left there to become a Marine after highlighting his collegiate football career in one of the great Navy upsets over rival Notre Dame in 2010. The rigors of the Academy & college football prepared Grissom well for leading Marines in combat. But as combat goes, nothing ever fully prepares you for that experience, except the experience itself...

As a Green Beret, Joe Serna has been through just about everything in combat: he’s been blown up a couple of times, shot at, and nearly drown in an armored vehicle when the road under it gave way next to a canal. And with all those combat injuries, most certainly comes PTSD, which Joe has most certainly battled. The breaking point came a few years ago when Joe was arrested for drunk driving. He su...

From a young age, Cliff Anders wanted to fly helicopters in the military. Getting into the cockpit seemed to be a breeze for Cliff, but getting to war, to “do his part,” was not so easy. He was in flight school during September 11, 2001, but it would be several more years & a few moves around the world to various Apache & training outfits, before Cliff would finally see combat. You see, Cliff is a...

Josh Jespersen’s entrance into the military wasn’t exactly conventional. But then again, there really isn’t much about Josh that is “conventional.” And he’s just about the nicest & decent human being you’ll ever meet, too! Once in the military, Josh quickly earned the Trident of a Navy SEAL & went on to honorably serve several years as a SEAL, surviving combat tours in Iraq & Afghanistan. After le...

Two men…One of them wanted to work in special operations from the start, & ended up serving a long career in the most elite forces in the U.S. military, fighting in The Battle of Mogadishu all the way into the Global War on Terror. The other holds the unique distinction of playing in both Nirvana & Soundgarden before deciding to join the Army & going on to serve in Special Forces for the rest of h...

This is sure to be part one of a multi-interview series with US Army & Delta Force legend, retired SGM Mike Vining. Vining enlisted in the Army in 1968. He served in Vietnam as an EOD tech, but after 10 years in EOD he started looking to transition to Special Forces as a medic. He soon found himself, however, going through the selection process for the newly formed 1st SFOD-Delta, more commonly kn...

Our guest this week is not the typical guest we tend to feature on “Hazard Ground.” But we felt it was important to have Steve Cannon on to talk about service & leadership, as he is someone who’s embodied those ideals for a very long time. Steve Cannon is currently the CEO of AMB Group, LLC – the Arthur M. Blank family of businesses, which includes the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons, whose business operati...

We are honored to be joined this week by special guest & author/journalist/filmmaker Sebastian Junger. Junger is a #1 New York Times Bestselling author of such works as “The Perfect Storm,” “War,” & “Tribe.” He is also a documentary filmmaker whose debut film “Restrepo” was nominated for an Academy Award. As an award-winning journalist who’s covered news stories around the world, he’s received bot...

We return this week with a guest who at first, humbly, didn’t really believe she had much to offer to the podcast or our general audience. But she in fact does have something important to share, & sharing her story is yet another reason we do the podcast each week – to help others whether they’ve been in the military or not. Margaux Mange is a living example that you can find a way to heal from PT...

There are simply too many positive things to say about Chris Van Etten to fit in this short intro, but what we will say is that his drive & motivation to move beyond his injuries & inspire others is infectious & invigorating. In 2012, while on patrol as a Marine in Afghanistan, Van Etten stepped on an IED. The blast took both of his legs as well as the life of his best friend. The accident took it...

Today we pick-up with Ryan Pitts’ story as the Anti-Afghan force begins their deadly and sustained assault on Pitts and his observation post, in the vicinity of Wanat Village, Kunar Province, Afghanistan on July 13, 2008! Support the podcast by supporting our sponsors at www.hazardground.com/sponsors! If you like the show, please subscribe/rate/review on iTunes! It helps the show tremendously, and...

On the one year anniversary of Hazard Ground, it’s probably fitting that we share part one of the two part story of how Staff Sergeant Ryan M. Pitts received the Medal of Honor for his actions in combat. His is a story that defines the reason we do the podcast every week – to tell the stories of service, sacrifice, of unbreakable spirit, and strength in the face of insurmountable odds, with the ho...

We should consider ourselves fortunate to have someone like Scott Huesing to carry on the story of the brave men of Echo Company, 2nd Battalion, 4th Marines who fought daily in Ramadi, Iraq from the winter of 2006 to early 2007. During that period, Ramadi was considered the deadliest city in Iraq. Huesing and his Marines likened it to living in Hell. Scott Huesing served for over 24 years in the M...

Joining the military had been a lifelong dream for Nick Irving. He even knew from a young age that he wanted to be a sniper, taking BB gun shots at just about every inanimate object in his neighborhood, using his homemade ghillie suit as camouflage. And like many who know they want to be a part of the best the military has to offer, Nick set out in high school to join the elite Special Operations...

Jason Beighley is a special breed of soldier. He has over 17 years experience serving and excelling in the U.S. Army’s top tier Special Operations units. Looking for a greater challenge and more fulfilling job in the military, he worked to join those units, and would soon find himself involved in combat and high-stakes engagements with the enemy. One of those engagements was the Battle of Mogadish...

Dr. Julia D. Dye is an author and the VP and CFO of Warriors, Inc., “the entertainment industry’s premiere military advising company.”  She also runs Warriors Publishing Group with her husband, retired Marine, and star of such iconic war films as “Platoon” and “Saving Private Ryan”….And former Hazard Ground guest, Dale Dye. Julia also holds a Ph. D. in Theatrical Hoplology – a field which combines...

As a young infantryman, Jesse Yandell knew he wanted to serve with the best units the U.S. Army had to offer - with soldiers who had the desire to take on more and always push further than the rest. He settled on the elite soldiers of the 75th Ranger Regiment. Once in, he never looked back, serving 15 combat deployments with the Rangers, and eventually reaching the position of Company First Sergea...

Having decided that eight years of medical school was not the right fit for him, and stung by a desire to do something immediately more challenging with his life, Robert Disney dropped out of college to join the Air Force to become a Pararescue specialist, more commonly known as a "PJ." The PJs primary mission is to rescue, recover, and/or provide medical aid to downed air crews anywhere in the wo...

A self-described hellion growing up, Kirstie Ennis has always had the fire inside of her to overcome virtually any obstacle. That trait was put to the test on June 23, 2012, when the helicopter she was a door gunner on crashed in Afghanistan while performing combat resupplies. Kirstie, the daughter of two Marines, had planned to stay in the Marine Corps for a full career. The injuries she sustaine...

They're father and son, bonded by war. Both of them, Marines. The father fought in Vietnam, during one of the most violent periods of that conflict. The son did the same in Iraq. For the longest time, the son only knew that his dad was Alvin Bert Grantham, or "A.B." as he's known, the wounded Marine on the tank in one of the most iconic photographs from the Vietnam War. The photo of A.B. Grantham...