Patriot to the Core

Sept 29, 2020 is the 10th anniversary of Mark Forester’s death in Afghanistan. The picture in this post is Mark’s body being taken from the C-17 at Dover AFB for the Dignified Transfer. My guest is General Robert Armfield who was Mark’s group commander in 2010. Armfield was also at Dover when Mark’s body arrived, […]

Dan Skidmore spent nine years as an Air Force combat controller. As a member of this elite group, he deployed to Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and other locations across the globe. He is a member of Force Blue , which unites the community of Special Operations veterans with the world of marine conservation for the betterment […]

Today Mark’s friend and teammate tells us what it was like to get the news of Mark’s death, how he got a risky flight out of his FOB and met up with Mark so he could escort his buddy back to the states as part of the Angel Flight. This episode is solely about Bobby […]

It seemed Linda Ambard was the last person to find out about her husband, Maj. Philip Ambard’s death. The media knew, her co-workers knew and even some of her children found out via social media. Linda shares why her late husband immigrated to the United States, learned English, along with 7 other languages, and then […]

I know I’m not the only one who is getting an increased amount of target marketing on alternatives to gyms. Our current situation that has caused gyms to close didn’t change my routine at all b/c I don’t rely on one. The reason; my exercise strategy changed when I began following Mark Lauren’s programs in […]

Most of you have heard of Chris Kyle or seen the movie “American Sniper“, directed by Clint Eastwood. It was a very popular book and movie. But I always wondered about his brother Jeff. What made him serve in the military? How close were he and Chris and how did Chris’ death affect him? Today […]

“Cowardice and courage; both are infectious. The Hong Kongers are showing a lot of courage.” Michael Yon (Instagram Michael_yon_world) is back on the show to discuss what’s going on it Hong Kong. We get into some deep history on China, Taiwan and Hong Kong, as well as talk its comparison to Poland in the 80’s. […]

Woody Williams will never forget the odor of burning human remains. “There are some things about that 4 hours that have bothered me my whole life… I can’t remember going back and getting the other 5 flamethrowers.  It was so horrific, I didn’t want to remember.” I was introduced to death by flamethrower after learning […]

Nic is a former Air Force Pararescueman (PJ) and Country Chief for a special unit within the CIA. During his career he witnessed the epidemic of child trafficking within illegal markets and recognized the opportunity to apply his training to influence this global crisis. How do he and his organization, DeliverFund, do this? By equipping, […]

On this 9th anniversary of the death of Mark Forester, I talk with our dad and sister. Obviously this is more of a personal episode where we talk about Mark at various stages in life and Dad and Terri’s relationship with him. You may not know it by pictures or only knowing Mark as an […]

When Lauren Sisler’s phone rang at 3 am, she never expected her father to say that her mother had died. When her plane landed in Virginia that same day, all she wanted was a big hug from her dad, only he wasn’t there. In those few hours, he had died too. Today, this ESPN and […]

Renee Nickell’s brother, Major Samuel Griffith, was killed-in-action in Dec, 2011. Since then, she’s gone thru many dark valleys and has found healing by writing a book: “Always My Hero” about her older brother and best friend. With her appearance last week on Home and Family, and her radio, podcast and TV tour this past […]

In the predawn hours of March 4, 2002, just below the 10,000-foot peak of a mountain in Afghanistan, a fierce battle raged. Outnumbered by Al Qaeda fighters, Air Force Combat Controller John Chapman and a handful of SEALs struggled to take the summit in a desperate bid to find a lost teammate. Chapman, leading the […]

If you search for Justin Carroll on the web, you will find very little about him–and good luck finding a picture of his face. This former Marine is now a security and privacy consultant. Carroll stresses that it’s not about hiding anything, but protecting our information. In his early days he transitioned from Force Recon […]

  Sammy Davis joined the Army because he loved his daddy. He wanted to make him and his grandads proud.  He was just a kid out of high school.  If he hadn’t joined the Army, he wanted to be a member of Hell’s Angels.      Regarding war protestors at SFO I asked, “Did you look […]

“Dear God, I wish I could have been on one of those planes.  Maybe I could have made a difference.” (spoken by the sheepdogs; the warriors). What do you ask the expert in the study of the psychology of killing? Among the many things we discuss today are the differences between sheep, wolves and sheepdogs.  […]

Today is 8 years since Mark was killed in Afghanistan.  Although we were notified in person by his teammates and leadership, there were still many unanswered questions–details no one who wasn’t there could personally share. Major Wes Wilson was the ODA Detachment Commander when Mark was killed.  Their team had split up and Wes was […]

“If we don’t try to rescue the boys, we’ll be giving them a death sentence.” On June 23, 2018, a team of 12 boys — who were all between the ages of 11 and 16 — had just finished a weekly soccer practice and went to explore a cave with their coach. But after they’d […]

Back on the show is former Air Force combat controller (CCT) Mark Lauren.  In episode 40, we discussed his early life, time in military and how he implemented his workouts in the CCT pipeline.  Now, we’re talking a little more about how he observed that the fitness industry at large was backward, ineffective, and unsustainable […]

“As a senior AH-64D Longbow Apache aviator rated as Pilot in Command and qualified as Air Mission Commander, I have never witnessed such an act of heroism in my three years of fighting in combat…. My only regret is that I was unable to prevent Jag 28’s death.  I will carry that burden indefinitely.  Jag […]

Since The Mark Forester Foundation’s annual race and 28-mile birthday walk is May 19, I wanted to have family friend and race director Lauren Tinker on the show.  Lauren shares why she wants to lead the races each year and what Mark Forester means to her.  She and her family dedicate countless hours throughout the […]

I first learned of Brant Ireland in an ESPN interview prior to the 2017 Warrior Games.  That’s when I knew he needed to be on the show. Here he is sharing how he made it thru the grueling pipeline to become a Green Beret, then loosing his leg in a bazaar accident in Afghanistan in 2013.  Ireland […]

Ever wondered if your deceased father received any awards for valor while serving in the military?  Ever been told a relative received a medal, but you’ve never seen it?  Or, do you feel someone is flat-out lying to you about their service accomplishments?  My guest today is helping answer all those questions.  Doug Sterner has created a […]

Justin Roberts is our first Chaplain on the show.  I thought we were going to mainly talk about his new movie, “No Greater Love“, but I also got educated on the emotional roller coaster roles of an Army Chaplain. Roberts, the director and producer of No Greater Love, has experienced the reality of war and its aftermath […]

Matt Larsen is the most successful hand-to-hand combat trainer and program developer in history.  Regarded as the father of the Modern Army Combatives Program (MACP), Larsen overhauled the Army’s hand-to-hand combat doctrine by rewriting the Combatives field manual in 2002 and updated the manual in 2009. Larsen shared with me his background and why the Combatives Field […]