Constant Combat

Ramadi Podcast

This veteran-led podcast highlights the experiences of Weapons Company, 2nd Battalion, 4th Marines, starting with their harrowing 2004 deployment to Ramadi; a 9 month combat tour which resulted in the highest casualties in a single deployment - a deployment that most Americans have never heard about. Through candid conversations surrounding these events, the series also explores earlier experiences that shaped the Marines, emphasizing their grit, humor, and humanity while aiming to honor their stories authentically.

  1. 15 MAI

    When Optimism Meets Combat - Elijah Mann (part 1 of 2)

    Send us Fan Mail This interview starts out with Eli Mann about arriving in Ramadi in 2004 and watching early optimism get replaced by a new kind of focus built from heat, mortars, and the grind of convoy life. He walks us through a bicycle IED, the long recovery missions, and the small moments of humor and music.  • first days at Hurricane Point and adapting to the squad bay life  • downtime rituals, music, writing, and the pranks • incoming mortars, near misses • the bicycle IED and the shock of civilian reactions  • switching roles from dismount to driver and up-armored Humvees  • QRF missions, overwatch at key sites, and seeing death up close  • searching the Euphrates River for missing Marines, the toll of exhaustion  • recovering fallen Marines, rumors, media presence • the mosque incident, the sandstorm, and leadership moments If you like what you've heard, this is a multi part episode. Make sure you listen to the rest of the story.  ---------------------------------------------- If you like what you heard, please subscribe on your favorite podcast service or follow our webpage for direct downloads @ https://www.buzzsprout.com/2525088 If you are a member of Weapons Company or someone with a story about Weapons Company 2/4 in 2004, please come tell some stories with us - 20 mins or 20 hours! Help paint the canvas of an archival story for others to know what it was like. Contact us @ RamadiPodcast@gmail.com, or via the podcast website above.  All music used with permission by soundbay: https://www.youtube.com/@soundbay_RFM

    40 min

  2. 15 MAI

    When Optimism Meets Combat - Elijah Mann (part 2 of 2)

    Send us Fan Mail Part 2 of Eli Mann and he paints how a brand-new Marine grows up fast, from early training and culture shocks to the hard specifics of 2004. His story gets  into fear, guilt, and communication breakdowns, then land on what “constant vigilance” really means when you carry the lessons forward.  • arriving to the unit as a PFC and feeling "lost in the sauce"  • March Air Force Base and Mount Town training • the value of practical hip-pocket classes  • April cordon and search missions • casualties that shape the platoon and rumors that spread in the hooch  • VBIED warnings and comms choke points  • late July and August tension rising and the fear of VBIED tactics  • coming home on the Freedom Bird • leadership influences and the lesson of staying alert ---------------------------------------------- If you like what you heard, please subscribe on your favorite podcast service or follow our webpage for direct downloads @ https://www.buzzsprout.com/2525088 If you are a member of Weapons Company or someone with a story about Weapons Company 2/4 in 2004, please come tell some stories with us - 20 mins or 20 hours! Help paint the canvas of an archival story for others to know what it was like. Contact us @ RamadiPodcast@gmail.com, or via the podcast website above.  All music used with permission by soundbay: https://www.youtube.com/@soundbay_RFM

    41 min

  3. 13 MAI

    Fast Track to the Front Line - James Anderson (part 1 of 2)

    Send us Fan Mail We talk with Jim Anderson from Mobile Assault Platoon 2 about getting rerouted from SOI into a combat replacement pipeline and how a brand-new Marine earns a place in a weapons platoon through truck workups, call signs, brutal first contacts, and the relentless tempo. Jim also reflects on being a “replacement” and the quiet ways that can shape belonging, pride, and memory when a unit has already been through intense fighting.  • getting pulled for deployment at the end of SOI to Combat Replacement Company 2  • the rushed gear-up cycle, hurry up and wait • the journey through Kuwait and Al-Asad with no clear assignment • arriving at Hurricane Point at night and meeting the platoon • early lessons on IED awareness, five and twenty-fives, and rookie mistakes  • learning the M240 and TOW routines  • first major contact, comms failure, and pushing through an ambush  • movement to contact fights, rooftop shooters, and the reality of urban density on combat operations.  • the long view on Ramadi’s pace, identity as a replacement, and what gets forgotten  If you like what you've heard, this is a multi-part episode. Make sure you listen to the rest of the story.  ---------------------------------------------- If you like what you heard, please subscribe on your favorite podcast service or follow our webpage for direct downloads @ https://www.buzzsprout.com/2525088 If you are a member of Weapons Company or someone with a story about Weapons Company 2/4 in 2004, please come tell some stories with us - 20 mins or 20 hours! Help paint the canvas of an archival story for others to know what it was like. Contact us @ RamadiPodcast@gmail.com, or via the podcast website above.  All music used with permission by soundbay: https://www.youtube.com/@soundbay_RFM

    56 min

  4. 13 MAI

    Fast Track to the Front Line - James Anderson (part 2 of 2)

    Send us Fan Mail We pick up Part 2 with James Anderson as he connects the experience of Ramadi 2004 to the weird contrast of other people's big bases outside of town, ship life, and the small moments that define a deployment. We talk reintegration, leadership that actually shows up for Marines, and how combat reshapes training, responsibility, and the meaning of brotherhood.  • carrying Ramadi lessons forward  • feeling the surreal safety of large bases compared to city outposts  • getting tested by leadership games, inter-service friction  • finding normal life inside the hooch   • navigating family contact and never knowing the real timeline  • First Sergeant Mack as a leader who knows his Marines  • coming home, and a first night lapse in judgement • learning why post-combat training feels fake  • fighting morale-killing busywork • reliving a rocket strike, a fire, a working party gone wrong, and a near miss injury  • naming the Marines who stood out, the value of reunions, and what it all means  ---------------------------------------------- If you like what you heard, please subscribe on your favorite podcast service or follow our webpage for direct downloads @ https://www.buzzsprout.com/2525088 If you are a member of Weapons Company or someone with a story about Weapons Company 2/4 in 2004, please come tell some stories with us - 20 mins or 20 hours! Help paint the canvas of an archival story for others to know what it was like. Contact us @ RamadiPodcast@gmail.com, or via the podcast website above.  All music used with permission by soundbay: https://www.youtube.com/@soundbay_RFM

    1 h 1 min

  5. 8 MAI

    A Ground Pounder in the Gun Line - David Escalante

    Send us Fan Mail Its a flurry of moments from David Escalante to trace his path from a half rations private to a combat-tested Marine in Ramadi in 2004. He talks us through the moments that are still clear in his mind, from incoming mortars and raids, to taking contact on the bridge posts.  • landing in 81s without mortar training • pre-deployment training memories  • the flight over, Kuwait heat, and the convoy into Iraq • arriving at Hurricane Point and settling into task cycles • first KIAs, early missions • firefights, door kicks • raids with Army soldiers and the confusion of who gets credit • bridge watch, seeing air support, and hearing the fight from a post • hooch life, smoke breaks, cards, workouts, and calling home under incoming • the round that hits his flak jacket and what it felt like in the moment • IED pressure, EOD waits, wire hazards in turrets, and tough QRF recoveries • coming home, delayed processing, and leading junior Marines on later deployments ---------------------------------------------- If you like what you heard, please subscribe on your favorite podcast service or follow our webpage for direct downloads @ https://www.buzzsprout.com/2525088 If you are a member of Weapons Company or someone with a story about Weapons Company 2/4 in 2004, please come tell some stories with us - 20 mins or 20 hours! Help paint the canvas of an archival story for others to know what it was like. Contact us @ RamadiPodcast@gmail.com, or via the podcast website above.  All music used with permission by soundbay: https://www.youtube.com/@soundbay_RFM

    1 h 11 min

  6. 4 MAI

    What Happens After You Accept Death - William Webster (part 1 of 2)

    Send us Fan Mail We talk with William Webster about arriving as a brand-new Marine and getting rushed into a Ramadi deployment where the mission keeps changing and the gear never feels caught up. Billy relives the night of April 4, the first major casualty for weapons company, and what it does to you when there is no time to grieve but you still have to roll out again.  • getting rerouted after SOI and joining a depleted unit  • the shock of meeting the platoon then hearing Iraq is next month  • pre-deployment training and the long chain of travel into theater  • first impressions of Iraq  • Humvee vulnerability, exposed gunners and learning gear midstream  • insurgency realities and changing rules of engagement  • early missions, driver skill and why convoy discipline matters  • April 4 RPG attack • making peace with mortality  • grieving, lessons learned, and building new SOP If you like what you've heard, this is a multi part episode. Make sure you listen to the rest of the story. ---------------------------------------------- If you like what you heard, please subscribe on your favorite podcast service or follow our webpage for direct downloads @ https://www.buzzsprout.com/2525088 If you are a member of Weapons Company or someone with a story about Weapons Company 2/4 in 2004, please come tell some stories with us - 20 mins or 20 hours! Help paint the canvas of an archival story for others to know what it was like. Contact us @ RamadiPodcast@gmail.com, or via the podcast website above.  All music used with permission by soundbay: https://www.youtube.com/@soundbay_RFM

    57 min

  7. 4 MAI

    What Happens After You Accept Death - William Webster (part 2 of 2)

    Send us Fan Mail Part 2 with Billy Webster from Mobile Assault Platoon 2 and trace the days when contact kept stacking, ammo ran low, and every decision started to feel permanent. He also talks honestly about what follows you home, how we cope in the quiet moments, and why asking for help can be the most disciplined thing you do.  William shares what he saw, what he did, and what he still carries, including the detail that the last things you do might matter more than you realize. • April 6 as QRF and the shock of casualties  • Foot patrol IED sweeps • Relieving pinned-down Marines and evacuating wounded  • A house breach that almost killed a family  • April 10 cordon operations • The checkpoint pickup with blood and bodies  • Taking over as a gunner • Getting shot... and then staying in the turret  • Calling home after being wounded • Hooch life pranks and small rituals that kept him going • PTSD years later, funerals, brotherhood, and choosing therapy  ---------------------------------------------- If you like what you heard, please subscribe on your favorite podcast service or follow our webpage for direct downloads @ https://www.buzzsprout.com/2525088 If you are a member of Weapons Company or someone with a story about Weapons Company 2/4 in 2004, please come tell some stories with us - 20 mins or 20 hours! Help paint the canvas of an archival story for others to know what it was like. Contact us @ RamadiPodcast@gmail.com, or via the podcast website above.  All music used with permission by soundbay: https://www.youtube.com/@soundbay_RFM

    58 min

  8. 29 AVR.

    Never was a Good Knife Made of Bad Steel - Curtis Neill (part 1 of 3)

    Send us Fan Mail Curt Neill walks us down the strange chain of events that takes him from reenlisting before 9/11 to getting promoted so fast that Headquarters Marine Corps later flags it as a mistake. Then we rewind and fast-forward through Panama, Desert Storm, and Ramadi to pull out the leadership decisions and combat realities.  • reenlisting after a long break and landing back at Camp Pendleton  • NJP fallout and the long climb back  • a former drill instructor reappearing as First Sergeant  • a “mystery” promotion and the email saying it never should have happened  • moving from the armory into platoon roles • mentoring Marines and why fear-based leadership backfires  • Panama jungle training turning into real-world combat posture  • pre-deployment MOUT training and early CQB lessons  • Desert Storm gas threat memories  • convoying into Ramadi and how the first IED changes everything  • April missions, Morris getting hit, and the pace of no sleep  • tracking a blood trail to a house a Ramadi If you like what you've heard, this is a multi part episode. Make sure you listen to the rest of the story.  ---------------------------------------------- If you like what you heard, please subscribe on your favorite podcast service or follow our webpage for direct downloads @ https://www.buzzsprout.com/2525088 If you are a member of Weapons Company or someone with a story about Weapons Company 2/4 in 2004, please come tell some stories with us - 20 mins or 20 hours! Help paint the canvas of an archival story for others to know what it was like. Contact us @ RamadiPodcast@gmail.com, or via the podcast website above.  All music used with permission by soundbay: https://www.youtube.com/@soundbay_RFM

    55 min
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Notes et avis

5
sur 5
8 notes

À propos

This veteran-led podcast highlights the experiences of Weapons Company, 2nd Battalion, 4th Marines, starting with their harrowing 2004 deployment to Ramadi; a 9 month combat tour which resulted in the highest casualties in a single deployment - a deployment that most Americans have never heard about. Through candid conversations surrounding these events, the series also explores earlier experiences that shaped the Marines, emphasizing their grit, humor, and humanity while aiming to honor their stories authentically.

Informations

  • Création
    Ramadi Podcast
  • Années d’activité
    2025 - 2026
  • Épisodes
    87
  • Classification
    Contenu explicite
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Constant Combat
  • Site web de l’émission
    Constant Combat

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