Risk Management Magazine

As a senior NCO, I had the opportunity to influence many Soldiers over the years. Sometimes, however, my junior Soldiers impressed me instead of the other way around. One young Soldier affected the rest of my career — and even saved my life — by insisting on rehearsing rollover battle drills.

Here’s a quiz: Which four-wheeled vehicle is among the toughest, hardest-working and has, at times, a center of gravity several feet off the ground? If you guessed monster truck, you’d be wrong. The correct answer is forklift.

I am the supervisor of a field maintenance shop and have been in the military for more than 20 years. Driving and riding in automobiles and trucks is an everyday occurrence. What happened on this day, however, forever changed my view of driving.