Chapter 6

Monday was clear and cold so I could go for my run. I would vary my course but it always came out to about five miles. While running I wondered what I could do now that golf season was over. I didn’t have an interest in any other sports. I was going to learn Spanish, but it would only be one hour five days a week. Golf had taken three hours a day when including travel time to the country club, and weekends.

The particular route I was running today took me up by the Air Force radar station. This station was part of the “Pine Tree” line. It was the third line of defense after the “Dew Line,” and “Mid- Canada Line.” The base was surrounded by cyclone fencing with barbed wire on top, facing out to prevent intruders.

There was a gravel road around the inner perimeter, outside was all open fields, except for the west side, where there was a dirt road giving access to a farmers field running next to the fence. It was along this road that I ran, as part of my five-mile loop. Past the farmer’s field unlike the other sides of the base, a dense woods was adjacent to the road I ran.

The radome’s for the two large radar units were located on the peak of Campbell’s Hill. These were not at the center of the base, but right next to where I normally ran just inside the fencing.

On this particular day as I was running and thinking of my immediate future, I saw a reflection off some glass, back in the woods. I kept running, but it nagged at me. When I was down the road, and past a bend out of the sightline of the reflection I saw, I cut into the woods.

There I slowed down and went into stalking mode. I had hunted plenty with my Dad and knew how to move carefully enough not to disturb the game. I wasn’t sure why I was doing this, but it looked suspicious. The cold war had the entire country on edge for years; maybe that influenced my actions.

I walked normally trying not to make a lot of sounds. As I got closer to where I thought I had seen something I stopped. I watched the area for several minutes looking for any signs of movement. There were none so I cautiously advanced some more and stopped. I was rewarded for my caution, I saw movement ahead.

A man came into view carrying a camera with a telephoto lens. He was heading away from the airbase at this point.

I followed him, just keeping him in sight. As he came out of the woods there was an empty car sitting there. It was an old non-descript Chevrolet Bel Air, maybe 1952, it was a blue and white four-door sedan.

I watched as he got in, performed a three-point turn and drove away. I was close enough to see that the license plate was a yellow background with black numbers or letters. I couldn’t read the tag number or the state.

It was only a quarter-mile from where he was parked to State Road 540 which went into Bellefontaine, so I could see him make a left turn to go into town. I decided to change my running route and started after him. I knew I couldn’t catch him but I was still curious.

The run down Chillicothe was easy as it was downhill all the way. Of course, I didn’t catch him and hadn’t thought I would, but you never know. When I got to the bottom of the hill at the corner of Main, where the previous car wreck was, I turned right to head home.

I was passing the only motel in town, the Fountain Lodge when I spotted a blue and white Bel Air parked in front of one of the end units. I slowed down and saw the license plate was yellow with black numbers. It was from New York State.

I didn’t have a pen or paper with me so I tried to memorize it. I could see that wasn’t going to work so I went to the motel office. I knew the Sperry’s who ran the motel from my paper route days.

Lou Senior was at the front desk. I asked to borrow a pen and paper which he promptly provided. I wrote the plate number down.

He asked, “What’s going on Ricky?”

“I’m not certain, I just saw a car like the one parked outside, up real close to the airbase. It had plates like the one on the car, though I didn’t get the numbers up there.

He laughed, “Junior G-Man on the job.”

“Well you never know, I first saw him in the woods up close to the fence with a camera with a telephoto lens.”

“That is a concern.”

He looked in the guest register, and told me, “He has been staying here for three days and is not scheduled for check out for another two. What are you thinking of doing?”

“I’m going to let someone in authority know what I saw; it may have a good explanation.”

“Makes sense to me, who are you going to notify?”

“I think I will head back to the airbase and let them know. First I will have to head home, I do have school today, I will talk to my parents.”

“Okay, I will keep an eye on things here.”

“Thanks, Mr. Sperry.”

I headed home at a dead run uphill, the surprising thing was that it was not that hard on me. Mum and Dad were having their morning coffee and tea when I got home. I told them what I had seen on my run and thought I should let someone at the airbase know about it. They agreed; I took a quick shower and got dressed. Dad drove me out to the airbase.

At the front gate of the base, there was an armed guard, a sergeant. He asked what our business was. Dad told him it was a possible security breach.

That got us to the officer of the day immediately, a Captain Monroe. When he heard my story he called Colonel Manning the base commander.

We were taken to his sparsely furnished office, and I related the events of the morning once again. After hearing my story he pulled a fat binder off a bookshelf.

He stated, “Like everything in the military there are procedures to be followed.”

He thumbed through the binder until he found the section he was looking for. He then picked up his phone and dialed a number from the procedure book. As the phone was ringing at the other end, he explained.