FARGO, N.D. - Sgt. Matt J. Walstad is as comfortable behind the wheel of a 10-ton bridge-boat hauler as he is at the helm of a 12-person reconnaissance raft in rough waters.
Walstad, 22, with the 957th Liaison Monitoring Team (LMT) of Bismarck, N.D., has gotten plenty of chances to prove his proficiency on the road and in the water while fighting floods in Fargo as a volunteer with the North Dakota National Guard.
Experience and practice in the driver's seat is key, he says.
"Everywhere we go, we do convoy and drivers' training with our trucks," Walstad said. "Luckily, I've seen what this truck can do previous to this."
Walstad, a member of the Guard's river rescue team, was referring to the HEMTT (Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Truck) combat bridge truck (CBT) he was driving March 24 on a mission to retrieve a Humvee submerged in high water in the Oxbow area south of Fargo.
About two miles into the mission, Walstad noticed the Guard cargo truck ahead of him began to swerve wildly as it crossed the interchange bridge over Interstate 29 at Cass County Road 20.
Before he could react, his truck, which was carrying an MK2 bridge erection boat, started to slide, too.
"I'd say we were at a 45-degree angle and the boat was hanging off the bridge," he said.
Walstad said his instincts immediately kicked in and he calmly corrected and steered out of the slide, avoiding another vehicle by only a few feet in the process.
Had the truck slid completely out of control, things could have been catastrophic, as the truck length is much wider than the bridge and its wheels are twice as tall as the side rails.
"At the time, we didn't think anything of it," Walstad said about himself and his assistant driver, "but five miles later, we both looked at each other, like, 'what happened back there?'
"Obviously, the adrenalin had kicked in and we didn't realize it until later."
Staff Sgt. Matt Mitzel, also with the 957th LMT, said Walstad could have let his assistant driver take the wheel that night, but he knew that conditions warranted someone with a little more experience.
"He did what any good leader should do in that kind of situation," Mitzel said. "He stayed calm and was able to ride out the slide. That could only be done with a lot of training."
Walstad, who has served in the Guard for five years, was promoted to sergeant only one year ago. He has about four years of experience on bridge-boat haulers.
Walstad's adventure wasn't over after the bridge incident. On the way to Oxbow, the rescue team received incorrect directions and ended up driving through a two-foot-deep lake of floodwater over the road.
About 400 yards into the lake, it became obvious that it would be too much for even Walstad's massive eight-wheeler.
He quickly put the vehicle in reverse and slowly backed out of the crisis in darkness and with no reference points. The team redirected and was able to complete the mission at Oxbow.
In Sunday's early morning hours, Walstad's rescue team sprung into action again, when the emergency dike at Oak Grove Lutheran School buckled in north Fargo. This time, Walstad was able to show his prowess on the Zodiac reconnaissance raft.
The team took sandbags into the raft and placed them in strategic spots to fill the breach in the dike.
"(Walstad) was operating that boat," Mitzel said, "and if you mess up, even slightly, you're going to put a Soldier in the water."
Walstad said the trick to running the recon raft is to be easy on the throttle.
"You have to keep it in an upstream fashion, because if you get any current at all, it will swing it around in a way that you don't want it," Walstad said.
The breach was fixed, limiting water damage to the Oak Grove campus and sparing further damage to nearby neighborhoods.
Mitzel said that Walstad's coolness in high pressure situations impresses him, but doesn't surprise him.
"He's just a good NCO (noncommissioned officer)," Mitzel said. "He's soft spoken, but he's someone who knows how to take control."