There are things in life that just seem to fit together perfectly. Macaroni and cheese. Thunder and lightning. Arnold Schwarzenegger and tanks.
Long before he was the "Governator" of California, prior to the "Austrian Oak" becoming the world-famous action star he is today, and even before he was winning Mr. Olympia bodybuilding ******* les, Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger was in the Austrian Army learning to drive tanks.
His fascination with the big armored combat vehicle started when he was a child growing up in Thal, Austria. During an interview with Graham Bensinger in 2016, he recalled that the British occupied the region near his home after WWII and routinely drove by his house in big trucks and tanks. Soldiers would jump out and scan the area with their binoculars making sure the coast was clear, then move along.
As the occupying force, these soldiers were trained to reach out to the Austrian community and treat them well so they wouldn't be considered enemies. Schwarzenegger said the British soldiers were always good to the kids. They gave them candy and put them up on top of the tanks so they could play around.
When he joined the Austrian Army at 18, Schwarzenegger naturally wanted to become a tanker. The one he trained in was the 1951 M-47 Patton with an 810-horsepower Chrysler V12 twin-turbo gas engine. According to Arnold, the 50-ton beast is 28 feet long and 11 feet high, and it was initially built for use in the Korean War before it was given to the Austrian Army.
#austrian #british #long
Long before he was the "Governator" of California, prior to the "Austrian Oak" becoming the world-famous action star he is today, and even before he was winning Mr. Olympia bodybuilding ******* les, Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger was in the Austrian Army learning to drive tanks.
His fascination with the big armored combat vehicle started when he was a child growing up in Thal, Austria. During an interview with Graham Bensinger in 2016, he recalled that the British occupied the region near his home after WWII and routinely drove by his house in big trucks and tanks. Soldiers would jump out and scan the area with their binoculars making sure the coast was clear, then move along.
As the occupying force, these soldiers were trained to reach out to the Austrian community and treat them well so they wouldn't be considered enemies. Schwarzenegger said the British soldiers were always good to the kids. They gave them candy and put them up on top of the tanks so they could play around.
When he joined the Austrian Army at 18, Schwarzenegger naturally wanted to become a tanker. The one he trained in was the 1951 M-47 Patton with an 810-horsepower Chrysler V12 twin-turbo gas engine. According to Arnold, the 50-ton beast is 28 feet long and 11 feet high, and it was initially built for use in the Korean War before it was given to the Austrian Army.
#austrian #british #long
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