2012 Milbloggies: Vote for Red Bull Rising!

The Red Bull Rising blog is a finalist under the "Reporter" category of Sixth Annual Milbloggies awards, conducted by Milblogging.com. In the "People's Choice"-style contest, readers vote for their favorite military-themed blogs.

Categories range from Army, Air Force, Navy, Marines, and Coast Guard blogs, to those written by military parents, spouses, supporters, and veterans. Voting starts Tues., April 17 and ends Fri., April 20.

To vote for the Red Bull Rising blog in the 2012 Milbloggies' "Reporter" category, click here.

To follow the Red Bull Rising blog on Facebook, click here.

In 2011, the Red Bull Rising blog was a finalist in the "Veteran" category. That year, nominations occurred slightly before the blog's writer embedded as civilian media with the Iowa National Guard's 2nd Brigade Combat Team (B.C.T.), 34th Infantry "Red Bull" Division (2-34th BCT) in Eastern Afghanistan.

"The Milbloggies competition always seems to be fierce, friendly, and fiercely friendly," says Charlie Sherpa, the pseudonymous writer of Red Bull Rising. "It's no-Bull to say that it's an honor just to have Red Bull Rising appear alongside some real mil-blogging mainstays."

Sherpa noted there was no category specifically addressing his experiences as a "recovering journalist, Army veteran, self-appointed unit historian, and court jester."

According to the Red Bull Rising website, the missions of the blog are:

• To explain in plain language the roles, responsibilities, and routines of the U.S. citizen-soldier, with particular focus on the U.S. 34th Infantry "Red Bull" Division.

• To illuminate ways in which citizen-soldiers past and present--as well as their families--can be remembered, supported, and celebrated.

"I keep a pretty tight shot group on content, and aim to provide a mix of news, humor, and first-person lessons that communicate the citizen-soldier experience," says Sherpa. "The journey has been an enlightening one for me: starting in 2009, starting out with pre-deployment and mobilization training, to actions on the ground and life downrange, to homecoming topics such as family reintegration, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (P.T.S.D.), remembering the fallen, and civilian unemployment."

Exploring the 2-34th BCT "Red Bull" story has illuminated experiences universally shared by citizen-soldiers and their families, Sherpa says, including those of:

• Vermont's 86th BCT, deployed to Eastern Afghanistan, 2009-2010.

• Oklahoma's 45th BCT "Thunderbird", deployed to Eastern Afghanistan, 2011-2012.

• Minnesota's 1-34th BCT "Red Bull", deployed to Iraq 2005-2007; Iraq/Kuwait 2011-2012.

• Ohio's 37th BCT "Buckeye," currently deployed to Northern Afghanistan.

Winners will be announced at the 2012 Milblog Conference in Alexandria, Va., May 11-12. The Milbloggies contest is sponsored by USAA.

Nominees in other categories include some "usual suspects" from the Red Bull Rising blog roll, including:

• U.S. Army: "Afghan Blue III," written by a U.S. National Guard soldier with Ohio's 37th BCT, currently in Northern Afghanistan on his third overseas deployment.

• U.S. Marine: "Castra Praetoria" written by the recently promoted "America's Sergeant Major." Vote for him or the zombies win.

• U.S. Military Parent: "My Yellow Ribbon," written by a proud Red Bull parent who is also a previous winner in that category.

• U.S. Military Spouse: "The Kitchen Dispatch."

• U.S. Military Supporter: "Assoluta Tranquillita."

For a list of all finalists and categories, click here.

To vote in all categories, click here. Polls close Fri., April 20, at 7 p.m. EDT/4 p.m. PDT. Voting is limited to one per IP address.

For more rules and Frequently Asked Questions (F.A.Q.) about the 2012 Milbloggies, click here.