For When The Great Scorer Comes To Write Against Your Name...
For When The Great Scorer Comes To Write Against Your Name...
He writes not that you won or lost, but how you played the game. -Grantland Rice (Part 1 of 3)
As the pieces of the earth rained back down to the scorched ground below, the ringing sound pulsing through his ear drums, and the out-of-focus white light dimming to a sleepy darkness, Gabriel stood nose-to-nose with the face of death. Was he dead? Was he the newest casualty of America’s longest war?
The IED had just sent Marine Corporal Gabriel Palacios 50 ft. from the explosion where moments before he and his team were doing a “V Sweep” of the area on foot rather than in a more protected Husky/ MATV with a V-shaped hull that disperses kinetic energy to protect the souls inside.
On March 6th, 2010, Gabe was leading a newly formed squad through an IED sweep outside of the wire during the Battle of Marjah, a Taliban stronghold that had developed 8 years deep into the Afghanistan War. He was called to lead this particular group because their former leader had recently been killed by an IED.
In an effort to avoid IED’s for US and ally troop movement, they stuck close to “Wadis”, or dry river beds found in the region. Gabe and his partner were scanning the bank of a Wadi when their detectors reacted to a potential hazard. Following protocol and training, Gabe and his counterpart backed up 10 steps to rescan the area and find what was setting off the detectors. Gabe’s partner then took a first step forward again and stepped on a pressure plate, instantly sending him 30 feet backward into the Wadi as the IED detonated. Gabe took a big hit from the kinetic force and it sent him 50 feet out of the Wadi.
Slowly, the world started coming back into focus as he lie on the ground. He began assessing his body. All limbs were intact and he had not suffered any significant shrapnel wounds. What he had done, and not realized at the time, was land on his feet and legs which took the brunt of the force from the explosion. As Gabe tried to regain focus and mental clarity, he heard the noises that no soldier wants to hear: whistles and cracks of bullets. Around 10 Taliban fighters engaged in an ambush on the American troops, while Gabe lay wounded and disoriented in the open battlefield.
With the help of members from his unit, Gabe was able to get back down into the Wadi while the firefight continued. Eventually, the Taliban retreated into the poppy farmlands nearby and Gabe was able to get safely back to base.
It wasn’t until Gabe was able to be evacuated from the war zone and back to the United States before the injuries he sustained were revealed:
Two fractured hips
Left knee patella fracture
Left knee tendon
Extensive nerve damage from his left knee to his ankle
L1-S3 spinal injury
Dislocated jaw
“Major” TBI (highest rated concussion)
Gabe never returned to the battlefields and retired from the Marine Corp in October of 2016. Any time we hear of the bravery exhibited by our men and women that protect our freedom, we pause and wonder what we would do if we were in their shoes. But, as you are about to read, this was one of many selfless and extraordinary events of my new friend, Gabriel “Pistachio” Palacios’s life.
PART 1: A Chance Encounter
(September22, 2022) I had just finished an incredible day at the beautiful Paiute Golf Resort located about 25 minutes from the Las Vegas strip. We had shot our 5th episode of the Celebrity Golf Classic, a one-hour pre-taped show that airs on Peacock. In addition to the production crew filming actors Rob Riggle and Flex Alexander taking on UFC star Justin Gaethje and football great Willie Gault, we also hosted over 100 military and first responders for a Captain’s Choice tournament.
After a few laughs with the hilarious influencer, Manolo, as the event came to a close, I opened my Uber app to get a ride back to the strip for myself and a few colleagues. It didn’t look promising that this was going to be a quick exit because it was close to 5pm and rides were estimated over an hour away.
I noticed that one of the few people left at the event was a quiet and polite gentleman that sat at my table during the meal that everyone enjoyed after the round. I went over to check on him and see if he, too, needed a ride.
As I began walking toward him from across the room, he returned the gesture and began walking toward me. I immediately noticed that he had a significant limp. My heart warmed with the probable understanding that he was a wounded veteran.
“Tell me your name again?” I said with an outreached hand.
He shook my hand and smiled and returned, “Gabe, sir.”
“Do you need a ride out of here as well?”
“No sir. I have my car. Do you need a ride?”
I absolutely did, but did not want to put the burden of a 30 minute drive on my new acquaintance. I politely responded, “We are trying to figure it out right now, but no, I think we will be ok.”
Gabe doubled down and notified me that he lives just off of the strip and it would not be out of his way to take me and anyone else that could fit in the car a ride home. After some polite back and forth, I finally and affirmingly said, “Gabe, the Uber rides are a pretty good way's off, a ride would be tremendous. I have two others with me, though.”
“Not a problem, sir. I will meet you guys at the bag drop.”
Minutes later, two of my colleagues and I were in the car with our new friend Gabe and heading back toward the strip. The ride went well over 30 minutes but flew by as Gabe, an absolutely wonderful storyteller, educated us about Afghanistan, his jaw dropping frightening role in the war, and the relationship with Afghanistan people.
As we approached the Planet Hollywood resort, Gabe was telling us about the unspoken mission which was that the US Troops were largely on a peace and trust mission with the villagers and the children of Afghanistan. They were critical resources for the US. That carefully constructed trust returned critical information. Kids as young as seven had the ability to warn US servicemen and women of any plans or presence of the Taliban.
As we parked and exchanged numbers (I was fascinated by his demeanor and gift of telling a story) he asked if he could show a picture of what he felt the war was all about. You know the saying… a picture is worth a thousand words. In this case, I believe that to be an undervalued estimate.
Here is the image:
As I exited the car, thanking him over and over for giving us a ride back to the resort, I leaned back into the car and asked, “There’s more to your story, isn’t there?”
Gabe smiled, glancing ahead before turning back, almost as if to decide how he would answer the question. “Yessir. Plenty.”
“I want to tell it. Can we do that?”
“It would be an honor, sir.” One more handshake and good-bye and Gabe drove off. I looked at my colleagues and said, “He has a story, I can feel it.”
Beginning two weeks ago, Gabe and I have spent over 5 hours on the phone going through a life enriched with selflessness, grit, determination, setbacks, and triumphs. Parts of his story highlighted the fears of not seeing a purpose while others showed what the human mind can do and endure with a defined purpose in-hand.
After each conversation, I left the call enamored by the content of the call. The words of early 20th century sports writer, Grantland Rice, which are used in the movie “Bobby Jones: Stroke of Genius”, keep surfacing in my mind as the only way to really pay tribute to a life journey that I assure you, you will find hard to believe. Rice wrote, “When the great scorer comes to write against your name, he writes not that you won or lost, but how you played the game.” Gabe has played a beautiful and selfless game… and he’s not done yet.
I will finish the first part of this series with Gabe’s own words that he wrote in 2014. I believe this sets up for the journey we as fortunate recipients of his storytelling will venture into over the next week. And yes, this road leads us right back to golf, purpose, and success. I am honored to tell Gabe’s story.
“Something given has little or no intrinsic value versus something earned. In my life, I have been given little, but have worked and fought to earn every scrap of anything I have ever accomplished. In most cases I was told I could not accomplish something because I was not smart enough, I was too big, or too old. Through perseverance and persistence I have continually proved every critic wrong. Whether they doubted me as a challenge knowing I could succeed, or as a doubter of my abilities; I have proven to them that the easiest way to get me to succeed in something is to tell me I cannot do it.”
-Gabriel Palacios
Part 2 of this story will post on Friday, November 4th! As we enter a time of giving thanks, the timing of this post is spot-on.
Photos taken by Gabriel Palacios:
