Mike Drop

In the final part of this conversation, Tony Mayne shares the story he says he's never told publicly before—the loss of his soldier Hing Shaw to an IED, and the impossible decisions made in the seconds and hours that followed. Tony also opens up about being forced out by a medical board, the fight to stay in uniform, and the calling that led him to build Ranger transition and ministry programs for the veteran community. The conversation closes with reflections on accountability, faith, retirement, and what it truly means to give back after a life of service.

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In Part 2, former Army Ranger Tony Mayne takes us deep into the objective and execution of the Haditha Dam mission—one of the most heavily defended objectives of the early Iraq War. Tony details the harrowing overnight drive through the desert, the ambush that nearly cost his team everything, and the unique cooperation between Rangers and Delta Force on the ground. From there, the conversation follows his path from enlisted squad leader to commissioned officer, the personal cost of extended deployments to Ramadi, the loss of a close friend to an IED, and a career-altering hearing waiver that nearly ended his time in uniform. It's a candid look at leadership, sacrifice, and the toll of nearly two decades at war.

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Retired Major Tony Mayne joins the podcast to walk through 12 years in U.S. Special Operations Command, including nine years in the 75th Ranger Regiment's 3rd Battalion, where he took part in the regiment's historic combat parachute assault into Afghanistan after 9/11 and later jumped into Iraq — completing eight combat deployments in support of the Global War on Terror and earning induction into the 2024 Ranger Hall of Fame. We go deep on the night of October 19, 2001, standing in the door of a C-17 as one of the first U.S. Rangers to parachute into Afghanistan, and the fight for Haditha Dam, where his vehicle broke down mid-assault and later got caught in an ambush on both sides of the road.

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In the final part of this conversation, Mike Sarraille recounts the base attack in Jalalabad where he served as Joint Strike Force commander, dismantles the conspiracy theories surrounding Extortion 17, and shares the story of Guardian dog Bart's final act protecting his handler Jet Li. He then breaks down his transition out of the military, the founding of Talent War Group, and his current role at Overwatch Mission Critical, before diving deep into the booming and controversial world of AI data centers. The episode closes with the story behind the record-breaking 7-continents-in-7-days skydiving mission and his reflections on purpose after service.

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Part 2 of this conversation with Mike Sarraille picks up inside the deployments that followed Ramadi, including the chaotic quick-reaction mission into Sadr City alongside a hastily assembled team from two different SEAL platoons. Mike breaks down the brotherhood built with Army infantry on the ground, the Sunni Awakening, and why he believes the Iraq War was ultimately a policy mistake despite the valor shown by the troops who fought it. He also opens up about the line he drew when ordered to move his men into an unnecessary risk, his transition to DEVGRU, the reality of Green Team versus BUD/S, the night Adam Brown was killed in Afghanistan, and the devastating loss of Extortion 17—including the brutal process of notifying the families left behind.

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