STORY AND PHOTOS BY KAREN BOSSICK

Oooohrah!

The Blaine County Sheriff’s Department took the wraps off its newly wrapped patrol car this week, revealing a car that honors Idaho’s new Virginia-Class nuclear-powered fast attack submarine and Idaho’s rich history with the U.S. Navy.

The patrol car, dubbed “The Gem of the Fleet”—the name of the new submarine—is the first patrol car in Idaho marking the new submarine, said Richard Colburn, chairman of the USS Idaho SSN 799 Commissioning Committee.

Patrol Sgt. Allen Compton cuts the cake with a mameluke sword, historically derived from the sabres used by the Mamluk warriors of the ottoman Empire.

“It’s incredible for the Blaine County Sheriff Department to honor our legacy. This is the first car like this, and I’m hoping it won’t be the last,” added Colburn, a retired U.S. Navy captain.

The patrol car’s dark midnight blue color represents deep ocean water. The hood of the car displays a sonar signal probing the depths of the ocean.

The side of the vehicle features the branding of the Blaine County Sheriff’s Office, including the majestic mountains surrounding Sun Valley.

A red stripe across the bottom represents blood shed in defense of the nation by the armed services and law enforcement officers.  A decal denoting the USS Idaho SSN 799 submarine is on the side, and the back windows pay tribute to the USS Idaho Commissioning Committee.

The unveiling showed a dark blue car representing deep ocean blue and a red stripe representing the blood shed by both the armed services and first responders to protect the nation and its communities.

The gas cap cover showcases the state of Idaho and the year 1890—when Idaho was  granted statehood. A sonar signal is sent out from a custom USS Idaho license plate on the rear of the vehicle, and the submarine broaches the surface of the water on the bottom of the tailgate.

Blaine County Sheriff Morgan Ballis, who served in the U.S. Marines, said the idea came about when local veteran Bill Potter visited to acquaint him with the submarine that will be commissioned in early 2026.

“As the meeting came to a close, I said, ‘What can we do to help you?’ ” Ballis recounted.  “When they said they wanted to spread awareness, I blurted out, ‘Why don’t we wrap a patrol car?!’ ”

More than 60 men and women turned out for the unveiling outside of the Sheriff’s Office in Hailey, shielding themselves from the sun on an unseasonably warm day that saw temperatures climb into the upper 50s.

A decal notes that the USS Idaho SSN 799 has been named Gem of the Fleet in honor of Idaho’s moniker as the Gem State.

Blaine County Commissioner Lindsay Mollineaux issued a proclamation marking USS Idaho SSN 799 week. And, then, the audience watched as Patrol Sgt. Allen Compton cut a white sheet cake with a sabre in honor of the 250^th birthday of the U.S. Marine Corps.

Traditionally, Marines share cake on the Marinee Corps’ birthday, “using a mameluke sword to cut it as a reminder that we are a band of warriors, committed to carrying the sword, so that our nation may live in peace,” Ballis told the crowd.

The first piece of cake was presented to Jon Eaton, the chief information security officer for Blaine County and a U.S. Naty submarine vet who specialized as an assistant navigator. aboard the USS Asheville and for the Commander Submarine Squadron.

The second piece was presented to Jack Regan, the oldest Marine present, who served for five years during the Vietnam War where he earned the rank of Captain. Symbolically, he passed a piece of cake to the youngest Marine present—Deputy Christian Crusberg, who served during the Global War on Terrorism in the mid-2000s.

Blaine County Sheriff Morgan Ballis said the his department hopes to ship the patrol car to Connecticut for the commissioning ceremony in April or May 2026.

The keys of the patrol car were then presented to Sgt. Compton, an intelligence analyst in the U.S. Army  who served in South Korea before transitioning from active duty to the Idaho Army National Guard where he was promoted to Staff Sergeant.

“When they told me how they wanted to have a veteran drive it and they wanted me to drive it I was pretty excited,” he said.

Colburn said that the car’s design goes beyond honoring Idaho’s namesake submarine to honor those who have served, those who are serving and those who will serve. It also speaks to Idaho’s long-standing history with the U.S. Navy.

More than 293,000 troops trained at Camp Farragut in Northern Idaho where they could work with submarines in the deep waters of Lake Pend Oreille out of sight of the enemy. It was the second largest boot camp of the Navy’s seven boot camps, Colburn said.

More than 40,000 radio operators trained at a radio school at the University of Idaho in Moscow. And Pocatello was the only city west of the Mississippi repairing battleship guns, which were then tested in Arco.

Sun Valley Resort served as a convalescent hospital for 6,500 wounded Navy sailors and Marines. And, after the war, the Navy did acoustic steal research at Lake Pend Oreille while the Idaho National Laboratory developed technology in the advance test reactor ensuring  that the USS Idaho will not have to be refueled in its 35-year lifespan.

The USS Idaho—the fifth named for the Gem State—was christened this past year. Its interior features a panorama of Idaho, including the Sawtooth Mountains, Shoshone Falls, and a ponderosa pine tree.

A University of Idaho music professor wrote what is the only song written for a U.S. submarine. And the Sun Valley Culinary Institute trained chefs that will work aboard the sub, helping to prepare a dinner of huckleberry vodka, elk steak, Idaho potatoes, potato rolls, lentil soup and huckleberry pie for the galley opening.

Sun Valley City Councilman Keith Saks was among those who hurried to examine the vehicle after the ceremony.

“It’s beautiful, and I hope this is the closest I ever get to it,” he quipped. “I don’t want to see it behind me with its lights flashing.”

Hailey Police Chief Steve England also expressed admiration for the car.

“But we’ve already wrapped a military patrol car, one for domestic violence and one touting mental health. So, we’re good,” he said. “But this is cool.”