Pennsylvania Guardians - Summer 2010

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Fog envelops the obstacle course at Fort Indiantown Gap before the start of the first All-Guard Sniper Tryouts. In addition to the obstacle course, the snipers participated in pistol, road-march, camouflage and rifle competitions. Photo: Pfc. Chris Kuehner By Pfc. Ashley E. Heckard Before the first rays of sunlight peeked over the edge of Second Mountain, the spring birds were just waking up and the participants of the first All-Guard Sniper Tryouts were suited up and ready to move. Ten marksmen from across the United States competed at Fort Indiantown Gap in March for an eight-man sniper team. The participants were Sgt. 1st Class Shawn W. Cheney, Swanton, Vt.; Staff Sgt. Jason Grammer, Little Rock, Ark.; Staff Sgt. Jeffrey R. Haskin, Cabot, Ark.; Staff Sgt. Matthew H. Lynch, Shippensburg, Pa.; Staff Sgt. Levi D. Hamby and Sgt. Joe P. Thomas, both of Pendleton, Ore.; Sgt. Joseph C. McGowan Jr., Carlisle, Pa.; Sgt. Jonathan H. Geib, Mesa, Ariz.; Spc. Evan A. Reis-Green, Wales, Wis.; and Spc. Luke A. Roseen, Bozeman, Mont. “We sent invitations throughout the country, inviting snipers to compete in a 8 / GUARDIANS / Summer 2010 competition that has become a training event, to fill eight slots,” said the noncommissioned officer in charge of the event, Staff Sgt. Brandon House, Russellville, Ark. “The two extra participants will be designated as alternates when we travel to multiple competitions internationally and locally.” House, along with fellow instructors Sgt. 1st Class Jon D. Plummer and Staff Sgt. Shannon M. O’Keefe, guided the competitors through the exercises during the week. House was in charge of training, supervising and ultimately choosing the snipers for the two four-man units. The first day was spent in-processing and receiving briefings about the week ahead. Day two began early on a rigorous obstacle course. The contestants were split into teams of two. Any obstacle that was not properly completed was a oneminute penalty. Cheney and McGowan Competitors in the first All-Guard Sniper Tryouts dress in ghillie suits as part of the competition at Fort Indiantown Gap. Photo: Pfc. Ashley Heckard Sgt. Joseph C. McGowan Jr., 2/112th Infantry, and other competitors perform the roadmarch portion of the tryouts at Fort Indiantown Gap. McGowan finished the mountainous 7.8 mile march in just over two hours. Photo: Pfc. Ashley Heckard
Staff Sgt. Matthew H. Lynch of the 2/112th Infantry fires a 9 mm Beretta at Fort Indiantown Gap. Lynch was one of two Pennsylvania National Guard members competing in the tryouts. Photo: Pfc. Chris Kuehner led the way with a time of six minutes, 34 seconds, a score of 100 points, and more than one minute faster than the secondplace team. With the obstacle course behind them, a 15-minute drive up the mountain to Range 37 lay before the participants. A 9 mm Beretta shooting range would be the next trial for the snipers to pass. Thirty markers were set up on the range. Ten red, 10 blue and 10 yellow markers each represented a different shooting position – standing, kneeling and prone. Certain markers were marked with a white paper to indicate a hostage. Shooters lost five points for a hostage hit. Geib took first place with 19 hits, one hostage and a time of 2:06, a score of 52. Day three began with a grueling 7.8 mile road march up the same mountain back to Range 37 with a two-hour time limit. Anyone over the time allotted received zero points. With a time of 1:49:23, Cheney led with a perfect score of 100. With barely a chance to recover, the participants’ next assignment was the UKD, or unknown distance. First-round shots were worth 10 points, second round, five. With a score of 95 out of 100, Grammer took the lead in the event. With the scores tallied up, the contestants traveled down to Range 36 to fire the .50-caliber sniper weapon system at their leisure. Day four, the last day of the training, started with the stalk exercise. This was another pass-or-fail exercise where the snipers’ ability to camouflage themselves was tested. From the starting point, they moved tactically to the destination determined by a given set of grid coordinates, fired a blank round into the vehicle at the end, and proceeded back to the starting point. Roseen, Thomas, Grammer, and Haskin achieved the goal under the three-hour time limit. Cold-Bore Shooting was the final event. Reis-Green described it as a unique challenge. “Basically your first shot out of the barrel doesn’t go where your normal groups do,” he said “It is kind of hard to hit the target sometimes. If you have well-established data for your particular rifle, then you can kind of forecast where it’s going to go.” The first round was worth 50 points and the second round 25. Lynch and Reis-Green ended the event with a tie, a perfect score of 75. The scores were then tallied up. First place was Thomas with 410 points, second was Haskin with 390, third was Grammer with 377, fourth was Reis-Green with 373, fifth was Cheney with 354, sixth was Geib with 301, seventh was Roseen with 283, and eighth was Lynch with 273. The alternates were McGowan with 256 points and Hamby with 182 points. “We were expecting 30 participants but only got 10,” said Plummer, a sniper school instructor at the Marksmanship Training Center in Little Rock, Ark. “It was the first time we put this event together. For such short notice, I think it went really well,” he said. The instructors and participants hope to continue this new event for years to come. There will be more events, and it will be much more organized for next year, according to Plummer. National Guard snipers looking for real competition can be sure to find it at the All-Guard Sniper Tryouts. With only eight slots to fill on the official teams, it is a meticulous event to determine the best of the best. ❖ Competitors look downrange on the morning of March 23 at Fort Indiantown Gap. Photo: Pfc. Ashley Heckard Summer 2010 / GUARDIANS / 9
Page 3: Governor Edward G. Rendell Governor
Page 6 and 7: Divisions unite for National Guard
Page 8 and 9: By Sgt. Tom Bourke Piloting the 35,
Page 13: Transmission Accomplished: 193rd co
Page 17 and 18: By Staff Sgt. Ivyann Castillo and C
Page 19 and 20: The Workingmen’s Benevolent Assoc
Page 21 and 22: troops in the history of the Pennsy
Page 24 and 25: By Pfc. Zane Craig “One Soldier l
Page 27 and 28: Story and photo courtesy of the Pen
Page 29 and 30: share the sky with the Army’s lat
Page 31: The Pennsylvania National Guard cel
Page 34: CURATOR’S CORNER By Charles Oelli

Pennsylvania Guardians - Summer 2010

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