Police team trains for national competition

By Ms. Marie Berberea (TRADOC)June 10, 2010

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1 / 6 Show Caption + Hide Caption – (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
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2 / 6 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Officer William Smalls leads the charge with Officer Edward Tracey and Sgt. Jonathan Baughn following behind as they clear the Live Fire Shoot House. It was part of a demonstration of the new facility as well as a training opportunity for their upcom... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
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3 / 6 Show Caption + Hide Caption – The Fort Sill Special Reaction Team fluidly clears the Live Fire Shoot House as they prepare for the U.S. National SWAT competition in Tulsa, Okla., later this month. The team earned an invitation after placing first in the obstacle course last year ... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
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4 / 6 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Fort Sill's Special Reaction Team busts open a door at the Live Fire Shoot House May 24, 2010, with their weapons ready to take out any possible threats. The team is preparing for their upcoming U.S. National SWAT competition after placing fourth in ... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
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5 / 6 Show Caption + Hide Caption – (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
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6 / 6 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Entering the live fire shoot house, the Special Reaction Team breaks off and clears the many rooms inside as part of their training May 24. The team practiced for the U.S. National SWAT competition in which they will be competing against some of the ... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

The live fire shoot house was filled with the sounds of the Special Reaction Team busting open doors, hunting down targets and making their way through the new facility seamlessly May 24 and 27 as they practiced for the upcoming U.S. National SWAT competition.

The team earned the right to compete against their civilian counterparts after placing first in the obstacle portion of last year's state competition, placing second in the hostage rescue portion in this year's state competition and placing fourth overall in the state.

They will be loading their gear and testing their skills against the best at the U.S. Shooting Academy in Tulsa, June 21-26. The competition will challenge the teams in three areas: team organization, physical fitness and weapons employment. The eight competitive live-fire events are run in head-to-head format and are modeled after real world scenarios, according to the USNSC's website.

More than 30 SWAT teams and 40 police sniper teams from across the U.S. and Europe are expected to compete. And while the team will not be armed with the most technologically advanced weapons, team leader Sgt. Roger McCardle, Department of the Army Civilian Police, said they make up for it with flawless technique.

"The entire team can take M-16s with open sights and zero targets at 100 meters," he said.

In laymen's terms, they are very accurate. This immodest statement is just McCardle explaining that any targets, fake or otherwise should be scared.

And if that wasn't impressive enough the snipers on the team grew tired of shooting poker chips at 100 meters away so instead they replaced their target with a measly string and were able to hit it with the Oklahoma wind flailing it around.

While their skills are obviously not in question they are at a disadvantage as the hybridized team of DA Civilians and Soldiers are on patrol most of their duty days and don't get the opportunity to train very often. But, they use their time well to practice how to respond to high-risk situations if one should occur here on Fort Sill.

"We train each other. There are no egos. You have to be like that. So it helps out tremendously that these guys are professional when we go and we train," said McCardle.

He said when they do come off of their respective patrolling duties, they train as one. Their cohesiveness was evident as they moved through the shoot house as a unit only breaking off from shielded Officer William Smalls to check individual rooms and then reassemble as one armored piece.

"As competitive as the nationals are, I expect the team to do well. The team members approach all competitions with a positive attitude. Without a doubt they are physically ready and we are looking forward to a great experience and an excellent training opportunity," said Officer Billy Allen, SRT officer in charge.

McCardle believes it was also their sportsmanship-like conduct that earned them an invite. With a humble attitude the SRT cheered for other teams in past competitions and shared their knowledge of tactics while graciously taking advice from the others.

In past years, it's been a David vs. Goliath sort of event for them going head to head with units that do nothing but train with the most high-tech optics and equipment but this time the playing field is being evened out slightly with other teams from Army posts attending.

With fancy weaponry or not the competition comes down to who can make the shot, and McCardle is confident in his men.

"Can my guys make the shot' We've got what they call a glass house for training. We'll let them shoot right over us that's how good they are. We know they can make the shot," he said.