Photo By Sgt. Benjamin Crilly | Cpl. Neil Sookdeo, an instructor and competitor on the Marine Corps shooting Team,...... read more read more
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MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. — More than 240 Marines and retired Marines took part in the 2012 Western Division Matches held at Wilcox Range, here, Feb. 26 to March 16.
This match is one of four similar competitions held throughout the Corps as part of the Competition-in-Arms Program.
“We had 248 total competitors to start off with; 12 of those were retirees who came out,” said Capt. Nick Roberge, the officer-in-charge of the United States Marine Corps Shooting Team.
Dating back to 1901, the annual matches allow shooters throughout the Corps to sport their skills with the M-16/M-4 service rifles and the M-9 service pistol. The competitors came from a variety of military occupational specialties and represent Marine Corps units west of the Mississippi River as both individuals and teams.
The top ten percent of shooters from each of the four competitions will be awarded medals and will move on to compete in the Marine Corps Champion Matches, which begin in April.
In years past, the two-week matches have tested the shooters’ abilities up to 500 yards and their proficiency to conduct speed and tactical reloads throughout the course of fire.
A change to the program this year enables Marines to receive the instruction required to be certified in the secondary MOS 0933, combat marksmanship coach.
“With this year we have taken a regular three-week program of instruction, and we’ve condensed it and fit it within division matches,” said Roberge, who also serves as the Commandant of the Marine Corps representative traveling with the matches to ensure the proper execution of the contests.
Before, shooters only had two days of classes, and the only tests were on the range during their courses of fire. This year the students had five classes, four tests and practical applications required by the CMC program.
“We have to fit in a lot of classroom time. Typically it’s about two days of classroom time, and then we go into a lot of shooting during division matches,” said Roberge. “So it’s just a lot more involved, and there are more wickets you have to hit.
“Overall as long as they can learn how to shoot better and can teach that to others – that is the whole point of this program,” Roberge said.
For the instructors from the Marine Corps shooting team, the matches enable them to truly teach Marines the skills to improve their shooting that a traditional rifle range would not have the time to do.
“For us, we take away added instruction time, because you have to practice that like everything else,” said Cpl. Neil Sookdeo. “You have to be able to say things for 10 students in 15 different ways because some students may take up one way, and some may not understand a thing you say unless they get to pick up a weapon. So we gain that experience.”
The shooters also learn through shooting on teams with shooters from all backgrounds.
“The camaraderie is the huge part, and that’s my favorite part about the shooting teams,” said 2nd Lt. Jared Dalton, a communications officer with Communications Company, Headquarters Battalion, 1st Marine Division, who is a distinguished shooter with the M-9 pistol. “We have 17 shooters from across my battalion, and it helps us build contacts throughout our unit, and you get a better feel for how the different MOSs bring standpoints and trains of thought to how you shoot.”
Dalton pointed out that with the team shooting, he has seen shooters perform better because of the shared mentorship that takes place at division matches that is not normally seen at a rifle range where individual performance is scored.
The Western Division Matches concluded with an awards ceremony for the competitors, March 16. Marines interested in participating in next year’s matches should notify their command and reference MCBUL 3591 Competition-In-Arms Program.
| Date Taken: | 03.14.2012 |
| Date Posted: | 03.16.2012 16:05 |
| Story ID: | 85379 |
| Location: | CAMP PENDLETON, CALIFORNIA, US |
| Web Views: | 567 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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