Deputies place first in SWAT Sniper competition

Press release from Alachua County Sheriff’s Office

Deputy Tyler Cook and Deputy Alex Black placed first in the annual SWAT Sniper competition called Snipercraft. Snipercraft was born in 1992 as a professional organization to assist and train police snipers. Each year they have a competition that draws SWAT teams from all over the world. There were 38 teams entered in this year’s competition.

The competition is held over the course of two days and immediately follows a two-day seminar where SWAT Snipers from all over the world gather to discuss the latest trends in training, equipment, and lessons learned while deployed during critical incidents such as active shooter scenarios and hostage incidents.

This year’s competition was held in St. Petersburg, Florida. The event featured seven timed courses of fire designed to replicate the stress incurred during real-time deployments. Each team was comprised of two members that fired approximately 150 rounds each over the two days. The first place finishers won more than $10,000 worth of equipment for the Sheriff’s Office SWAT Sniper Team. This marks the third time that ASO snipers have won this event. Captain Steve Maynard and Lt. Josh Crews finished first in 2008 and 2010.