Sniper Country, founded back in February by Nick Young of Desert Tactical Arms, is steadily improving their already impressive Utah range. They’re currently utilizing 55,000 acres to teach a number of courses and are working on developing more. We talked to SCT’s Kyle Craemer (formerly a USMC Scout Sniper) last week in between site surveying and range construction. He’d been working the Unknown Distance and Known Distance ranges to determine exact ranges, firing lines, roads, etc. They’re placing multi-color steel targets, in his words, “waaaay out and UP there at the top of a mountain” and have just finished surveying a 1200-yard flat range where they’ll be hosting a machine gun shoot this month.
Sniper Country Training features high and extreme angle shooting, high altitude ranges, counter-sniper engagement ranges, flat ranges and multi-stage ranges. Many of the courses incorporate stalking, rock climbing, ATV vehicle training and of course land navigation—through some pretty difficult, often very cold terrain.
The stable of classes includes Precision Rifle I (literally starting with the Milliradian theory and learning what Minute of Angle means, taking shots out to 600 yards), Precision Rifle II (developing “shooting knowledge to the level of a sniper school graduate” against moving and stationary targets in full and low light out to 1,000 yards) through Precision Rifle III (which is where it really gets hard). They also offer Field Firing Position Workshop (shots out to 1,000 yards from various positions), Long Range Hunter (for
the big and dangerous game hunter in difficult places), High Angle Workshop (learning “advanced shooting solutions at high angles and extreme long ranges” out past 1,000 yards), Stalking I and II and of course Land Navigation. One course that looks particularly compelling is The Sniper Experience, which requires completion of at least Precision Rifle II. In Sniper Experience students plan and execute sniper missions with other teams, utilizing coordinated shots from supported positions. It includes mission planning, stalking, intel collection, shooting and return to friendly lines—all with the threat of ambush or compromise.
Kyle advises all instructors are all former military snipers with extensive operational experience who draw on their backgrounds to create realistic training scenarios.
In addition to the rugged training terrain, Sniper Country has a lodge available for attending students. Hopefully soon your redoubtable Kit Up! Editor will soon be attending one of their courses and we can tell you more.
