NH Army National Guard Members Compete for Top
Marksmanship
A
s a boy growing up in southern New Hampshire, Joe Wyner enjoyed shooting in the woods, a passion that stayed with him into adulthood. Now he competes in national marksmanship competitions as a member of the New Hampshire Army National Guard.
Staff Sgt. Joseph Wyner, state marksmanship coordinator for the New Hampshire Army National Guard, engages pistol targets during the 51st Winston P. Wilson Pistol and Rifle Championships on March 31 at Camp Robinson in Arkansas. Two 4-man squads of NHNG soldiers and airmen competed against shooters from around the world during the weeklong event. Wyner finished as top NH shot, placing 28th out of 190 marksmen. Photo: Tech. Sgt. Charles Johnston, NHNG Deputy State PAO, courtesy NH Army National Guard
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Sergeant First Class Joe Wyner previously served in the regular Army for a few years before he decided to come home to the Granite State as a member of the New Hampshire Army National Guard. During his first year in the Guard, he heard they participated in small arms marksmanship competitions, and he was immediately drawn to them. “I’ve always liked shooting. I’ve been shooting in small competitions since I was a little kid, and I thought it was cool that the Army was doing something,” Wyner says. He ended up doing very well, so much so that he was asked to join the team that competed at statewide and national competitions. This past March, Wyner, Col. Brooks Hayward, the commander of the Recruitment and Retention Battalion in Concord and the team’s coach, two other members of the Army National Guard and one Air National Guard member represented New Hampshire at the All-Army Marksmanship Competition in Fort Benning, Georgia. It was the first time in 10 years that the New Hampshire Army National Guard had sent a team, and Wyner served as team captain. He serves as a senior instructor at the Regional Training Center in Pembroke. The competitions give the soldiers a chance to showcase their skills with weapons that range from M17 pistols and M4 rifles and shotguns. When Wyner took over the New Hampshire Army National Guard’s Marksmanship program in 2019, his goal was to make the soldiers proficient with pistols and rifles. Both weapons require different skill sets, Wyner says. “They both have their pros and cons. I think it’s harder to get proficient with a pistol. The rifle becomes harder when you start pushing the
