Matthew Crouch,
As I See Him
by Michael Mason, Scout/Sniper
Target:
Matthew Crouch
Dimensions:
1.7m, 142 kg
Profile:
Crouch is what we call an evader. He already knows that a sniper's
skill is only as strong as his scouting capabilities, and that makes
the man deadly in counter-sniper ops.
I
first crosshaired Crouch in training camp in the early 80's. He
was just shy of ten, but he had that fearless hungry look. Shocked
the hell out of me to look
into the scope and see his brown eyes penetrating my glass as
easily as a .50 slug. I knew I'd either have to befriend the kid,
or I'd have to spend the next five years unlearning all I'd been
taught as a marksman. We ended up meeting for lobster that evening.
Most of his teenage years were spent
honing down the details. He studied optics to develop a new form
of urban camouflage and had it tested at Woodland Hills Mall. We
couldn't find him for six days. It was a gift, and nobody was shocked
when he landed the free ride to college.
Before he graduated with a BA in
Tactics
from the
University
of Dallas, Crouch was already considered one of the master field
evaders, but his education allowed him to turn evading into an art
form, a way of life. He turned down job offers, refused party invitations,
avoided talking to bank tellers, and even
stopped
taking showers. He claimed he could evade anything, and I believed
him.
That's why I thought I was hoping against
hope when I approached Crouch about taking on the assignment of
being a submissions editor. There wouldn't be much field work, and
most of it would require going into unknown situations completely
unarmed. Once again Crouch proved me wrong.
"Snipers are
cake,"
he said. "If I could earn a living evading writers, I'd be
satisfied."
He's been doing it ever since.
