Errol James "EJ" Snyder, Jr. (born December 3, 1965) is an American survivalist and television personality.

Biography

EJ Snyder was born in Englewood, New Jersey. Following the divorce of his parents around 1975, he and his brother Jeff were brought up by their mother. He grew up in

North Jersey North Jersey comprises the northern portions of the U.S. state of New Jersey between the upper Delaware River and the Atlantic Ocean. The designation of northern New Jersey with a distinct toponym is a colloquial one rather than an administrati ...

, where he experienced childhood bullying; this caused him to become interested in

strength training Strength training or resistance training involves the performance of physical exercises that are designed to improve strength and endurance. It is often associated with the lifting of weights. It can also incorporate a variety of training te ...

and

self-defense Self-defense (self-defence primarily in Commonwealth English) is a countermeasure that involves defending the health and well-being of oneself from harm. The use of the right of self-defense as a legal justification for the use of force ...

. Snyder joined the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

when he was 19 years old. In 1991, he fought in the

Gulf War The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a Coalition of the Gulf War, 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Ba'athist Iraq, ...

, and in 2004, the

Iraq War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق ( Kurdish) , partof = the Iraq conflict and the War on terror , image ...

. During his career, he was awarded two

Bronze Stars The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...

as well as the Legion of Merit. He received the nickname “Skullcrusher” as a

drill sergeant A drill instructor is a non-commissioned officer in the armed forces, fire department, or police forces with specific duties that vary by country. Foot drill, military step, and marching are typically taught by drill instructors. Australia A ...

. He also taught at the Florida Ranger Camp and the Special Warfare Center located in Fort Bragg. He retired in 2009 when he was a

sergeant major Sergeant major is a senior non-commissioned rank or appointment in many militaries around the world. History In 16th century Spain, the ("sergeant major") was a general officer. He commanded an army's infantry, and ranked about third in th ...

. He currently lives in Fayetteville, North Carolina.

Entertainment career

Snyder first appeared on television on the show ''

Lost Lost may refer to getting lost, or to: Geography *Lost, Aberdeenshire, a hamlet in Scotland * Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail, or LOST, a hiking and cycling trail in Florida, US History *Abbreviation of lost work, any work which is known to have bee ...

'', portraying Redfern. In 2009 he appeared on the documentary series ''

Patton 360° ''Patton 360°'', also written as ''Patton 360'', is a weekly television series that originally ran from April 10 to June 26, 2009, on the History channel. It was produced by Flight 33 Productions in Los Angeles (the same company that produced '' ...

'' as himself. On 7 July 2013, Snyder appeared on ''

Naked and Afraid ''Naked and Afraid'' is an American reality series that airs on the Discovery Channel. Each episode chronicles the lives of two survivalists who meet for the first time naked and are given the task of surviving a stay in the wilderness for 21 ...

'' for the first time; paired with partner Kellie Nightlinger, the two survived for three weeks in

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands ...

. Later in the same year, he was cast on ''

72 Hours 72 Hours may refer to: * '' 72 Hours: True Crime'', Canadian television series * "72 Hours" ''(The Killing)'', second-season episode of television series ''The Killing'' * "72 Hours", fifth-season episode of sitcom ''The Golden Girls'' (see List ...

'' and competed for $100,000 in the Fijian jungle. He went on to appear on ''Naked and Afraid'' for the second time in the episode “Man vs. Amazon”. In this episode he became the first man to successfully complete two challenges. On 12 July 2015, Snyder was on the first season of ''

Naked and Afraid XL ''Naked and Afraid XL'' is an American reality television series that premiered on the Discovery Channel in 2015. This series is a spin-off of ''Naked and Afraid''. A group of people are given the task of surviving in the wilderness for an extend ...

''. He was accompanied by eleven other survivalists. In 2016, Snyder hosted the ninth season of ''

Dual Survival ''Dual Survival'' is a United States reality television series that airs on the Discovery Channel. The show features a pair of survival experts in predetermined survival scenarios while in challenging environments. For the first two seasons, th ...

'' alongside fellow ''Naked and Afraid'' contestant Jeff Zausch''.'' Snyder also took the leading role of Max in ''Survival T.V. The Movie!''. In 2021, he competed on ''Naked and Afraid XL'' again in the

Atchafalaya Basin The Atchafalaya Basin, or Atchafalaya Swamp (; Louisiana French: ''L'Atchafalaya'', ), is the largest wetland and swamp in the United States. Located in south central Louisiana, it is a combination of wetlands and river delta area where the At ...

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

. During the season, Snyder sustained lacerations to his

scrotum The scrotum or scrotal sac is an anatomical male reproductive structure located at the base of the penis that consists of a suspended dual-chambered sac of skin and smooth muscle. It is present in most terrestrial male mammals. The scrotum co ...

after falling from a tree, requiring eight stitches. The show's medical team found that the cut had not become infected and allowed him to continue the 60-day challenge.

Filmography

References

External links

Official website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Snyder, EJ 1965 births Living people Survivalists American television personalities Recipients of the Legion of Merit People from Englewood, New Jersey United States Army personnel of the Gulf War United States Army personnel of the Iraq War