Unfiltered Conversations With America’s Elite Warriors Offer Unique Insight Into Military Watch Culture
The Shawn Ryan Show has exploded in popularity in recent years and grown into a media platform amassing some 16M views per month. Shawn, a former SEAL and CIA GRS contractor, is known for diving deep into politics, but the podcast started almost solely focused on interviewing practitioners from the SpecOps and Intel community.
The guests of over 200 episodes are a who’s who of the tactical and veteran media personality world, which has no shortage of drama. That said, the episodes are more than just war stories and often touch on important issues including the mental tolls of combat, addiction, and PTSD. But what really interests us is the unique insight the show offers as it relates to the watches worn by individuals from our community, both during and after service. Like much of the content on W.O.E., this is about culture as much as anything else.

Shawn himself is also at least something of a watch nerd, owning several Rolex references and a Blackwater Breitling (He was a former BW contractor). He’s discussed what constitutes a solid watch for escape and evasion purposes and also commonly asks guests about the watches on their wrists.
Dallas Alexander - Tudor Unit Watch - Episode 047

Dallas Alexander was a member of Joint Task Force 2 (JTF 2), Canada’s tier-one special operations unit. Dallas is now known for his involvement in a world-record sniper shot conducted in Mosul, Iraq in 2017 at an astonishing 3,540 meters. Throughout his Shawn Ryan interview, Alexander wears a Tudor unit watch version of the Pelagos customized with JTF 2’s insignia on the caseback as well as a maple leaf and “Facta Non Verba”, Latin for “Deeds Not Words”, on the dial.

Alexander’s JTF 2 Tudor Pelagos.
We reached out to Dallas after seeing him and his watch on the podcast, and the 14-year veteran of JTF 2 was quick to say that he was “not much of a watch guy,” but found the timepiece meaningful. Dallas has since left the unit, finding a second career in country music, and the watch can be seen on his wrist regularly as he performs, a constant reminder of his past service.
Dale Stark - Breitling - Episode 142

Proof that Shawn doesn’t only interview current and former SOF dudes is Dale Stark, a former enlisted Air Force mechanic who later earned his commission to become an A-10 Warthog pilot, and later deployed to Afghanistan in 2006, 2010, and 2014. During the podcast, Stark wears a timepiece from Wassan Watch Co., but it is his Breitling Aerospace that really steals the show.

(Photo Credit: Dale Stark)
Further proof of Breitling’s resonance within the military, Start also owns a custom unit Breitling Aerospace made for A-10 pilots, complete with “WARTHOG” on the dial. It seems to have cooled in recent years, but Breitling was once one of the primary sources for custom unit watches produced for a broad range of government and military organizations including Blackwater, as mentioned above, but also numerous aviation squadrons and SpecOps units.
Chris Craighead - Panerai - Episode 092

Another friend of the page is Chris Craighead, sometimes affectionately known as Obi-wan Nairobi for his response to a 2019 al-Shabaab attack in Nairobi. In his episode with Shawn, Craighead wears a 47mm Panerai Submersible Marina Militare Carbotech PAM0097. During the podcast, Chris explains that an automatic watch is an essential part of his everyday carry and a lesson he learned during the operation in Nairobi. During the event in Nairobi, he wore a smartwatch and was concerned the battery would run out given the extended time on target.

Like many current and former members of UK Special Forces, Craighead is also something of a watch guy and owns several pieces including Rolex, Seiko, and Panerai watches in addition to releasing a collaboration with CWC, a brand that famously supplied the Special Boat Service (SBS).
DJ Shipley - Panerai - Episode 015

A well-known watch nerd in our community is DJ Shipley, a former member of SEAL Team Six and a co-founder of GBRS Group, which has its own prominent online following. In DJ’s interview with Shawn, he intriguingly wears the exact same watch as Chris Craighead, the Panerai Submersible Marina Militare Carbotech, again demonstrating the powerful link Panerai has within SpecOps despite having at-times challenging branding relating to SEALs in particular.

Shipley and Craighead’s matching Panerais in a double wrist shot.
Even among Team Guys, Shipley is deep into watches. In a GBRS video about the importance of watches in SEAL culture, Shipley said:
“It’s (a watch) a part of the culture and tells a lot about the wearer of that particular piece. The cost isn’t as important as the backstory or the sentimental value of a piece and the story you both share together.”
Along with his Panerai, Shipley also owns a Tudor FXD, Rolex Submariner, a rose gold Yacht-Master II, yet another Panerai, and various G-Shock models.
Kash Patel - Bremont S500 - Episode 128

Kash Patel took over as the director of the FBI on 25 February 2025. When we covered Patel in his new role, we focused on his White House 46mm titanium Breitling Cockpit B50, one of several custom “unit watches” produced for White House staff during President Trump’s first term. In his appearance on Shawn’s podcast, however, Patel wears a Bremont S500, a dive watch from a brand with close ties to the W.O.E. community.

Patel wearing a Bremont S500 in 2024.
While Breitling’s unit watch program appears to have waned in recent years, Bremont has been prolific in pairing with military and government organizations, having produced as many as 500 unit projects since 2009. It’s unclear whether Patel’s Bremont S500, the brand’s professional dive watch, is a unit-specific version related to any of his prior positions in NatSec and Intelligence, but in any case, it’s clear Patel is at least a little bit of a watch guy, further proof of the phenomenon of Watches of Espionage at the highest levels of government.
Kyle Morgan - TAG Heuer - Episode 041

Kyle Morgan is another decorated veteran of US Army Special Forces who served with a Special Mission Unit for over ten years, earning the Distinguished Service Cross for his actions during the Radisson Blu hotel attack in Mali in 2015. Despite the aforementioned mention of the relationship between Rolex and Special Forces, Morgan opts for a quartz TAG Heuer Formula 1 chronograph. No offense to TAG Heuer, which often takes some shade from snooty watch nerds, but it is an unusual selection that is not necessarily related to Morgan’s extensive military background. With that being said, we’re big fans of buying the watch you like even if some influencer didn’t tell you to have to.

Morgan’s podcast also indicates the former SMU operator also owns a watch that at first appeared to be a Tudor Black Bay, potentially sterling silver 925, but given the lack of a snowflake hour hand, I think it must be some kind of an homage. Do any of you guys know what this thing is? Update: an eagle-eyed reader let us know this is likely a Nomadic Marai 401.
Cody Alford - Sangin Instruments - Episode 034

Cody Alford was a Marine Raider and sniper who was also the youngest person in Marine Corps history to be promoted to E8 or Master Sergeant. Today, Alford works as a motivational speaker, podcaster, and mental health advocate. On his episode with Shawn, Alford wore a Sangin Neptune, a watch from a microbrand founded by Jacob Servantes, a fellow Marine Raider that has become a go-to option not only for current and former Marines but also the broader tactical community. Read our profile on Sangin Instruments HERE.

Alford wearing a Timex Ironman during his military service and a Rolex Submariner later in life. (Photo Credit: The Veterans Project & CodyAlford.com)
Photographs of Alford from his USMC days show him wearing a Timex Ironman while more recent images show he also has a Rolex Submariner in his collection. It’s hard to see whether or not he is a “watch nerd” as such, but clearly Alford has an appreciation for the link between watches and the SpecOps and Intelligence community.
Eddie Penney - Apple Watch - Episode 043

Despite the importance of analog watches in the W.O.E. community, the reality is that digital watches have broad adoption among the vast majority of military and SpecOps practitioners today. In episode 043 of Shawn’s podcast, former SEAL Team Six member Eddie Penney wears what appears to be an Apple Watch. We’ve explained the counterintelligence risks of wearing smartwatches and other connected devices at length at this point, but it is safe to assume that in Penney’s new life as an author, the smartwatch presents little to no legitimate risk.
It is important to note that while yes, watch culture is strong in the SpecOps community, not every (former) SEAL is running around with a Rolex as a daily beater. For many, the lifestyle benefits of smartwatches are significant and for a community that prioritizes physical fitness, this can be a great tool.
Tu Lam - Rolex - Episode 110

Most SOF guys are far from experts on watches. By and large, they’re not on the forums, not hawking Reddit Watchexchange for hot deals, and not waking up early to see the newest Rolex releases at Watches and Wonders. With that being said, the link between US Army Special Forces and Rolex, in particular, is strong. Tu Lam, a Vietnamese-born member of US Army Special Forces, wears a Rolex Submariner in his interview with Shawn.

A screen capture from 2004’s Kill Bill 2 showing what Lam describes as a “Submariner Daytona”.
In a YouTube Short containing additional material not from the long-form interview, Lam describes the relationship between Special Forces and Rolex, saying that the watches were sometimes used as currency by operators trying to escape bad situations. This all checks out, but Lam goes on to recall a favorite scene in 2004’s Kill Bill 2 in which Uma Thurman’s character, Beatrix Kiddo, wears what Lam calls a “Submariner Daytona”. Again, not everyone can be a true watch nerd, and that’s probably a good thing.
Erik Prince - Blackwater Breitling - Episode 029

In episode 029, Erik Prince’s first appearance on the podcast, Blackwater founder and CEO Erik Prince wears his custom Blackwater Breitling Emergency, a watch we have discussed in great detail. More than just a custom unit watch with an insignia on the dial, Prince chose the Emergency because of its built-in emergency position indicating radio beacon, a promise from Prince to his employees that he would come for them if they were in trouble.
While there are no known instances of the Blackwater Breitling Emergency being used to emit an emergency signal in an operation situation, the watch is coveted by the operators to whom they were given. Shawn Ryan, himself a former contractor for Blackwater, owns one of the watches, with Prince’s and Ryan’s amounting to two of the 150 examples in existence.
Chris VanSant - Omega Planet Ocean - Episode 051

Chris VanSant is another veteran of the US Army’s Special Mission Unit, having been involved in over 600 combat missions. In his episode with Shawn, VanSant wears an Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean. It’s unclear whether or not VanSant’s watch is a standard model or potentially a watch from Omega’s unit watch program, but in any case, the Seamaster has been closely associated with SpecOps and the Intelligence Community for decades, at least in part because of its relationship to James Bond.

A high point in VanSant’s career was being involved in the raid that ultimately led to the capture of Saddam Hussein in 2003. The Planet Ocean was not released until 2005, and the likelihood is that VanSant utilized a Digital Tool Watch (D.T.W.) during the mission.
Brad Geary - Tudor - Episode 177

Brad Geary is a former SEAL Team Six troop commander and operations officer whose lengthy SpecOps career was imperiled after the 2022 death of a trainee named Kyle Mullen in a BUD/S training class while Captain Geary was in command of Naval Special Warfare Basic Training. Ultimately, the US Navy dismissed the case in late 2024, and in Geary’s appearance with Shawn, he wears a Tudor Pelagos FXD that appears to be a special unit-specific version made for SEAL Team Six’s Gold Squadron, hence the gold stripe on the hook-and-loop strap.

The SEAL Team Six FXD is the worst-kept secret in the W.O.E. space, but this is the first time we have seen one photographed in public. The reality is that as guys move on from service, these pieces will ultimately become known. We are aware of several custom unit Tudor Pelagos FXD watches in circulation with tier one and other special operations units, further evidence that the phenomenon of Tudors of Espionage (T.O.E.) is alive and well within our community.
Final Thoughts
Whether you agree with him or not, Shawn Ryan has carved out a unique niche, using his experience in the SEAL Teams and as a CIA contractor to connect with a wide range of guests from the military and national security communities. For people like us, the podcast also provides some of the best opportunities to observe and discuss Watches of Espionage in action. Certain brands, like Tudor, Rolex, and Omega, are here—as is so often the case—but it’s also interesting to see brands like TAG Heuer, Apple, and Sangin gracing the wrists of Shawn’s guests.
W.O.E. does not discriminate. We’re here for all of it.
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10 comments
Yes, the interview with Trump was great. We in Russia live him, we beat the western world on battlefield, Trump betray the one we cant get. :
https://www.militarytimes.com/news/pentagon-congress/2020/09/03/report-trump-disparaged-us-war-dead-as-losers-suckers/
Great read.
I can’t remember if you’ve done an article on PAGODA Watches yet.
Love this piece, great work as always
Great article. Fairly certain the watch worn by Kyle Morgan in the second photo is a Nomadic Marai 401.
Great article WOE! You forgot to include the show host! I will fill in the gaps for you…. Shawn Ryan wears a white gold Rolex Submariner (blue berry) on most shows. When he interviewed President Trump (as a Presidential candidate) he wore a solid yellow gold Sky Dweller, gold dial….. showing respect for the former and future President with his special occasion watch (not that the white gold Sub is a beater).