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CHAPTER 1

PLAYING GAMES AND PLAYING PAINTBALL

Why would anyone want to play paintball? It can be hot and sticky or cold outside and there are mosquitoes; and if you play hard, you can get sweaty and dirty and very, very tired. And when you get hit with one of the balls, regardless of what some people will tell you, it stings, and if someone isn’t too far away when they shoot you, you are going to wake up with a bruise. A busting ball can certainly leave a big stain on your shirt or worse, on your mask (stay calm – inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale …). Plus, it’s kind of expensive to buy or rent all that gear, those boxes of paint. So, what’s the big deal anyway?

What’s the big deal?

The big deal is that even in the 21st century, when men have walked on the moon, the lion still stalks the antelope and the cat still toys with the lizard before it kills it. Puppies still growl and bite each other’s ears and hide behind the grocery bags to pounce on one another. Even in the 21st century, we play tag when the lightning bugs come out and shout “Marco Polo” down at the pool and hide under the bed from big sister or our roommate and then reach out and grab their ankle and scream to scare them. The big deal is running away from someone who wants to tag you and make you “It.” That’s the big deal. That’s the very big deal and that’s what paintball is all about.

Did you know that nearly 10 million people play paintball? Did you know that paintball is a billion dollar industry? Did you know that you can play in dozens of foreign countries and that the rules are about the same in France and Russia and Japan as they are in your very own neighborhood? Did you know that a survey of players around the world – no matter what language they speak or what kind of job they have or how much money their family makes – reports that people play paintball for the very same reasons, because it’s exciting and it’s huge fun.

Now, some of this may not interest you, but it does mean that you are not alone and you’re not weird because you may want to “splaat” someone. It means that you are part of a worldwide community of people who enjoy doing the same kind of things as you and for the same reasons.

“So what?” you may ask. “What does all this mean to me? All I like to do is run and throw paint and have a good time. I don’t care about all that other stuff.”

That’s okay, too. Those are the same feelings that Egyptian players have, or Brazilian players. It means you are somebody and your feelings are important on a really global scale. It is like being part of a brotherhood in a way, or a sisterhood. This “paintball fever” sets you apart … in a good way. It isn’t school, though. You don’t have to care about the history of paintball or the National Professional Paintball League or even how your marker works. Go out. Have fun.

Paintball is not just fun, with the running and dodging and shooting at your buddies. Paintball is wonderful exercise. Paintball teaches teamwork and sportsmanship, competition and tactics; things you will need in business later in life. Every good team, whether it is a scenario team like Michael Hanse ’s Blue’s Crew or a hot pro tournament favorite like the Brass Eagle All Stars, wins because they work together and respect the fact that whatever their personal financial, educational or employment circumstances, they can get out and play.

So, here’s a thought. We expect to have a good time when we play. Are we sure it is okay for our dad or mom to have a good time like this though? And if it’s okay for us or the parents, how about grandpa? Hey, why not!

Sometimes, the older that people become, the more they want to hide their enthusiasm, the simple joy of having fun and laughing out loud. It’s supposedly “grown up” to be serious and more concerned about paying the bills and saving for college, or politics or hog futures or saving for your retirement. Well, all of those things are important, but religious leaders, philosophers, medical doctors, therapists and psychiatrists of all sorts tell us continually that putting “fun” as well as work and exercise into our daily drama is crucial to a long and healthy life.

Would you rather play a 24-hour scenario game with a huge new group of best friends (many of them dressed like it’s Halloween) or would you rather run a 26-mile marathon? Either way it’s 110 calories per mile, but one of them is actually fun.

Would you rather scream through a 5-man tournament with cash and prizes at the end or go to the gym and lift dumbbells? Either way, your muscles are going to get a huge workout.

While we’re talking about what makes paintball tick, let’s talk teamwork. There’s Worr Games Executive Director Sonny Lopez (certainly a responsible corporate position) screaming out movements and shooting like a mad dog for the top-ranked pro team Naughty Dogs in Huntington Beach. There go General Blue and his friends Mother and Pac Man leading a team through the woods to attack General Ben Torricelli ’s red team at the International Amateur Open’s 8-hour scenario game .

The Captain, our own William Shatner from the bridge of the Starship Enterprise, is a huge paintball promoter.

Sure, paintball is competitive, and it is a whole lot better to observe the Golden Rule and give paint rather than receive it; but within the big world of competing alliances, backstabbing and cutthroat business practices, there is enormous cooperation. You could say that it is the cooperation and the teamwork that makes the competition possible. Otherwise, you’re back in the woods 20 years ago playing the original survival game, alone with something like a Nelspot 007 single-shot marker powered by a 12-gram CO₂ cartridge and shooting oil-based paint. After the game, your clothes are going to be such a mess that you may throw them away rather than take them home. Long-time player Steve Davidson has said that in those days some of his clothes were so disgusting that burning them was the only way to safely get rid of them after a game. And who likes that?

You will see all kinds of gear and get-ups on a typical paintball field, from ninja to hand-me-downs. What every player has in common are goggles, markers, balls, barrel plugs and a smile that says, “Game on!”

It is because they work together to accomplish a goal in a super-competitive environment that Team Dynasty is a winner and puts $20,000 in their pockets after winning an NPPL Tournament. If everyone went off on their own, they would be quickly eliminated by the other team, which has discussed and agreed on assignments to cover the field with fire and to keep paint rifling through approach lanes while their smallest, quickest member dashes for the flag.

Teamwork and competition. You’re going to learn a lot about them in paintball because the more you dig it, the more fun you are going to have and the more successful you and your buddies will be. It’s really a better gig than listening to your dad talk about how it was when he was a kid and had to walk to school.

And what about that other word, sportsmanship? What’s that got to do with anything, much less paintball? Well … everything. There are rules in paintball just like in an English classroom or sitting in a jury box. There were rules in cave man society. There are rules everywhere human beings live, work or play, because believe it or not, it’s the rules that we all observe that make our games possible.

The first rule of sportsmanship is Play Safe. If you don’t play safely, someone is going to get hurt, the game is going to stop, the refs are going to get angry and nobody is going to have a good time. So, never take your goggles off during a game or while you are on a playing field. Duh, dumb and dangerous. A paintball may not seem like much. It’s light and squishy. But a hit in the eye can cause retinal detachment, which means you will have pain (a lot) and, at least in one eye, it will seem like you are dizzy and the world is dark and fuzzy for a very long time. You won’t like that. And, of course, if you get hurt because you have ignored this primary rule, everyone else suffers, too. People yell at you. Your mother panics. The ride in the ambulance may be interesting, but you will be in too much pain to enjoy it. The field owner’s insurance goes up. Bottom line: wear your mask.

The second rule of good sportsmanship is to Use Your Barrel Plug or Barrel Cover absolutely every moment you are not on the field playing. An accidental shot could blind someone and get you thrown off a playing field or a team … forever. Who needs that? And by the way, it’s okay to remind someone that their barrel cover is not in place. If they don’t like it, too bad. Here is a situation where everyone must do the right thing.

The player’s party following the DraXxus International Amateur Open featured a boxed dinner, individual and team awards and dozens of free “door prizes” donated by paintball manufacturers. Debra Dion Krischke , who has been in the paintball business since the game’s founders recruited her in the early ‘80s, promotes this popular annual and international event in Pennsylvania.

Another reason we like paintball.

The third rule of sportsmanship is Honesty. Get hit? Get out. The paint didn’t bust? Well, ask the ref for a paint check or just sit out for a while. In a big game, you’ll be back on the field in a little while so use the time to rest, grab some water, squeegee your marker, load up with paint, check your air or eat a sandwich. In a tournament, you are going to see this rule bent to the breaking point (some people would say way beyond it) because money and pride and some pretty inflated egos are on the line. Tournament play is very fast, and even with trained referees right on the spot, it is sometimes hard to decide who was hit first. In recreational play and scenario games, it’s pretty rare to see anyone lose their mind. In tournament play, it happens all the time. You will hear a lot of talk about cheating in tournament competition. Don’t be a cheater and don’t accuse anyone else of cheating. Don’t start shouting, “You’re out! I hit you! You’re out!” Get over yourself.

A homemade, air-powered bazooka is a formidable weapon indeed!

The fourth rule of sportsmanship is to Put Yourself in The Other Player’s Position. This particularly applies to close shooting. The kid shot multiple times in the face at very close range at the 2003 International Amateur Open took one of the balls between his face and the edge of his mask with the ball traveling forward toward his eyes at a couple hundred feet per second (fps) or so. Very painful. It was most probably accidental because it happened very fast and with adrenaline levels very high. You don’t want to get hit at ultra-close range; it’s quite painful, it’s not macho and it will leave a nasty little bruise. Give your opponent a chance to surrender before you stick the muzzle of your marker in their back and pull the trigger. Point and shout first, “You’re out!” Give the person a chance to surrender and raise their marker over their head. If they turn and act like they would prefer to shoot it out with you at 10 feet when you’ve got the drop on them, well, what are you going to do? Let ‘em have it!