Have You Ever Played Paintball? Then You Defiantly Missed A Lot

of stuff. Paintball is about the coolest sport I know of. There is a
lot of rumors about it. Some people say it’s bad and violent and it’s
supposed to glorify war. But the truth is, none of those lies are true.
Paintball is a team game, it takes a lot of effort to succeed. Teamwork
is one of the most important words. The fact that you play paintball
with equipment that looks warlike is the only connection reminding of
guns and war. But in reality you don’t shoot somebody but you mark him
with paint, and the reason why some people wear camos while playing is
to be “stealth-like”. In detail there are many complex ways of playing
paintball war.

The first paintballs and paintguns carried the Nelson name. They
were developed in response to timber harvesters and cattlemen who needed
something to mark trees that were difficult to access on foot and to
mark cattle for culling out of the herd, presumably to appear as steaks
in the local supermarket. The paintballs had a thick shell and an oil
based fill. It took turpentine or paint thinner to get it off of
clothing.

People did play a form of paintball long before the first
recognized game in 1981. Lumber jacks thought it was great fun to sneak
up on an unsuspecting friend and shoot him in the butt. Cowboys would
play “fast draw” in there free time. And goggles? What were goggles?
The weapon of choice. The Nelsopt 007 marking pistol was it.
Paintball is a sport that does not require the strength of
football, nor the height of basketball, nor the life long training of
baseball. Paintball is the average person’s sport.
It is the sport of the person who works nine to five and is having
trouble buttoning an old pair of jeans around an expanding belly. Sure,
paintball takes skill, but mostly it takes wit and the commitment of
many weekends to get better.
The description of a paintball game is an alogous to saying
football is a game played by eleven players on two teams, and that the
path of choice to quick victory is the long-bomb to the wide receiver.

this is a very simple and superficial explanation of football. We all
know that the game of football is more complex. You have to watch for
sweeps, runs and draws, worry about the clock, avoid penalties, ect.
Paintball is equally complex as football, and paintball will have the
same infinite amount of possible plays and turnouts as football. Like
football, no two paintball games will ever be the same. Paintball is
exciting to watch. It’s even more exciting to play.

Paintball can be played many different ways and in many different
places. It can be played in a heavily wooded area or in an open field
with man made bunkers. Most fields have boundaries and can range in
size from twenty yards square to as large as twenty acres or more.

The most common game played is capture the flag. Each team has a flag
at opposite ends of the field. The object is to take the enemies flag
to your end or to just plain paint the other team. Another popular game
format is elimation. The object is for a team to hide and the other
come in and try to snipe them out. first team painted loses. Teams can
range anywhere from two people up to as many as wanted or needed.
There are many different types of guns. So many I can’t even
begin to name them all. They range in price anywhere from fifty bucks
to over a grand! From single shot pumps, semi, or fully automatic.
Co2, compressed air tanks, to nitrosoxide power. All depends on how
much cash you have. I use a semiautomatic with a two hundred round
hopper, compressed air tank all camouflage. In other words I can paint
a person yellow in three seconds flat! People also carry a side arm in
case of a gun jam or you run out of ammo or air. Side arms usually
consist of a small paint pistol that holds ten to twenty shots. For
emergencies only I’ll pull out my paint grenades. Pull the pin and send
it in the enemies direction and it sprays paint in about a thirty foot
circle.

In more detail lets look at the gun. Barrel length makes a major
difference. If you play on a larger field then you want a longer barrel
for more accurate shots at a farther distance. Shorter barrels are used
for close up shooting where accuracy is not needed as much. Stocks are
also an important part of the gun. It helps steady the gun and allows
for more feel of the gun and the target. Some people can shoot a gun
with out a stock just fine though. It’s all about how you play.

For the people that want to play tournament ball there are a lot
of rules you have to follow. I’ve found over six-teen pages of rules.
Not only for the player but for the judges, field owners, and referees.
Fields all have to be certain sizes, with different flag stations and
player positions. We play at an old run down camp ground. There are
probably five or six old bunk houses and one big mess hall perfect for
hiding. We usually divide into teams of four or five. One team goes
down to the camp and hides. The other team comes in and tries to take
over camp. It’s a lot of fun but there is also a little bit of pain to
be had. You usually feel a stinging sensation followed by a welt.
Just remember it only hurts until the pain goes away. If you whine they
usually will pick on you.
If you are not properly dressed you could get seriously injured.
Facial protection is very important. If it stings and leaves a welt on
your arm imagine getting one in the face. The worst I’ve heard about
was a twenty-five year old playing without a mask got shot in the ear.
He fell on the ground screaming and almost cried. His ear swelled up and
stung bad. I played one day, my first day without a mask. After that I
took the forty dollars and bought one.

So if you feel like taking a risk in life I would highly suggest
giving paintball a try. It’s practically a real life war simulation
only no one gets hurt. It’s a real adrenalin rush when it’s hunt or be
hunted. It’s also a way to release some stress after a long hard week
at work. Just pretend your after your boss and have fun.