In the first games, players shot one ball at a time out of a see-through, gravity-fed tube that held 10 balls and stuck straight out of the back of the marker. Their Nelspot markers , such as the famous “007,” were limited by the CO2 power remaining in a replaceable 12-gram cartridge, which might deliver 30 to 40 good shots. This meant that accurate shots were more lucky rather than predictable. With one of today’s markers, like a PMI Pro TS with electronic Storm frame equipped with a 68 cu/in Pure Energy 3000 psi carbon-wrapped bottle of nitrogen or compressed air, you can expect to get between 1400 and 1800 shots, all expelled with identical velocity and a high degree of accuracy out to possibly 40 or 50 yards. And the standard loader holds 200 or more paintballs ready to rip.
THE START OF THE ADDICTION: FIRST TIME by Matthew Smith
Sweat pouring off your face, adrenaline pumping through your veins, diving into the mud without a single thought, hearing the sound of balls flying by your head, just like cowboys and Indians as a kid.
What is it that is so addictive about paintball you ask? If the pure thrill and adrenaline rush don’t appeal to you, then you better keep your day job. For the rest of us, we’ll keep our day jobs to support the paintball addiction!
What’s the strategy? For those of us with only a few seconds to decide, we come up with a little game plan. The horn blows and it is war. Running through the woods, only thinking of one thing: get the other team before they get you. Getting the flag doesn’t seem like an option until some of the opposing team members are eliminated.
I don’t think I even remember hearing my heart beat, or feeling the condensation in my mask from my breathing. I didn’t notice the mud that I was laying in until I looked at my clothes after victory was achieved. It was such a strange feeling, playing cowboys and Indians with rounds that were actually flying by my head. Not strong enough to seriously hurt you, but fast enough to sting and make you duck as far down as you can behind a tree stump.
Do I stick my head out and shoot or do I move to gain a better position?
The bunker is 60 feet away. I can barely see the four guys inside and I have no shot. I’ve already wasted 20 rounds from this spot. Pinned down by one guy behind a bunker 40 feet away. What do I do? Do I move and take a chance of getting hit or do I stay where I am. Well, I’m, no good here.
I quit firing and wait, watching the opposing team take a dozen shots at a different member of my team. This is my chance to move. Gaining 10 yards on him, there’s a small hole in his cover. Standing up with no cover, I fire as fast as I can, both at the tower and at this opponent in front of me. He is crouched down with his head almost between his knees.
I end up taking out two guys in the tower and the one in front of me, too. “They’re out, let them off the field!” the ref shouts.
Ducking to cover, the two remaining opponents in the tower never see me. Here’s my advantage. My other team members are drawing their fire and they‘ll never see me coming.
Being sneaky and cunning throughout the game is my personal strategy. I usually only take three to four shots from one spot and then I move if I can. In woods-style games, I always try to get close first and make sure I have a clear shot before firing. If I don’t get my target by the third or fourth shot, I most likely wasn’t going to get it from that position. I also know that once I shoot, my position is unsecured and I take on heavy fire.
The flag is to my left and the tower is straight ahead. What should I go for? Take out the tower or go for the flag and risk being shot? Better to take out the tower, I think.
As I head in, one of my team sprints for the flag and I take control of the building. A horn blows. Game over.
What an experience! I will never forget this and I suggest that everyone try it at least once in his or her life. If you don’t fall in love with it, there has to be something wrong with you.
“That was the biggest rush I’ve had since basic training, 20 years ago,” my dad, James Smith, said.
Courtesy of Matthew Smith and www.warpig.com
Paintballs: Yep. The founders played with the real thing, actual paint goop that took turpentine to dissolve. That’s good for your soft skin and baby-face complexion! According to 64-year-old Nelson Paint , the original paintball supplier, Charles Nelson was the first person to develop a ball of paint that could be shot out of a CO2 marker. Timber cruisers – men who surveyed woodlots and decided how much and what quality timber was available for cutting – used these first paintballs for marking trees. (Nelson still makes oil-based paintballs for timber cruisers.) With names like Chaos, Fury, Anarchy and Upheaval, today’s water-based Nelson balls scrub off with soap and water. Unlike the early versions, these balls are almost perfectly round, and if stored properly, they stay that way.
Headgear: Early players might have worn baseball caps and maybe some protective goggles from the hardware store or just their own glasses. Today, no one – field owner, player, judge, photographer or observer – is allowed on an active field without complete face, ear and, if possible, neck protection. Today’s players wear safety gear designed specifically for paintball, like Raven ’s NVX, an adjustable combo facemask, eyeshade and lens system.
Clothing: Blue jeans, tee shirts and tennis shoes or long sleeve tan work shirts and leather boots were the fashion on early fields. Old clothes were mixed with WW II army surplus woodland camo and tiger stripe from Viet Nam, feeding an early and unfavorable reaction to survival paintball games as militaristic, shabby and lower class. Certainly not a game for respectable families. Then, starting in the early 1980s, entrepreneurs like Jim Crumley (Trebark), Bill Jordan (Realtree and Advantage) and Toxey Haas (Mossy Oak) realized there was a men’s market for boutique camo patterns, primarily in the hunting field. For its first decade, camo was the paintball garment standard. You still see old clothes and camo on the playing fields, but a whole new style has developed for paintball. Radical rap! These days, hot colors and bright, fun patterns are standard on playing fields. JT USA’s Yellow Flame jersey and gloves, special all-purpose shoes with cleats, and black sock hats from Ronin Gear emphasize the development of merchandise for what has become a young person’s market. Ain’t no more shabby chic except at your local rec ball field.
PAINTBALL TIME CAPSULE
Paintball as an individual survival game was based in the socially and politically turbulent ‘70s, but this was also a time of extreme technological innovation. To understand the debate that is the foundation of our game, here is a quick look at some of the background events that shaped it and the men and women who developed it.
| 1970 | Daisy builds first paintball marker for agriculture and forestry purposes. “Cold War” pits U.S. against Soviet Union in nuclear standoff.World Trade Center twin towers are completed in New York City. |
| 1971 | U.S. and South Viet Nam invade Laos. The first microprocessor is available. |
| 1972 |
U.S. begins withdrawal from Viet Nam. Watergate scandal begins to overwhelm President Richard Nixon.Apollo 17’s Eugene Cernan
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