Paintball Fun!

Paintball is one of the newest sports to take the country - and, indeed, the world! - by storm. It was first played in 1981 in New Hampshire and has become so popular that there are national and international competitions.

The game can be played individually or in teams. The object, in case you haven’t guessed, is to hit your opponents with capsules containing paint!

The games is often used by companies for team building - and just plain fun!

Rules of the Game

Because paintball involves firing projectiles, you must wear protective equipment and the game rules are strictly adhered to.

However, there are a multitude of rules and variations so it’s essential that you decide what rules are in force for each game you play. Common scenarios include capture the flag, capturing hidden objects, defending and attacking a position, and, of course, elimination of the enemy.

Paintballs

Paint capsules or paintballs are fired by a paintball marker, also called a paintball gun.

Many players prefer the term marker to mitigate the public perception of the game as one involving guns. The name derives from markers used by foresters and ranchers to mark trees and cattle.

The marker is your main piece of equipment although modern paint guns have developed remarkably since the first, early Nelspot pistols.

Speed Ball

Modern paintball markers fire paintballs at around 200mph. It can give you quite a nip if it hits soft tissue so it’s essential to wear the correct protective clothing, particularly on the face, and special lightweight masks are the norm.

In order to be hit or tagged, the paintball must burst on impact - and splash you with paint! However, in spite of the fragile nature of the paintball and the speed with which they are fired, occasionally they bounce off. If you’re not hit by paint, you’ve not been hit.

Statistics suggest that injuries run around 4.5 per 10,000 players per year which means paintball is probably one of the safest outdoor sports!

No Hiding Place

Early games used natural terrain and hard objects such as oil drums and plywood which was the cause of many injuries. Although natural terrain is still popular, many games now use inflatable bunkers tied to the ground which reduces considerably the chance of injury.

They also allow the playing field to be reconfigured quite quickly. It’s common for the ‘terrain’ to be laid out symmetrically to prevent the terrain giving one side an advantage.

The game does have its detractors, not least because of the (often over-stated) possibility of injury, but also because of its military theme. In fact, it is often used by the military to supplement training!

Paintball is a great, fun sport! We love it! Take a look round our site.

Andy and Stephen