Paintball Journal

Paintball may just be getting the break it needs in the media, and it is coming to Fox Sports Net this fall. A thirteen part series will begin on October 2nd at 4:30pm, and air every Tuesday until its completion in late December. Thanks to the efforts of Shawn Walker, NPPL President, paintball may just get an entire new image in the public, hopefully changing some minds and bringing new people into the sport.

The 13-part docu-drama series will be showcasing the lives, personalities and culture of the sport of paintball. The viewer will see the players as people before they see them as athletes. By using a wide spectrum of features, the show will breakdown the paintball industry with segments on globalization, Hollywood appeal, as well as the business of paintball and technology.

This right here is exactly what we like to see. The promotion of paintball in a healthy, positive image is what we’re all about here at PBJ, and we hope to take it even further by not only preaching it, but practicing it at the field or wherever we may be. Not only will this show be enlightening to the public that views it, but also to experienced players as well. For as much as I’ve played in the past, I still know little of the true people that become these killing machines on the field. Hopefully this show will give us more of an in depth look into these players’ lives as well as show the technology and the skill that it takes to make and play paintball on a professional level.

I’m pumped up about it; it really sounds that good. Don’t forget.

Tuesdays from October 2nd, 2007 – December 25, 2007 at 4:30 PM in all time zones.

In a not-quite-brilliant marketing move XSV came in last at PSP’s Chicago open, coinciding closely with the release of the PL VLocity that will blow the competition away. Just like XSV did. Right?

Despite my jabs, this VLocity really does have its perks.

Such as:

* Adjustable select force with 5 force modes
* On/Off Force technology
* 27 bps on marker feed rate
* 37 bps free fall rate
* Clockspring propeller **NEW**
* 200 ball count capacity
* Instant auto anti-jam
* Upgradeable software
* Double vision system
* Giant mouth lid for quick and easy loading in tight spots
* Includes two lithium ion 9 volt rechargeable batteries, charging base, car charger and wall charger.

Not bad. Until you come to realize that the name, the XSV VLocity, actually refers to the price, which is ridiculously excessive. $180?!? I’ll buy a back-up gun. Or upgrade a HaloB and have some cash left over. Or do the same with a regular VLocity.

Whew.

Straight from NPPL’s site:

In a live webcast earlier today through www.NPPLlive.com, the President of the National Professional Paintball League (NPPL) Shawn Walker announced that the NPPL will launch a television show on Fox Sports Net this fall. While some of the final details of the contract are still being worked out, the show will begin airing October 2, 2007 with 13 consecutive episodes airing each Tuesday.

The 13-part docu-drama series will be showcasing the lives, personalities and culture of the sport of paintball. The viewer will see the players as people before they see them as athletes. By using a wide spectrum of features, the show will breakdown the paintball industry with segments on globalization, Hollywood appeal, as well as the business of paintball and technology.

With a new episode each week, the shows will air Tuesdays from October 2nd, 2007 – December 25, 2007 at 4:30 PM in all time zones.

The production company partnering with the NPPL, Winnercomm, is America’s largest producer of live sports programming, supplying over 1,500 hours of programming annually to 16 national television networks, and has earned 14 Emmy Awards.

FOX Sports Net, owned by FOX Entertainment Group, provides regional sports programming to 85 million US households through more than 20 owned or partially-owned regional cable networks. FOX Sports Net owns the rights to air about 65 pro teams of the NBA, MLB and NHL as well as several collegiate and high school teams.

Many more details surrounding the show will be coming soon – stay tuned to www.NPPL.tv, www.winnercomm.com and www.FoxSports.com for all the exciting developments.

Sweet, this, in conjunction with the several other shows being produced for the fall, like the NCPA’s college finals, will have a huge impact on spreading the word about paintball in a positive way.

Carnival Cruise Lines is offering a four night Bahaman cruise to paintball enthusiasts where they will be treated to onboard clinics hosted by pros such as Ollie Lang, Matty Marshall, Nicky Cuba, Bea Youngs, and Lisa Harvey. The clinics, however, are limited due to the fact that no guns or paintball equipment will be allowed onboard. Still, this is something that I would totally be on if I was given the chance (money/time) to go! I wouldn’t pass up anything like this, ever!

And if reading this gets you fired up, don’t grab your shades and sandals just yet! Unfortunately, the full payment must have been completed by June 1st of this year. Don’t let that get you bummed though, because there is always next summer as this is going to be an annual event. The pricing doesn’t seem all that bad either - it covers food, entertainment, private party with the Pros, as well as clinic costs and contest drawings.

“Availability is limited on the ship, as the dates are quickly approaching. You
may make payments as often as you need to, as long as payment in full has been
received by June 1, 2007.

$499.00 - inside cabin, per person, double occupancy
$525.00 - oceanview cabin, per person, double occupancy“

I’d so be there if I only had the opportunity. But seriously, if you really do have this opportunity, take it next time it comes around in ‘08.

Paintball, Paintball Cruise, Paintball Clinics

I think it’s important for you, the reader, to understand how Evan and I handle some of the ethical issues surrounding blogging about different products, companies, and websites.

First of all, we don’t accept payment for blogging about anything, except the payment that we get as 451 Press bloggers. This keeps us honest, and adds a little integrity to our blog. If someone asks us to review something, then we’ll look at it, but we make no promises that it will end up in the blog.

As for products, we accept what a company sends us, but will either give it away or keep it to use ourselves. We don’t profit from anything that’s sent to us. Heck, if we start getting enough products, we’d be more than glad to host a little bit of a contest on the blog to give away to a lucky reader.

We have been offered a lot of these things. A lot of this might seem obvious, but you’d be surprised at what a lot of bloggers will accept. To keep the standards of professional blogging right where you want them, try asking your favorite bloggers about what they have to say about the ethics of blogging.

I’ve come across some cool All-Star vids on youtube that might be worth watching.

After several days of intense paintball at PSP ChiTown, the final standings for the NXL are as follows.

Take special note of XSV in dead last (XSV Damage as they are officially known as now). I never really did like them, but it’s a real shame to see them in this position. On the other hand, however, I’m really pumped to see teams like X-Factor and Ironmen at the top. I’m a big fan of both teams, because they seem very professional about the sport and definitely mix it up a bit with the old powerhouses. Dynasty taking third is somewhat of a surprise, although I firmly believe the competition is a lot stiffer these days, but still not a bad finish at all.

If you’re interested in video footage from the final match between X-factor and Ironmen you can find it here on PBStar. They also have the videos for Legacy vs. Infamous and Aftershock vs. Russians. The last minute in the X-factor/Ironmen is the best footage of all as they get the teams in their huddles – Lang is so damn inspirational.

Know any local teams that might have entered? You can check the full roster of paid entries here.

In the Open, D2, and D3 Division finishes, the results are…

You can find the rest of the scores in detail, here.

It also appears that the Draxxus field had some bad experiences with the refs there. They were supposedly lazy and “more active between games” than during them, but I wouldn’t know anything about these kind of things because I can’t even get to these events! I really, really hope this wasn’t anybody we know, and I really, really hope that FFP brings home that field, even if it will be exclusive.

Paintball, PSP, PSP Chicago, PSP 07, NXL, XBALL, Tournament Paintball, PSP Results

I doubt we’ll be playing at all this weekend, because most of the Friendly Fire Paintball crew/owners will be in ChiTown this weekend doing some reffing, and bringing home a full size ’07 XBall field. I’m not even sure that their field will be open. I’m not sure when Dana will make it back in town either, though he said tomorrow night I think, which would put Sunday at the very earliest and also the very last time I can go for awhile. I leave this Thursday to visit relatives for the weekend after this, and so it may turn out that I will have to wait another two full weeks.

And I still haven’t ordered my stuff yet, nor have I made the bank run. I should put some of the money away at least, and look to get a Vlocity and some Hater Sauce. I could also use a new pack, probably a 3+ torpedo launch, as well as some new pants. Too many decisions, seriously. Ah well, it looks like I’ll have plenty of time to think it over.

In August of 07, Canadian Baller plans to debut their entire season of filming on TV. They’re a group of paintball maniacs that have been following Canadian teams and top players to all of the major events, filming them in High Def and 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround. You may not be able to get this kind of quality on TV, so be sure to look for the DVD that will be released shortly after! I can already tell just by looking at their website that they know what they’re doing.

They have also released two trailers, but I can’t seem to get them to work; it warns that the latest Quicktime is needed.

Trailer 1
Trailer 2

I’ll get these to work eventually!

For us, paintball started out as something purely for fun, in the woods, and when we had enough money to do so. A little over a year and a half ago, we were introduced into the speedball world. We were still absolute noobs to this aspect, but we loved everything about it right off the bat. We thought about the idea of tournaments and a team. We had plenty of people, and some decent equipment shortly after, so why not give it a shot?

Any group of kids can play paintball, and any group of kids can call themselves a team. But for just any group of kids, tournament paintball will be a whole new experience, and will take much more than they often bargain for, especially in regards to their team. One person needs to be able to take command and responsibility to organize practices and any tournaments you wish to enter (not that other teammates won’t help), and everybody else on the team must acknowledge the fact that he has complete rule over you in practice. I’ve come across several articles about ‘breaking in the noobs’ and similar ideas, and here’s what I’ve found.

If you want to call your motley crew of Joe Nobodies a team, then you have to practice, and practice, and practice some more, but paying very close attention to the first one can save you a lot of time in the end. First, get to know your players and their styles by doing any number of drills, and at the same time, figure out who makes the weakest link.

1. Find a set of bunkers five to ten yards apart, and put a player in each one. They have twenty seconds to shoot each other out, and if they fail to do so then they both run a hill, or do pushups. Once somebody is out, he steps off and another jumps in. It should be a rapid fire pace giving the players little time to recover, or even think for that matter. Bunkering is definitely encouraged.

2. 3v1 – This is a great bunkering drill, because even if he does manage to shoot somebody out, there are still two more opponents out there. This greatly increases your chances of seeing a bunkering move.

A good eye will find out several things about a player, so look for those that are smart, aggressive, stupid, or timid. Pay special attention for aggressive and stupid and know the difference. A stupid person might look aggressive running down field until he gets blasted, but this will take work to beat the stupidity out of him and make him a smart, field-reading player.

This will also tell you who has the motivation and determination to be part of a winning team. These players won’t talk back, and will gladly put themselves on the line in order to win a game. If you catch somebody that is shying away from the drills, or is not clearly pulling his weight, then don’t be afraid to give him the axe if he doesn’t shape up.

If you are good friends with other teams, particularly fairly experienced ones, ask them to help you guys out by scrimming you for awhile. They will absolutely grind your team, and it will be a very ugly process, but this is one great way to get the determined on their feet, and those that just aren’t ready for tourneyball off their feet. If anybody is dragging around by the end of the day complaining, then perhaps they shouldn’t be part of the team.

There are so many variations to this first Hell Practice that nearly anything can work. But, never forget the overall idea of it. It must be a fast paced day with few breaks. They must get dirty; people need to be covered in paint and dirt by the end of the day. Punish them for any mistakes they make by making them run hills, or do pushups. And if at any point during this ‘weeding out the weak’ process anybody tries to tell you know or otherwise, then give them the boot.

The owners of Friendly Fire Paintball recently won a brand new field at the last D-Day event in Oklahoma. It was a field owner’s contest which they won, and now they don’t have to actually buy any mini Xs, a snake, Aztecs, or lane blockers – they came with the deal! Yesterday was their opening celebration, and although I wasn’t able to be there, I heard it was an awesome time.

JFK, the field’s home team and core, had most of their team out there playing and discussing where they want to be in the future. They will finish up this season with Omaha and World Cup. Next year they are shooting for the very top of the division, and I believe they have everything it takes to do it.

Anyways, here’s a field pics I bummed off some people.

FFP will be sitting out at Chicago in order to ref the games. In return, they will come home with a brand new, slightly dirtied 2007 XBall field. The deal is going down as far as I know, but the field will be pretty exclusive to JFK, and maybe any other Pro teams that are looking to practice for any upcoming events (it will be set to the exact layout of any events). That is sick.

Nothing quite captures paintball’s true spirit like a photograph. Every once in a while you find a picture that just blows your mind, and that urge to share it totally takes over. Mobzor is offering you just that chance with a pretty decent looking photohosting site purely dedicated to paintball. The starting size is a little small, only 20 GB, but that should be more than enough for just your paintball pics. Definitely check out PBShots.

As Dana mentioned, the whole aspect of getting custom banners for the blogs is relatively new. We had heard rumors of it a few weeks back, so I started tinkering with some ideas. I had plenty of old photos to use, some from the field, some from us playing. I didn’t want anything on there that wasn’t from us, because it needed to be unique. We messed around with several other ideas, but it finally seems that simple is better.

This one was too distracting, too much going on.

This one wasn’t bad, but we went with the black font instead…although red might match the blog layout better.

Again, same thing – clutter and red font.

In the end we went with simple, so that you could actually see the pictures on there and clearly read the font. We’re satisfied with the way it turned out, and we hope others enjoy it as well! Maybe we’ll come up with some more in the future.

Evan has created quite the fancy banner to put at the top of our site. We’re rather excited about it, as it the entirety of the 451 Press network. Custom banners are a feature that all of the bloggers have wanted for a rather long time. Comments and praise for Evan’s sharp Photoshopping skills are quite welcome!

Finally, wittingly or not, manufacturers are heeding my call and finally coming into the light of online shopping. More and more companies are adding nifty little online tools like Eclipse’s Ego 07 Virtual Tech Tour and Dye’s Goggle Builder. These interactive features will help bring people back again and again, and are definitely things that are worth showing to friends.

However, no one can get lazy. Just throwing a couple of things together like what is online today isn’t enough for the future. These are just gimmicks and will fade quickly. What’s needed is frequent updates to videos and ads featuring these products, as well as keeping us, the players, informed of news that will affect us. Product news is great, but other things like why some shipment shipped late or how a company is working to help the player is also welcome news.

So keep it up, paintball companies, but don’t get lazy, and don’t let things stagnate.