Paintball Journal

In a spot of news that’s guaranteed to change the way that many paintball fields look at doing business, Drop Zone Paintball has announced that they will only be allowing gravity hoppers on their field during recreational play.

Their aim is to level the playing field again. As guns like the Ion and PMR were released, more and more people started substituting quantity of paint in the air for skill because it became so financially viable. For what people used to pay for Tippmann 98 Customs, they began to be able to afford guns that could actually compete with higher ends.

This meant that even beginning players were able to shoot very quickly without having played for enough time to gain the skill that many had had to gain previously. In days of old, people played until they were actually truly being held back by their gear, and then had to invest a lot of money into buying guns that were not the leap in technology that you see today.

So, at least in my head, ten years ago, you didn’t see the random inexperienced kids shooting their mad gats at the chrono. Or ramping on the noobs at their local field. Or thinking they were hard until they suddenly got lit up and ran off the field crying.

Like today.

Anyway!

Drop Zone has come up with a perfect solution. There’s no ROF limit, no board caps, no tech limit on guns. Instead, there is a blatantly obvious object that has to be on top of your gun: a gravity hopper. It’s easily recognizable, and very, very few people are going to try to cheat by modding a grav hopper. In fact, how stupid that would make you is hardly describable. Plus the switch might give you away.

So, what are the potential problems? None that I can see, as long as they’re reasonable about allowing teams to practice with electric hoppers, because those aren’t going to leave tournament paintball, at least in the foreseeable future.

Read on to see the full text release!

(more…)

In what is looking to be the biggest news all month, Hybrid has penned a note of farewell to their contract killers and muppet mowers, as well as the entire paintball community. It details an interesting back story of misfortune for Hybrid this past year, but doesn’t tell everything. First of all, I think it’s important to point out that, while it spends a great deal of time talking about the problem, specifics aren’t mentioned. That’s probably a wise move for a company that’s trying to bide its time rather than quit outright, but it makes for a goodbye letter that’s difficult to fully understand.

Just as interesting are the allegations flying around that Hybrid was having manufacturing problems in China, while still engaged in a legal battle with NPS (currently Kee Action Sports) over their company name. Though these things may be true, more important are the things listed in the note, which you can read below. Also on the Hybrid site is a video tribute to those who have proudly carried the Hybrid Contract Killer status throughout the company’s life.

And so Hybrid leaves behind an industry whose image it helped form with the many trendy, stylish, and otherwise “agg” items that it marketed to all of the tournament players who wanted to be just like those SoCal ballers. Though I can’t say that it was an image that ever appealed to me enough to make me buy Hybrid stuff, the influence of Hybrid, whether good or bad is certainly evident no matter where you look in tournament paintball today.

Click below to read full copy of Hybrid’s farewell letter.

(more…)

Good evening, I’m Dana Granholm, reporting from PBJ Headquarters in Evansville, Indiana. Here are tonight’s top stories…

(more…)

From PSPEvents.com :

“World Cup is like the Super Bowl of paintball. Whether you’re a player, a vendor or a spectator, this is the event of the year you don’t want to miss.” -Shane Nugent, Encounter Sports

The World Cup draws over 400 teams from across the nation and around the globe each year to compete in the most popular formats for their share of over $100,000 in cash prizes. Nowhere else is the competition more fierce.

“World Cup is THE event of the year in the paintball world. The whole year leads up to Cup and every new year begins at Cup. It’s what we look forward to every year.” - Robin Niehaus, Dye Precision

“DXS considers the World Cup the ultimate opportunity to experience the best paintball in the world.” -Graham Pritchard, Draxxus

The event is also host to the largest tradeshow in the industry. From the largest companies to the newcomers, everyone will be in attendance. Whether you’re looking for the latest gear or the hottest new brands, World Cup is the place to get it.

“I look forward to the PSP World Cup all year long. The World Cup is paintball at its finest. The best products on display, the best teams competing in the awesome Xball format. Combine that with the best venue in the world - Disney World, and what more could you ask for?” - Chris Williams, Virtue

Stay tuned to www.pspevents.com for all the latest updates on the 2007 World Cup. Check back often as we continue to add even more information for THE event of the year.

For more information on becoming part of World Cup’s massive trade show, please contact Keely Watson at keely@pspevents.com before September 25th.

Check out this ridiculously sick layout, though.

The space! The lanes! The snake! The sickness!

From Scenario Dreams:

ION T-Boards are discontinued…In one of the most difficult choices I’ve had to make, I’ve decided to discontinue the ION T-board. In the past months, we have had an increase in manufacturing cost, parts cost, and other FEES required to put this product on the market. And its now gotten to the point that I have to stop selling them. Obviously there are certain aspects of this choice I cannot discuss, but believe me when I say I did everything I could to continue selling these. However, we will continue supporting the ION T-board until such time as we run out of replacement parts (which we have LOTS of). And we will continue selling our colored ION eyes and Broken Barb repairs. Plus we have a new Universal T-board that will be able to be installed in any marker and will offer installs for those that are not able to install it themselves. Again, I regret to have to do this, but I had no other choice.
Damon Williams

Common sense and speculation points toward Smart Parts’ recent push to enforce their patent on electronic paintball marker boards. Examples include the licensing agreements Virtue and Dangerous Power made with Smart Parts to protect themselves. It’s really unfortunate that something like this has to happen. Just one flaw in a massive series of flaws that plagues paintball today.

Pacific Paintball is pleased to announce the acquisition of Paintball 2Xtremes Magazine, the preeminent paintball industry magazine. “Pacific Paintball is dedicated to building the finest media based company in paintball. We are a one stop shop for anyone who wants to market to the paintball world,” said Shawn Walker, President of Pacific Paintball. “Now with the industry’s top magazine - Paintball 2Xtremes, the greatest Paintball Tournament Series in the world - the NPPL, the highly successful regional league - the XPSL, the popular live tournament web cast - NPPL Live.tv, the upcoming paintball television series airing on Fox Sports Net beginning this October, Pacific Paintball is uniquely positioned to provide industry and non-industry advertisers with a variety of media opportunities that reach paintball’s highly sought after audience and to continue its leadership role as a key supporter of the paintball industry.”

Paintball 2Xtremes Magazine (PB2X) was established in 1996 by John and Mike Henry and later purchased by National Paintball Supply in 2000. John Amodea, who was brought in as the magazine editor in 2000, will continue to serve as editor-in-chief of PB2X. Cheryl Amaya, Publisher of PB2X, said, “We are very excited about joining the Pacific Paintball family and about their desire to continue to grow PB2X. We are also pleased that all of our current management team will be staying with the magazine. This will allow us to continue to provide our readers with the best coverage of all aspects of paintball including; scenario ball, recreational ball, tournament play, professional teams, technical reviews, market news, and local coverage.”

Mr. Walker added, “We plan to invest significant time and resources into PB2X to increase all aspects of the magazine’s offerings, which readers will see over time. The transition will be seamless, with the October issue the first under Pacific Paintball’s management.”

Pacific Paintball was formed by Pacific Merchant Capital (“PMC”), a Santa Barbara, California based investment group. The principals at PMC have owned/operated middle market radio stations as well as built several niche media companies, including the largest taxi top advertising company in the United States, which is currently an integral part of Clear Channel Communications’ outdoor division. In addition to Pacific Paintball, PMC is currently building Brite Media Group, a leading alternative media business.

This is an interesting proposition. Hopefully, this will not skew PB2X’s view towards the NPPL too terribly much. I look forward to the October issue when I can see what changes have been made through the new ownership. I must admit, however, that I already have my reservations. Change is baaad…

As many of you know, NPPL made a deal with Fox to produce a series and broadcast it on national TV. Well, that deal had a little bit of a clincher to it. Exclusivity rights for Fox on the center court, where a lot of the bigger games and pro games occur.

Why we are closing the NPPL Forum and blocking the NPPL web cast

Sometimes you just have to take stand. This is one of those times.

We just learned that our friends from Monkey with a Gun and all the other paintball filmmakers have been locked out of center court for filming during the entire Boston event.

The short story is that the NPPL President has cut a deal with Fox to put the event on TV but this deal excludes all of the paintball filmmakers from access to the center court. They can film all the other courts just not the center court. All of you know how important the center court is to a NPPL event. This is the first time in many years that the hard working, dedicated individuals who promote our industry with great paintball films have been locked out of filming on the main field.

This season many of you have noticed that we have greatly reduced our coverage and support of the NPPL series and now we feel that we have to completely end our coverage and support of this series.

Enough is enough.

So to that end we have placed the live broadcast sites, the home page and others on the swear filter and we are also going to close and lock the NPPL forum in a few days.

We hope that you will understand and support this decision and also voice your opinion to the owners and management of the league so perhaps things can be turned around.

As always your continued support is greatly appreciated.

Thanks
Ed
President
PbNation LLC

Thoughts?

Mine are fairly varied. Fox was well withing its rights to want and claim the exclusivity. Really it’s SOP for any big company like that. Unfortunately, paintball is a fairly unique sport in that smaller companies create DVDs for people like you and me to watch. And I really, really enjoy those DVDs, and anything that affects them is certainly something to watch for. However, this could also just be the first step toward where the NFL is today, selling some games to different networks. It’s a bold move by NPPL, but there may come a day when we have to accept the benefits of coverage like this over the detractions such as a void that MWAG and DerDer have filled until now.

In a rather uninteresting turn of events, Smart Parts sold the rights to use some of Smart Parts’ electronic paintball gun patents in their own manufacturing and distributing processes. Everyone is making a big deal out of it, but it’s probably just Virtue and DP making sure that they are legally covered to continue creating electronics for paintball guns. Smart Parts otherwise could find cause to sue them. That’s how life in the business world is. Better to play it safe than sorry when flirting with similar products to a company infamous for bringing lawsuits to bear on many potential patent infringements.

Smart Parts, Inc. and Virtue Paintball, LLC, [as well as Dangerous Power] announced the signing of a patent license agreement giving Virtue Paintball [and Dangerous Power] a worldwide, non-exclusive license to make, sell, offer for sale, and distribute electronic control units for paintball guns covered by certain Smart Parts’ patents.

Smart Parts owns several U.S. and international patents and pending patent applications related to the use of electronics in the control and operation of paintball guns. These include, for instance, U.S. Patent Nos. 5,881,707; 5,967,133; 6,035,843; 6,474,326; 6,637,421; and 7,100,593, as well as patents and/or pending patent applications in numerous other countries.

DerDer Revamps Site

Complete with songs, flashy buttons, and new news! It’s good to see DerDer keeping up with the times.

07 Ego/ Etek Laser Eyes / Zick Kit Now For Sale

You can now get these bad boys direct from Planet Eclipse. Laser eyes kind of seem like a dumb accessory to me, but if you have enough money for an 07 Ego or Etek, then I’m sure you’ve got enough for one more sweet looking addendum to your already kick-ass gat.

A Zick Kit looks like a good addition. Many people have mentioned the Ego7’s undesirable kick (which was way less than the 06’s but still noticeable (barely)). The Zick Kit will take care of that, for a mere $40.

Paintball Makes Headlines

Usually I wouldn’t mention it, but today it’s something different. The New York Times actually did an incredibly interesting article about scenario paintball that’s well worth the read. If you go to the New York Times site
and sign up for free, you can read the article.

New E-Vents Colors

Interesting colors, but don’t think they’ll find many fans with the speedball crowd. I hope they don’t overcharge for them (they will…).

New Electronic Boards from Warboards

* Boards include a complete set of firing modes which include PSP, NXL, Millennium, 3-shot, and OMG. The board come with a dipswitch for tournament lock; which restricts setup access and caps the ROF.

* All Boards come loaded with the new MakerTalk software. This connects your marker to the computer and allows you to do everything from changing settings in your gun, to increasing your trigger skills trough the trainer or analyzing your shot information.

* Super-smooth trigger operation.

* Enhanced power management resulting in increases battery life. This includes a real time battery guage.

* Every board kit comes complete with a USB Cable, marker board, User’s Guide and a PC based CD-ROM containing the MarkerTalk applications.

And that’s all the news I’ve got for now!

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.

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.

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

Paintball Sports Promotions is pleased to announce the dates and location for our fourth event of the year. The River City Open will debut at the Council Bluffs Recreation Center, August 2nd-5th. Located within fifteen minutes of the Omaha International Airport just off the I-80/I-29 interchange, the Rec center is ideally located and easily accessible.

The Council Bluffs Recreation Center is also just minutes away from some of the best Omaha has to offer. Head over the river into Old Market for great food and nightlife. Featuring cobblestone streets lined with shops, restaurants, pubs and clubs, the Old Market has all the makings for a great night out. Or spend the evening in Council Bluffs and test your luck at Harrah’s, the Horseshoe Casino or the Ameristar Casino.

Registration for the River City Open will begin on Thursday, June 28th. Please remember that event registration is a two part process. You must both register and pay for your team in order to ensure a spot in the event. Only paid teams will be admitted into the event. Also please keep in mind that as the event gets closer, registration fees will increase.

For more information about the River City Open please visit www.pspevents.com. Check back often as we continue to add more information for this great event including directions and great deals on hotels and rental cars. We look forward to seeing everyone in Omaha!

Aaauuugggh! I have relatives in Omaha. I think I’ll be asking them if I can visit. I’m looking forward to the results of the Chicago Open. Our local team JFK is reffing there, and will be getting an ‘07 X-ball field, making the deal pretty insanely awesome for us players that ball at Friendly Fire.

Well, it’s just the usual story. This time it’s a dude just shooting at random pedestrians from a truck rather than vandalizing some building.

ALBUQUERQUE — An alleged drive-by shooter was arrested Sunday after an officer spotted him firing at pedestrians with a paintball gun, Albuquerque police reported.

“That’s putting other people in danger whether it’s causing stress to someone, causing them to fear for their life, causing them to have a heart attack,” Albuquerque Police Department Officer Trish Hoffman said. “All those are factors.”

On Sunday morning, Ernest Jerry Molina is accused of taking those factors for granted while shooting at people from his truck at Central Avenue and Washington Street. An officer reported witnessing the shooting. Molina was thrown in jail, charged with propulsion of missiles.

“The problem with this is the guns look very similar and almost exactly to a regular weapon,” Hoffman said.

Even up close a paintball gun does appear to be a deadly weapon, and it shoots like one.
That’s why it’s taken so seriously by paintball gamers and game centers. A paintball bullet can cause serious injury if hit hard enough and in a vulnerable place.

“If they’re shot in the eye, it will take out an eye it could take an eye out.” Conrad Morawski of Hinkle Family Fun Center said. “If they get shot in the head at 400 feet per second there’s a possibility for brain damage.”

In rare cases, death can even result.

Morawski said that’s why shooting someone unaware of your intentions is a bad idea…

Proper gear needs to be worn, and all players should be up for a paintball shootout.

There are several paintball parks in the area, to play safely.

Molina, who reportedly admitted his actions, is out on bond and id expected in court Tuesday.
No one was hurt in the incident.

What alarmed me was the fact that they really didn’t stress what a paintball could do to the eye. They make it sound as if that’s only a rare case or something. Let’s see, projectile traveling 300fps and impacting a delicate organ…the result isn’t going to be very nice. My uncle is an optometrist, and he has treated a few patients with paintball injuries to the eye. “Blinded for the rest of their life unless they want to pay for a half-million dollar surgery that may or may not get any results.”

I just don’t think the police get it. I mean…losing an eye completely changes your life, and yet these people that do these things still seem to get away with little punishment. Enforcement on this issue definitely needs to be stepped up.

Wait, who?! Yeah, that’s what I was thinking, too.

Edmonton Impact forced their way into the professional spotlight at NPPL Huntington Beach when they battled for first place with Oakland Blast. Though they only placed second amidst teams such as Dynasty, Joy, Ironmen and many others from the Pro Division, they were determined to stick around.

Just over the weekend they proved that maybe it wasn’t just beginners luck. After two days of intense paintball at NPPL Tampa, they found themselves competing once again for first place on Sunday. The outlook was promising when they took the first win against Dynasty, but they lost the second two games of the set, leaving them with another second place finish.

A solid performance in my opinion, and I hope that they can keep up the hard work. It’s good for the industry - new teams coming in giving the usual Pros a run for their money. It definitely mixes things up a bit, and keeps all the teams on their top level of game, because that’s what it takes today. Without constant drilling and practicing, the old powerhouses will fall behind in way of the hungry ones like Impact and Oakland Blast.

And that’s exactly what I like about the sport; anything can happen. Yeah, you’ll have the upsets in the NBA, NFL and etc. but not like it is in paintball. It’s such a team oriented sport, and when played right the game turns into an extremely intricate machine. If one man fails to do his job then the machine fails, the team loses. Perhaps an essential part is replaced by another, but this new part just doesn’t quite meld like the old one did, and again the machine doesn’t run at maximum efficiency. This is one problem many teams face when they can’t seem to hang on to any of their players, because they are constantly leaving for more stable teams. Team Ultimate is just one of the many that come to mind.

Some sports have just become too commercialized I think. The “pros” whine when they don’t get paid $30,000,000 a year, lose meaning of the sport, and often times a player can “make” the team great. In basketball, give it to the guy who shoots the threes. Once he has the ball he can do the rest all on his own. In paintball, “Hey Ollie, run downfield and shoot five guys out for us. Just tell us when you need us.” It just doesn’t work like that; Ollie isn’t anything without his team, and yet he is that one essential piece that makes Ironmen (and Dynasty) successful.

So Edmonton Impact returns to Canada with a lot of hope after this weekend. The pressure is on. Can they prove themselves worthy of the Pros, or was it just a long…and very complex streak of…continuous luck? I’d think not, and I’m ready to see them kick some more ass. Mad props to IMPACT!

(more…)