That means this blog is toast, and if you’ve been checking for updates I apologize. I know I didn’t do my best this last month, but I hope that those of you who have read this blog have at least left knowing that you knew a lot more about paintball than the idiots who write this.

And I want you to know, it’s not you, it’s me. There are just certain things that I have to deal with on my own, and I didn’t want you to get hurt…

I… uh.

Hmm, lost my train of thought. Mostly this is all due to me graduating high school and moving on to college, where I doubt I’ll have time for blogging between my studying, partying, and girls. I wish you all the best in your paintball endeavors, and hopefully I’ll see you on the field someday.

First off, we have the fact that PBNation is a Gold Sponsor of PSP for the 2008 season. I don’t find that particularly surprising, especially following the NPPL - PBNation spat that occurred last year. If you want evidence of that, look no further than the fact that they have yet to reinstate the NPPL sub-forum.

It’s a great move for PBNation, first of all to finally start supporting one of the major paintball leagues, as even if it places them in a partisan light, it’s way better than nothing. Second it seems an almost charitable act by PBNation, as anyone attending one of PSP’s events is likely to already know and visit PBNation with alarming regularity.

I am stoked about a PBNation booth to go along with the Skydeck. They’ll probably be one of the cooler stands for sure, even though I have no idea what they’ll be selling. I foresee many, many people making fools of themselves at that booth for random stuff.

So, following that big, expensive news for PBNation, is the news that they’re also sponsoring a huge scenario game at CPX Sports in Joliet, IL on April 5-6, 2008 called Living Legends of Paintball.

The theme is to get people excited about meeting the movers and shakers in the industry, namely the players who have brought it so far, so fast.

Pre-registration admission is $40 and includes 1 complimentary unlimited air-fill pass. Pre-registered players can pre-purchase cases of event paint for $75, day-of cost is $80. Pre-registration deadline ends March 24th. CPX will have free camping available beginning Friday, April 4th. CPX Sports is a 143-acre, $6.5M paintball park located in the Chicago suburb of Joliet, IL and is widely regarded as one of the nation’s premier facilities. The field is conveniently located less than 1-hour from both O’Hare and Midway airports. Smart Parts Inc., is a leading developer and manufacturer of equipment and accessories for the sport of paintball. For more information about the Living Legends event, please visit www.cpxsports.com or call (815) 726-2800.

So, PBNation is feeling rather philanthropic. But did you ever wonder how they could afford something like a Skydeck, a gold PSP sponsorship, and a scenario game?

Well wonder no more as I show you the inner works of PBN!

First source of income: Supporting Members. I estimate the average rate of supporting membership is something like 1.5% of all registered members on PBNation. If that is true, then they are all paying $30 a year for that privilege.

PBNation has 388,000 members. That’s nearly 6,000 supporting members if my rate is close. That is…

$175,000 per year from supporting memberships.

That’s chump change compared to what they pull in from ads, though. I did a quick tally of their ads this month, and emailed them about their rates for advertisements. At the current rates, they’re raking in over $30,000 a month from the number of ads that I saw when I counted.

Assuming that the number of ads stays relatively the same throughout the year, I feel safe in saying…

$360,000 per year from advertisements.

That’s $535,000 per year total. Now, THAT is why I feel it’s a damn good thing that they’ve finally found it in their hearts to give back to the paintball community that’s made them what they are. Even with server costs and paying people to run the business side of things, it’s still an incredibly lucrative business, much more than anyone would suspect.

Anywhere, so there you have it: how PBNation makes its money and where it’s going these days. Too bad Paintball Journal doesn’t quite pull in those figures…

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!

Press Release
Date: February 1, 2008

Re: Recreational Paintball and Affordable Firepower

Starting in the 2008 season, Drop Zone Paintball Park will limit recreational paintball play to gravity fed hoppers only.

Drop Zone Paintball Park has been in operation since 1989 at our original location south of Lawrence, KS. Our goal during that time has been to run a responsible business by making the game of paintball fun and available to as many people as possible.

Over the years, the rate of fire of paintball markers has increased dramatically.

In the early days of pump markers, one could only shoot 1 to 4 balls per second. Semiautomatic markers increased that to 6 to 10 balls per second. Electronic markers made rates of fire in the 10 to 15 ball per second range possible. Most of the higher end guns at that point though were limited by hopper technology (what feeds the balls in) and the high cost of the marker itself which could easily be $700 to $1500.

Recently there has been a large influx of budget priced markers and hoppers that let the average recreational player shoot 14 to balls per second or more for well under a $500 investment. This lower initial investment has led to a proliferation of high rates of fire in recreational play. Players are still getting in to the sport for the same amount of money but they’re entering rookie and recreational play with a much higher ROF than previous players. This proliferation of high ROF has several effects.

First: The proliferation of high ROF has increased the cost of the average day of paintball play. This higher cost has limited the number of people that get to enjoy the sport. They have either chosen not to play all together or dramatically reduced the amount of play time they get in.

Anyone that wants this high rate of fire ability can get it for a relatively small cost and many people have. If they haven’t yet, then they feel compelled to because they are at a considerable disadvantage on the field due only to rate of fire. To shoot enough paint, to gain that advantage, you have to pay more. There were times that a 100 round pod of paint might last all day. Most won’t remember those days. More recently, a 500 round bag would last the whole day. Now, to compete on rate of fire, a case of 2000 is not unusual.

This higher paint consumption, just to be competitive on ROF, should not be necessary to enjoy the game.

Second: The proliferation of high ROF has kept new players from entering the sport after seeing it up close and has made current players drop out after bad experiences. In essence, paintball has become more painful. With pump and semi automatic markers one would normally get hit 1 time and then call themselves out. Getting shot 3 or more times was usually considered intentional overshooting and poor sportsmanship. With the proliferation of high rates of fire there has been a rise in the rate of accidental overshooting. At 10 balls per second there might be 4 or more balls on the way to the target before the first one hits. Then more on the way while trying to see if the first few broke. An accidental overshooting, by one person, of 5 or more hits at one time is no longer unusual. When you factor in higher rates of fire, instances where there are multiple people shooting at one target, and intentional overshooting, it becomes a commonplace occurrence where players are shot 8 to 12 times or more before leaving the game.

It hurts. It’s not fun. And fun should be what this or any game is all about.

At Drop Zone Paintball, we believe we can counter the multiple problems created by high ROF with one new rule. All recreational play for the 2008 season will be done with gravity fed hoppers only. Regardless of the paintball marker being used, it must be fed with a gravity fed, non-agitating hopper. This will reduce the rate of fire, for all guns, to 7 to 10 balls per second. Being forced to shoot slower will make a day of play cheaper and more fun so that more people can enjoy the sport.
Not yet convinced?

•One thrill of paintball is the rush of being shot at and knowing that it’s going to sting when you get hit. That stays. You get all the excitement that’s been there since the first paintball marker was shot at someone but we get rid of the dread of being hit enough times to ruin your day.

•The game will be more competitive. By equalizing the rate of fire, players will have to rely on moving, communication, accuracy, tactics, and form. With an even rate of fire you can’t be automatically good. You actually have to be good. You might even have to practice. Just kidding, there are of course . . . There are of course many players that shoot fast AND have excellent, practiced skills.

•The slower rate of fire will make the game less painful so more people want to enjoy the sport. If you’ve been out to a field recently and played you’ve probably noticed a lot of anger and attitude. You’ve maybe seen an argument or even a fight breakout related to overshooting. Lower rates of fire will reduce the overall amount of tension on the field making the sport more fun for all.

With all of that being said, this is NOT the end of agitated hoppers at Drop Zone Paintball Park. We will continue to run special events, including scenario and tournament play, that may or may not allow agitated hoppers and ramping guns. This will be decided on a case by case basis taking in to consideration the level of play, series requirements, and customer feedback. Once a month we’ll have unlimited open class play on a Sunday afternoon. If you want to show off your super fast hopper and gun and get that thrill of rattling off 15+ bps then this will be your chance.

We invite anyone who has questions or comments to contact us directly at (785) 841-1884 or by email at dropzone@dropzonepaintball.com .

We’d be happy to listen to any concerns you have. We will do what we can to responsibly accommodate all types of players.

We’re doing what we think will work best for our company, in our area. This may or may not be the best policy for other fields across the country but we believe it’s worth a try. Hopefully, this manifesto of sorts will begin a healthy discussion within the industry about the proliferation of increased firepower and its long term effect on the sport.

19 years in the sport and looking forward to many more . . .

Ken Farris - President/Owner and Galen Adams - General Manager
Extreme Sports, Inc. d.b.a. Drop Zone Paintball Park
Lawrence, KS

Dangerous Power has just released news of a new gun that should be available to the European market within the next few months. By almost all accounts this is the “officially rumored” mass produced Threshold. It definitely at least has a similar bolt design and body shape.

The Threshy definitely held its own on all accounts except resale, and if this gun performs similarly, then expect a $300-400 price tag if it comes to the US. The European-market-only release is due to Dangerous Power’s location: the UK.

This looks absolutely insane in terms of size and weight. I’m just flabbergasted that anyone ever shot guns with trays and extended foregrips when I see things like this come out. Seriously, this is one tiny gun.

Right now, the only store that I can find selling this DP “IQ” is in France. It’s 499 euros, which is close to $730 USD. Of course, you have to take into account that a F8 costs $880 in France, so all paintball things are a bit inflated there. That has to do with the EU’s general high taxes and price of petrol.

I look forward to this coming to the US. Honestly, Dangerous Power has always made quality products that never get the attention that they deserve. Every one of DP’s guns can compete with guns far more expensive than themselves, and always put guns in the same price class to shame.

The only thing that worries me is the lack of both RAPS and a clamp feedneck on the IQ. Those were both very big selling points for me on the original Gen2 Fusion.

Here’s what’s happening in your world today.

On a side note, these paintball briefs just happen to fall on Valentine’s Day, there’s nothing particularly romantic about them. Unless you’re into paintball as much as I am, that is.

First up is a new line of carbon fiber barrels. They look really great, and I’ve hear some good things about them. Unfortunately, you don’t get the performance specs of the real carbon fiber barrel company (Stiffi), but it’s a price effective way to get an incredibly light and accurate barrel kit. These are available in many different colors for both woodsball and tournament players, but only come with three backs: .689, .692, and .695, which seem too large to be effective for some paint preferences.

Next is PA’s X-37 Series Harness, which is pretty much a standard pack just like any other. I’d say about middle of the road in looks, function, and price. Buy it if you want something that works and looks good. Interestingly, Edmonton Impact will be sponsored by Paintball Assassin this year, so look to them for examples of what’s to come with the company.

This is the Reaper. It looks lamer than it sounds, which is quite a feat. Definitely the rental and noob mask of the future. Ugh, I can’t imagine wearing one of those.

Anyway, moving on…

Here are the masks that actually matter to you. They really aesthetically screwed this one up. These look as solid as ever, but lean more toward the Proflex look than the Flex series look, which is a mistake on the fashion side of things. That matters a lot when you’re marketing to a bunch of teenagers who want to look as cool as possible on the field.

And lastly for today, I leave you with the trailer for Ego Maniacs: Part Deux

That means I do pay attention to the all-girl teams that show up from time to time, like the Femme Fatales and some of LTZ’s former rosters. Today that means a look at Destiny, an all-girl team captained and owned by Bea Youngs-Paxson. (-Paxson sound familiar? It is, Mike Paxson, her husband, plays for the LA Ironmen.) Joining her for the 2008 season is this awesome all new roster:

Angela Manfrate, 20
Abby Becker, 19
Becky Raikles, 18
Kim Ma, 22
Jackie Lon, 19
Breanna Rinaldo, 18
Brittany Wagoner, 15

Detailed biographies and information are available on the Destiny website.

Destiny’s website is actually one of the most interesting paintball team websites that I’ve ever seen, with a comprehensive gallery of the many different paintball photographers who have captured the team in action, as well as links, sponsors, and a history of Destiny.

In 2008, Destiny will be playing D2 NPPL, CFOA, 7 (Wo)man AM NEPL, and SPPL, as well as possibly some Millennium. All of the girls are experienced players who have played Xball and PSP with a variety of teams.

It’s tough being an all girl team, because most teams are composed of guys who hate being beat by girls. It’s just the way life is, as no guy wants to get shown up by girls, and so will often play harder when they see teams like this that are actual contenders. Destiny is definitely a contender.

I wish the best of luck to Destiny in the upcoming season, though something tells me their opponents might need more luck than them.

Cheating, contrary to popular belief, is a great thing for paintball!

First of all, it evens the playing field so that everyone can compete on the same level. I mean, who wants divisions of players by skill level? In all the professional sports there are already established and enforced rules, professional refs, and instant replays so players have to resort to steroids and enhancements that put them at risk! Why do that, when cheating does the same thing, without the bodily harm that anabolic steroids can cause?

Secondly, there are more paint sales because it takes more paint to shoot someone out these days. One ball doesn’t cut it anymore. When you’re shooting a hopper full just to put one ball on your opponent, just think about how much you’ll have to shoot when they’re wiping! Cheating is the biggest boon for paint sales since the semi-automatic was invented.

Things really should just stay the same in paintball. There should be no negative stigma attached to cheating, and wiping should be just another part of the game just like it has been for the past few years. Paintball can do nothing but benefit from all of the wonderful side effects of cheating.

You know… everything except grow to become a legitimate sport. But who wants that, anyway?

Admittedly, if you’re not a photographer, you might not know what all that means exactly, but just know that it is overall bad.

Here are some examples from last weekend.

As you can see, they don’t turn out so hot. The best that you can do is get close and take flash shots, or dress them up later in a photo editing program. Here’s an example of each, in order of how I mentioned them.

A little bit better, but impractical at best. You can’t really win photographing paintball indoors. However, I think I managed to catch my first paintball in flight this time around, and I was pretty dang excited.

Check it out.

I’m pretty stoked about that whole thing, plus I didn’t get shot too much and my camera didn’t even explode, so all in all, a decent weekend for photography.

Some tips for shooting paintball in general:

Get as close as possible to the action.
Don’t shoot through netting.
Don’t shoot indoor paintball.
Use a ref shield!
Fast shutter, low ISO, etc. etc. Paintball is incredibly fast.
Watch the game, and the shots will come. Know when people are going to make their moves.

Well, it’s been a fairly busy week here on Paintball Journal, but if you are still looking for reading material, here’s what’s been happening over at my other blog for Xtreme Paintball.

Eclipse’s Board Settings for New ROF Limits

Both PSP and Millennium have lowered their ROF limits, and Planet Eclipse wants to let you know exactly how to deal with the new firing modes on their guns. Definitely worth a read if you have an Ego or Etek.

WGP’s New Website

WGP hasn’t really brought a whole lot to the table that people have noticed lately. With this new website, it gives me hope that they will have some great new products to sell on it sooner rather than later. Cool design, but hopefully they keep it updated. If you want to know more, just click away!

Ultimate Strategy

For those of you who have guns that don’t shoot very fast, but want to know how to win against the kids who do. Techniques, strategies, and overall tips on showing up those punks with the fast guns.

Hybrid Says Buh-Bye Now

Just a copy of the original Hybrid note. You can read my thoughts about it here on Paintball Journal.

Spyder RSX To Sport Tadao Board

Okay, so technically we’re heading into last week, but this is an interesting article on Kingman Spyder’s latest announcement regarding their RS line, at least one of which will come stock with a Tadao board. A great move for both companies, certainly.

Brass Eagle Ambush - For The Illest

Oh, yeah, and I can’t forget the most insane gun of the year, the BE Ambush. If you want to learn more about this sheer amazingness, head over the Xtreme.

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.

THE AGE OF CHANGE

To everyone in the paint-ball community,

With the current situation of an economic melt down. We are going to be in the situation of change.. Not just our company but the community of paint-ball as we know it. Most importantly, our country.

We see the dying of paint-ball dealerships almost every day. We have seen and been involved in the constant bickering of paint-ball manufacturers to not alleviate an ridiculous infrastructure of an ever changing paint-ball community.. What we see is conglomerates and umbrella companies slowly try to corner it and kill, or be killed.

Competition is progress. But when there is none, You have become a monopoly. A beast that becomes fat and become a cancer to its own body. Now we fight internally.. From disgracing the new player to never having a good time, to the recballer who gives a damn about nothing but playing and if a field is not around or he thinks that his local field only caters to other so called “important non-paying types”, he becomes renegade … lawless. To the dealer, who cannot figure out why no one comes in their store. To the dealer that decides to devalue industry product because they are now in survival mode to make ends meet. To the manufacturer who now must do the same to help with dealer margins, but bleeds its own margins and soon must be hasty in their decision making… We must stop and start reflecting!

Players will not feel this because you have the options to stay home and play online but know its always best to go play our sport like you should. Players have the luxury to love and hate brands to prove a point not knowing that this industry right this very moment, ONLY NEEDS GROWTH, the growth of competition, the growth to be better ambassadors to the new, the old, and the ones who have fallen to a disenfranchised love of the sport. The west is feeling the crunch, east will follow soon enough. Soon their will be nothing you decide what you want, that is the day the industry as a whole may be destroyed.

We have stepped sideways because first off, we can, and secondly, the consumer, the dealer are simply not buying how they use too. To the consumer that can afford to pay in other industries good money, but is educated to go cheap in paint-ball. If you cant afford it, you just cant afford it. HOWEVER, what must be done is to let new people embrace our sport so we can grow. To also provide a service to the community that we are legit. When we do, fields are easily accessible.

Now working on other industry where competition is fierce, they still maintain order, respect, right to fight, but keep the margins in check so its industry will not implode. Buyers still buy. No matter what. You can see it by their own conventions…

At this time I say we need a united front, a governing body, with two common goals; to thrive in our great industry, and to keep the industry from failing. We so love this sport? Then each player has a responsibility to improve it.

History is repeating-itself and the more you see it then you begin to believe that the harvest did not justify to reseed because of a long winter. And we need to hold on to the fabric that made us great. to conserve, to demand, to supply must all come into play.

We are a luxury sport, but when dad loses a job, or your parents lose their homes, who plays? who wins? most importantly, who survives? furthermore, who controls?

Once more.. We are still here, not like how we do, but we are still here. Production I still have and whatever I got that you want. I have, till the industry warrants it. And if it warrants it I’ll make more. And when I can get up to lick my wounds, heal, and get up off my feet and feel like I need to do something, I’m coming after you.. To the loyalists: I got a lot more in the war-chest that these fools haven’t thought of yet! Just wait and see.. To my killers.. I will make things right.

myspace.com/contractkillermma
contractkillerclothing.com

Chris Corcino, John Marques- Hybrid tech LLc (the only Hybrid), Contract Killer clothing Co.(The Last of Our Kind)