Paintball

This is the calm before the storm. Time seems to stand still as the timer counts down. 3...2...1... In a split second the momentary shard of sanity devolves into a maelstrom of flying projectiles. People are sprinting at full speed, flying through the air, and sliding into their positions. Hundreds of objects are flying through the air at over three-hundred feet per second, and just one of these projectiles can eliminate a player from the game. This extreme type of hyper stimulation is appropriately named Speedball. Speedball is a variation of paintball that has become extremely popular in the past few years. While there are many national Speedball tournaments with large cash prizes, there are no nationally televised Speedball tournaments. Speedball would greatly benefit from the added publicity of positive television coverage and would be perfectly suited to a extreme sports league. If there was ever a sport worth of admission into the X-games, it is Speedball.

Paintball started back in the early 1980's with a small group of friends in the United States. Using markers originally employed by foresters for marking trees, twelve friends played a game which was a hybrid of capture the flag and tag. However, instead of touching the other player, the marker was used to "tag" the other player. These markers use a small gelatin capsule filled with paint to "mark" and opponent signifying an out. The introduction of the marker, sometimes called a paintball gun, added a whole new level of suspense and action to the game. The shame of defeat was not the only downfall to defeat; painful welts and bruisers acted as lasting reminders to the losing team. People flocked to this new extreme sports dynamic, and backyard hobby quickly evolved into a regional sport. Within one year a commercial paintball field was opened, and by 1985 paintball had spread across the USA.

In the early 1990's most paintballers split into two separate factions: two very different versions of paintball called Woodsball and Speedball. Since the 1990's these two groups have been at odds about the image and future of the sport. Woodsballers are usually seen wearing camouflage in the woods and many engage in military simulation and scenario play. Another form of the Woodsballer is the recreational player. This group of player usually plays once or twice a year and is newer to the sport. Often times newer players will gravitate towards Woodsball due to the slower game play. The pace of play is much slower than that of speedball, but it involves strategic thinking and stealth over playing skill. One would do well to remember that this really isn't really paintball- it is much more like a war scenario with paintball markers instead of rifles that fire blanks. The large wooded fields does not readily allow for spectators. Most woods games last around fifteen to thirty minutes, and in that time a player may only fire a few paintballs.

Speedball is almost the exact opposite of Woodsball. Instead of large wooded fields, Speedball is played on small, flat, and open fields covered in artificial objects referred to as bunkers. Strategy is still extremely prevalent, but decisions are made in seconds instead of minutes. The entire game of Speedball was designed to make money and introduce spectators. While playing in the woods stealth and strategy were paramount. However, this led to prolonged waiting battles and made for very few firefights. This was not good for field owners, as they were not selling very many paintballs. To increase sales revenue the owners decided to compact the playing area and make both sides identical to each other. Standard regulation fields are three-hundred feet by one-hundred and fifty feet. This smaller field allowed people to watch matches much easier than the larger wooded fields and faster game play. Continued developments led to the use of inflatable bunkers and portable fields.

Speedball is an action packed sport; close quarters encounters are fairly common, leading to extremely high levels of adrenaline and action. Jumping over bunkers, baseball slides, and point blank eliminations are fairly common. Instead of camouflage, Speedball players generally wear bright jerseys and equipment which intimidate opponents and show the personality of the player. The markers used in speedball are often electro-pneumatic and very expensive. Electro-pneumatic markers are capable of achieving incredible rates of fire, often in excess of fifteen paintballs a second. Speedball games are usually over in under five minutes, but in those minutes it is not uncommon for over a thousand paintballs to be shot by each player.

Since its inception paintball has grown exponentially and is now a dominant force in the extreme sports world. Starting in the early 1980's, paintball has become the third most popular extreme sport in the world. (Source five, Growth) The recent growth over the past five years in the Speedball world has really only been seen in one other sport- the explosion of in-line skating in the early 1990's. In a recent press release from National Paintball Supply it was estimated that this year there were over ten million paintball players in the USA alone. (Source 4, Participation) This number of participants is continuing to rise, and these trends show no sign of slowing in the near future.

Paintball is generally considered to be a sport enjoyed primarily by Americans. However, paintball is not limited to the USA alone; paintball is played in over sixty countries worldwide, and it drew in twelve-million participants during the 2005 season. (Source 5, worldwide

popularity) The only continent which paintball has not been played on is Antarctica. During the 2005 PSP World Cup dozens of teams from across the world competed in an international competition. Teams from England, Norway, Russia, Africa, Australia, and several other countries showed up and a fast paced Speedball tournament ensued. International teams proved to be every bit as organized and professional as the domestic teams. This popularity outside of the USA is essential for the growth and development of any extreme sport. The large number of domestic and international participants deserve representation in an extreme sports league.

To succeed in the competitive business world most sports need to appeal to a broad demographic. According to Terry Rodgers, a business analyst and journalist from the San Diego Union-Tribune, "All segments of the action sports biz, even skateboarding, are trying to

capitalize on the growing juniors and women's market." (Source 8, Trends in Xgames/Sports) Many extreme sports such as motocross and BMX are primarily dominated by teenage males. When the possibility for female or youth competition is introduced it is generally in a separate league. It would also be VERY difficult