Paintball is very liberating. It allows you to be a kid again but in a safe environment and with protective gear. What if you get hit? Well, it’s just a bit uncomfortable, that’s all. Compared with other sports, paintball is statistically safe. More than 5 million people participate every year in the US and it’s the most popular extreme sport. For most people, it’s an enjoyable weekend pastime with your buddies. Some companies organise corporate paintball, using it as a tool for ‘team building exercises’.
For others, it’s a lot more serious. Armed forces across the world use it for combat training and there are championships and US national and international paintball leagues for both professional and amateur teams. The US Paintball League World Paintball Championships for 2009 were held in Las Vegas in October. The sport has come a long way since it was first played, when a group of friends organized the first event in Hampshire in 1981. Now, it’s big business. The 2010 NPPL Surf City Open, (National Professional Paintball League), at Huntington Beach, California has been confirmed for April 9th – 11th. This event has been voted as the most popular paintball event in the US.
As with a lot of introduced sports, splinter variants have formed, such as Woodsball. This is played in a large and natural setting, often in the woods and often played in camouflage. Other variants include Scenario, which is paintball with a narrative or theme. Speedball is faster and played in a smaller field and usually involves inflatable bunkers.
If you are a regular player or organizer and you want to have your own gear, it’s easily available online. You will need a paintball gun, paintballs, and protective clothing, such as gloves, chest and neck protectors, knee and elbow pads, pants, helmets, and goggles.
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If the weather is too grim, you can invite your friends round for a virtual game. There are plenty of games designed for different systems. The NPPL: Championship Paintball 2009 video game can be played on Xbox 360, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3 and Wii. The competition locations are taken from actual ones used in the NPPL. Players can progress through the skill levels from rookie to professional. It’s a single player or multiplayer game and the age recommendation is for 10 +. There are several DVDs on the market too that show the action and discuss how to improve your tactics.
It may never be an Olympic sport, (although you never know), but it’s future looks secure. It’s a growing sport around the world and is played in South America, Europe, and Asia. It does seem to appeal more to the guys than the women. Perhaps it should be promoted more to women to get them more involved. It would be a novel way of settling marital arguments!
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