After all these years, Why do you still play?

[Cell]

Well, its only been 13 years since I picked up my first marker. And I know there have been times where I've stopped playing for a couple years, but something always keeps me interested, something always keeps me coming back.

For me, its the people that I surround myself with when I'm playing or sitting in the club house. (aka shack) Theres no specific story I have that I enjoyed more then any other, because every time I pick up a marker I get that feeling.

Just wondering what keeps you guys going to the field weekend after weekend?

[BigEvil]

Well.. I like to shoot people.. anyone.. just in general. PB give me an outlet without me having to goto jail for the rest of my life. :)

I understand how people loose interest. The industry does not help. Getting lit up at a field by a ramping marker by some 15 year old doesnt either. It is especially bad for the new players trying the game out for the first time.

Since I am a natural trouble shooter, tinkerer, and get a thrill shooting people (Did I mention that?), paintball is a natural fit. I do admit that I put the pb gear down every now and then and pursue other interests, but I always seem to gravitate back pretty quickly.

[A-Tach-One]

For me, its the people that I surround myself with when I'm playing or sitting in the club house. (aka shack) Theres no specific story I have that I enjoyed more then any other, because every time I pick up a marker I get that feeling.


Couldn't agree more. We have a great core of people to play with where I live so it's fun everytime I go out. Ive been back into paintball for almost 3 years and it's still on my brain everyday. It's been a few months since I've played but the marker collection keeps growing.:wall:

[Practice Target]

Bought my first marker in 1986. a Sheridan pump pistol (wish I could find it). Played for a little, maybe 2 years and put it away until 2003. This was the time that my son became interested in the sport (mostly due to friends). So we started to play and have been plating for the last 4 years. I like to meet people with common interested and exchange tips and wars stories.

This was the main reason I ended up back into the sport.

I love to build and tinker as well and this gives me an outlet plus my son and his friends have a built in gun tech...:D

I have to say that I have been very lucky since I returned to the sport, 95% of the people I have ran into are great, helpful and mostly honest. This has made the experience enjoyable.

:cool:

[Geronimo7]

I'm gonna go along with the, i like to shoot or shoot at people :)
such a great time, i can't think of anything more fun (well maybe 1 thing;))

[BigEvil]

i can't think of anything more fun (well maybe 1 thing;))


Get married. That other thing changes :guinness:

[Geronimo7]

Get married. That other thing changes :guinness:

Going on 5 years now :wall:

[grEnAlEins]

Married huh? Ouch.

I am still going strong after nearly 8 years of playing regularly. I keep at it because of the rush I get at the beginning of a game when I hear the horn or the ref yell "GO! GO! GO!" I still play because of great it feels to take my stocked out classic mag (Level 7 and a Classic valve), bunker the kid who is ramping, and then hang the flag.

Best off all, I love when the agglets ask me "what the eff did you do to that Shocker/Ion to make it look like that?" or "WTF is that square thing on the side of the gun with the hopper on it?"

It is just a great game to play.

[RogueFactor]

Great post.

For me, its about a few things. The people are definitely a part of it. That and the adrenaline rush. I was hooked the first time I went.

This board has some cool freakin' smilies!!!:thewave:

[michbich]

I actualy had to stop for 5 years. This is the first summer i was able to play and ot felt great!! Shooting players is nice but in all honesty, i just love to play and have a great time even though i'm sure a terrible player.

[Dark Side]

I like to shoot people. :D

[Mind'sEye]

The main things that keep me interested are:

1. The game- Running around shooting people is fun. (at my age I need a good incentive to exercise)
2. The people- Paintball makes friends.
3. Tinkering- If I never go back into the field again, I'll always keep a marker or two just to mess around with.

[HLDefender]

3 reasons:

1) Shooting people.
2) Shooting people that really deserve it.
3) Laughing after I shoot people that really deserve it.

In that order. :glare:

HLD...

[Bonx]

I keep coming back because the sport and strategy of it all. I like that when you are on the field most everyone has the same goal of having a good time. Also, paintball is a bit unique as far as hobbies go and I like the physics of it all. I am able to read technical specs and physics of paintball all day long. I need to start my own company for this already. Any takers? O and I do love shooting people!

[t0nnn]

As said above..it’s the thrill of shooting people. :thumbup:

To this day I haven’t play a sport that gives me a bigger adrenaline rush than paintball, it’s incredible …I live for that feeling. Racing comes close to that feeling, but paintball’s on top.

I’ve been hooked since the first time I played bout 12 years ago, I talk paintball everyday…to the point where my girlfriend was throwing my gear all over the place the other night :grr:

[HLDefender]

my girlfriend was throwing my gear all over the place the other night :grr:

The season is slow right now. Use her for target practice .:D

HLD...

[MedicDVG]

I don't nearly play as much as I used to. Before my deployment, I reffed more then I played. I became "agg"rivated with the way paintball was going.

Lately though, I have rediscovered a group of people back home to play with and I am enjoying paintball immensely again. Sure they are camo wearing, tippman totin' woodsballers.. but that is where I grew up in this sport and I still love it.

http://img206.imageshack.us/img206/4233/allofusgx5.jpg
(pay no attention to the date stamp -- my camera is retarded)

Speedball is fun, but after about 3 games in a row.. its all lane this.. move up to the 50, elimination by volume... meh... not my scene.. I like to ref it though.. in fact I have this strange dream to be a NPPL or PSP ref someday when I grow up...

Course there is NO paintball in theater here and I am aching to get back on the field as soon as I get home... anyone for some indoor play in Wisconsin this January? LOL

[punkncat]

I started playing around 97 or so. A good friend of mine got a stingray for christmas, and having a 5 acre back yard, the games started. I joined in a bit later, and had the time of my life. To this day they continue playing, and its still my favorite place to play.

I really enjoy the comraderie, the adrenaline, the on the spot decision making...heck just about every aspect. I even enjoy getting smoked with a few balls when I make a mistake. Mostly though, its the places and the people that bring me out.

I like fiddling around with my hands, and the endless tinkering available through customizing or "upgrading" a marker is a real draw for me as well. If my health and abilities allow, and the sport lasts, I will play long into the future.

[Stygshore]

Honestly, I play these days because it is an outlet for stress and aggression. I hardly ever get to play a full day, and rarely get to play with anyone I know, but I still have fun out there. If I happen to not be having fun for one reason or another, then I pack the stuff up and just hang out with the refs and occasional return players for a bit.

I have been at it for 17 years at this point, and as long as my field keeps getting players, I'll keep going to play.


Styg

[warpig13]

I still play paintball because watching little kids fall off of skateboards lost it's appeal after one of them tried to sue me/:rolleyes:

[babyface]

i got suckered back in by my 20 year old brother in law and i had to break out the guns. now im buying all new stuff again, that i cant afford but i love it, paintball forever

[Outlaw5]

After 21 years the thrill of the stalk and the strategy of moving as a team or individual to defeat the other team is awesome. Plus I get to shoot people and use my command voice....(it feels good when everyone on my team hears me scream a command and they move). The thrill of command and out thinking opponents is adrenalin rushing and I'm a junky for it. Now that my son is starting to go with me I get to see his eyes light up like when I first started playing and hearing him tell all the stories I used to tell is fantastic.....I'm so proud "sob"..... He is better than I was when I started too...totally thrilling! "Outlaw5":D

[maddboy32]

yeah i got to say, i still play because its the thrill of shooting someone......its that almost hand to hand combat in your face shoot out......its the getting down and dirty on the ground and feeling good about it.......or maybe its the fact that i get away from my wife for a few hours :p .

[FiXeL]

Well, i started playing in 2005. And it was just by coinsidence i got into this... Before i played paintball i shot people online, in games like Red faction, Quake, Unreal tournament and BF1942. But there was no real thrill... When you get shot, wel pick a respawn point and continue untill the game was over. (and hitting the top 3 in the player list was something to fight for) With paintball it's totally different because you are in the field yourself, it's totally different than sitting behind your computer.

Also the social aspect of it is appealing, you get to meet alot of people and make new friends in a way a computer game could never do.

The funny thing is i hardly play any games anymore, the only thing i'm interested in is paintball, 24/7. I usually go out to play once every 2 weeks, but in between i'm busy checking the forums, checking BST for anything i might want, tinkering etc.

And shooting somebody without any nasty side effects like death and so on gives a certain kick... Especially when you have to put some effort into it. Also working together as a team is nice, if you meet up with the right people nobody can stop your team!

Also i tend to burn through hobbies quite fast because i'm all in or out. With paintball i can only play once every two weeks at our local field, more if i was not too lazy to travel alot, but it helps to regulate my compulsive behavior.

[RogueFactor]

I still play when groups of good people get together. I wonder what it will be like when the day comes for the first PBL get together.

[grEnAlEins]

I still play when groups of good people get together. I wonder what it will be like when the day comes for the first PBL get together.

I'd be down for a meet'n'greet. I cannot make Tunaball this year:(, so something later in the summer would be good:)

[TnDeathInc]

with my job i need strss relief, i found paintball around 1990 originally but not hard core till aroun 94 when i graduated from hs. After that it was a second ave, other than kicking people in their face at taekwondo, to relieve stress.

The bulk of my family and my sceanrio team plays when i do so its cool to hang out, then go and drink beer.

I have most converted to mags, mainly becuase i sold them the markers i loaned them at one time or another.

[Zeroack]

Simply .... cause it's fun. It's why I started. It's why I still do it. Lots of friends running around feeling like a team usually makes for a fun time.

Zero

[bryceeden]

This board has some cool freakin' smilies!!!:thewave:

Yes, it does! Anyway I still play because I made it fun again. It was a close call but I'm glad it went the way it did. The people you meet when you get rid of the tourney wannabes is a big reason as well. I really can't imagine what I'd do all day if it wasn't for paintball. Sit around and watch TV instead of surfing the net I guess.

[bryceeden]

I kind of wish I could edit my posts when I decide I have more to say, but as with tndeathinc I have a pretty high stress job and need a way to burn some stress, otherwise my road rage and the Oooo Aww squad would get the better of me and I'd probably kill someone J/K but not really. Coming back to my paintball life and even just fixing the Markers idiots break if I'm not able to play really helps me calm down and relax.

[etjoyride]

Well, paintball lets me get my anger out.
It also puts me on an equal playing field with people twice my age and 5 years younger (well, sometimes equal ;) ).

In most cases i am able to find really great people in paintball that share a common interest. There is a camaraderie in paintball (at least in certain groups of people) that i have not yet found elsewhere.

I do take breaks on occasion, but they are never long as i always invariably come back.

[Mechanic79]

No other sport has such diverse players, game play, and technology.

Diverse players: men, women, children, teens, 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s etc...

Game Play: woods ball, speed ball, hyper ball, giant big games, scenario, outlaw etc...

Technology: pump, semi, electro, Co2, N2, loaders, paint

Options are seamingly endless. I was starting to get wrapped up in "others" attitudes at play but have learned "I play as well, therefore I affect the attitude of the game and must lead by example." They can't ruin it for me, only I can.

[RogueFactor]

I can now say that PBL is one of the reasons Im still involved in paintball.:wthumpup:

[Sn toter]

I've been playing since '95. I got out of it in college, money mostly, and then the attitudes when the agg kids hit the scene and Smart Farts put Bush in office...yeah you heard me, its all a conspiracy

At any rate, I like to build mags, thats always kept a marker in my hands. Something about the customization and personality you can give a marker, it's like playing the sims with paintball guns, lol. I got into scenario play and out of tourney play a few years back and I've had a blast since, especially with mission based games like those of Mission Masters (www.missionmasters.com)

It doens't hurt that I play with a great group of guys - A Band of Brothers scenario team.