Everyone can help improve paintball’s image

By Paul Baker

Everybody who considers themselves a serious paintball player and even some that don’t, have undoubtedly run up against opposition against the sport. We’ve all heard how “violent” paintball “war” games are and how “dangerous” the sport is. Don’t blame the people that say this for having this opinion, blame them for having formed the opinion without any actual knowledge of the game.

Members of my family have actually attacked paintball with these arguments and others. These family members had never seen, played, or read an actual account of a paintball game. They told me that video games and paintball were directly responsible for the Columbine disaster. They told me that I shouldn’t play because I would lose respect for human life.

I don’t know about other players, but when I am on the field I am not thinking about “killing” somebody or causing them physical harm, I am thinking about winning the game for my team and not being eliminated. I can honestly say that I love the sport of paintball. It tears me apart to hear about guys that go down to Wal-Mart and buy a crappy marker and then go out and shoot up people on the street or that take the marker and add a fresh coat of paint to every building in sight that they don’t own.

Everybody that plays paintball knows that they aren’t real players, that they’re just irresponsible thugs and vandals. But people that don’t play paintball see don’t just see thugs and vandals, they see these people and their acts as reflections on the sport of paintball. They stereotype us like bigots stereotype people. Honkies are racist. Darkies are inferior. Indians smell funny. Paintball players are thugs. None of these are true, but all of them hurt.In our case, it hurts our sport.

Some of these people are legislators, law-makers, people of authority, potential players, and parents of potential players. They see these reports and they instantly categorize paintball as a danger to society, a dangerous sport, or a sport they don’t want their son or daughter to take part in.

Paintball players see these reactions and we see the dangers in them. We see that our sport could have a dark future if any future at all. We see this and most of of us simply DON’T KNOW WHAT TO DO ABOUT IT.

Well you can make a difference.

Steps To Make A Difference:
1. Call your local newspaper and see if you can write an informative article about paintball. Don’t defend it just tell about it. Include a paragraph near the end that gives safety statistics to parents and to potential players. Most newspapers will be happy to fill the space, others may be more reluctant. Keep trying until they do it just to shut you up.

2. Call local stores that carry paintball magazines and find out where they classify them on the rack. If they classify it in the Firearms section, ask them to move it to the sports section. Believe it or not, but some people actually research the sport before getting into it. Think about a parent coming in to pick up a magazine about paintball and finding it surrounded by magazines devoted to firearms. They probably wouldn’t be encouraged to let their child play.

3. Raise awareness. This is probably the strangest sounding thing of all, but invite public officials to come play paintball at a local field. Talk to the field owner about it and tell him or her what you are trying to achieve and more than likely they will be glad to help. Arrange for the day to be perfect. Plenty of paint, plenty of air, and a whole lot of safety. Make sure that your guest has no doubts about the safety of paintball. Don’t limit the guest list to public officials, bring friends, parents of friends, people you don’t know, anybody that can and will come should be made to feel welcome. Remember, first impressions are the most important ones and second chances don’t come easy.

4. I hate to say it but try to be Politically Correct. Don’t say “gun” or “kill”, but instead say marker and eliminate. Among other paintball players you can probably talk as you like, but around potential players or their parents be sure to use the safer terms. Sure it seems stupid and we shouldn’t have you do this but the fact is that people just don’t respond well to these other phrases. Be PC and you can’t go wrong.

5. Camouflage. Don’t get me wrong but when people see camouflage they think Army Men. For some this might be a big attraction but for others it could be an even bigger turn off. Don’t get me wrong camouflage certainly has its place in paintball, but it does send some bad signals. If and when you do bring a guest to a field, encourage dark clothes or clothes that blend in without directly saying camouflage. If you are planning on playing on a wooded field say that you are and they will probably arrive to the idea on their own. But by doing this they see the camouflage for its function, not its symbolism.

6. Emphasize FUN. Let them know that it’s a game and a sport. Tell everyone that it’s more like tag than it is like war. There’s not much else I can say about making a difference except that if you don’t maybe nobody will. So get out there play your sport and help it grow.