The Outfit is an amateur paintball team consisting of players chosen by the team captain and governed within its own membership. Formed in April of 2004 when a group of individuals came together with a single devotion in common, the love of the great game of paintball. Talented athletes along with like-minded coaches added together to form a determined organization of people that pooled their interests to make their dream come true. The Outfit began as this concept unfolded.
The Outfit lives by their team mission statement. To be a leader and take charge of any situation while under pressure is what they do. Paying the price in sweat, effort and sacrifice through their practices and drills is how they have built the team into what it is today. They show others the right way to play the game through positive example and being sportsmen on and off the field. They exude enthusiasm, spirit and courage at all times, no matter what obstacles stand in their way.  To this team being humble and gracious on the field while competing or in the pits waiting to play shows respect in their success or defeat. They love being competitors that possess a deep determination and desire to win and show this through team pride and the unwillingness to give up even in the face of defeat. To be loyal is not just a motto but a way of life.
The origins of the team were simple enough and right along the lines of countless teams that have come and gone. Two or three friends had played our great sport in the woods around their houses a few times and asked others to play; of course they all played for fun and the rush of eliminating their friends in this gelatinous game of tag. To say they loved the game would be the understatement of the century. The guys played like this in the woods for a while building up their incessant love for the game when soon after one of the members brought up the idea of putting an official team together. Shortly thereafter the idea was to come to fruition. Eric Beelard suggested the name of “The Outfit†and everyone agreed. That night the team was finalized in his friend’s garage and the original Outfit was born.
The team initially stayed in the woods playing for fun but they eventually ventured to the local air ball field at Wild Adventure Paintball in Zamora. They were soon hooked on the speed and chess like matches of this version of paintball. There they grinded out building the new skills needed. You could find the guys every Saturday and Sunday on the speedball field putting in the needed work to get better. They played their first tournament in 2004 and have never looked back.
Over the years the team’s roster has changed, both for the good and bad. They have relished in the sweetness that is victory and have also been touched with the badness of defeat; neither stopping the team from their ongoing practices to get to the top of their games. This is a team that is very aware of the paintball world, knowing the coming and going of leagues is not a good sign, but the one thing that will always be certain in their hearts: The Outfit loves paintball and they are here to stay!
The team has had many accomplishments as have the individuals on said team. But their greatest accomplishment, in their eyes, they have stayed together through the years. It has been a tough season for the team as they made the jump to Division 1, which was a huge step for the guys. Many felt the team was not ready to take such a huge leap and the team’s losses may agree with this but the team has still remained intact and have grown a stronger bond through the defeats dished out to them. The Outfit continues to work towards their goal, to be the best team in paintball and let the world know the name “The Outfit”.
Their passion for this game is evident. I just wish more teams shared the bond The Outfit has on and off the field. It seems when some teams go on a losing streak the members get upset and start looking for a quick fix and move on to what they think are greener pastures. It does this writers heart some good to see a strong bond like this as it reminds him of his own team.
Check out The Outfit on myspace:Â http://www.myspace.com/outfitpaintball
