Journey into the mind of a paintball player. A long complicated journey into the depths of obsession. An obsession with a sport that once it has it grasps on you the real world can sometimes seem lost. You dream of the game, of the single ball masterfully placed upon the eye protection of some poor sap down field from you.
So what makes a person a paintball player? This is a very simple question with a not so simple answer. We come from all walks of life from the bus boy at your local dive restaurant to the doctor who just saved your life in the emergency room of some hospital. We are a sector of society that if our obsession was aimed at other things we may be considered insane, mal-adjusted or weird. Not that we would shrug off those stereotypes. We know that we are a unique bunch of individuals with a lifestyle that is difficult to understand if you do not live it.
We are the daydreamers in the back office who when we have a free moment we fantasize about what we may spend our next paycheck on, be that playing the game we love or that shiny new marker we have been eyeballing for months. We welcome looking down our enemies barrel as we know that even if we are eliminated there will be another game, and we shall exact our revenge in short order. If the sun shines upon us on this day we will be able to eliminate everyone, we shall rise up to our dreamed expectations and be glorious for the day.
To some this is a crazy sport we play. To allow, or even relish, someone shooting a ball of paint at you seems like insanity to those outside the bubble. But not to us, not to those of us who don the goggles and strap on the paint pods. We love this feeling we get when we walk through the net or out into the woods, the rush of adrenaline the pulses through our veins while we shoot or get shot at. The patter of feet from the start gate to some bunker down field while you dump loads of paintballs at your friends, family and strangers. It is glorious, magnanimous and awe inspiring to share this rush with like minded people after a thrill or an escape from the daily grind.
There is no right or wrong when answering the question of what makes a paintball player. It can be the guy or girl that only plays once a year because the real world only allows that, they dream of the field and the marker in their hands. Or it can be the people who are lucky enough to play every single weekend, travel from place to place and have the luxury of being a “known” player. Or it can be the family man like myself, when I cannot play I write. Hell, even when I play I write to promote this game that has encompassed my life these last ten years. A family man who has brought his family into the game and instilled in them a love for the true nature of sport.
Simple question, complicated answer indeed…
I would love to hear from you on what makes you a paintball player.
Paul Forcier
