Weekly Analysis #4

This week’s popular culture discussion is on Paint Ball. This sport derived from the use of a paint marker and the desire of a man, James Hale, in 1981 (“History of Paintball”, 2010). The paint marker, first developed and patented in 1974, designed to use compressed air to propel a paint filled ball onto difficult to reach trees and other forestry uses (“History of Paintball”, 2010), has been modified from its design and is the main piece of equipment for the sport of paintball.
The birth of the sport paintball was in 1981, when twelve competitors in New Hampshire took the paint markers and played the first paintball game “capture the flag” (“The True History,” 2005). The game was such a success that it took off, within a year the media was talking about it and by 1983 monitory prizes were being awarded to winders of competitions. In 1993 ESPN broadcasted a paintball event and the first dedicated website to paintball, www.warpig.com, was designed. By 1996 paintball was the 3rd most popular extreme sport expanding from New Hampshire to over 60 countries in the world (“The True History,” 2005).
My experience with paintball started in 1990 with a spring powered paint marker. This toy was powerful enough to leave a welt from 30 or so feet but quickly jammed and broke. I gave up the sport in frustration. Several years later a friend introduced me to the paint marker, similar to the style I currently own. Powered by a CO2 canister, fed by a 500-ball hopper, accurate to 50-meters and able to leave a welt at150-meters the paint marker is the adult’s toy. I found that I love to play in the woods behind my parent’s house where I can stalk my brother and ambush him as he wanders through the woods trying to find me. The thrill of hunting and being hunted is a rush like no other.
When I began to play with other Soldiers, when I was stationed at Fort Benning, GA, the prey was not as easy and more often than not, I found myself walking into an ambush. This did not take away the fun of the sport, but rather ignited the desire to get better equipment. With any sport that is popular, there is equipment to give the die-hard fan an advantage. There are markers that can empty a hopper in only a few seconds, markers which are accurate to several hundred meters, and many other variants. As well as better markers, there are better balls. I quickly found out that buying my paintballs from Wal-Mart to save a few bucks was a mistake; as the cheap paint inside would make the ball turn mid air, or worse, burst inside the barrel.
Throughout my adult life I have run into paintball enthusiasts, but none more dedicated than fellow Soldiers. At every post there are paintball fields and teams from all aspects of military jobs. The children play under the supervision of their parents who use the team play as a family building experience. I was surprised to learn how popular the sport has become around the world, which is why I chose it for this week’s popular culture topic.
 
References
History of Paintball. (2010) Retrieved 28 February 2010 from http://history.paintballx3.com/
Paintball . (n.d.) Retrieved 28 February 2010 from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paintball
Paintball marker. (n.d.) Retrieved 28 February 2010 from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paintball_marker
The True History of Paintball. (2005) Retrieved 28 February 2010 from http://www.paintball-tips-and-tricks.com/history-of-paintball.html