There's a video (and lengthy comments section) over at my favorite tourney ball news, rumors & gossip site, ProPaintball. It's the HK Army Chicago 2010 video. Now, the thing is I'm not all that interested in the video--which is okay--but I am fascinated by the general debate regarding the HK Army. For those heroically out-of-the-loop the HK kids (and not so kids) initially parlayed internet popularity with hordes of adolescent fanboys into T-shirt & headband sales in order to finance their paintball. At least that's the myth. They are a bit more commercial these days--which is also fine. The intriguing part is the hook which is a Cali slacker variation of the hard living, hard partying, hard playing way of life (or so-called paintball lifestyle). Much of the "debate"--such as it is--revolves around whether or not this sort of promotion is good for paintball. While I think that "debate" is worth having when it comes to thinking about what competitive paintball is becoming and the dominant image the public has of our sport--that's not where I'm going here.
It's the paintball, stupid.
I am reminded of the high roller world of Formula One racing and the dead head phenomenon. A certain class of wealthy and indolent rich peeps used to (and probably still do) follow the international Formula One circuit; it is the quintessential jet set lifestyle. Do they love racing or is it just an exciting excuse to travel the globe and kill some time? Dead heads followed the Grateful Dead around to catch live shows and get high. At one time it was a prominent enough activity to be considered a subculture, a lifestyle. It seems to me one could as easily lump the
HK kids into the same category--and if that's all it is, it's harmless enough but shouldn't make any claims on competitive paintball. It just turned out to be the activity the "lifestyle" is constructed around.
It seems to me that a priority of a "paintball lifestyle" is, practically by definition, the paintball--and try as I might I don't now and never have seen any evidence the HK kids are particularly serious about competing. Or maybe most of them just aren't that good and the handful that have actually made something of themselves as players have done it on serious teams. There's no paintball lifestyle without real commitment to the sport.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
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20 comments:
I completely agree with this post...first time for everything, right?
And here I was thinking the pre-game "bleep bleep we're going to kill these bleep bleep bleep mutha bleepers" motivational speeches by Pro team captains needs to stopped since they find their way on to countless DVD's and video sites. I think the boys at ProPaintball shouldn't have publicized the video in the first place.
Phooey.
I guess I'm not sure how taking paintball competition seriously is any more noble than taking whatever it is HK does at paintball events seriously. It's not like anyone is making serious money playing paintball.
Most people do things for social reasons. How many people attend art gallery openings because they are serious about the art vs. want to hob-nob with similarly snotty people? How many people go to Nascar races because they are into the competition vs. into the tailgating and the crashes?
If paintball is ever going to work, we need a whole bunch of people who will follow paintball around definitely NOT taking the competition seriously. It wouldn't hurt if a bunch of them paid entry fees either.
Faction
Your desperation to be contrarian never ceases to amuse as does your utter cluelessness. :)
"serious about the art vs. want to hob-nob with similarly snotty people?"
i resent that :\
I like the core value of hk -- play for the fun of it, with your buddies. But, it's not that anymore. It's become a selective "club" that if you dont look good enough, or dont go to every psp event -- you are not agg or HK. Also, being deemed agg depends a lot on what team you're on; even if your team is just your group of buddies having fun...
stupid stupid stupid.
Does Raider Nation seriously damage the NFL? Or is Icehockey doomed because they do in primetime TV use fists to unleash some temper and the rude fans cheering loudly? Is football (soccer to you lot), world most popular sport being seriously damaged by rampart hooliganism? Surfing, that keeps kicking paintball down year after year has beach and gang issues reported and widely discussed in major media outlets. People still start to surf and damn me if we had those numbers that surf playing tournament paintball.
Every sport as they gain popularity and people gather around to play or watch, they form cliques and factions. Public image of any sport is not solely formed on such groups, rather amount and wide range of them generate more general interest and fish in new people to try it out.
Whole question that is HK good, horrible or worse for the sport is just another example how badly we are stuck in the small, meaningless part of various sports and can't even get around the fact that cliques are meaningless in the big picture. HK is just one of those cliques.
I know it's paintball but is a little reading comprehension too much to ask?
or comprehension in general?? lol
Baca,
I'm not being contrarian. Just pointing out that your thesis - that a (insert sport name here) lifestyle is dependent on serious commitment to the sport is, well, bunk.
For every Shaun White there are hundreds of "snowboarders" who spend their winter sharing a house or apartment near the ski hill and teaching enough lessons to afford the rent, the beer, and the pot. They're not going to be Pro snowboarders. They may or may not be kidding themselves about that. But their "snowboard lifestyle" isn't determined by their commitment to being the best snowboarding competitors; it's determined by where they do their partying (near half pipes) and who they do it with (other people who snowboard.)
I really, really, really hate to say it, but HK is probably about as 'paintball lifestyle' as you can get. The people who take competitive paintball seriously probably have real jobs and practice. Come to think of it, if you look at anyone who takes competition in any sport seriously, I doubt any of them participate in the "lifestyle" associated with their sport.
Faction
Thanks for reiterating one of my points for me: none of those so-called "lifestyles" are unique, they are just variations on the slacker theme.
I must say I'm also shocked by your unusually defeatist attitude.
Raehl, i hate to say it, but i cant disagree more. Many people who live the "snowboard lifestyle" also live the "rafting lifestyle" in the spring, the "rock climbing lifestyle" in the summer and "surfing lifestyle" in the fall.
the difference is that the hk army is more a parasite to the leagues, while these snowboard instructors you talk about are stuck to their one mountain and dont have the time to go compete because they are trying to pay the rent. Once that snow melts, many head to the rivers to be rafting guides. Once the snow melt has ran by june, they head to the mountains to be guides and climbing instructors, and then many more head to the beaches to give kayaking/surfing/scuba instruction.
The fact that you are discussing HK validates HK. They want attention and want to be talked about. I have no problem with that, or them, and don't really understand why anyone else does. I just see them as a bunch of kids who are trying to make a living in paintball. I'm sure they blow any money they make on partying and trying to uphold their image, but who cares?
I'm more with faction than anyone else. I get the lifestyle choice, and the fact that they want to try to string this out for as long as possible before they have to go get real jobs. The only difference between them and Dynasty is that Dynasty are far better players. HK are only following that model.
I think a lot of the animosity comes from teams/players who just think "why are these guys getting so much attention when my team is a better team". This makes some people resent HK. I really don't see what the problem is though, in fact I am pleased that there is still some attempt being made to make paintball look more 'lifestyley'. Those kids are pretty cool, and aside from some stupid shit they've pulled (they are still kids...) what harm do they really do?
No real arguments, Missy. I just don't see what they're doing as uniquely paintball so why do they get to be the arbiters of what the "paintball lifestyle" is?
Because underneath the sloppy, careless facade, they have some marketing skills. They want people to believe that paintball lifstyle=HK. They have garnered some success in this regard. The fact that you, coach of a top Pro-team (and team of the hour) picked that up and challenged it only validates their approach and lends credence to their methods.
From what I can tell, their lifestyle consists of growing mullets, shot-gunning cheap beer and bourbon, playing Pole Position (admittedly, and awesome, classic game), and shooting in-game video of pro players wearing their gear. And making fun of drunk homeless guys. And teaching bad values to minors. Did I miss anything?
Reading the comments thread on ProPaintball, it appears that receiving fellatio in public is also part of the HK lifestyle.
Shock and Awe marketing.
Oh, and totally fake...
Well sdawg, if that's what the HK kids are getting, I'm going out tomorrow to get me some Hello Kitty gear.
And here I was thinking I was living the paintball lifestyle.
Play paintball and get public fellatio? I won't say there are WORSE marketing methods, but I can't think of many more effective ones...
Go to 3:22 of the video.
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