You know, the one heralding the 50 caliber revolution. Yeah, that bandwagon. Now before you start accusing me of being an ignorant hater let me say I'm not opposed to the idea. I get the potential advantages. Heck, I'm sold on price alone--all other things being equal. The key words here being--potential and equal. Thing is I'm not good at wishing will make it so or blindly following the latest marketing sleight of hand. My problem is I've got a brain and it works--most of the time.
For the sake of argument let's grant the 50 cal flies as straight as a 68 and breaks as well as a 68. Even if true there are still more than a few issues to resolve. Like actual retail pricing. Marking ability. Distance traveled and/or velocity. And impact. For starters. Beginning with pricing all manner of savings, mostly as a percentage of current prices, have been floated and they seem reasonable (if still hypothetical) based on the relative size and weight differences and manufacturing efficiencies from one to the other. However, real numbers seem in short supply. (Or nonexistent.) And here is where the rub begins. (Is it a hit or an attempt to wipe?) It seems to me that various of the desired properties of the 50 cal paintball are in conflict with each other.
What makes a top tourney grade shell? It's brittleness. And the fill? It's opaque marking ability and viscosity. And what is the other principle characteristic of top tourney grade paint? It's price. If, because of its nature, 50 cal requires a more expensive manufacturing baseline some percentage of the proposed savings disappear. Or else all the qualities to be found in the current unfinished 50 cal paint will be eroded in cheaper grades. At which point questions about marking ability and impact arise.
Simple physics insist the smaller shell has superior tensile strength--all things otherwise being equal--compared to a 68 hence the need for the thin shell. Less surface area means the impact is spread over a smaller patch. Mitigating this is the fact a 50 cal paintball has roughly only 40% of the fill capacity of a 68. The current incarnations of the 50 cal paintball also weighs in at roughly 40% of a 68 cal paintball so with respect to actual impact the question becomes what is the surface area of impact ratio? While the principle variable is velocity on impact.
And here is where things start to go at cross purposes to each other. The smaller, lighter ball will not travel the same distances when propelled at the same muzzle velocity. The gains made in reduced surface area do not overcome the weight disadvantages. (For more detailed data check out the 50 Cal Forum at PBN.) The only way to modify this outcome is to add weight or increase velocity. Adding much weight is difficult because of dimensional limitations--small ball--and material restrictions (stuff like non-toxic and biodegradable, retaining fluid characteristics, etc.) and a significant velocity increase will have safety restrictions and flight characteristic degradation at some point. And, oh yeah, a heavier or faster ball carries more energy and will increase the impact. (And come closer perhaps to violating more restrictive firearms laws in Canada and Europe.) Throw in the rumor that in order to get a "good" mark the fill can't be too thick and you end up with different desired outcomes tugging this way and that.
On top of the present uncertainties where are the ASTM (or similar) certified testing results? I might have missed them but so far haven't seen any. I'm told at least one major league is concerned that the current netting will be insufficiently safe for 50 cal use. And how do current goggles hold up? If the final product ends up being heavier and shot faster? Will this effect the insurance premiums at local fields?
One other thing concerns me with respect to competitive paintball and that is the prospect of a radically shorter time to distance for the 50 cal ball if the velocity has to be dialled up in order to achieve other similar to 68 cal results. In the past high velocity was (and is) primarily a safety issue but in a competitive situation it is also a potential playability issue as well. The time it takes a paintball to go from A to B will alter the nature of the game we play. How much I don't know.
At a minimum there remains lots of unanswered questions with respect to the actual utility of a 50 caliber paintball and until there are real answers I suspect there will be lots of room on that particular bandwagon.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Major League Paintball Held Hostage: Weekly Update
PSP World Cup looks to have come through the venue change and the inhospitable weather with nary a hitch and it seems fair to suggest this year's event was a major success. The largest group of vendors all year and what sounds like very good numbers rumored for the webcast. The PSP and competitive paintball in general have the realistic possibility of reaching more people; players, paintballers and the curious thru the webcast in one weekend than were actually present for all previous World Cups combined. Think big, PSP, & plan accordingly. The webcast is an unprecedented outreach tool.
NPPL 3.0 presents the USPL World Championships at the Riviera this coming weekend in Las Vegas and the final "official" numbers has 96 teams registered and paid for the event including 41 non-pro 7-man teams. While not a big turnout it's a respectable result and will bookend nicely with the HB event that kicked off the season. Clearly, despite the inauspicious timing the Vegas venue was a solid draw. Even so it remains to be seen how the pro owners evaluate this season and what changes if any may be forthcoming. And, realistically, how much debt the league will carry over. I am not sure the league is over the hump just yet but then I didn't really believe it was in a position to survive the first year.
Across the pond the countdown to the Sarsilmaz Cup is entering the final weeks with the event due in a little more than two weeks. Despite bolstered prize offerings D2 & M5 registrations continue to lag with fully half of the registered teams being local Turkish teams. There's time yet for the numbers to change but little reason to presume the original widespread unhappiness amongst likely MS participants has softened. I guess we'll find out.
The Grand Tour was downgraded last week to the Ordinary Tour and this week suffers another decline in the VFTD perception of viability as it is once more downgraded to the Marginal Tour. The season closing event in Greece has 15 teams registered in 3 divisions of play. Ouch.
NPPL 3.0 presents the USPL World Championships at the Riviera this coming weekend in Las Vegas and the final "official" numbers has 96 teams registered and paid for the event including 41 non-pro 7-man teams. While not a big turnout it's a respectable result and will bookend nicely with the HB event that kicked off the season. Clearly, despite the inauspicious timing the Vegas venue was a solid draw. Even so it remains to be seen how the pro owners evaluate this season and what changes if any may be forthcoming. And, realistically, how much debt the league will carry over. I am not sure the league is over the hump just yet but then I didn't really believe it was in a position to survive the first year.
Across the pond the countdown to the Sarsilmaz Cup is entering the final weeks with the event due in a little more than two weeks. Despite bolstered prize offerings D2 & M5 registrations continue to lag with fully half of the registered teams being local Turkish teams. There's time yet for the numbers to change but little reason to presume the original widespread unhappiness amongst likely MS participants has softened. I guess we'll find out.
The Grand Tour was downgraded last week to the Ordinary Tour and this week suffers another decline in the VFTD perception of viability as it is once more downgraded to the Marginal Tour. The season closing event in Greece has 15 teams registered in 3 divisions of play. Ouch.
Monday, October 12, 2009
The Monday Poll
Prior to World Cup we had the projected "winners" of World Cup poll and with the help of hindsight it's time to choose the World Cup losers. You may choose more than one answer and if you can muster the energy I'd be extra interested in comments explaining why you picked the answers you chose. Some are serious, some not so much. Some are probably fairly self-explanatory but others aren't. Have an opinion and share it. Dammit!
Monday Poll in Review
74% of responders watched, intended to watch and/or loved the webcast. More to the point of those familiar with the webcast only 9% either found it unappealing or preferred the NPPL webcasts. (And who are we kidding? Chuck and only 3 of the 16 USPL owners voted for their product. Okay, now I'm kidding. I have no idea who voted for what.)
The poll was mostly intended to generate awareness and interest in watching the World Cup webcast anyway. I hope you took advantage of the opportunity always keeping in mind that the road to real sports legitimacy isn't an easy one and that how the sport is promoted and how many people show an interest matters. And matters a great deal.
Monday Poll in Review
74% of responders watched, intended to watch and/or loved the webcast. More to the point of those familiar with the webcast only 9% either found it unappealing or preferred the NPPL webcasts. (And who are we kidding? Chuck and only 3 of the 16 USPL owners voted for their product. Okay, now I'm kidding. I have no idea who voted for what.)
The poll was mostly intended to generate awareness and interest in watching the World Cup webcast anyway. I hope you took advantage of the opportunity always keeping in mind that the road to real sports legitimacy isn't an easy one and that how the sport is promoted and how many people show an interest matters. And matters a great deal.
World Cup Miscellany (plus)
Before returning to our regularly scheduled posting--a new Monday Poll will be posted later today, for example--there are a few items I need to comment on that can't wait for the season wrap-up.
I'd like to congratulate Pat & Bonnie on the CK2 premier and give a shout out to Tyler, Duder and Lu. Can't wait to see it. I would have attended the premier but it was way past my bedtime and I need's my rest. If you haven't seen and/or don't own Pat's movies you're missing out. They are more than stories about individual players and teams, they are universal stories about competitive paintball.
Caught the last couple of hours of the webcast yesterday--left right after we were done playing--and it was terrific. Not only was the paintball action first rate but I thought the whole "experience" was very professional and seamlessly integrated. It keeps getting better and better.
Congrats to Raiden for the D1 win and a big way to go boys to Hamen and Kyle. Way to go, boys.
On a personal note I'd like to thank Matty for the very kind and generous comments. It's just as well I didn't hear them live as my head is already an enormous melon.
Regardless of individual merit this is a team sport and we all win or lose as a team. On that score I'd like to take a moment to thank my kids for a good year and remind them that we're just getting started.
And the plus is a shout out to Franktankerous for winning the recent VFTD Monday Poll contest. I posted the announcement in that original post but apparently Frank missed it. If'n you want your prize drop me a line Frank.
I'd like to congratulate Pat & Bonnie on the CK2 premier and give a shout out to Tyler, Duder and Lu. Can't wait to see it. I would have attended the premier but it was way past my bedtime and I need's my rest. If you haven't seen and/or don't own Pat's movies you're missing out. They are more than stories about individual players and teams, they are universal stories about competitive paintball.
Caught the last couple of hours of the webcast yesterday--left right after we were done playing--and it was terrific. Not only was the paintball action first rate but I thought the whole "experience" was very professional and seamlessly integrated. It keeps getting better and better.
Congrats to Raiden for the D1 win and a big way to go boys to Hamen and Kyle. Way to go, boys.
On a personal note I'd like to thank Matty for the very kind and generous comments. It's just as well I didn't hear them live as my head is already an enormous melon.
Regardless of individual merit this is a team sport and we all win or lose as a team. On that score I'd like to take a moment to thank my kids for a good year and remind them that we're just getting started.
And the plus is a shout out to Franktankerous for winning the recent VFTD Monday Poll contest. I posted the announcement in that original post but apparently Frank missed it. If'n you want your prize drop me a line Frank.
Saturday, October 10, 2009
World Cup Saturday
Another short report. Congrats to the semi final winners in the pro and semi-pro brackets; Red Legion (who I've nicknamed The Machine), Philly and Vicious & Aftermath. Congrats too to XSV and Nexus who will playing for semi-pro third tomorrow. As will Damage and the Ironmen in the pro division. It's not what any of them came to Cup for but third is better than fourth.
There's a few items coming from Cup worth discussing--like yellow paint and yellow jerseys--but now isn't the time. I'll come back to this kind of stuff with a season ending wrap-up, probably after Vegas.
Otherwise today was a big improvement weather-wise. While still hot and humid it wasn't debilitating like the previous days--though I saw a few players down for the count none looked serious.
There's a few items coming from Cup worth discussing--like yellow paint and yellow jerseys--but now isn't the time. I'll come back to this kind of stuff with a season ending wrap-up, probably after Vegas.
Otherwise today was a big improvement weather-wise. While still hot and humid it wasn't debilitating like the previous days--though I saw a few players down for the count none looked serious.
World Cup Rumor Mill
While I'm almost certainly missing a site or two I'm still amazed that there isn't more info leaking out of WC. (Not that plenty of peeps don't know--just that nobody is feeling the urge to spill. Or it could be that sensible peeps are terrified of saying the wrong thing at the wrong time in the face of another round of shrinking sponsorships.) There sure is lots of *stuff* going down in the background even as the world's biggest tourney is going on.
You want a taste? (Careful, that's how you get hooked.) Word on the street is you want a Luxe you'll need to talk to Richmond Italia. Street's also saying that the patents held by SP are part of the seized company's assets. Did I say seized?
And yeah, that was just a taste. It gets a whole lot tastier.
You want a taste? (Careful, that's how you get hooked.) Word on the street is you want a Luxe you'll need to talk to Richmond Italia. Street's also saying that the patents held by SP are part of the seized company's assets. Did I say seized?
And yeah, that was just a taste. It gets a whole lot tastier.
Friday, October 9, 2009
World Cup Friday
Short and sweet today, kids. On Wednesday Jeff Stein from the Canes was suggesting we might as well petition for an event in Death Valley. (He was joking. Sorta.) Well, no need. Death Valley can't possible be much hotter. And then there's the paintball action. So fast, so brutal, so uncompromising players and refs alike are dropping like flies. Matches are more than paintball under these conditions. They are tests of endurance stamina and desire and players are pushing themselves to the limits and sometimes beyond. On one level it's awesome and on another--saner level--it's just plain nuts.
On the pro field today it was the quarterfinal elimination round with pairs of teams playing a best two out of three for a chance at the semis. Each round went only two matches as Philly beat Shock, Legion downed X-Factor, Ironmen took Aftermath and Damage beat Dynasty. Damage was the only team from the prelim round to make the semis and that action begins tomorrow at 9:40 am. Tune in and see survival of the fittest championship paintball.
Later Slackers
On the pro field today it was the quarterfinal elimination round with pairs of teams playing a best two out of three for a chance at the semis. Each round went only two matches as Philly beat Shock, Legion downed X-Factor, Ironmen took Aftermath and Damage beat Dynasty. Damage was the only team from the prelim round to make the semis and that action begins tomorrow at 9:40 am. Tune in and see survival of the fittest championship paintball.
Later Slackers
Enlistments for the Week
It's Friday and that means it's time to recognize this week's recruits to the Deadbox Puppet Army. When there are any. This week we's all in luck--but mostly me.
ORonayne & Joe signed on the dotted in the last couple of days and VFTD is happy to add them to the roll. Thanks to you both. Currently Mr. Ronayne is doing yeoman's work as the live announcer at World Cup for the pro field and for those brave and dedicated souls who are testing their mettle against the severe heat he's like a cool drink of water.
VFTD is in the midst of our year end recruitment drive with a target goal of 100 before year's end so if you're intrigued but uncertain check out the DPA here.
ORonayne & Joe signed on the dotted in the last couple of days and VFTD is happy to add them to the roll. Thanks to you both. Currently Mr. Ronayne is doing yeoman's work as the live announcer at World Cup for the pro field and for those brave and dedicated souls who are testing their mettle against the severe heat he's like a cool drink of water.
VFTD is in the midst of our year end recruitment drive with a target goal of 100 before year's end so if you're intrigued but uncertain check out the DPA here.
Thursday, October 8, 2009
World Cup Thursday
Yeah, yeah, you want to know where World Cup Wednesday is, right? I know. It's not enough that there's a World Cup Thursday, no, you needed a WC Wednesday too. Well, you're obviously out of luck but if it makes you feel better about it there was a World Cup Wednesday but my ethernet access went out last night before I could post it--and I was little busy today--until now.
Let's get the other big issue out of the way up front. I know absolutely nothing about any divisional scores. There's gotta be scores posted somewhere so suck it up and look around. APPA will post them eventually and Pro Paintball should have some of the day's scores posted. It's not that I don't care--Okay, it is that I don't care but the whole truth is that my poor melon can only hold so much information at one time and all those numbers just end up all jumbled anyway.
The venue is pretty sweet but there's planes flying around all the time. It's weird, you'd think there was an airport around or something. Given the number of pro games scheduled the semi-pro kids have their own field next door. From what I hear the action was pretty furious with the Eurokids giving a good account of themselves with the final four undecided until the last match of the day.
VFTD Weather Update: It's hot. Hotter than Satan's armpit to hear the whining from some of the pasty white northern types. But you know what they say, it's not the heat it's the humidity. And they--whoever they are--happen to be correct. And the humidity is brutal. If it's any consolation it was balmy and beautiful last week here in sunny Florida. Right here, right now it's seriously hot and sticky. Fire Rescue has shown up three or four times each day and I'm guessing they aren't dropping by just to catch all the paintball action. So if you aren't here--and if you're reading this you probably aren't--there is some consolation in that the conditions are rough. And even better--for you--the webcast begins tomorrow morning. I'll wave. (No, actually I won't.)
The pro field is one of the nicest ever. Level and flat with excellent grass. The only downside is an east/west orientation that late in the day is blinding to one end of the field. (Probably the same in the morning but I don't know--yet. Depends on when the sun comes up I would imagine.) There were some very tight games today with a lot of back and forth as only four spots were available with 9 teams fighting for them. Joy Division got their first taste of PSP pro paintball and performed better than their scores might suggest. It's a steep learning curve and they showed improvement over the course of the event. (Btw, I know a few pro teams that are gonna have yellow jerseys next year if the league is gonna allow yellow when we's all shooting yellow-breaking paint. Just saying.) Chris "Pony" Lasoya played with Joy and looked like the old Pony until he tweaked his knee. (When I said old I meant he looked like the young Pony out there. Confused? He was looking good and It was good to see him on the field again.) Though their scores don't show it the 'Canes played better than they have all season and have a foundation to build on for next year. Last two matches of the day determined how the seeding would go for tomorrow and who would go through. Shock beat Aftermath in OT after 'Math fought back from a significant deficit to tie it up with a few seconds remaining and Damage knocked off Infamous in the last match of the day. As a result the seed order for Friday is Damage, Aftermath, X-Factor & Aftershock. And despite finishing 2-2 (like Shock) both Infamous and Impact didn't go through. (Shock got it on point differential.)
There's plenty of parking and a winding maze-like vendor's village everyone must walk through to get to the fields. Despite the annoyance it's good to see a lot more tents and vendors than we've seen all season. And if you are desperate for some relief from the elements you can always hike over to registration--and I do mean hike--which is in a Fantasy of Flight building a mile or two from the fields (a slight exaggeration) that happens to be air conditioned. A shuttle to registration would be nice. Otherwise, the venue is solid and I'm told the layout is basically the same as was used in Chitown last year. If you rented a plane at FoF you could probably see it from the air.
More tomorrow, slacker.
Let's get the other big issue out of the way up front. I know absolutely nothing about any divisional scores. There's gotta be scores posted somewhere so suck it up and look around. APPA will post them eventually and Pro Paintball should have some of the day's scores posted. It's not that I don't care--Okay, it is that I don't care but the whole truth is that my poor melon can only hold so much information at one time and all those numbers just end up all jumbled anyway.
The venue is pretty sweet but there's planes flying around all the time. It's weird, you'd think there was an airport around or something. Given the number of pro games scheduled the semi-pro kids have their own field next door. From what I hear the action was pretty furious with the Eurokids giving a good account of themselves with the final four undecided until the last match of the day.
VFTD Weather Update: It's hot. Hotter than Satan's armpit to hear the whining from some of the pasty white northern types. But you know what they say, it's not the heat it's the humidity. And they--whoever they are--happen to be correct. And the humidity is brutal. If it's any consolation it was balmy and beautiful last week here in sunny Florida. Right here, right now it's seriously hot and sticky. Fire Rescue has shown up three or four times each day and I'm guessing they aren't dropping by just to catch all the paintball action. So if you aren't here--and if you're reading this you probably aren't--there is some consolation in that the conditions are rough. And even better--for you--the webcast begins tomorrow morning. I'll wave. (No, actually I won't.)
The pro field is one of the nicest ever. Level and flat with excellent grass. The only downside is an east/west orientation that late in the day is blinding to one end of the field. (Probably the same in the morning but I don't know--yet. Depends on when the sun comes up I would imagine.) There were some very tight games today with a lot of back and forth as only four spots were available with 9 teams fighting for them. Joy Division got their first taste of PSP pro paintball and performed better than their scores might suggest. It's a steep learning curve and they showed improvement over the course of the event. (Btw, I know a few pro teams that are gonna have yellow jerseys next year if the league is gonna allow yellow when we's all shooting yellow-breaking paint. Just saying.) Chris "Pony" Lasoya played with Joy and looked like the old Pony until he tweaked his knee. (When I said old I meant he looked like the young Pony out there. Confused? He was looking good and It was good to see him on the field again.) Though their scores don't show it the 'Canes played better than they have all season and have a foundation to build on for next year. Last two matches of the day determined how the seeding would go for tomorrow and who would go through. Shock beat Aftermath in OT after 'Math fought back from a significant deficit to tie it up with a few seconds remaining and Damage knocked off Infamous in the last match of the day. As a result the seed order for Friday is Damage, Aftermath, X-Factor & Aftershock. And despite finishing 2-2 (like Shock) both Infamous and Impact didn't go through. (Shock got it on point differential.)
There's plenty of parking and a winding maze-like vendor's village everyone must walk through to get to the fields. Despite the annoyance it's good to see a lot more tents and vendors than we've seen all season. And if you are desperate for some relief from the elements you can always hike over to registration--and I do mean hike--which is in a Fantasy of Flight building a mile or two from the fields (a slight exaggeration) that happens to be air conditioned. A shuttle to registration would be nice. Otherwise, the venue is solid and I'm told the layout is basically the same as was used in Chitown last year. If you rented a plane at FoF you could probably see it from the air.
More tomorrow, slacker.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Major League Paintball Held Hostage: Weekly Update
First word I've received from on site at Fantasy of Flight is that the fields look outstanding and the grass surface is in excellent condition. (Of course it's still out in the boonies and will continue to require a few minutes of highway driving so I expect the whiners will continue to find it unacceptable on some level. Btw, while I'm in favor of our events having some non-paintballing outreach I'm inclined to believe that the webcast has about 1000 times the potential of hanging out in parking lots, whether they be at DisneyWorld or NFL stadiums.)
The PSP is touting 300+ (and I predicted last week the final numbers would break 300) but according to the APPA registration page WC is at 298 teams with a handful of D2 Sat-Sun teams unpaid but there registration remains open. So, either APPA is behind the curve or the league is being slightly optimistic with respect to the numbers. No biggy but I'm not a fan of the appearance of fudging.
Over at NPPL 3.0 there's still a couple of days to (officially) get registered and paid for the Vegas finale. Currently 98 teams are registered (not including the pros) and 53 of those have paid. In the last week it looks like the biggest move has been from 5-man teams. 7-man participation continues to look weak even as the NPPL Kids got ahead of the curve with the early confirmation of the 2010 HB event. (Granted, without my glasses I could have missed the fine print but I didn't notice any mention of 7-man in that HB announcement.)
UPDATE: mention of both 7-man & 5-man was in the announcement. I don't consider it an error on my part however 'cus y'all were warned.
Across the pond in Millennium Land the open divisions have finally shown some signs of quivering life as D2 registration is up to 2 teams and M5 has made a move up to 7 teams. Clearly that extra cash on the barrelhead offer is working like a charm. Can anyone doubt the runaway success of the Turkish Experiment? And come to think of it if a failure to sign up early and often encourages more money to be tossed into the prize pot in the lowest divisions of play ... I'm seeing an opportunity. Just saying.
Lastly (and certainly least) the Modest Tour--formerly called the Grand Tour--has all of 11 teams lined up for the season finale in sunny Greece. Oopah!
The PSP is touting 300+ (and I predicted last week the final numbers would break 300) but according to the APPA registration page WC is at 298 teams with a handful of D2 Sat-Sun teams unpaid but there registration remains open. So, either APPA is behind the curve or the league is being slightly optimistic with respect to the numbers. No biggy but I'm not a fan of the appearance of fudging.
Over at NPPL 3.0 there's still a couple of days to (officially) get registered and paid for the Vegas finale. Currently 98 teams are registered (not including the pros) and 53 of those have paid. In the last week it looks like the biggest move has been from 5-man teams. 7-man participation continues to look weak even as the NPPL Kids got ahead of the curve with the early confirmation of the 2010 HB event. (Granted, without my glasses I could have missed the fine print but I didn't notice any mention of 7-man in that HB announcement.)
UPDATE: mention of both 7-man & 5-man was in the announcement. I don't consider it an error on my part however 'cus y'all were warned.
Across the pond in Millennium Land the open divisions have finally shown some signs of quivering life as D2 registration is up to 2 teams and M5 has made a move up to 7 teams. Clearly that extra cash on the barrelhead offer is working like a charm. Can anyone doubt the runaway success of the Turkish Experiment? And come to think of it if a failure to sign up early and often encourages more money to be tossed into the prize pot in the lowest divisions of play ... I'm seeing an opportunity. Just saying.
Lastly (and certainly least) the Modest Tour--formerly called the Grand Tour--has all of 11 teams lined up for the season finale in sunny Greece. Oopah!
Support Paintball
Now all we need is the bumper sticker. Support Paintball. Who knew it was that easy? I mean once we's united in our support of paintball everything will be swell. Won't it?
I don't know about y'all but I just want to tear my hair out when I read some of the mindlessly myopic well intentioned blithering spewed out on the internet. Fortunately I have so little hair left it's hard to get a good grip ... but anyway. The current source of my all-out-of-proportion and increasingly violent urges is the vapid notion that all that is required to put things right is for everyone to support paintball. (Stupidity make Baca angry. And you wouldn't like Baca when he's angry.)
Of course it gets even worse when some of these geniuses start fleshing out the details of their support. Support paintball by playing a tournament series. Support paintball by buying more stuff. Look, I'm all for supporting paintball but I have no patience for empty platitudes or marketing slogans masquerading as a call to action. You want to support paintball first stop for a second and try and figure out that supporting paintball doesn't necessarily mean blindly supporting the status quo. You want to support paintball? Get some of your friends together and go play.
I don't know about y'all but I just want to tear my hair out when I read some of the mindlessly myopic well intentioned blithering spewed out on the internet. Fortunately I have so little hair left it's hard to get a good grip ... but anyway. The current source of my all-out-of-proportion and increasingly violent urges is the vapid notion that all that is required to put things right is for everyone to support paintball. (Stupidity make Baca angry. And you wouldn't like Baca when he's angry.)
Of course it gets even worse when some of these geniuses start fleshing out the details of their support. Support paintball by playing a tournament series. Support paintball by buying more stuff. Look, I'm all for supporting paintball but I have no patience for empty platitudes or marketing slogans masquerading as a call to action. You want to support paintball first stop for a second and try and figure out that supporting paintball doesn't necessarily mean blindly supporting the status quo. You want to support paintball? Get some of your friends together and go play.
Monday, October 5, 2009
World Cup
I don't know about y'all but I can hardly wait. Weeks of preparation and the culmination of a whole year's effort into one long weekend of paintball. Looking forward to it. I'm hoping once the event gets started I'll stop receiving 400 freaking email blasts a day from the PSP. You know it's getting out of hand when you can't remember the last NPPL blast you got--okay, it was about HB 2010--but still.
The Monday Poll
I was planning on being a lazy slacker this week--what with Cup activities--and skip The Monday Poll but in good conscience I just couldn't do it. No really. (Remember, next week will be the World Cup Losers poll.) Truth is I had nothing and I was okay with that. In fact I was planning on running with it and blaming too much Cup stuff to do--and then I had an idea.
There's been lots of talk about the PSP's webcast. The majority is positive but talk is just that, talk. So with this week's poll I'm interested in digging a little deeper. Tell the truth. (Anonymous confession is ramification free. What more could you want?) I also want to encourage everyone who is serious about competitive paintball to dial the webcast up every day it's available. Most of the time there isn't much we can do about the current state of affairs. With the webcast however you can make a difference. Numbers matter. It's free. It's the world's best paintball on display. On the downside it's a little harder than voting in The Monday Poll--and I know what a challenge that can be. Still. buckle down and do your part. Hey, you don't even have to watch. Just sign up and let's see if we can burn their bandwidth to the ground.
Monday Poll In Review
You crazy kids never cease to surprise me. Given the percentage of voters who only voted once--despite being able to choose as many options as you wish--the lack of cynicism is remarkable. Or, I could be misreading the intent of the voters. For example, a vote for Disney (as a WC winner) implies that Disney was looking to get rid of paintball but did it in the non-confrontational way of pricing it out of the market. Or perhaps in a way in which nobody could be accused of turning down money in a struggling tourist/entertainment economy. But does a vote for the PSP imply a win for the PSP at somebody else's expense? I don't think so but a voter might have seen it differently. The factoid though that both the PSP and Players choices are the leading vote getters suggests to me most of you hard-working voters are responding sincerely. Nice try but I'm not falling for it.
There's been lots of talk about the PSP's webcast. The majority is positive but talk is just that, talk. So with this week's poll I'm interested in digging a little deeper. Tell the truth. (Anonymous confession is ramification free. What more could you want?) I also want to encourage everyone who is serious about competitive paintball to dial the webcast up every day it's available. Most of the time there isn't much we can do about the current state of affairs. With the webcast however you can make a difference. Numbers matter. It's free. It's the world's best paintball on display. On the downside it's a little harder than voting in The Monday Poll--and I know what a challenge that can be. Still. buckle down and do your part. Hey, you don't even have to watch. Just sign up and let's see if we can burn their bandwidth to the ground.
Monday Poll In Review
You crazy kids never cease to surprise me. Given the percentage of voters who only voted once--despite being able to choose as many options as you wish--the lack of cynicism is remarkable. Or, I could be misreading the intent of the voters. For example, a vote for Disney (as a WC winner) implies that Disney was looking to get rid of paintball but did it in the non-confrontational way of pricing it out of the market. Or perhaps in a way in which nobody could be accused of turning down money in a struggling tourist/entertainment economy. But does a vote for the PSP imply a win for the PSP at somebody else's expense? I don't think so but a voter might have seen it differently. The factoid though that both the PSP and Players choices are the leading vote getters suggests to me most of you hard-working voters are responding sincerely. Nice try but I'm not falling for it.
Friday, October 2, 2009
Enlistment for the Week
It's back! One mighty leap for Teta, one small step toward world domination. (If Teta is not the newest member of the Deadbox Puppet Army please set me straight in comments. Stupid gadgets.) Willkommen!
VFTD is also pleased to announce the silly season recruiting drive. The target number is a modest 27 additional recruits before Christmas to bring the total to 100. Cut loose. Free yourself from the strings of conventional paintball thinking. Join today. It's the easiest thing a lazy slacker can do. Commemorative 'Cut Your Own Strings' DPA scissors now available!
VFTD is also pleased to announce the silly season recruiting drive. The target number is a modest 27 additional recruits before Christmas to bring the total to 100. Cut loose. Free yourself from the strings of conventional paintball thinking. Join today. It's the easiest thing a lazy slacker can do. Commemorative 'Cut Your Own Strings' DPA scissors now available!
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