The PSP Chicago Open is back at The Badlandz! Back to its roots, back to where it all started. Is this all just about a misty eyed journey back to the glory days of our past? No, of course not. Many factors played into the decision. What’s important is for you to know what steps we’re taking to ensure this year’s 2010 PSP Chicago Open is a great one!
The fields we will be utilizing are for the most part new, the Chi-town Series coming up will be played on the same fields as last year then all the poles, nets & cables come out. Everything will be moved back and onto fresh grass, then four more fields will be constructed across the back of the open area between the existing fields & the current Hyperball fields. The existing grass will be mowed short, then we will drill seed the entire area. This will bring up fresh grass and leave the existing grasses root system in place. We’ll allow it all to grow and germinate then begin mowing in late spring and all the way thru the Chicago Open.
As for regular weekend practices for all the locals, we will use the lower fields unless too many teams show up, then we will open up the upper fields on a rotational basis.
Vendor’s space; we have more than enough room for any and all vendors the PSP or the UWL is able to draw.
Parking; we have a significant lower parking lot as well as a lower overflow lot we use for local teams. Then we have a secondary or upper lot across from the current Airball fields. We have plenty of room to handle more than the 1200 customers per day on our busy spring or fall weekends.
But since this event will draw more than that, we’ve been clearing and filling the lightly wooded area immediately to the south of the current Airball fields. This will add approximately 6 more acres of parking, on premises. In addition to that we are trucking in dirt, lots of dirt. As of this writing more than 50 semi loads will have been received, and a minimum of 400 additional semi loads by mid April. All this dirt is being spread in the low area between the lower and upper lots. Thereby leveling this 2 plus acres up and into a usable parking lot as well. Once the grass grows over this area we will be able to park on it or even use it to set up additional airball fields. Of course we also have the ability to utilize Balmoral park race tracks parking if need be.
Proximity to hotels is of little concern as we have at least 25 within a 20 minute drive, and the PSP is announcing discounts they’ve negotiated with many of them.
So that leaves our road in. Our gravel road is a quarter mile long, 1320 feet and is all gravel. In the spring as the frost leaves the ground we get an excess of wet nastiness pushing its way thru the gravel but since we’re dealing with June here that will be a non issue. You can expect a nice level gravel road with the ability to pass oncoming traffic everywhere, but 1 single 10 foot long bridge.
Our equipment will re-grade the road each day as often as needed to insure its smoothness throughout the event. Additionally we’re bringing in dozens of loads of rock & ground asphalt to bolster the existing roads surface. As for dust, again don’t sweat it, we’ll have a water truck on the case at least a week prior to the event and we’ll run it continually.
Hopefully that puts most people’s concerns to bed. Please keep in mind, that while we don’t claim to be the best at everything, something we are very good at is putting thru lots of paintball players. Not kind of a lot, a real lot and we’ve been doing it for more than 15 years so most of these concerns were taken care of long ago. Working closely with Lane, Camille & Geoff from the PSP and Tommy Cole from the UWL will guarantee us all a great PSP Chicago Open and Chicago leg of the UWL.
If you have any question about the field or the area please check the respective links on the front page of The Badlandz web site, or feel free to call us (708-862-2222) most any time. All PSP and UWL related information will be coming from those organizations. www.pspevents.com and www.playuwl.com.
Friday, April 16, 2010
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Friday, January 15, 2010
.50 Cal (Our Take)
If you play paintball with any degree of consistency, by now you've heard about .50 cal making it presence felt. Much of what you read on line is negative speculation and this from some pretty intelligent people. They seem to fear change, choosing to believe that .50 cal will in some way forever end the game as we know it, not for the better but morphing us into a hybrid we will all hate.
Nothing could be further from the truth, just give it time, see for yourself wait until you shoot the guns & paint. Then decide for yourself don't let anyone tell you something is good or not good for the way you play, especially if they themselves have not tried it.
We've been in paintball a long, long time pretty much since it was invented. Before there were even pumps on guns and all the paint was staining oil base. We have heard all the same arguments at almost every critical point of the evolution of the game. The very first pump guns were considered "machine guns" and where such an advantage over the days bolt action gun that many felt the game would be ruined. When constant air hit the market, then too we had to deal with some very smart people arguing that it would "super charge" the guns and we would all be shooting so hard that everyone would quit. Hoppers and pods then replaced stick feeders and tubes, thereby increasing fire power, certainly the demise of the game loomed before us...no? N2 was introduced to arguments that the tanks could explode and many people believed that this was it, the end of paintball. Other thing's came along that had people running in circles screaming that the "sky was falling".
Like when the insurance company of the day allowed kids as young as 10 to play, or when Wal-Mart began selling paintball gear. How about when WDP introduced hyperball or Richmond introduced x-ball, electronic guns themselves were deemed over the top. The truth is paintball grew by leaps & bounds each time an innovative goal was attained, only recently have we as an industry faltered. So in reality maybe the timing for this .50 cal revolution is absolutely perfect, maybe.
So far we've seen two predominant arguments against .50 cal, number one: we're all going to have to buy all new stuff because .68 is going to be made obsolete. Of course the only way this could happen is if every manufacturer agreed to all at once stop making .68 cal equipment or .50 cal was so vastly superior that nobody ever again wanted .68 cal anything. If you've been in paintball for any length of time you know that the odds of any two manufactures agreeing on almost anything are zero much less all of them, so that idea is out the window. As far as if .50 cal where to prove vastly superior to .68 cal, well what's the problem with that?
The second main objection to .50 cal is one of actual performance, will a .50 cal ball travel as far, will it impact the same, and will it mark well? All legitimate concerns. The internet is lit up with dozens of arm chair mathematicians, ballistic experts & physicists many letting us all know it won't be the results we want. Of course almost none of them have seen much less tried shooting .50 cal paint. We have been shooting .50 cal since midsummer, letting certain team players as well as our customers check it out. So what we can say from a practical use perspective is, try it we think you'll like it.
Whether all the math is right or wrong in all the internet arguments is not an arena we're jumping into. While numbers don't lie and you've always got to pay attention to them, nothing beats hands on practical experience. So what we can say is that this .50 cal stuff shoots pretty good, as good as most .68 and we only have pre production samples. It marks well; the team players we let shoot it broke balls on their opponents on the break out. It also seemed fine in the woods, actually finding its way thru brush that some .68 may not have. So let the theorists theorize, feel free to add your comment when you've tried it for yourself.
What are we as an industry trying to accomplish at this time? Is this about making sure that the world's very best tournament players can shoot the entire length of the x-ball field at blazing speeds? Are you going to make that lone sniper shot at D-day to secure the victory for the allies a more realistic possibility with .68 cal vs. .50 cal? Will the ability to carry and shoot vastly more paint in a game forever alter 7-man? Or holding a fort? Is it really about any of those things?
How about the normal walk on and private group player being able to play more and spend less while allowing a struggling industry to increase or maintain a viable profit margin? We're thinking that's a pretty big deal from our perspective, as a major field. The air efficiency increase alone will make it so you may need to fill your co2 or n2 tank half as often in a day. If we can cut back our air & co2 requirements not only do we save on everything from fuel to run our compressors, parts & maintenance, but maybe we can eliminate having to purchase a third $25,000 + unit? As a customer you'll spend more time out in the woods playing and less getting ready to play. We save money at the same time; you add value to the money you've spent. With the ball being so much smaller and subsequently the boxes they come in we'll save money on all shipping and storage costs. You the consumer will need smaller harnesses to carry the same volume as .68 and if you choose to keep the same large harness you'll have your entire days supply on you. More time in the woods means longer game formats, larger fields to play on, less time walking to and from fields and more time on them. Again we save and you gain value. The actual ball will cost less to manufacture so it will save us all money, the distributors, the dealers & fields and ultimately you the customer. Can this be done in a fashion that gives you the experience you want along with a cost factor that you can live with while at the same time allowing the business to make the money we need to grow & survive? It sure looks like it to us so far.
That end user savings will be enough to keep some people playing that may otherwise have to quit due to lack of funds to stay competitive. For others it may mean they can play more often or simply to play longer when they do choose to play.
Will more corporations sponsor company outings given the choice of playing a .50 cal game for two thirds of the cost of a .68 cal game? Will more young people either come back to the game or get involved for the first time if the cost can be lowered? Thereby insuring a future customer base. If .50 cal proves to be better than, the same as, or even just slightly under .68 cal won't it give all the retail stores an opportunity for increased sales?
The big picture here must be what is considered, what is best for all involved from manufactures to dealers & fields and ultimately and most importantly to you the player. So read everything you can, talk to your friends about it but most importantly try it out for yourself. Then let us know what you think, we're all for it this year The Badlandz will offer .50 cal rentals as well as .68. The games will be combined .50 cal & .68 cal on the field at the same time. We will be offering the option to play your private games with .50 but if you'd prefer .68 just say so.
Our position is that almost every major change in paintball has drawn out a very vocal minority of nay sayers, yet each time we have made significant progress in the quality and quantity of paintball.
So once again . . . . here we go.
Nothing could be further from the truth, just give it time, see for yourself wait until you shoot the guns & paint. Then decide for yourself don't let anyone tell you something is good or not good for the way you play, especially if they themselves have not tried it.
We've been in paintball a long, long time pretty much since it was invented. Before there were even pumps on guns and all the paint was staining oil base. We have heard all the same arguments at almost every critical point of the evolution of the game. The very first pump guns were considered "machine guns" and where such an advantage over the days bolt action gun that many felt the game would be ruined. When constant air hit the market, then too we had to deal with some very smart people arguing that it would "super charge" the guns and we would all be shooting so hard that everyone would quit. Hoppers and pods then replaced stick feeders and tubes, thereby increasing fire power, certainly the demise of the game loomed before us...no? N2 was introduced to arguments that the tanks could explode and many people believed that this was it, the end of paintball. Other thing's came along that had people running in circles screaming that the "sky was falling".
Like when the insurance company of the day allowed kids as young as 10 to play, or when Wal-Mart began selling paintball gear. How about when WDP introduced hyperball or Richmond introduced x-ball, electronic guns themselves were deemed over the top. The truth is paintball grew by leaps & bounds each time an innovative goal was attained, only recently have we as an industry faltered. So in reality maybe the timing for this .50 cal revolution is absolutely perfect, maybe.
So far we've seen two predominant arguments against .50 cal, number one: we're all going to have to buy all new stuff because .68 is going to be made obsolete. Of course the only way this could happen is if every manufacturer agreed to all at once stop making .68 cal equipment or .50 cal was so vastly superior that nobody ever again wanted .68 cal anything. If you've been in paintball for any length of time you know that the odds of any two manufactures agreeing on almost anything are zero much less all of them, so that idea is out the window. As far as if .50 cal where to prove vastly superior to .68 cal, well what's the problem with that?
The second main objection to .50 cal is one of actual performance, will a .50 cal ball travel as far, will it impact the same, and will it mark well? All legitimate concerns. The internet is lit up with dozens of arm chair mathematicians, ballistic experts & physicists many letting us all know it won't be the results we want. Of course almost none of them have seen much less tried shooting .50 cal paint. We have been shooting .50 cal since midsummer, letting certain team players as well as our customers check it out. So what we can say from a practical use perspective is, try it we think you'll like it.
Whether all the math is right or wrong in all the internet arguments is not an arena we're jumping into. While numbers don't lie and you've always got to pay attention to them, nothing beats hands on practical experience. So what we can say is that this .50 cal stuff shoots pretty good, as good as most .68 and we only have pre production samples. It marks well; the team players we let shoot it broke balls on their opponents on the break out. It also seemed fine in the woods, actually finding its way thru brush that some .68 may not have. So let the theorists theorize, feel free to add your comment when you've tried it for yourself.
What are we as an industry trying to accomplish at this time? Is this about making sure that the world's very best tournament players can shoot the entire length of the x-ball field at blazing speeds? Are you going to make that lone sniper shot at D-day to secure the victory for the allies a more realistic possibility with .68 cal vs. .50 cal? Will the ability to carry and shoot vastly more paint in a game forever alter 7-man? Or holding a fort? Is it really about any of those things?
How about the normal walk on and private group player being able to play more and spend less while allowing a struggling industry to increase or maintain a viable profit margin? We're thinking that's a pretty big deal from our perspective, as a major field. The air efficiency increase alone will make it so you may need to fill your co2 or n2 tank half as often in a day. If we can cut back our air & co2 requirements not only do we save on everything from fuel to run our compressors, parts & maintenance, but maybe we can eliminate having to purchase a third $25,000 + unit? As a customer you'll spend more time out in the woods playing and less getting ready to play. We save money at the same time; you add value to the money you've spent. With the ball being so much smaller and subsequently the boxes they come in we'll save money on all shipping and storage costs. You the consumer will need smaller harnesses to carry the same volume as .68 and if you choose to keep the same large harness you'll have your entire days supply on you. More time in the woods means longer game formats, larger fields to play on, less time walking to and from fields and more time on them. Again we save and you gain value. The actual ball will cost less to manufacture so it will save us all money, the distributors, the dealers & fields and ultimately you the customer. Can this be done in a fashion that gives you the experience you want along with a cost factor that you can live with while at the same time allowing the business to make the money we need to grow & survive? It sure looks like it to us so far.
That end user savings will be enough to keep some people playing that may otherwise have to quit due to lack of funds to stay competitive. For others it may mean they can play more often or simply to play longer when they do choose to play.
Will more corporations sponsor company outings given the choice of playing a .50 cal game for two thirds of the cost of a .68 cal game? Will more young people either come back to the game or get involved for the first time if the cost can be lowered? Thereby insuring a future customer base. If .50 cal proves to be better than, the same as, or even just slightly under .68 cal won't it give all the retail stores an opportunity for increased sales?
The big picture here must be what is considered, what is best for all involved from manufactures to dealers & fields and ultimately and most importantly to you the player. So read everything you can, talk to your friends about it but most importantly try it out for yourself. Then let us know what you think, we're all for it this year The Badlandz will offer .50 cal rentals as well as .68. The games will be combined .50 cal & .68 cal on the field at the same time. We will be offering the option to play your private games with .50 but if you'd prefer .68 just say so.
Our position is that almost every major change in paintball has drawn out a very vocal minority of nay sayers, yet each time we have made significant progress in the quality and quantity of paintball.
So once again . . . . here we go.
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
BIG GAMES 2010
We'll be announcing all our dates soon but for now we're looking for some generals. So if you've got what it takes to command several hundred men, send your resume to info@thebadlandz.com .
Feel free to include any information you think will land you the top dog's job.
Things like:
#1 BIG GAMES played, Badlandz or others
#2 Number of years playing
#3 Ever generaled before? And where?
#4 Team or squad affiliation
#5 If you haven't generaled before what is the highest rank that you have competed at?
#6 References
#7 Why exactly is it that you're the man
#8 Got pictures?
Feel free to include any information you think will land you the top dog's job.
Things like:
#1 BIG GAMES played, Badlandz or others
#2 Number of years playing
#3 Ever generaled before? And where?
#4 Team or squad affiliation
#5 If you haven't generaled before what is the highest rank that you have competed at?
#6 References
#7 Why exactly is it that you're the man
#8 Got pictures?
Friday, December 4, 2009
CHI-TOWN SERIES 2009
CHI-TOWN SERIES 2009
Summation Letter from the Director What can we say not the year we expected but all things considered not the worst either?
A lot of sponsors cut back and some pulled out all together. Hell some went completely out of business, Team attendance was down with a lot of teams saying “just can’t afford to play”. With all that considered we had one of the most competitive years ever in the D3 division.
That being said we are already making plans for the 2010 series. Here is what we are thinking and if you would like to add some input please do. What we ask though is send us and e-mail with your actual name if you want your comments to be taken seriously. Throwing a comment on a thread somewhere isn’t beneficial to anyone and never has ever changed anything.
#1. We are still committed to figuring out a winning combination for the D2 division. Time never permitted a true x-ball format so we ran with a modified version the last 2 years. The PSP has switched to a “race too” format and we are looking at mirroring their rules and criteria for next year.
#2. D3 will still be run as a 5 man but we are leaning towards just calling it a true D4 division so everyone knows what to expect from it.
#3. Prizes, this will be the biggest challenge for next year. Sponsorship has all but disappeared so we will continue to do the best we can and maintain the current cost structure. We are always open to ideas for this one!
#4. APPA or not to APPA that is another question. We are considering using their ranking system in 2010 but it’s not perfect either. I have seen players that were playing professional 1 ½ years before now ranked D4 in their system. There are always a few people out there trying to cheat any system put in place and that will never change. So let us know what you think on that one too.
The state of the economy affects everything including the paintball industry.
Team attendance is down in every series, businesses are hurting and money is tight everywhere. But like every other tough time this one will pass also.
We are committed to do whatever it takes to put on a great 2010 series and we are all in the together. So we’re listening, tell us what you think and we will see you in 2010.
Ron Petrucci
Events Coordinator
Summation Letter from the Director What can we say not the year we expected but all things considered not the worst either?
A lot of sponsors cut back and some pulled out all together. Hell some went completely out of business, Team attendance was down with a lot of teams saying “just can’t afford to play”. With all that considered we had one of the most competitive years ever in the D3 division.
That being said we are already making plans for the 2010 series. Here is what we are thinking and if you would like to add some input please do. What we ask though is send us and e-mail with your actual name if you want your comments to be taken seriously. Throwing a comment on a thread somewhere isn’t beneficial to anyone and never has ever changed anything.
#1. We are still committed to figuring out a winning combination for the D2 division. Time never permitted a true x-ball format so we ran with a modified version the last 2 years. The PSP has switched to a “race too” format and we are looking at mirroring their rules and criteria for next year.
#2. D3 will still be run as a 5 man but we are leaning towards just calling it a true D4 division so everyone knows what to expect from it.
#3. Prizes, this will be the biggest challenge for next year. Sponsorship has all but disappeared so we will continue to do the best we can and maintain the current cost structure. We are always open to ideas for this one!
#4. APPA or not to APPA that is another question. We are considering using their ranking system in 2010 but it’s not perfect either. I have seen players that were playing professional 1 ½ years before now ranked D4 in their system. There are always a few people out there trying to cheat any system put in place and that will never change. So let us know what you think on that one too.
The state of the economy affects everything including the paintball industry.
Team attendance is down in every series, businesses are hurting and money is tight everywhere. But like every other tough time this one will pass also.
We are committed to do whatever it takes to put on a great 2010 series and we are all in the together. So we’re listening, tell us what you think and we will see you in 2010.
Ron Petrucci
Events Coordinator
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
RATE OF FIRE
What’s the deal?
Many of you may have noticed the on going debate about what, if any should be an acceptable rate of fire.
Some of the guns that have been produced in the last few years are capable of almost inconceivable rates of fire, as high as 40 balls in a second.
At the same time the paintball industry has seen a decline in people coming into and staying in the sport.
While the rate of fire escalating is in itself not the sole reason, it is not a coincidence either.
Our opinion is that rate of fire has driven people away, not a few, a lot of people.
Rate of Fire the cons:
A.) Restricts movement:
The amount of paint that you have to move into, thru and around is coming so fast that only the smallest, fastest of us have a chance.
While that may be a version of the law of the jungle (survival of the fittest) It’s probably not the way the average participant wants to spend Saturday or Sunday enjoying paintball with their family or friends.
B.) Intimidation:
One person shooting at you at 20 balls per second is tough to deal with. fifteen people per team in a walk on game, doing that is putting 600 paintballs per second in the air.
In just 5 seconds that walk on game has shot 3000 paintballs.
We’ve seen it time and time again people did not sign up for that. They do not want to get hit 20, 30 or even 5 times to be eliminated when 1 will do. So they hide, stay out of and away from the action. Where is the fun in that?
C.) Cost:
Its easy math. The more you shoot the more your day just cost. With people hiding in their spots as we already pointed out you shoot even more. Also its fun to shoot fast, you get caught up in the heat of battle before you know it, you shot up that $50.00 you had allotted for your day of paintball so now it just became 3 hours of paintball and your done.
D.) The mom factor:
With more young people playing paintball than ever before, mom’s need to be taken into account. An 11 year old child coming home from a birthday party at a paintball field covered in bruises is not good. Word of mouth is a very powerful influential testimonial positive or negative, especially when its coming from mom. Paintball is a great sport and it attracts a large amount of young people, we need to keep them involved & excited and their families glad they are.
E.) Mini Arms Race:
Its cost us all, not just in the amount of paint you need to purchase and shoot but the marker itself. Manufactures now pack more & more technology into their guns. While the price has come down significantly for medium level gun it still takes even simple repairs out of the hands of the owners. Very reputable manufactures routinely run out of repair parts and there is no way to get around it, and get the guns back up and working with out them. High end guns on the other hand, while very advanced cost a lot of money, You should not feel as though you must spend more than you can afford just to play a game and be competitive, unless you are entering tournaments, Then the gloves can come off.
There’s more and we’d love to hear your take on things. A good friend of ours Mike Ratko summed it up best when he said “The fear has overcome the fun”. He’s very right, all you have to do is look at the faces of the first timers when a team player kicks his DM9 or Ego into high gear. They all ask the same thing “do we have to play against those” not the player…. the gun.
So that’s why we believe in a lowering of the rate of fire. If you feel different lets hear it, who knows you may be the reason we have to write part II.
Many of you may have noticed the on going debate about what, if any should be an acceptable rate of fire.
Some of the guns that have been produced in the last few years are capable of almost inconceivable rates of fire, as high as 40 balls in a second.
At the same time the paintball industry has seen a decline in people coming into and staying in the sport.
While the rate of fire escalating is in itself not the sole reason, it is not a coincidence either.
Our opinion is that rate of fire has driven people away, not a few, a lot of people.
Rate of Fire the cons:
A.) Restricts movement:
The amount of paint that you have to move into, thru and around is coming so fast that only the smallest, fastest of us have a chance.
While that may be a version of the law of the jungle (survival of the fittest) It’s probably not the way the average participant wants to spend Saturday or Sunday enjoying paintball with their family or friends.
B.) Intimidation:
One person shooting at you at 20 balls per second is tough to deal with. fifteen people per team in a walk on game, doing that is putting 600 paintballs per second in the air.
In just 5 seconds that walk on game has shot 3000 paintballs.
We’ve seen it time and time again people did not sign up for that. They do not want to get hit 20, 30 or even 5 times to be eliminated when 1 will do. So they hide, stay out of and away from the action. Where is the fun in that?
C.) Cost:
Its easy math. The more you shoot the more your day just cost. With people hiding in their spots as we already pointed out you shoot even more. Also its fun to shoot fast, you get caught up in the heat of battle before you know it, you shot up that $50.00 you had allotted for your day of paintball so now it just became 3 hours of paintball and your done.
D.) The mom factor:
With more young people playing paintball than ever before, mom’s need to be taken into account. An 11 year old child coming home from a birthday party at a paintball field covered in bruises is not good. Word of mouth is a very powerful influential testimonial positive or negative, especially when its coming from mom. Paintball is a great sport and it attracts a large amount of young people, we need to keep them involved & excited and their families glad they are.
E.) Mini Arms Race:
Its cost us all, not just in the amount of paint you need to purchase and shoot but the marker itself. Manufactures now pack more & more technology into their guns. While the price has come down significantly for medium level gun it still takes even simple repairs out of the hands of the owners. Very reputable manufactures routinely run out of repair parts and there is no way to get around it, and get the guns back up and working with out them. High end guns on the other hand, while very advanced cost a lot of money, You should not feel as though you must spend more than you can afford just to play a game and be competitive, unless you are entering tournaments, Then the gloves can come off.
There’s more and we’d love to hear your take on things. A good friend of ours Mike Ratko summed it up best when he said “The fear has overcome the fun”. He’s very right, all you have to do is look at the faces of the first timers when a team player kicks his DM9 or Ego into high gear. They all ask the same thing “do we have to play against those” not the player…. the gun.
So that’s why we believe in a lowering of the rate of fire. If you feel different lets hear it, who knows you may be the reason we have to write part II.
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