Paintball Safety

Playing safe is important in any paintball activity. The equipment used, type of terrain being played on, and actual paint balls themselves are all considerations when examning the safety aspect of this popular sport. Playing it safe means you have the ability to play longer and stronger.

The paintball equipment used depends on the game type, for example: woodsball, speedball, or scenarioball, as well as on how much money one is willing to spend on equipment. Every player, however, is required to have three basic pieces of equipment.

Firstly, a paintball marker: also known as a "paintball gun", this is the primary piece of equipment, used to tag an opposing player with paintballs. The paintball marker must have attached a loader or "hopper" to keep the marker fed with ammunition, and will be either gravity-fed (where balls drop into the loading chamber), or electronically force-fed. A marker will require a compressed air bottle, nitrogen, or carbon dioxide for propellant.

The next requirement is the actual paintballs: paintballs are spherical gelatin capsules containing primarily polyethylene glycol, other non-toxic and water-soluble substances, and dye. The quality of paintballs is dependent on the brittleness of the ball's shell, the roundness of the sphere, and the thickness of the fill; higher-quality balls are almost perfectly spherical, with a very thin shell to guarantee breaking upon impact, and a thick, brightly-colored fill that is difficult to hide or wipe off during the game.

Finally, there is the Mask or goggles: Masks are safety devices players are required to wear at all times on the field, to protect them from paintballs. They must completely cover the eyes, mouth, ears and nostrils of the wearer, and masks can also feature throat guards. Modern masks have evolved to be less bulky compared with older versions.

Paintball is played with a potentially limitless variety of rules and variations, which are specified before the game begins. The most basic game rule is that players must attempt to accomplish a goal without being shot with paintballs. When a player is hit, and the ball breaks rather than bounces, they must raise their marker to indicate that they are out, and leave the playing field or move to the appointed staging areas. Depending on the agreed upon game rules, the player may return to the field and continue playing, or is eliminated from the game completely.

Playing paintball games safely means you have more time out on the field. To find a field or indoor venue near you, check out Funfix.com.