Paintball is a sport in which players compete, in teams or individually, to eliminate opponents by tagging them with capsules containing water-soluble dye and featuring a gelatin outer shell (referred to as paintballs) propelled from a device called a paintball marker (commonly referred to as a paintball gun).
Paintballs are composed of a non-toxic, biodegradable, water-soluble polymer. The game is regularly played at a sporting level with organised competition involving major tournaments, professional teams and players.
Paintball technology is also used by military forces, law enforcement, para-military and security organisations to supplement military training, as well as playing a role in riot response, and non-lethal suppression of dangerous suspects. Games can be played on indoor or outdoor fields of varying sizes. A game field is scattered with natural or artificial terrain, which players use for tactical cover.
Game types in paintball vary, but can include capture the flag, elimination, ammunition limits, defending or attacking a particular point or area, or capturing objects of interest hidden in the playing area. Depending on the variant played, games can last from seconds to hours, or even days in scenario play.
The legality of paintball varies among countries and regions.
In most areas where regulated play is offered, players are required to wear protective masks, and game rules are strictly enforced. Masks are not required in the staging area.
The first-ever public paintball performance in South Africa was held at the Swartkop Airshow during 2013. More than 80 paintball players took part in a simulated counter-terrorist raid on a weapons dealer.
PAINTBALL IN SOUTH AFRICA:
Currently, the biggest national speedball league in South Africa is the SARPL (South African Regional Paintball League), with over 500 members and hosting both 3-man and 5-man series events in 5 provinces (including Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape, Western Cape and the Free State). The league hosts around 31 events per year on a regional and national level, with national finals taking place at Oviston, Lake Gariep, at the beginning of December each year, starting at the end of 2013.
The SARPL currently play PSP Race-to-2 format and use the PSP rule set, as well as using the APPA system for player classification.
LADYSMITH PAINTBALL TEAM:
The Ladysmith Paintball Team was established in 2010 by a group of Ladysmith residents who had a common like for the sport. It started out as just a few paintball matches over weekends, with just a handful of people and the basic paintball guns and masks.
The team has played in places such as ‘Greystone Paintball Arena’ in Estcourt, ‘Hill 52’ in the Drakensberg (which is also based on a World War 1 battlefield) and many other places.
2014 saw the team being able to start an arena in Ladysmith, now known as ‘The Alamo’, which is out on the N11 outside Ladysmith, all thanks to Mark Prinsloo. We have also been able to build up the arena with large and small tyre obstacles sponsored by Alan Wallace from Wally’s Tyres (thanks to Jimmy Hanlon from Ntokozweni Developers for the use of the crane truck in order to get the tyres out to the arena). 2013/2014 also saw the team hosting matches with other players from Durban, Pietermaritzburg, Estcourt, Johannesburg and our most regular opponents, Newcastle.
For anyone interested in joining the team or finding out more, you can find us on facebook at ‘LADYSMITH PAINTBALL KZN’ or you can contact Ryan on 073-667-9924.
