Starting and Maintaining a Team in the Sport of Paintball (Part 1)

Have you ever been playing paintball on a Saturday morning and had a real team show up to play? Were you surprised at how much more organized they were than then everyone else? Paintball is a game of skill, stealth, speed and fear. This much holds true rather you prefer to play woodsball or speedball. Being part of a team gives you the opportunity to hone your skills and play on the strengths of both yourself and others.

Starting a paintball team is the logical choice if you have a true passion for the game, and you believe that you are ready to step it up to team tournament play.

How to start a paintball team :

The hardest part of starting a paintball team is getting people who are as passionate as you are about the sport. This being said, I find the easiest way to find talented players is to hit up the local paintball fields. A good paintball player is easy to spot. They shoot, they move, they take care of their equipment, and they are a good sport (most of the time).

When I am out at the fields looking to recruit people for my teams, I generally look for five different things in a player.

1. Do they have raw talent?
2. Do they have good instincts on the field?
3. Do they have a good attitude both on and off of the field?
4. Do they have the time to actively participate in a team sport like paintball?
5. Do they have the drive and desire to be on a paintball team?

The next question you need to ask yourself is what kind of tournaments you want to enter. If you are looking to do a simple three man format than you will only need just that, three players; though having an extra person or two is always good for substitutions and practices. Not everyone will want to play all tournaments. If you are looking to play in the five man or seven man formats, than you will want to have at least ten people on your team.

I find that the easiest way to get players to join your team is to simply tell them that you are either looking to start a team or that you are looking for more players to join the team. Most players will be upfront with you about their level of interest in the game of paintball. They will let you know if they are simply looking to play paintball on the weekends or if they too are looking to get more organized.

Once you have several players who are interested in playing on a team level, you need to do several things.

1. Decide on a team name.
2. Decide on a day (or two) that you can get together each week to hold practices.
3. Discuss each player's strengths and ask what positions each player is most comfortable in.

Once you have the basics covered, you will need to find a location to practice. Having a place to practice together is a necessity. If you do not have a place of your own, then talk with the local field owner and see if they would give your group a discount if you agree to play their so many times each month. Most owners will do this for any team, even if you are just starting out.

When my team first came together, we were still practicing in the woods. Eventually, we all pitched in on some equipment and set up a speedball field in a friends hay field. We held practices each Saturday, and played at the local fields twice a month as well so we could put our new talents to use against unsuspecting casual players. Now that if fun

Now that you have a paintball team together, practice working as a team. Run drills to hone your skills. When you think you are somewhat prepared, enter a tournament to see how your team is shaping up against others in the area.

Coming up in Starting and Maintaining a Paintball Team (part 2) :

Running drills - How to run successful drills during practice to optimize the time your practices.