Post Singapore Paintball Series disorder syndrome!

The Singapore Paintball Series (SPS) 2013 Leg 2 was held at The Cage Sports Park on 7 & 8 October 2013. A total of 33 teams participated in the event with a legion of overseas players from Malaysia, Brunei, Philippines, Taiwan and Thailand. Malaysia All Female Team, Siren made their first appearance in the SPS with other Malaysia teams such as Team Throne and WTF Dragonz from Penang and Kuala Lumpur respectively. The SPS which was formerly known as the Singapore Paintball Novice Series (SPNS) from 2008 - 2009 is Singapore's oldest and most established paintball tournmaent which focuses on paintball development and promotion in Singapore. The SPS provides a competitive platform for local and overseas paintball enthusiasts to compete on a friendly ground and to pit their skills against one another. "Paintball sport in Singapore has progressed over the years, it is imperative for us to continue to nurture this sport and introduce this game to as many people as we can" exclaimed Jane Koh, SPS Tournament Director.

Team ZOO which claimed the Champion position in SPS Leg 1 took the SPS Open Division Overall Champion Title after their final game against Throne from Malaysia. In the Bratpack Division 3 category, Team A.C.E.S with their consistent performance whole year round won the Overall Series Champion Title. Hellions SG from Division 4 took the top honours when they finished with a double champion by cliniching the Leg Champion and the Overall Series Champion for Division 4.

This leg of the event was also well supported by various corporate sponosors such as Bratpack, Sanuk, Timbuk2, SPY, Dye Asia, Advantage Sports Therapy Centre, Red Dynasty Paintball Park, Paintballers World Pro Shop, Grundy Sports Supplies, Anthrax Customs and Universal AV Pte Ltd who contributed generously with their wonderful products and services.

"We would like to thank all corporate sponsors who recognizes our effort in promoting and developing this sport in Singapore. We hope for more corporate sponsors to step forward to support our passion for paintball. We have a passionate community in paintball sport and the SPS is a good platform for everyone to come together and enjoy the game" said Ben Seow, SPS Tournament Promoter.

The SPS Organizing has several plans in stored for next year, first in the plan for 2014 is to fill the Singapore calendar with more paintball events so that players can practice and compete on a more regular basis. There are plans to adopt another new format competition in 2014. The committee also have plans to work closely with local paintball operators so that the sport can be developed through a unification body such as the SPS.

For more information about Singapore Paintball Series, please visit their website, www.singaporepaintballseries.com

10 great tips for paintball!

Just came back from a tournament and thought that perhaps I can jot down some of the things which went through my head this weekend so more people can benefit from our experiences:

1)     Always stick to the game plan. We spent time off the field talking about the biggest game plan to counter our opponents but how many players can actually stick to what is instructed of them? The game plan involved the entire team coming together to put off the greatest offense or defense and all it takes is one player to disregard the game plan and everything falls apart. So in future, if there is a game plan, do your best to stick to it. The plan involves the team and not just the individual. Of course, there is room for you to do other stuff but do your best to follow the game plan.

2)     Be versatile. To be a good player, one has to understand the fundamentals of playing in different positions in the field. Yes, when you first started the game, there is often than not a preferred position which you want to be in but that does not mean that you have to stick to that position all the time. As the game progresses, you are required to do more than just playing behind the same bunker. Being able to play in all positions and in all bunkers not only allow you to understand the roles and responsibilities of each playing position but also help you to step up to the role in critical time of the game.

3)     Understand the objective of paintball. How can you win games? Firstly, you can eliminate all opposing players in the field. Secondly, you can hang the flag or in the case of race-2 you push the buzzer. Assuming you ran out of paintballs or you ran out of air in your tank or your marker is down, how can you still win the game? The answer is obvious; you hang the flag or press the buzzer. So if you are behind a bunker and not wanting to go for the flag or the buzzer what will become of you? A sitting duck I say. You are not contributing to the team and thus not able to win games. In summary, do something and don’t just sit there. Human shield perhaps.

4)     Gun skills. Treat the marker as though it is part of you. Be comfortable with holding the marker using both hands. Think of it as part of you and so allows for great maneuver.

5)     Don’t take more than 3 seconds to load your paintballs. Learn to load your marker while shooting. Learn to load your marker without putting it down. Learn to load your marker fast. Simple principles to holding down a lane and not wanting your opponent to bump while you are off guard. Remember when your marker is out there shooting, you are suppressing your opponent and higher possibility of winning games than not shooting.

6)     Be sneaky sneaky. Yes, the sneakier you are the more kills you get. Keep shooting at your opponent will definitely stop them from moving up to the next bunker. By stopping them from doing that, you can never get the elimination that you want. Understand when to shoot and when not too shoot. Constant shooting doesn’t necessary means its good. When you create opportunity for your opponents to move, you lure them into your kill zone and that is when you make the hunt.

7)     Be a hunter who can also be a prey. Lure your opponents and hunt them down. Change your technique when necessary. A hunter needs to prey but he too can sometimes be the bait. Players need to understand their roles at each course of the game by seeing the bigger picture behind the team’s win. When in good position to become bait, it is often good to make a hunter out of your teammate and let them make the kill.

8)     Understand the rules. A player can only play the game better if he/she understands every single rule in the game. Just as any sport, you need to use the rules to your advantage. Likewise in paintball, understanding the rules will allow the player to fully appreciate everything there is to the game and thus change their decision of the game play according to their advantage. Where time is a factor to win games, one need to plan and play out their strategy according to the game duration.

9)     Open your eyes and listen. Use your ears and listen to your coach and supporters. They are always out there giving you vital information to close the game. Don’t hesitate to move when you are instructed to do so, make sure you follow to your coach instructions. As they say, the outsiders’ view is always clearer.

10)  Read your opponent’s game. Don’t just sit in the pits and do nothing. Spend time observing each and every team which you are going to play. Observe how your opponent team breaks out, do they play the snake? Do they stack up at home? Do they have corner runners? Do they run up the middle? Observe and take notes, especially observing every movement of your opponent. Reading your opponent’s move can give you the upper edge.

There you have it! 10 great tips for your next outing! Have fun!

Singapore Paintball Series 2011 Leg 1 - Jurong Central Park

The Singapore Paintball Series (SPS) 2011 Leg 1 was held in Jurong Central Park on 16 & 17 April 2011. This tournament leg saw a total of 29 participating teams shooting for the Champion's title. With up to 4 playing Divisions, paintballers swarmed to Jurong as the first paintball event to be organized on the Western part of Singapore. Organizers settled into the Circle Lawn (name of the field) a few days before the event with hopes of bringing a carnival theme tournament to the participants and they did not disappoint. For the first time, the SPS committee has decided to set up a food stall to cater to the ever hungry paintballers, isotonic drinks were distributed throughout the event to subdue thirst, booths selling paintball accessories were not to be missed. As part of SPS’s objectives of showcasing paintball to the masses, the organizers brought back the inflatable shooting gallery for members of the public to have a go at the game, for free of course! Newly included into the program was a tryout game for staff of the Singapore Sports Council; however this tryout initiative was stopped by the heavy downpour at noon. With the Novice Division teams playing 4 qualifying games in the morning, it was the Open Division teams who displayed high intensity shooting capped at rate of 12 balls per second, semi-automatic mode.

With a database of more than 500 paintball players in Singapore and a rich history in the organization of paintball events in Singapore, the SPS identify opportunities of collaboration with industry partners in creating awareness for the sport and product branding during the tournament. With an intensive sponsorship program and capable sponsorship team, the SPS 2011 is proud to partner our industry sponsors in product sponsorship and brand awareness. For the first time in SPS history, the SPS had achieved the support of FORCE 21 Equipment Pte Ltd as our title sponsor for the Open and Novice Division. FORCE 21 Equipment Pte Ltd a leading regional supplier of security, defence and rescue gear has also extended their support for the league for the entire series in 2011. CEO of FORCE 21, Daniel Cheah quoted “FORCE 21 is proud to sponsor the Singapore Paintball Series 2011, as we watch this dynamic sport catching the hearts of Singaporeans, and growing its membership steadily. We believe the passion and enthusiasm both the organizers and players share for this sport will create a strong bond and hence drive the standards of the game to international level.” Together with partnership of FORCE 21, the SPS sponsorship team also managed to garner the support of other industry sponsors and they are: 100 PLUS, Voxsports, Park Royal Hotel (Kitchener), AntConcept, Tilt, Citibank, D’Dreamz International, Sweet Delights, RAMPED Magazine, Pro Paintball Resources, Bottle Tree Park, Red Dynasty Paintball Park and Paintballers World.

Participants came back on day 2 for more intensifying action on the field which many refer to as the “mud spa” after the soaking rain a day earlier. However, this did not deter the local ballers as they battled even stronger as the competition takes its toll. D’Dreamz International took the main spotlight when they put up a lunch time performance by showing their grooves on the field with kids gymnastics dance to hip hop pop dancing. Lester Wing a member of the Red Sevens who participated in the tournament but was shown the early exit received the loudest cheer as he donned his paintball gear and moved gracefully on the field. “The team of paintballers consisting of Jose Cerda (Professional dance instructor), Carl Sahetapy (Professional golfer) and Lester Wing (Graphic Designer) had prepared for the dance piece for the past few weeks as part of their dance class routine. When we were approached by Carl and Jose who mooted the idea of performing a dance in front of the crowd, we knew that this will surely be the highlight of the day” exclaimed Ben Seow who is the Tournament Promoter of the SPS.

As the day draw closer to an end, it was Team ZOO who clinched the FORCE 21 Open Division SPS 2011 Leg 1 Champion title by edging out Team SKIN in a best of 3 games format. With this win, Team ZOO has successfully defended their Champion title having won last year’s SPS 2010 series. In the Novice Division, team Rampage Onslaught who was the 4^th position winner in the World Cup Asia 2010 held in Malaysia took the Champion title and similarly to Team ZOO, Rampage Onslaught defended their title too. Their final game with team Heartbreakers showed that they were a notch above most teams in the league. SJI Fluffy Rabbits which represented SHELL Petroleum and Team Generation Kill from Singapore Polytechnic took home the Corporate Division title and Tertiary Division title respectively.

As a growing paintball league in Asia, the SPS Committee recognizes the need to invite overseas participants to participate in the SPS so as to create opportunities for skill exchanges and interaction. For SPS 2011 Leg 1, the SPS allow each team to register up to 2 foreign players. This initiative was not permitted in the earlier paintball tournaments such as the Singapore Paintball Novice Series in 2008/2009 and SPS 2010 as the SPS wishes to establish a good foundation and fundamental of skill for the local players before opening the tournament to foreign teams. “The 2^nd Leg of SPS which will be held on 8 & 9 October 2011 will see the participation of International paintball teams from the regional countries. The SPS will partner the Paintball Asia League Series (PALS) to further improve the local paintball scene with a taste of international flair. Participants can expect to see other collaborative projects with reputable stakeholders such as the AsiaRefs, Asia Pacific Paintball Federation (ABBPF) and Singapore Tourism Board. The planning for Leg 2 is already underway and we promise to make our next tournament the biggest paintball event ever held in Singapore!” added Jane Koh, SPS Tournament Director and former President of the Paintball Association (Singapore).

The SPS Committee would also like to thank all participating teams, sponsors, spectators, AsiaRefs, SPS Referees and vendors for making this event a success for paintball in Singapore!

For more information about the Singapore Paintball Series (SPS), please visit www.singaporepaintballseries.com or visit the SPS Headquarters at One Commonwealth Building, 1 Commonwealth Lane, #03-03, Singapore 149544

11 Singapore paintball teams in World Cup Asia 2010!

11 Singapore based teams will be representing Singapore in the World Cup Asia (WCA) 2010 held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. This is by far the biggest turnout for Singapore teams in the WCA, a sign that competitive paintball is progressing since it was first introduced in 2007. With more than 100 participating teams from 20 nations, the WCA is Asia's biggest event in the paintball calendar. We wish all Singapore teams their best and may they do their best to put Singapore on the international stage! The participating Singapore teams are:

Red Sevens (Division 2) - Singapore's pioneer paintball team was formed in 2006 and has represented the local community in several international tournaments such as the World Games Exhibition in Taiwan in 2009. Red Sevens is Singapore's most traveled and most active paintball team which competes in countries such as Thailand, Philippines, Taiwan and Malaysia. www.redsevenspaintball.com

Zoo (Division 3) - Zoo was formed in the mid 2008 with players from ex-teamdamnation and ex-PSGwarfreakz. The team competes mainly in the Malaysia Paintball Official Circuit and has won several podium finishes in the tournament. In the recent Singapore Paintball Series (SPS) 2010, Zoo became the first team in Singapore to win the SPS Open Division. www.zoopaintball.com

Contract Killers SG (Division 3) - Contract Killers SG competed in the first local tournament, Singapore Paintball Novice Series (SPNS) in October 2008. Since their first competitive experience, the team has competed in all legs of the local tournament. They got their first taste of international paintball experience when they competed in Division 4 of the WCA 2009 and won the 2nd place. Early 2010, Contract Killers SG competed in their first Division 3 tournament in the Pattaya International Paintball Competition held in Thailand. Facebook type "Contract Killers-SG Paintball Team"

Naughty 6ix (Divison 3) - Assembled before WCA 2010, Naughty 6ix is formed by several seasoned players from the local paintball community. With a mixture of playing experiences in speedball and scenario paintball, this team will be part of Singapore entourage teams.

Red Sevens II (Division 3) - Assembled before WCA 2010, Red Sevens II is part of the Red Sevens family. Playing for their first time as a Division 3 team, Red Sevens II will form an integral part of the Red Sevens in 2011 when the team participates in several international tournament.

Rampage Onslaught (Division 4) - Formed in 2010, Rampage Onslaught participated in Sultan Kedah Cup 2010 in their first competitive tournament. Formed by a group of friends, the team went on to clinch the SPS 2010 Novice Division as Champion. Competing in their first WCA, this team will be showing a class display of Singapore paintball. Facebook type "Rampage Onslaught"

Seekers Inc (Division 4) -Plying their trade in the Malaysia National Paintball League, Seekers Inc was formed through the combination of Seek and Destroy and Seek and Strike in May 2009 when both teams participated in the Singapore Paintball Novice League. Finishing 7th position in their first outing, Seekers continue to grow from strength as they embarked on their second appearance in the WCA. Facebook type "Seekers Brudders"

Ballistics (Division 4) - Ballistics was formed in 2010 and participated in their first paintball tournament, Noob Wars 2010 and finished in 2nd placing. The team went on to pursue the game of speedball by participating in the SPS 2010 Open Division and finished the tournament with a respectable 4th position. WCA 2010 will be Ballistics first overseas tournament. Facebook type "Ballistics Singapore"

Ragdolls (Division 4) - Formerly known as Black Aces 2, Ragdolls participated in their first local tournament, The Rookie Challenge organized by Red Dynasty Paintball Park. With a change of team name and a full revamp of the team's lineup, Ragdolls participated in their first paintball league MPOC 2010 this year. Facebook type "RagDolls"

The Outlaws (Division 4) - The "Smoking Guns" as many like to call them. The Outlaws was formed in 2010 and participated in their first paintball tournament during the Noob Wars. Since then, the team has seen a significant grow in players recruitment. The first paintball team in Singapore to field 2 teams in 2 Divisions of the SPS, The Outlaws are certainly no pushovers and ready to make an impact to the local game. www.theoutlawspaintball.com

Natural Born Killers (Division 4) - No information. Seriously... I don't know anything about this team.

Singapore Paintball

It is like beating the dead horse everytime I discuss about this topic. Been a while since I last touched on the topic of paintball development in Singapore... but yeah thought it is time I write something about it from a multi perspective point of view: a paintball promotor, a paintball player, a paintball field operator, a paintball proshop person. I live, eat, sleep and shit paintball. Everyday of my life and for the last 4 years was to think of how paintball can be developed and grow our country. Every day, every hour, every minute and every second. It is always paintball, paintball and more paintball. Many people asked me if I ever get sick doing this everyday...

I will be the first to admit that I love the game and I treasure every moment of this since I quit my last job and venture into the world of unknown. The feeling of unwrapping Singapore's first electronic paintball marker was similar to a child unwrapping a box full of candies and chocolate. I was thrilled to register the Paintball Association (Singapore) 3 years ago when we wanted a recognized body to represent the sport in Singapore. I was happy to see the first flag hang when we created the first 5 on 5 paintball tournament in 2009. I was most excited to know that paintball participants no longer have to play with a center line dividing the field into half regardless of recreational or competitive and the many many more exciting things that unfold, regular pool of competitive teams, rookie and noob challenges, paintball clinics, paintball awareness program, paintball in schools, paintball proshop, SPLAT, paintball collaboration with regional countries, Singapore Paintball Series, paintball sponsorships, etc. It is a constant growing process from ideas to implementation to development to what we have presently. And of course, all these would not have happen if not for the spread of love by our fellow paintballers. Helping and contributing their every bit to make Singapore paintball work.

I would love to be able to compete in a paintball tournament in Singapore, not as an organizer but as a player. For this to happen... we need more than what we see now. Paintball is not about me, my team, my field, my shop and my competition. It is not about me not doing my job and not about me not offering the best paintball package in Singapore. It is not about how well supported our paintball league is and certainly not how much support the government can give to us. What is paintball all about? Seriously, I really don't know and I don't have an answer. Some time, some day all will aged and go old and someone has to take over. Will paintball still be as popular by then? 4 years ago... there was hardly anyone playing regular paintball... no one knew what speedball was and there was hardly any paintball community and the fact that paintball was around in Singapore since 12 years ago didn't really speak well of paintball development in Singapore.

What do we need for Singapore paintball? Ask yourself... this might be a really tough question to answer. If one day, the government ask you: "What can we do to help you develop paintball in Singapore?", what would you say? Show me the money perhaps? If it was that easy to begin with...

What we need for Singapore paintball is not cheaper paintballs, cheaper gun packages, cheaper playing options because without money as a form of motivating factor, how is this a thriving industry for potential stakeholders? Motor GP is all about money, F1 is all about money, YOG is all about money... money makes the world goes round and everyone knows it. It all about money. It is always a chicken and egg story for Singapore paintball... which one comes first? Let's say we need money to grow the sport in Singapore. First thing people will ask you... how many teams do we have in Singapore? How many people play paintball in Singapore? How many places can you play paintball in Singapore? How many competitions can you play paintball in a year? I am sure what their reply will be: "We understand your concerns and passion for the game but we need more than the current figures to support your game as you know, we need to support sports with a stronger appeal to the public... paintball is a niche sport and I am sure you can be as good as the rest but right now, we are putting our money on our best resources and events and sports that can created the biggest impact for Singapore sports."

We then go back to the drawing board and then write down these words: "We need more people playing paintball in Singapore" And I say this again... Singapore. Not anywhere else... we know there are many people playing paintball around the world, we know that there are many people playing paintball in the regional countries, we know that there are many Singaporeans playing paintball in Johor but these don't matter to them... it has always been about how many people plays paintball in Singapore. After all, we are doing our part for Singapore paintball, aren't we?

Paintball in Malaysia has thrived and progress over the past few years. There are many paintball tournaments that you can participate in Malaysia. They have a pool of the finest paintball players in Asia and they have some of the biggest brains, people, resources, facilities out there to direct the growth of Malaysia paintball. We can only learn... It is a given fact that paintball is cheaper in Malaysia. It is a given fact that Malaysia have better playing resources. It is a given fact that paintball is a recognized sport in Malaysia. It is true that Malaysians have done it right to grow the game in their country. Gone are the days where people have to hide in the forest to play paintball. Paintball is now a growing sport in Malaysia and they can only credit themselves for that. They make it work for themselves. Are we doing it for ourselves?

I am sure we can develop a better system for Singapore paintball. More news to come after the Singapore Paintball Series (SPS)...

Why you should join the Singapore Paintball Series 2010?

Since announcing the Singapore Paintball Series 2010. We have several queries about the event and so I have decided to list down a few considerables on "why you should join the Singapore Paintball Series 2010?"

1) SPS is a homegrown paintball brand. Similar to MPOC, My-NPL or the CPCL which are major leagues over at the Northern coast, SPS was the transformation of the SPNS which was the pinnacle paintball event of the Singapore calendar in 2008 and 2009. This homegrown brand has transformed from a 3-on-3 paintball competition using scenario paintball markers to a 5-on-5 paintball tournament using electronic markers and up to 4 divisions for people of all ages and playing standards.

2) SPS is a professionally run paintball tournament with dedicated individuals who wants to make paintball a successfully sport in Singapore. With a combined 20 years of experiences in the sports industry, events management industry and marketing industry and more importantly the paintball industry, the SPS will be an event not to be missed.

3) SPS will be held in the East Coast Park. Forget about the Singapore Padang or the Marina Floating Platform, this is definitely one of the best location to showcase your team and get together for a fun filled weekend.

4) SPS combined with sponsors and industrial partners will produce the biggest payout in cash and prizes for participants of the SPS. A free spot to the World Cup Asia in November 2010 for the eventual winner of the SPS Open Division is already worth more than USD200! We are working towards bringing the biggest paintball brand to the Singapore paintball community.

5) First electronic marker division in Singapore is the first in Singapore and possibly the first in Asia! We will be using Proto Proto Matrix Rail markers as house markers for the tournament! If you know of any similar arrangement in Asia, please write to us... as far as we know, we are the FIRST!

6) Paintball prices have been adjusted to accommodate to the paintball community. This is one of the most significant adjustment to date for the Singapore paintball tournament scene. We are making this affordable for everyone and cost of playing at such a wonderful event should not be an excuse no more... This adjustment is inline with SPS's objective of working towards an international platform.

7) With up to 4 playing divisions, you no longer have to worry about people calling you a beginner, noob, expert, sandbagger, professional... just play in whichever category you deem fit.

8) SPS is working towards making the series a professional outlook with team profiles, up to date information and announcement. We have make use of social platform Facebook, websites, forums, posters, banners, etc to make this event known to every possible single lead. Making way into the SPS are merchandises such as T-shirts and lanyards to promote our branding.

9) Get your supporters to come along as there will be fun games engaging park goers and the public. Get your supporters to try out a game of paintball and let them experience the feeling of being in the field. All this at ZERO cost... SPS will be sponsoring this initiative to make paintball more receptive to the public. SPS will be putting up banners educating the public about competitive paintball and there will be a dedicated booth cater to any paintball queries from the public.

10) Working with the Asia Ref, the SPS aims to facilitate a unbiased competition with some of our SPS referees who will be certified to officiate in paintball tournaments endorsed by the Asia Ref. Certification courses will be organized to ensure that all referees are up to standards in officiating the biggest paintball event in Singapore.

I can go on and on and on... but if these are coming true and becoming a reality. All we need is your support to make all these happen! SPS will not be a one off event and we have vision to stay on track in bringing the best paintball event to the Singapore paintball community! Keep the fire burning!

Singapore's Biggest Paintball Event - Singapore Paintball Series 2010

The Singapore Paintball Series (SPS) will be held on 16 & 17 October 2010 in East Coast Park (Angsana Field, next to carpark E2). From the same organizers who brought you the Singapore Paintball Novice Series (SPNS) in 2008 and 2009, this year's tournament will feature a 2 day event for participants with up to 4 different participating divisions. New to the tournament scene will be the Corporate and Tertiary Division which is targeted to introduce the sport of paintball to corporate companies and schools as an excellent form of teambuilding activity. "After taking a break from organizing paintball tournament in Singapore, the committee felt that it is time to introduce a new wave of Singapore paintball to the general public. Our focus for the SPS will be creating paintball awareness to the masses and to create an opportunity for people to try out paintball games in the park", exclaimed Jane Koh who is the SPS Tournament Director and the former President of the Paintball Association (Singapore). With the introduction of the Open Division which involved the use of electronic markers, the committee hopes to bring about a completely new tournament scene to the paintball community to Singapore. This is also the first time that electronic markers competition will be showcase to the crowd.

With a strong restriction in the firearms law in Singapore, the organizers will be working closely with the governing authorities to ensure that there will be no hiccups to the tournament. With a combined industrial experience of more than 15 years, the SPS committee will be ready to rock the nation with Singapore's most exciting paintball tournament to date. For more information on how you can register for the tournament, please contact: info@singaporepaintballseries.com

Red Sevens Clinched My-NPL Round 2 Division 2, 4th Placing

2 weeks after the team's win in Pattaya, Red Sevens clinched a fourth placing in Division 2 of the MY-NPL Round 2 in Malacca. Newly recruited to the Red Sevens is front player Lester Wing who played 6 games in total including the final two 3rd/4th placing game. He even pulled an amazing one on one snapshooting to win a game for the team. Kudos to our Division 2 noob... and please for god sake, smile a little please....

Our sponsors Dye Asia with Devon and Zyzek was giving us pointers about the game. Our long Japanese friend, Banno san was there with us all the way showing his moral support for the team. Thanks to all our sponsors, Dye, Furious, KCHL, SEED, THORB, may the team win more medals with more tournaments to come this year.

Thanks to the organizers for putting up such a good show! With more than 90 participating teams, this tournament is by far one of the best with good referring and perfect grass turf, its makes sliding looks easy...

MPOC Leg 2 is this weekend... Let's go REDS!

RED SEVENS - PALS Div 2 Pattaya International Paintball Championship Champion!

Red Sevens from Singapore clinched the PALS Leg 1 Pattaya International Paintball Championship Division 2 Champion title last weekend in Thailand. The Red Sevens would like to thank our sponsors Dye Asia, Furious Paintball, Seed Paintball, KCHL and THORB for their wonderful support. We would also like to thank the organizing party, Pro-Paintball and the Malaysia, Thailand and international referees for braving the sun over the weekend. Lastly, the team would like to thank all those who have supported us since our establishment. Special mention to the following who are always there to lend us words of encouragement:

Redza, Sani, ExKay, Daniel "Junior" Goh, Junaidi, Matthew, Dennis, Paul and Kiko.

With this long awaited win, the team would like the Singapore paintball community to continue training hard even though we have limited training resources, playing fields and support from the governing authorities. We can still enjoy the sport of paintball and compete at the highest level. We can complain and whine about our current state... but it is pure dedication and action that will allow more people to recognize our game in Singapore.

Let's go for more gold!

Ken Tsuda Paintball Clinic in Red Dynasty Paintball Park

Ken Tsuda from Oakland Blast was in town and made a surprise visit to Red Dynasty Paintball Park. Ken is the manager of Oakland Blast and father of professional player Kenny Tsuda. Oakland Blast is currently in the 2nd position of the USPL Pro Division and they will be playing in Vegas this weekend. Ken shared his experiences on players attitude and teamwork with our local players and went into the field to share about field walking. The light hearted session lasted about 3 hours with a few skirmishes among local players.

As I was driving Ken back to the hotel, he pointed out that he could identify a few players who are pretty good in the game...

Ken with the gang.

Field walking with Warlord and Mark.

"Now you see him".

Sharing session.

Ken explaining to Calgar on how to play the door.

Singapore Paintball Novice Series 2009 Leg 3 - Team Preview Part 1

Sun Tzu Art of War: "Know your enemy and know yourself"...

With SPNS Leg 3 less than 3 weeks away, teams are starting to heat up the pace and picking up paintball markers again. Why are we not surprise that this leg of the SPNS is actually anybody's game? Is there such a thing as sheer luck in paintball? Well... you can play the best game and still not win the game. So perhaps there is such a thing as sheer luck in the game of paintball.

How different is this leg of the tournament as compared to previous legs? The most significant difference is the use of the Millenium bunkers, yeap... all 44 bunkers, similar to the Millenium games in Europe but more importantly, the same set up as the upcoming World Cup Asia (WCA) in November. So... teams who are going to the WCA, brace yourself and play the game well... this could be your best preparation before the world stage. This is good preparation...

The venue... the next big thing in SPNS 2009. Playing paintball in a park... not any other park but the Grand Lawn in West Coast Park is the best venue to date. Imagine this... its lunch time and stream of paintballers entering McDonalds in their colourful paintball jerseys and pants, headbands, masks, a big statement...a very big statement... RECOGNITION should be the right word.

Even if you are not playing... be there to show support for our local lads. Red Bull will be served...

In no order:

Contract Killers - 2 new inclusions, Nick and Keith from ex-Kamikaze. With the retirement of Dzul and the long lost Aaron, CK will see a new front line up. With Division 4 experiences in MPOC and NPL, Nick and Keith will be a valuable asset to the team who will be gunning for the top honours. Last SPNS leg MVP Sham (Rocketfingers) will also ensure that this team is certainly no pushover.

Nick

Red West - West or east? All eyes will be on this team who won Leg 1 and Leg 2 of the 2009 series. Leg 3? Long serving players, Ryan and Zach from the Singapore American School has returned home which means a total transformation for Red West. With 4 new inclusions (Yazid, Sophie, Julya and Chee Lang, I mean Yong...,and a totally new setup, Red West is under pressure to live up to the name of their predecessors. Returning to the paintball scene is Julya who was a former Red Fraction.

Chee Yong, SPNS Leg 1 MVP

Five O - Another team to look out for... Talk about masters of rules, no other team beats this team. With the inclusion of Casey and Jayex from 20th Legion, Mark from Kamikaze and Calgar a former Red Sevens, this is some what a tough lineup. Not forgetting Fuzz (yes, we gonna crush you and master of taunts) and Ivan from Red Sevens. We are talking about a team with combination experience of 8 years? Maybe 10...

Calgar and Ivan

More sneak preview after this weekend...

Paintball Proshop in Singapore - Paintballers World

Paintballers World is located at Shaw Towers, 100 Beach Road, #02-21.

Paintballers World is an authorized dealer for most of the major paintball brands. You should find all if not most required paintball accessories to get you started in the sport of paintball. We cater to individual players, recreational players and tournament teams (with tournament packages! Just ask any of our friendly staff). We also carry paintball lifestyle clothings to bring out your paintball personality off the field. Look good on the field and fantabulous off the field!

We aim to be a one-stop paintball store that caters to the growing community and offers paintball consultation and supplies (even an all-in-one field package) to regional paintball startups. Our forte in planning and coordinating paintball events and tournaments in Singapore is highly regarded by our industry partners. We are always on a lookout for partners to promote and to develop this game in Singapore, if you are keen to be a partner or dealer with Paintballer’s World, get in touch with us!

“Gett’in Poisoned Without Realising” is the tagline for our shop. So, if you are poisoned, you know where to find us.

Best teambuilding game ever!

Ask someone who has played paintball before and you will gather 2 schools of thought:

Firstly, you have a group of people who often see the negative side of things, so they will tend to relate paintball to pain, tiring, expensive, hard to organize as some of the descriptions. In some ways, they are not wrong... it is indeed painful when being shot by a paintball hit but everyone has a different threshold of pain, so what is painful to you, might just feel like a mosquito bite for me. As a shooting game where participants run and dodge, I am pretty sure even the fittest will complain about muscle cramps but hey... I get tired even walking up the stairs to my house. So its managable. Is it expensive? That all depends on the depth of your wallet but if the company is footing the bill, why do I care? Is it hard to organize? Hmmm...fix a date and show up. How difficult can that be?

I will now focus on the positive side of paintball... IT'S A GAME FOR EVERYONE! I have seen uncles and aunties (referring to people who are in their late 40's or 50's) who enjoyed themselves. I have seen kids as young as 14 years old shooting the hell out of their daddy who boost about his army experience. I have seen ladies who are demure in nature goes onto the field to become the most fearless player. Again... IT's A GAME FOR EVERYONE. Okay, now that everyone can be part of this game, I will focus on the fun side of this game. Imagine this, you "throw" someone into the field, armed him with 100 paintballs (ammunition), you bestow him with great authority by passing him a paintball marker (gun) and VIOLA! you have created a soldier or an animal. Why animal? When the animal is hungry, it looks for food, when the animal is under threat by bigger animals, it puts up its defenses. Likewise, in the game of paintball, we create this adrenaline hunger in everyone.

Oh... did I also mention that it brings out ones confidence, decision making skills and teambuilding among people you never knew existed in your company. The game of paintball has got many misconceptions since its intervention, we have heard stories about people getting injured during a game of paintball, people trying to promote terrorism using paintball, people who played paintball once and never to return again... but above all that is said, there is no denial that paintball is just a fun game.

Singapore Paintball Novice Series (SPNS) 2009

Singapore Paintball Novice Series (SPNS) 2009 Leg 2 – Pasir Ris Park, Native Lawn

Bringing Paintball to the Hearts”

For the first time in Singapore, a competitive paintball tournament was held beyond a licensed paintball centre in Singapore. Established in 2008 and organized by the Paintball Association (Singapore), PBAS, SPNS 2009 Leg 2 sets its foot on a national park located in the eastern coast of the Singapore’s shores, Pasir Ris Park. Supported by the Singapore Sports Council and the National Parks Board, this leg of the competition saw 13 paintball teams vying for Singapore’s top paintball honour. With the slogan of “Bringing Paintball to the Hearts”, the objective of organizing the competition in a public park allows PBAS to showcase the sport of paintball to the heart of the community. This is also the first time that a 5-men competition format is adopted in the SPNS as compared to the previous legs of a 3 men and 4 men format.

Introduced to Singaporeans in 2008, competitive paintball otherwise known as speedball is increasingly gaining its popularity in Singapore. Efforts by PBAS to promote this sport have been significant with roadshows in tertiary institutions such as Singapore Polytechnic and Ngee Ann Polytechnic. Singapore Polytechnic has also recently become the first Singapore institution to introduce the sport of speedball to its students and armed with the intention of establishing a paintball club in the school.



Another historical event is the conduct of the Malaysia Marshal Level 1 marshalling certification course for 6 local paintball referees by Mr. Junaidi Khalil who is the Head Referee in Asia with marshalling experiences in the Asia Paintball Invitational Tournament 2008 in Kao Hsiung, Taiwan and the Asia World Cup since 2007. "The Certification Course helped to raise the competency of many of the new recruits to local refereeing" added Benedict Chen, a second year student from the National University of Singapore who took on the Head Referee role during the SPNS. Indeed, the certification course and cross learning between the Singapore and Malaysia marshals helped to unify the conduct of the sport with similar regulations across the borders.

Team Red West who was the champion team in leg 1 of SPNS 2009 managed to defend their title by clinching another champion medal in this leg of the competition. With 3 of its players playing for the Red Sevens team, a Singapore Division 3 team participating in the Malaysia Paintball Official Circuit (MPOC) and Malaysia National Paintball League (MY-NPL), the Red West team displayed immense teamwork and proficiency to qualify for the 1st position during the 8 qualifying games and eventually winning the title. Five-O, participating for the first time in the SPNS took home the 2nd position after a series of impressive games against some of the top sides in the series such as Kamikaze and Dark Militia in Round 2 of the tournament. Last leg’s runners-up, Contract Killers, concluded the day with a 3rd position placing and Dark Militia claiming the 4th position. One of the most exciting segments of the tournament was the “Top Gun” Division where teams would send a representative to compete in a 1-on-1 paintball game where spectators of the event were involved in delivering sideline coaching. The “Top Gun” Division is a test of a player’s individual skills and of his ability to cope with the immense pressure of the match under the eyes of a crowd. This leg’s “Top Gun” Division was won by Sean Low, a student from Pei Cai Secondary School who has been playing paintball as a competitive sport for more than 2 years. His team the Death Mavericks was in 3rd position after the qualifying rounds.



“We have seen vast improvement in the level of the game. Participants are getting more skilful and technically sound as compared to last year. To continue developing paintball, we’ll need the local authorities to reconsider the classification of paintball markers as a firearm but as a sporting equipment, similar to a foil in fencing, a bow in archery or a bat in softball” exclaimed Jane Koh, President of the Paintball Association (Singapore) who is also the Tournament Director since the dawn of the SPNS. While many consider this event as a big leap for Singapore paintball, there are still many aspects of the sport that needs to be addressed to develop this sport into a mainstream sport. Through awareness program and paintball clinics, this sport will soon do away with the common branding of being “jungle-game, painful or just plain shooting”.

Official results of SPNS 2009 Leg 2 can be found in, www.weplaypaintball.com/SPNS.html

Article is contributed by Ben “King”, a paintball enthusiast and promoter in Singapore.

Photos courteosy of Tilt, www.tilt.com.sg

The Red Family - Red Sevens, Red Fraction, Red West and Red Dynasty

Yes, the Red Family... 4 different teams but all part of the Reds.

Red Sevens, one of the earliest team in Singapore to play speedball. Perhaps I should say, one of the earliest team in Singapore which was learning how to play paintball. Formed in 2006, the team has been an ardent fan of the Malaysia paintball scene and also doing their part to promote this game to the local paintball community. Competing for about 2 years and still nowhere close to playing at the top level, this team is trying its best to maintain a regular squad. Since formation, there has always been a daunting task trying to keep all players together. Of course, players come and go and have different priorities in their life, so its pretty hard to get everyone together to play paintball. Till today, the team is still competing and keeping pace with this fast adrenaline rushing game and of course along the way, the team learns how to play paintball better. Since 2007, the team has played in 20 paintball tournaments (all overseas) and about 230 competitive games together (and counting), so surely there is a lot that this team can offer to people who are keen to take up this sport on a regular basis. No, Red Sevens is not a National team as many claim. And yes, the team is always on a lookout for potential players to join them.

Red Fraction, supposingly the junior team for the Red Sevens, it still is. The team was formed from the local paintball community, all strangers from different walks of life. People with passion who wants to know more about playing paintball competitively. During its formation, the Red Fraction has gone through intensive training conducted by members of the Red Sevens in hoping to translate all they have learnt onto the field but anything can happen in paintball... with the team playing together for the first time, did not perform to expectations. But still good enough to see the players wanting to play more to improve their skills. SpaceMonkey joined the Red Sevens in one of the MPOC outings. But the last time Red Fraction played together was about 3 months ago... so is the fire still burning within? I am unsure. For now, 2 players are missing in action and the other 2 of their players recently made an announcement to leave the team. A building process is now in due. Anyone keen?

Red West, a team formed for the purpose of participating in the SPNS was crowned the 2009 Leg 1 Champion. With only 2 training sessions together, the team "clicked" on their first meeting. Who are the Red West? 2 students (Zach and Ryan) from the Singapore American School, a National serviceman (Edi) and a few other phantom players. As the american boys will not be in Singapore for long, the idea is to combine Red Fraction and Red West for future SPNS series. Zach and Ryan who has been playing tons of woodsball in the States before moving to Singapore with their parents has played for Red Sevens on numerous occassions. Edi, a former player from Team RAG was recruited to the senior team for his paintball potential. A recent inclusion into the team is Paul, who will be playing as a back player for Red West.
Red Dynasty, formed by staff who works in the Red Dynasty Paintball Park. A mixture of good talents from local teams such as Kamikaze, Carnage, Contract Killers and Red Fraction, the Red Dynasty is an iconic Div 4 team which has since participated once in the MPOC and NPL with top 4 showing in both competitions. It will be in no time when all of them start thinking about playing in the higher division.