BlitZkrieg Paintball Field and Players Club Tampa Florida

[Grendel]

By SEAN C. LEDIG The Tampa Tribune

Published: Mar 29, 2007

TAMPA - Walking out from the fenced playing field, a slightly annoyed Chris Dudley sported a fresh yellow splotch on his shirt.

He knows he was shot fair and square. But for the 13-year-old Thonotosassa resident, the question was "Who did it?"

Nate Ell, 17, of Lutz, took credit for it.

"I got you," Ell said, taunting Dudley.

"I got hit, but you didn't shoot me," Dudley said.

"That's yellow paint," Ell proudly declared. "I use yellow balls."

"Hey, we can settle it if you want to in a one-on-one game," Dudley said.

On and off the field, the action can get pretty intense at BlitZkrieg Paintball Field and Players Club, which opened last month on Bearss Avenue.

BlitZkrieg features several fields, including a professional style setup with inflatable barriers and obstacles. The players refer to them as "Doritos," "soda cans" and "X's" based on their shapes. The obstacles bear paint splatters from previous games.

Players have to work their way to the other side and capture the opponents' flag without getting shot.

It's the intensity of the sport that first attracted BlitZkrieg co-owner Tom Sacher-Brown. As a soldier and corrections officer, he has spent many hours and many cartridges shooting at paper targets. But there's one crucial difference between shooting at a target and shooting at a person: Targets don't shoot back.

"For 35 years I've been shooting a weapon at a standstill target," Sacher-Brown said. "After a while, you could close your eyes and point the pistol and still pass the test.

"But do you have a target that moves or shoots back at you?" he asked.

BlitZkrieg fills an important need for players, Sacher-Brown said, because there are few paintball fields. As a result, there are many underground games held at night in public parks, vacant lots or abandoned buildings.

Such activities are dangerous because they are usually done without adequate safety equipment or supervision, Sacher-Brown said. He hopes his park will give players a safer option for participation.

"I would love for [underground players] to come here," he said. "You got to have referees. You got to have someone policing the place. We have 'no shooting' signs everywhere. We make sure people have barrel plugs whenever they're not on the field."

The shortage of paintball fields is a result of the rapid growth of the sport, said Camille Baker, marketing director for the National Professional Paintball League.

"As large as the sport is, there's never going to be enough paintball fields," Baker said. "Just out here in Southern California, where paintball is really big, if you live in Orange County, you have to drive an hour and a half to a field. And even then, you have to wait to play."

Like Sacher-Brown, Baker said she wants to see more paintball fields in order to promote safe play.

"It's fantastic when a new field opens," she said. "Kids will play it whether they have a field or not, whether in an abandoned building, a basement or an empty field.

"It's a better environment and safer when kids have a professional paintball field," Baker said.

According to the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association, paintball is the third most-popular extreme sport in America. In-line skating and skateboarding ranked first and second, respectively.

Paintball is one of the most popular participation sports in America, according to the association. More than 10.3 people played paintball in 2005, compared with 10.2 million baseball players, 5.8 million tackle football players, 4.9 million racquetball players, 2.7 million surfers and 9.1 million personal watercraft users.

Sacher-Brown's business partner, Brad Otto, said it takes an emphasis on safety to make for a good paintball field.

"Safety first - fun later," Otto said. "I go by a strict set of rules similar to the ones established by the National Sports Entertainment Recreation Association."

Those rules include the use of barrel blocks in guns when not in play; a prohibition on shooting at anyone not wearing approved eye protection or nonplayers, judges, animals or cars; and the testing of guns before play to ensure the paintball speed does not exceed 290 feet per second.

But the emphasis on safety doesn't diminish the sport. It's the intensity that appeals to players like Dudley, who said he enjoys playing at BlitZkrieg.

"It's a lot better than other paintball fields I've been to," Dudley said. "The field layout is better, and it's really clean."

Emilio Santiago, 28, of Odessa, said he likes not having to drive to Lakeland to find a paintball field. "This is pretty neat having a lot more options," for play, Santiago said.

South Tampa resident Andrew White, 26, said he also likes the intensity of the game.

"I like the friends I make, the aggressiveness and the team play," White said. "It's just a lot of fun."

His girlfriend, Willow Nyman, 28, of Seffner, said she shared those sentiments. "It's an adrenaline rush," Nyman said.

AT A GLANCE
WHAT: BlitZkrieg Paintball Field and Players Club

WHERE: 15206 Dunwood St., on Bearss Avenue between Nebraska Avenue and Interstate 275

HOURS: Open at 9 a.m. Friday through Sunday; by appointment Monday through Thursday

INFORMATION: (813) 971-4306

Reporter Sean C. Ledig can be reached at (813) 865-1507 or sledig@tampatrib.com