StrikeForce Paintball Park Closing Down on July 18th, 2004

[ClankySubset]

StrikeForce Paintball Park Closing Down on July 18th, 2004

The rumors have been flying for some time so I wanted to address it. First off, let me give you our new hours:

Last Day of Operation: Sunday, July 18th, 2004

Now, it's with a heavy heart that I have to say that it's true; StrikeForce Paintball Park will be closing. When I opened StrikeForce, I wanted to provide South Florida with a truly professional paintball facility that would allow families, kids, & adults a chance to experience this amazing sport in a safe, clean and well run environment. And I can honestly look back and say that I've accomplished that. In some respects, I think SFP is a model for all paintball facilities having effectively catered to such a broad range of athletes and personalities. I'm very proud of what SFP has become.

Unfortunately, many of Metro-Dade county's elected officials didn't see it that way. They perceived this incredible sport as some type of violent excursion and chose to find any and every excuse possible to close down SFP. I fought them tooth and nail spending a LOT of money in legal fees and doing anything possible to adjust the park to accommodate their ambiguous business requirements. I expressed to these same officials my desire to do whatever it took to make SFP compliant with whatever regulations they thought would make this business "legit". In the end though, they themselves couldn't and wouldn't define what it would take to make SFP legitimate in their eyes. It still floors me to this day. In their infinite wisdom, Metro-Dade's officials have chosen to push kids back into "renegade" fields that will be poorly run, completely unsupervised, and entirely unsafe. Make no mistake, this will happen. Paintball is THE fastest growing sport in America and SFP closing down will not stop people from playing. It will simply drive them into the unsafe world of "renegade" fields. So here we are, approximately one month from closing down over 4 years of hard work. One month from saying goodbye to 4 years of friends. One month from saying goodbye to 4 years of fond memories. And it STINKS!

Our last day of operations will be Sunday, July 18th, 2004. We will continue to run SFP every weekend from 8am until 4pm until that last day. In addition, beginning June 16th, we additionally operate on Wednesday and Thursday from 10am until 3pm.
My love for paintball remains strong till this day. I have one of the best jobs in the world. I wake up everyday with the knowledge that the sport that I love helps me support my family. I am truly blessed. And that's why I've fought so hard to keep SFP open. I know how fortunate I am and I thank God everyday for this opportunity. With that said, I will be searching for a new home. Hopefully, I can find an area where there's a better and more tolerant view of the SPORT of paintball. Yes, it is a SPORT and a legitimate one at that. I would like to continue to provide the professional services needed to effectively manage paintball in South Florida. If any of you reading this can offer some assistance in that search, I'm always willing to listen. If we do find a new home, this site will be the place to read about it. I won't say my goodbyes just yet because we do have a month left so as I always say....

IF YOU'RE NOT HERE, YOU'RE NOT IN THE GAME!!!!

http://www.sfpaintball.com