Throughout the past year Flagpull.com has said many things about Dynasty...not all of which have been good, and we never have denied that. One thing however that we never denied is the tremendous respect that we have for the boys in blue as a team, and now as a team supporting themselves. More than that we support them for what they are, the leaders in paintball.

Sure they may not be 'at the top of their game' according to some right now, but they are the most recognizable group of players in the world.

Flagpull recently talked to Rodney Squires, the man responsible for many good moves for Dynasty, as well as a legendary back/mid player. Read on to find out what Rodney has to say about the teams current state, fame, and much much more.

Most of the people that we spoke with wanted to know about the future of Dynasty and what it holds. We’re all familiar with the history of the team and are more interested in where it is all leading.

First, what are your feelings about Adam’s departure from the team? Has he spoken with the team since he left?

The consensus on the team was that we were pretty bummed out on the situation. Adam wanted to play both 7-man and X-ball this year which is why he came to Dynasty in the first place. Adam had chosen to play with his father’s team in the NPPL. Due to his fathers team disbanding he didn’t know where to go for the NPPL. Dynasty has a deep roster on the 7-man team which would be very hard for him to break into. The team had spoken about a second team; Adam was offered an ultimatum by Infamous that if he wanted back on their team he had to come now. Adam called Tyler and asked what he was doing. Tyler had said that he was going to wait a figure out what Dynasty was going to do about the situation. Adam never called anyone on the team to say he was leaving. We found out that he had left from the Infamous guys.

Its been almost a year since you left WDP for Smart Parts, are you happy with that decision? Has the backlash changed the way you view the industry and fans?

We have had a great year so far. The relationship with WDP was not an easy one to leave. When you have been so close to people for years it is a tough decision to leave. The best thing that we did was to hire Ryan Morgan our sports agent. Ryan brought us out of the “bro” deals and got us headed down the road of real time sponsorships. Ryan showed us what we were actually worth and found us someone who was ready to step up. Billy and Adam have been great to us. We have been involved in every aspect to help make their product better. The team gets weekly calls from Billy or one of the top tech guys asking about the performance of the markers. If we have a suggestion they usually have an answer or a new prototype to us within days. We truly feel like SP wants to get the most out of us. This is truly what a sponsorship should be about. It isn’t just giving a team a bunch of money to go play paintball. Sponsorships are about taking the knowledge of the teams you have and use their experience to improve your product. Dynasty would like to thank Billy, Adam, Kevin, Graham, Darryl, Hans, Anthony, Keith, Paul, and everyone else at SP for all the help and support this year.

Any backlash that we have seen has faded away by now. People at first were like you guys sold out, can’t believe you guys went with SP. Nowadays everything is back to normal and not that many people care about the issue.

What are Dynasty’s plans for 2005? What series will you compete in? Plans for more clinics?

The team’s plans for 2005 are still in the planning stages. We will continue to compete in the major 3 tournament series (NPPL, Millennium, and PSP X-Ball). The plans for future clinics are up to Brian Cole. BC is the organizer for all our full team Dynasty clinics. He loves to plan these things. By the way Brian really hates to organize our 2 day clinic but has been forced into it because he has done such a good job. We will probably continue to hold three 2 day clinics a year at Hollywood Sports. Now this does not include the clinics that we participate in a round the world. I would say a least once a month, 2 to 3 of the guys are gone for a weekend somewhere to hold a clinic. We are very flexible and can be contacted thru email on our website. Dynasty has been contacted to conduct clinics in Ohio, Texas, Canada, and the Philippines before the end of the year.

Are there plans in the works for anymore Dynasty merchandise? You’ve got paint and a marker, anything else we can look for in the future?

The team earlier this year signed a deal with Action Village who is going to be making a line of Dynasty product. I have been told that this should include clothing as well as hard goods. In September we will be releasing a “How to Play paintball” DVD. This has been put together by Brad Maughan who is responsible for the Jawbreaker series and the KAPP series of videos. Brad also was responsible for the HB NPPL 2003 DVD.

Another item that has been in the works for awhile is the Dynasty Shocker Board. This board will be a drop in board that will replace the stock Shocker board from the factory. The team has been using the prototypes of this board for months now and we are amazed at the performance. The board should be available in Mid September.

The last item for a possible Christmas release will be another DVD of our 2004 season. This DVD will feature coverage of most of the events and practices of 04.

Where do you see yourself and Dynasty in the next 5 years? 10 years?

Dynasty is not your typical paintball team. We are working on deals now to solidify the stability of the team for the next 5 to 10 years. I see the team in its current form over the next five years with the core group still very much involved in the business. Because there are actually 9 owners of the team everyone will always be involved to keep the team at the top. I see owners retiring as players but still being part of the organization.

Are you ready to be a TV star? Do you think paintball will become “big” on TV while you’re still playing?

I think that I am at the setting sun of my career in the sport. I will continue to play and practice because I can’t get the game out of my mind. I don’t think that I have what Hollywood would want like an Ollie Lang. The TV deals are right around the corner. I think that in the next couple of years the sport will continue to grow and hit the TV spotlight.

Any thoughts on the rash of NXL teams coming over to play NPPL events? Why do they keep beating you guys? (just kidding)

The NXL team’s coming over was inevitable. You could not have all those players in one league getting nothing but promises for the last two years not eventually getting sick and tired of the BS. As far as the NXL teams beating us; the only NXL team that we have played this year is the previous Miami Effect team which is now called Infamous. Dynasty has played Infamous three times in 7-man which is a current record of 2-1 Infamous. In X-ball we have played them once this year and lost. I don’t think that it is anything Infamous is doing especially right; as to why the team has lost. I think that it is more about what Dynasty isn’t doing. Dynasty roster is filled with guys that can all win the game at anytime. I think people on the team are too worried about trying to make the winning move and not about playing their role. There are players that make up a team that might not be the best individual players but are the role players that make the difference on the field. Another issue I would have to say affects the team is trying to switch gears from 7-man to X-ball. NXL teams came to Denver and were surprised when they didn’t get a second chance like in X-ball and went home early Sunday.

Do you ever see a girl playing for Dynasty, not just dressing as a dragon?

I think that would be a tough task for any girl to play on Dynasty. I am not saying that it couldn’t happen. The issues would come down to dedication and the brotherhood of the organization.

Is it a goal for you guys to become the first US team to be paid to play paintball full time, not have to rely on other jobs to pay rent?

Yes. Many of the guys currently live off of the team’s income. SK, Angel, and I are the only ones with real jobs. The company is setting the ground work for the athletes of the organization to have all the benefits as employees.

How does it feel to be the “marked men” of the paintball world? Everyone has an opinion about your team and every move you guys make is debated for weeks. Do you like the attention, or do you wish everyone would go harass someone else?

I would have to say the team does enjoy the spotlight. I think that we kind of see ourselves like the big teams in the NBA and the MLB. People always like to hate the Yankees or the Lakers because they win all the time. It is fun to go to events and draw the biggest crowd for one of our games. This is something that we always drive home at practice and at tournaments. If you want the crowds you have to be the best and train the hardest. It has definitely been weird this year with lots of people wanting us too lose. I wish sometimes however that the people that we have helped out would stop stabbing us in the back by cheering for us too lose.

Are there plans for Dynasty to pick up anymore players for next year, or are you guys happy with the roster as it is?

Unlike people’s perception of the team, Dynasty will always look for new talent. I think that next year we will pick up more players to strengthen the roster for the future. Look for a bunch of new things from the team at the end of this year and the beginning of 2005

Dynasty currently plays in the NPPL as well as the PSP and the Millenium Circuit.

Source: flagpull.com