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pbReview.com / Paintball Fields / USA / Ohio / Splatter Park
Splatter Park
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Reviews: |
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Website: |
Click here to visit the field's website. |
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Email: |
Click here to email the field. |
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Phone: |
1-888-8-SPLATT |
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Address: |
5560 C.R. 109
Mt. Gilead, Ohio 43338
USA
Map - Directions - Weather |
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Distance: |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Last There: |
May 4th, 2008 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
More than 5 years |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
Pinnacle Woods, Battlefront Paintball, and some others that are longer.
Many paintball fields around the country.
This field is the worst, bar none. |
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Directions
to the Field: |
If you insist on going here, you can find directions on their website. |
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| Review: |
I have played at this field on and off for over 7 years. I have been to their regular play days, and I have also been to their Big Games.
Safety is a joke. My gun was not checked once all day. The refs were bunched up at the reinsertion line, and there surely wasn't enough refs for the supposed 1,300 people there. The morning safety briefing was non-existent as far as I was concerned. I never even heard that it was happening. Last time I was at a big game it was also poorly run, and although they have improved their air filling and registration lines some, the on field safety and game rules were just as bad.
It has been said that "Rules are Made to be Broken", and Splatterpark leads the charge in this category. There website specifically states semi-auto only, I was continuously shot by full auto and ramping. Refs are not aware of the game rules, and don't enforce the field rules whatsoever.
There were two "field hospitals" to clean your goggles, but don't think that means you will be "healed" there. Reinforcements were delivered by walking reinsertions, and they were repeatedly placing enemies on all three sides. Start us off cornered against the tape line, at the bottom of a hill, and we are supposed to take the hill, when you just put there whole team on that high ground?
Players were wiping excessively, balls won't break until you get real close. I think they ask the paint company for this feature, because at the end of the day they gave prizes out to the people with the most welts. There was no "young gun" award, etc. Instead everyone gathered around as the owner through goods into the crowd. Starting with the disclaimer that, "If you don't want to get hurt, too bad". So the masochistic needs of Sean the owner to watch other people in pain, whether physical or emotional is the only rule I actually saw enforced.
We were not "allowed" to bring a camera (pocket instamatic) onto the field. We were told once again be Sean the owner that if he saw a camera he would kick us off the field. Every paintball event I have been to when there is photographers there, they still let you take your own pictures. Here, they said that they were afraid of ruining their relationship with the camera guy. Well, the camera guy wasn't selling his pictures, and even though I was photographed excessively by him, I was never approached about buying a picture from him.
As the owner said:
"I'm in business to make money, I don't cater to real paintball players".
Being in business isn't an excuse for greed and disregard. Its obvious that his pockets were the only driving force behind his work. Its evident in the lack of planning and the poorly run production.
If this field was not so close to Ohio State with a steady supply of naive customers, it would never stay in business. I know I'll never return here again. |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Date There: |
May 4th, 2008 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
More than 5 years |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
TPA
Battlefront
Camp Blanding
EMR
Sherwood
Low County |
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| Review: |
Well my team and I just returned from the Spring Big Game at Splatter park. I have broken the review down into various categories. Let me make it clear that this was the first time we had ever played at splatter park and we were only there for the Big Game, never played their during open days.
Field- The field was decent, kind of like a bunch of seperate woodsball fields with the boundaries removed to make one big field. The container field was interesting but definetly needs a little more work. As for the rest of the field it's good but not great, somehow there is no underbrush and very little in the way of cover, lots of small trees and not alot to hide behind. They have bunkers, logs, pallets and pipe, the usual, however their placement lacks some planning, they leave alot of angles open which make them almost useless in some places. Camo is almost useless here, nothing to make it effective.
Safety\Rules- I made this into one section because i think it goes together. First of all a whole big group of people missed the safety briefing because nobody bothered to tell us it was going on, a ref came down and told us to get ready to get going, and 5 min later when we got to the site we were told the briefing was over 10 minutes before and the game was already underway. Next if you read splatterparks rules they state no full auto and no ramping. This rule went completely out the window for this game. My team left all our high powered markers at home and brought with us only our semi auto mech cockers and mags to find ourselves pitted against full auto a-5's and X-7s we were not expecting to meet. The chrono limit was basically a joke because nobody was monitoring it. One ref with 9 chronos, but the ref wasn't checking your speed, you checked it yourself then left, I asked the ref if he had to mark are guns or something as checked and was told we would be rechecked as we entered the field, however this never happened, the chrono was there but the refs were just waiving people past and onto the field. I would hope people would be honorable in setting their chronos but you can't trust anybody anymore and the field wasn't checking either.
Next something i really don't understand, i saw refs on the field wearing only riding goggles, basically only the eye protection of a paintball mask, no face shield, no ear protection nothing. This completely boggled my mind, 1200+ people shooting at each other and the REFS are not wearing the proper protective equipment, I did talk to sean the owner and the reason i was given was to give CPR if somebody needed it......a logical enough reason but i believe it sets a completely terrible example for young players.
Staff- The refs were plentiful but the only problem is most of them had no idea what was going on, we had to ask 4 different refs before we figured out what the situation was for reinsertion, Some of the refs obviously had some tendency towards favortism, i saw now less then three refs watch players get hit, wipe and continue playing on. I understand perfectly that honorably you should call yourself out when your hit, but to have a ref watching you wipe and play on and not do anything about it speaks to the quality of the ref.
Paint- Well the paint is cheaply priced, but you get what you pay for. Wreck is the right name for this stuff, it's terrible. It's dimpled and shaped like a football, the size ranges from .683-.688 from bag to bag, and wouldn't shoot straight to save your life, and this is coming out of an autococker with a hammerhead barrel. It also didn't break, you had to hit somebody 4 or 5 times before you could get one to break.
The Game- Well...we went down to splatter park expecting to be playing in a scenario paintball game, the way it was presented to us seemed to imply thats what was in store. We were wrong, the game was poorly organised and badly executed, the reinsertion was random and seemed at will of the refs, imagine trying to defend a position when the refs are dumping 50-100 enemy players on top of you at every reinsertion, it was impossible. There was no organization among the teams, no generals, it was basically 1000 people shoved into regulation woodsball fields and told winner take all, there was no room to maneuver, no tactics, it was basically huge waves of people smashing into each other.
Final Thoughts- We came away from this game sorely dissapointed. The field was fine, the paint was subpar and the scenario could have been better organized. However what really dissapointed me was the conversation we had with Sean, the guy who personally invited our team to come play, saying he wanted to get more scenario teams to play because he wanted to add the organized feel to the game. I went to talk to Sean, to ask him some questions about the things we saw, the breaking of the no full auto rule, the poor chrono checking and things like that. I was told "Scenario paintball is a very intimate game, players are honorable they help each other out, but thats not what i do here, at a scenario game you get 200-400 people, i get that here in one weekend. I'm more for the people who come down here spend 40 bucks for a case of paint and play." Basically the gist i got from the man was, I'm here for the almighty dollar, I'm going to jam as many people into this field as i can and to frack with everything else. It left me with a very sad feeling regarding the state of paintball, at least at this field.
I can't speak as to how the field is run during regular weekends and weekdays, but as for the Spring game, if your a woodsballer or scenario player, when it comes to the "Big Games" skip it. It's not worth your money or headache to try and fathom the cluster frack that is going on down there. |
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BSharp |
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Friday, March 21st, 2008 |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Last There: |
March 1st, 2008 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
1 year |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
None |
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Directions
to the Field: |
On Website or use Google maps. |
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| Review: |
The field selection is decent..There are several woodsball fields, all with different terrain that make them interesting. One has a fort which is always fun. There is a "dune" type field with sand/dirt bunkers and a newly converted/added container field. This was by far my favorite field and could have stayed on it most of the day if they would have let us. It is a level field with 15-20 shipping containers arranged around the area and makes for good upright play. Some of the containers were even open so you could hide in them or ambush. Fun.
I have my own equipment, but saw what they have to offer and it seemed to be in good condition and they have tons of it.
I do have mixed ratings on the staff. Everytime I was there, the staff has been very friendly. My only complaint was the first time we went the kid who took charge of our group was pretty disorganized. He took way too long to decide which field to play on and way too long explaining the rules of the scenario. In one instance he literally took 10 minutes explaining the HIS version of Zombie and confused even some of the experienced players. However, I will say that the last time we played, the refs with us did a much better job of getting the games explained quickly and efficiently. Overall, they made it a much more enjoyable day.
This is the only field that I have played at in Ohio, but have played several in Florida and would rank it very well. I have heard of some addtional improvements that I think will make it even better. My other only complaint is I wish it was closer to home.
*** I wanted to add a note regarding the "Big Game" held on May 4th. Since going to Splatterpark, I have gone to some other parks and attended a few scenario games. In comparison, the Big Game was very disorganized and was simply a day long HUGE open play game. Insertions were ridiculous at times. In one situation, our group was inserted and told to "stay here" for a second while the ref went and did whatever. In the meantime, the other team closed in around us and bunkered in. By the time play started, we were sittting (standing) ducks and totally go lit up. We didnt even get a chance. It was absurd. Unless major changes are made, it is a fine field for rec play, but serious scenario players will want to steer clear.
| Last edited on Monday, May 5th, 2008 at 6:52 am PST |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Last There: |
May 4th, 2007 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
3 years |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
not many compare to my expierience here |
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| Review: |
this is a great field really open very fun to play woodsball at. I liked how only necessary areas are maintained this keeps the game really like you are in the woods. The times i like most are with the big games and when you go to those, you are always busy with something.
the safety here is really good they are real tight about it and will kick you out if you don't follwo the rules. I do not like the rule but they make you shoot around 285 FPS but let you slide up to about 294 so its not super terrible.
As far as prices go it resonible and just like most fields its gonna be around 50 bucks to play for 6 hours so i won't be the one to complain
overall i really enjoy the field and ill continue to go because i really enjoy woods ball and they do a really good job of makin it fun
Went to the big game played container field, that is some awsome s*** right there and i can't even describe it any other way. it was amazingly fun and i advise you to check it out| Last edited on Sunday, May 4th, 2008 at 6:09 pm PST |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Last There: |
July 29th, 2007 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
More than 5 years |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
68 cal(now closed), Brazo's in texas, one other field in S. Carolina, cant remember the name. |
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Directions
to the Field: |
I 71 to exit 151 go west on 95 to county road 109 (small side route) go right about a mile or two look for mailbox on right. |
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| Review: |
Where to begin.....and not get too long winded.
1)Safety is taken very seriousely : (I feel safe and dont worry about family or friends that play with me there).Safety rules are explaned to everyone, and inforced by the staff.
2)Family environment : it is common to see mothers and fathers playing with there children.(I love this, I cant explain the feeling I get when I play paintball shoulder to shoulder with my son.)
3)Food : Everyone gets 2 hot dogs, a bag of chips and a drink.There are no stores or restaurants near by so I think its just something cheap and easy for them to serve for lunch. It reminds me of Clipper's games when I was a kid.( I know the hot dogs arn't that good but something about the atmosphere makes it seem good.)
4)Pricing : Renter's get a stock 98c, mask, all day air(rentals use hpa), Five Hundred paintballs, and lunch for $35.00. Owners get 2000 paintballs 2 air fill's, and lunch for $50.00. They have a yearly pass for $125.00, it pays your field fees and you get discounts on paint and a few other fringes. I figured if I play more than 5 times a year it pays for itself.
5)Paint : Field paint only, there sticklers on this. It seems like you get alot of bounces with the stuff we had today. I know there is alot better paint out there, but there stuff is just as good if not better than what Ive bought my local store. ( I usually buy the cheap stuff)
6)Refs: The refs at splatterpark are geared more to safety than officiating game's, there good at seperating teams between more experience players and people that have never played before, And they come up with different games and scenaios. I look at them like waiters, they'll serve you pretty good, but if somebody is wipeing, they may not catch it.
7)Fields: Well maintained, with variety. If you play woodsball, be ready for a little walk.
8)People: Ok, its not a real catagory but its my review. Paintball is'nt much fun without players....There are always people there, I admit I've only been to a few other fields, but each time it was hard to get 2 good size teams together. Saturdays usually has alot more people than sunday. So much for not getting long winded.....
In conclusion I always have a good time, and I'd be comfortable taking anyone with me. |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Date There: |
July 21st, 2007 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
More than 5 years |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
Field of Fun way back when... |
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Directions
to the Field: |
About 45 minutes north of Columbus. Directions are on website and are accurate and easy to follow. |
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| Review: |
I haven't played paintball since about 1999. Just decided one day a few weeks ago that I wanted to get back into it. My brother in law ("BIL" for short), who's played once, came along. I bought all of my equipment (PMR) from Splatterpark's shop off of I-71 and got a coupon booklet with discounted admission, airfills, etc.
BIL had to rent his gear. Aside from an occassional stuck bolt on his rental (98 Custom), he had no problems with the equipment. I wasn't crazy about the price I had to pay at first. I had my own gear and a coupon entitling me to $22 off admission. Somehow it still cost me $50, but I was too excited to get back out on the field again that I didn't say anything. I'll just use it next time, I guess.
The first thing that struck me - even as we rolled up to the field in my car - was how organized and professional the place seemed. BIL and I were standing out in the open talking to each other trying to figure out what we should be doing first when a guy in a bright yellow shirt approached and eagerly answered a few questions. We were both pretty impressed. It took awhile for the registration/rental line to move, but that's not really a bad thing. They had a good turnout at the field.
We were put into a group that consisted of about 60 guys. Splatterpark is VERY safety oriented, which is very important and SHOULD be at the top of EVERYONE'S list, including the players. We got a very detailed safety briefing by one of the refs and then we were off to our first round.
The refs were genuinely helpful and interested in everyone's safety and enjoyment. Despite a nimrod here and there who entered the safety zone without a barrel plugs (how hard is it to remember, anyway?), no issues came up.
If I had one complaint, it would be the size of our group. Splatterpark's fields are very nice (good size, well taken care of), but 30v30 is just too much chaos. It's very difficult to organize a group that size and plan strategy, and the amount of randomness introduced by such a large group can be frustrating for everyone. I wish they had divided us in half. It seemed like they had enough refs, and they certainly had enough fields (there were only two other groups there - both very small private parties).
Other than that, no complaints. The other players were friendly and sportsmanlike, which was also nice. I quit playing back in '99 for a couple reasons including lack of proper safety measures and too many meathead-type players with no life outside of paintball. Glad to see that's changed. Atmosphere was very family oriented but still competitive.
These are the same folks (I think) who ran Field of Fun out in Pataskala, and now that they have the funds to do Paintball the way they want to do it, they've really created something nice that's very welcoming to newcomers. They do make you buy their own paint. Some say it's to prevent people shooting frozen paint (anyone who actually does that should be hanged by their gonads), others say it's to collect more revenue. Personally, I think it's probably both and I have no problem with that.
I'll be going back in a week or two for more! |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Date There: |
May 13th, 2007 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
More than 5 years |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
Bull Creek Paintball (good)
Great Lakes Paintball (good)
Hell Survivor's (good)
Pevs (average)
Combat Zone (average)
Lima Paintball (average)
U-do Paintball(bad)
And about five others which now appear to be out of business |
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| Review: |
I enjoy playing woodsball and would rate this field as just average. Course and Staff was just average as well. Prices were in line with most of the fields I go to. I didn't care much for what I would call their regular players, a lot of meat head type players with way decked out guns, what ever happened to just playing for fun? Overall I had fun with the new challenges provided. I would give this field a 6.5| Last edited on Monday, June 4th, 2007 at 7:04 pm PST |
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| The accuracy of this review is disputed. Please see discussion on the comments page. |
Period of
Field Use: |
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| Last There: |
April 30th, 2007 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
6 months |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
TPA, closer to my house, but not quite as good
Intense Paintball, OOOOOOOOOOOOOOO THIS IS SUPPOSED TO BE PAINTBALL! |
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| Review: |
Best field i have ever played, i just live too far to play there much
safety:7 they do chronos and make you use their paint, but the refs are idiots
fields: 9.5, i havent played many other places or it would be 10 cuz im not positive if its the best or not. probably 20 different scenarios maybe more
price: 7.5, not cheap but worth it to play there
staff: 8.5, were very courteous and did whatever i asked, but they took a while
refs: 3, basically ignored everything going on except making sure people were chronoed
Staging area: 11 totally awesome
overall i give this place a 9 |
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| The accuracy of this review is disputed. Please see discussion on the comments page. |
Period of
Field Use: |
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| Date There: |
May 6th, 2007 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
More than 5 years |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
Pinnacle Woods in Ohio
Fields in NJ, PA and NY |
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Directions
to the Field: |
1hour and 30 minutes south from Cleveland/Lakewood/Berea
I AM EDITING THIS FOR THOSE WHO HAVE COME TO THE DEFENSE OF SPLATTERPARK |
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| Review: |
First, a short preface.
I have not been happy with any field I have been to in Ohio thus far.
That being said, here is what I have to say about Splatter Park.
First the good.
From what I saw, the park had very solid amenities. Lots of pavilions to sit and get out from under the sun, keep your paint cool and relax. They also had a very beautiful pond right at the staging area. It makes for a great place to have a day out with friends and family, bring your grill and your own food and have a nice bar-b-que for lunch.
The park also had a really big and what appeared to be well stocked club house and staging area. The cement paddock in front of the club house was a nice touch and very out of the ordinary for paintball fields. It made it a whole lot more professional looking. It also made it a bit more comfortable than if you were standing on a gravel and dirt. Finally, the paint, though I don’t know much about the brand, seemed to be perfect. It was solid and had the perfect shape. I can’t say much about its breakability though as many of my shots were across great distances.
Fields - The fields were the best I have played on in quite a while. I am a huge fan of varying types of terrain, especially hills and creeks, and Splatterpark had it all. The place was pretty damn big too and I don't think I was able to see the entire place. I mention this because I don't know what sort of forts they had. The one I did see was only from the front side of it. I was taken out with a face shot before I could see what it was all about from the defensive side of things. A friend of mine told me that you could actually get up inside of it and defend it like a castle. From the front it looked like it was just one dimensional. Did I mention how much I like hills and creeks. They were all over and the bunkers were quite solid and many were big enough to put more than 4 people behind. Anyway, this was the detail I forgot the first time around so I wanted to address the issue. I would never want to complain about something without giving a 100% honest assessment.
Now the BAD – What sort of field plans for a Big Game, hosting around 900 players, and allows their air compressor to crap out while not having a back up? I'm sure compressors are terribly expensive but I heard from others who have played here before that it is not the first time.
Consider this scenario; big game format with no stoppage in play. I am running with a 68ci 4500psi tank giving me appx. 1100 shots per fill. With my pack I can carry 800 rounds on my person and another 150 in the hopper. Because of the compressor going down I was only able to fill my tank to a bit under 2500 psi. This allowed me to shoot less than 500 rounds which meant that I can shoot about half of what I had on me. This also meant that I had to leave the game often and give up my position and leave my teammates.
So we drive 1.5 hours to get there and have our day FUBAR’d because I can’t play a proper game.
At least we received sincere apologies from the young kids filling the air.
The next problem, and this one I have an even bigger issue with, was the way in which the Refs handled themselves. Most were great by the way, But...
Here is the scenario. Its 3:05. My group was only inserted about 10 minutes beforehand with an objective to defend two fronts. I start making my way around the opposing teams weaker side in order to flank their strong side, as my group is about to cross the road to get in behind them we hear the refs calling GAME OVER!!!!!!!!!
This seemed weird and we had no idea if they meant the objective had been completed or if they meant the entire game. People on both sides looked confused. As we are walking back down the road to the safe zone we come across the main front of the battle we were just in; it was still blazing. As such, people in the group being escorted out, the team I was fighting against, just started jumping into that fight completely making the existing battle unfair. At the same time, a ref is coming down the hill with an entirely new group to reinsert them back into the battle. It was at this point that he says the other refs called the game way too early, about 30 min too early, which in turn cost us our position and our momentum. I was so pissed, we all were.
I jump back in the game, finish off the 200 shots I had left in my tank. Have it refilled and join back in the game.
This time we are being pushed way to the back of the field where there is a fort. Just off to my right side were 4 refs hanging out talking while at the same time there is a 50-80 man rush coming at us, running and screaming down the hill. I had a position to take out a few, one of which had a tank top on. I nailed him three times in the arm and back and he just hid behind the bunker and squeegeed it off his skin and kept playing. The refs didn’t even bother watching the game. A total of four refs were grouped together in the same spot chatting.
So, I am angry, I probably won't go back but no matter my complaints, I still had fun.
If it was not so far I would not mind going there as I know big games are always going to be difficult to manage. I played at a world record game in PA and it was mayhem on the field.
| Last edited on Wednesday, May 9th, 2007 at 11:04 am PST |
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joosky |
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Sunday, April 29th, 2007 |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Last There: |
April 20th, 2007 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
4 years |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
Pevs
Seek and Destroy
cannon (b4 it was closed) |
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Directions
to the Field: |
MAP QUEST OR GOOGLE IT ITS KINDA HIDDEN BUT NOT TO HARD TO FIND |
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| Review: |
Great Feild and Great refs. The feild is exelent with many woods fields a hyperball field and a 7 man X-ball feild pretty much brand new. Turnys are great open class fun. Big game is always exelent. Refs are easy to befreind great service. If it had a bed in fort Buckeye i would sleep there lol. |
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