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pbReview.com / Paintball Fields / USA / California / Sequoia Paintball Field
Sequoia Paintball Field
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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: |
N/A |
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Location: |
Watsonville, California 95076
USA |
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Distance: |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Last There: |
May 12th, 2007 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
3 years |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
Bear Creek: only one field and much smaller than sequoia, but closer to those who live in San Jose. Very professional and you can usually count on a fair sized crowd.
S.C.A.R. Paintball: This field is located in Fort Ord and is pretty decent overall, still much smaller than sequoia. The field is mostly made of mulch and wooden bunkers which I doesn't really suit my taste. *Out of Business* |
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Directions
to the Field: |
Directions from both San Jose and Santa Cruz can be found at: http://www.sequoiapaintball.com/directions.html
*If your coming form the San Jose direction you will see a sign that says "Road Closed Ahead". Although the road is technically closed, and for good reason you can still get by. Drive carefully and you will make it there in good health. |
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| Review: |
Brief History
Let me start off with a little bit of history of the area itself. About 1 1/2 - 2 years ago this area used to be the location of Woodstalk Paintball (it had been theirs for quite some time, I'm not sure on the exact date they started but I know it was around back in the pre semi-auto days). Eventually the area was shared with a group of airsoft players. Paintballers and airsofters would swap sides of the territory after lunch. For reasons unknown to me the owner of woodstalk left his location up in the forest to start S.C.AR. Paintball in Fort Ord. Woodstalk was void of paintball. Airsoft stayed up at the Woodstalk location and the area became known as Sequoia, probably based off of the Sequoia Airsoft group still there. But on March 17th 2007 a new owner set up shop and is now letting paintballers play the fields they've been missing once again. Sequoia Paintball begins... *enter dramatic music*
Safety
Unfortunately, safety didn't strike me as particularly outstanding. The field requires players to chrono once at the beginning of the day. I think that is a mistake because CO2 tanks will heat up as the day goes on - increasing their output pressure. (especially if you get it filled in the morning) You can chrono your marker at 290 and have it shooting 350 by lunch. Other factors such as your paint or atmospheric conditions will change as well. Do you trust everyone at the field to not change or bump his/her velocity all day long? In my opinion checks should be made every time you go into the staging area and back out to the field- or at least another check made midday. The speed limit is 300fps which is rather high since most fields set theirs around 270-290fps in case of a velocity spike or consistency issues. Something less done is they will tag your gun with a little zip tie after it passes the chrono. That's somewhat of a carryover from airsoft where the guns do not have have easily adjustable velocities. They have the usual mask on in the field and barrel sock/plug rules that you would expect at any field. A 20ft. mandatory surrender rule is also imposed. Overall I feel the velocity precautions should be a little more stringent. Look out for yourself and play sensibly and you should be alright. (but then I'm playing with people that I trust)
Hours of Operation
They are now open from 9a.m. - 4p.m. Saturday and Sunday. You may pick your times and days for reserved large parties. Players under 18 need a waiver signed by their parents. Ages 10 and over may play.
Prices
With an admission price of $25 it won't be the cheapest place out there but in this case you really get what you pay for. CO2 fills are $5 for the entire day regardless of tank size. That's a pretty good deal especially if you go through a lot of CO2. They have recently gotten a lever action CO2 tank filler and got it working by the end of the day. No more problems filling with hand cranks. If for some reason their not able to fill your tank all of the way you can use one of their new rental tanks.. Currently there is no HPA/Nitro fills but that will supposedly change soon.
They do have a field paint only rule. However, the paint is only $40 for a case and $12 for a quarter case so it is not anywhere near as expensive as some other fields. The brand of paint they gave was called Spectrum (you can find reviews on it here). In my opinion the paint was of decent quality. It wasn't the best paint I've shot nor was it the worst. The balls were a little on the small side and the shells were pretty tough. Hard shells combined with the 300fps limit made for a little more pain than I was used to and a few more bounces than normal but was still fun. The fill was thick enough to know nobody would wipe it off but thin enough that it was easy to clean when the day was over. Two self-equipped players splitting a full case of paint can play all day for $100.
If your an unequipped player they have gotten some rental gear for everyone. 50 sets of it for large parties. Its a bit pricey at $40 but you actually get some decent gear to play with. You get a new (at least for now) Tippmann 98 Custom, V-Force Vantage Goggles, 20oz CO2 with free refills (a $5 value), and an "Extreme Rage" 2-pod pack to carry ammo (something other fields do not always give out). You can find pictures of the gear on their website.
Facilities
There's two outhouses on the parking lot. It was a busy day full of airsofters and paintballers which gave the bathrooms a little bit of a line especially during lunch. You always have plan B... (find a tree off the beaten path).
Right now since their just setting up its pretty minimal. They have a van which carries all of their equipment (paint, CO2, tools, and rental equipments). There is a tent with a chronograph and a few targets to shoot at, some tables and benches, a parking lot and that's about it. If you are unequipped I recommend you go up with someone who has some spare tools for you to use in the event something rips or breaks.
At the moment there is no food. The owner hopes to either get a working barbecue for hot dogs or rent a roach coach. For now you should bring up your own food.
Overall its pretty minimal right now. If your a self-equipped player you should bring everything your need for the entire day.
Fields
This is without a doubt the best part about Sequoia Paintball. The area is a nice deep redwood forest. To me this is perfect. On a hot summer day it stays pretty cool under the shade of the trees. It can get a little cold in the winter but it never really drops below freezing. Even if its raining the thick trees turn it into a fairly light sprinkle. The best conditions are in the fall when you can get some thick fog to play in. To sum it up, you can pretty much count on playable conditions.
Theres 92 acres (yes 92 acres) of fields to play. I played there countless times back when it was still Woodstalk and I still don't think I played on every single field. The fields range from your standard woodsball fields full of natural bunkers made of fallen trees and boards to an overgrown field full of green bushes that resembles Vietnam a little, to deep ravines with steep slopes to more urban setting with built obstacles including a model of the Eiffel tower . There is also their version of a speedball course made of drain pipes. If you have a specific type of game in mind, they definitely have the field for it. The fields are also sized very well. Their big enough to be able to maneuver around but still small enough so your not looking forever for something to shoot at.
Staff
The owner is a nice older man who is interested in making Sequoia Paintball something accommodating for everyone. He hasn't had a huge amount of experience in the sport itself but so far hes done a good job of making everyone feel welcome. He's open to everyone's suggestions and looks like he has a nice vision of what he wants the place to become. In the future he plans to give out some repeat customer cards. For every 5 or so times you show up and play you get a free admission, a very nice idea.
The referee we had was borrowed form the airsoft staff. He was well equipped with a loud speaker and did a good job keeping the game clean. He also did a good job of making sure everyone got a lot of quality games in throughout the day. There weren't any huge breaks where you wait forever for someone to be ready or any long pauses in between games. The only downside is that the referees know a lot about airsoft and not a lot about paintball.
Conclusion
The area is really something unique in modern day Paintball. It's reminiscent of the old days of paintball before the sport grew into what it is today. For now I recommend you go up with a group of friends just in case there aren't very many others up there. Hopefully word will catch on that this field is now open and the crowds will grow. It is definitely worth the drive.
Sequoia Paintball is something I had been waiting to come ever since Woodstalk closed down. Despite the fact they're still setting up and getting a few kinks worked out I have no doubt this is the place to be if you like playing woodsball. Woodstalk had a reputation of being about the sport. No raffles, no fancy foods or pointless breaks. I am confident Sequoia Paintball, with the support of people like you, can be an enjoyable experience for both pros and newcomers alike. It was and remains my favorite location to play Paintball.
Extra
I thought this was really cool. I recently found an old article advertising a "Woodstalk Plastic Face Shield". Judging by the area code of the phone number provided it was designed with the Woodstalk field in mind. It just serves as a great reference for the history of this field and where its roots began. The article dates 11/1988 from Action Pursuit Games. The advertisement is on the right side column, heres the link:
http://img435.imageshack.us/my.php?image=1188131zz.jpg
| Last edited on Saturday, February 2nd, 2008 at 8:34 pm PST |
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