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pbReview.com / Paintball Fields / USA / Indiana / The Proving Grounds Paintball Field
The Proving Grounds 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: |
(317) 758-6622 |
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Address: |
4440 St. Rd. 47
Sheridan, Indiana 46069
USA
Map - Directions - Weather |
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Distance: |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Date There: |
January 26th, 2008 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
6 months |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
Paintball Indiana, Insanitarium
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Directions
to the Field: |
outside of Sheridan on 47 |
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| Review: |
I came out to Proving Grounds with a friends bachelor party on Saturday. This is the first time I've been to this field but I have been to some other fields in Indiana.
I would rank this field over the few I've been to because it was more new player friendly.
They had the guns, mask, and paint already layed out for us when we got there so the paying process went quickly. The people working/ hanging out there were friendly and helpful. The weather was pretty cold and we had a problem with one of the guns but they fixed it quickly and seemed to know what they were talking about. They had a sign up saying they charged for working on guns but worked on this guys own gun for a good 15 mins and didn't charge.
There were three fields set up, a castle field, a field with lots of bunkers(black pipes?) and a field with air bunkers. The fields were set up with lots of bunkers and were fun to play, although there was a wooden house blown apart but was marked with caution tape and boards over exposed nails. The staff stressed barrel covers at all times.
The prices were a little better than some of the other fields I've seen and they said they price-match-beat other places, even online, so that was interesting for a paintball field/shop to do. But the proshop had a good amount of different items, even had catalogs you could look through and order stuff through the proshop.
There were signs posted around saying 285 fps max which is a little lower than what I am used to, but I guess safer for people.
The ref looked quite young and was quite but did his job. He was even kind of interesting to talk to in between games.
They had a variety of drinks,coke and pepsi products, waters, gatorade. and a few food products available but none of us got anything but drinks.
They opened at 11 and closed at 4 but I think they're open longer during summer, and we could have scheduled during the week which would have been nice.
Overall I would rate this field a 10/10 The owner was very nice and knowledgable, the rest of the staff was very good on safety and helping out some of the guys who were first-timers at paintball, the store was nice and clean, and we had tons of fun games on the fields they had. Only bad thing I saw was the house that had it's walls fall down, but they taped it off and it didn't affect our game at all. I would definately recomend this field to parties or new people, and they said more experienced people come out on sundays so this field offers something for everyone. |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Date There: |
August 19th, 2007 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
1 year |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
Scyamor Sports, Fort Knox, Paintball Barn, Catfish Lake. |
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| Review: |
We went to The Proving grounds because we live and Frankfor and it is one of the realy close fields in the area.
The day we went their we had a lot of problems with markers and they didn't apear to have any one there that could realy help with that.
The proshop was nice. They had a lot of stuff that I hadn't seen any were ellse.
I liked the fact that they have changed to a Bring your own paint policy.
I didn't like the the fact that their weren't any reffs around the hole day. Because they didn't ever have any one there I will probobly not go back again.
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Last There: |
May 10th, 2008 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
1 year |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
Sycamore Sports-Kokomo--now defunct
Fort Knox-best in the area
Bunkers and Lunkers-Logansport |
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Directions
to the Field: |
Very accessible off of Highway 47 just west of Sheridan, IN |
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| Review: |
This was my second experience with this field. We got there later in the afternoon. Apparently most the busiest part of the day was over. Everyone was very relaxed. It was a fun atmosphere.
1. Check in was pretty unusual. The cash register ran out of money and so they gave us change back in the form of candy-taffies actually. Also the person checking us in got a little confused. I'm still not sure that I paid the right amount. I had to help him through a couple of other of the people that came with me as well.
One of our guys wanted a basic marker rental-they didn't even get him a mask. So they charged him more for renting one. I thought any basic rental package included a mask.
They did not make us watch the safety video. One of my crew was a newbie, so we just talked him through the basic safety rules.
Chrono was completely on the honor system. I saw at least one fellow walk onto the field without doing the chrono at all. Maybe he was a regular and just knew he would be under the limit.
2. Prices: Hey the posted prices are great. The field fee is reasonable, and they charge you an extra fee if you want to byop. Again I think this is reasonable, since I buy bulk case specials of paintballs off the internet. The marker rentals were ok, but charging extra for a mask? Again, I'm not quite sure that usual and customary.
3. The referees: Well this is pretty easy to rate. There wasn't one all day long. We played for about 2 1/2 hours and never saw anyone. We refeed our own games. We had a good time, and since I'm an eyedoctor we strictly observed the safety rules. We went over to watch some speedball teams practice on the the Xball field, I guess they had a referee. I didn't see one on the field. Maybe he was in the observation platform. When we first started playing there were some 20-30 somethings playing in a small group. They totally ignored all the safety rules: walking into "safe zones" without a barrel plug/cover, lifting their helmets while on the playing field ect.
4. The fields. They are great as before. The tile field is maybe my favorite field in the area. They have moved some things around since the last time I was there. They had really improved things. Really well conceived bunkers. Creative layout. The snake is awesome. It is easy to move in without getting pinged. The castle/fort is pretty challanging. There are nice wooden barriers. Some of these needed some repair. But they were safe and usable. I hate the wall that is out in front of the castle! It makes it hard to hit approaching players from the ground level of the castle. My son and I decided to play the wall outside the fort instead of staying inside on the ground level. Maybe it worked a little better. We lost the fort anyway. They say that there are 4 airball fields. I only saw 2. One was occupied by the two teams that were practicing. The other was deflated. We saw no signs of the proposed "urban scenario" field.
One other annoying thing. The safety netting that separates the field from the "safe zones" are not secured at the bottom. When the wind blows the netting flutters in the breeze sometimes almost as high as your head. I wonder how the netting is helping at this point?
5. The pro shop: I'm still not sure what to think about this either. My son's marker puked about half way through the day. They had an Epiphany on the board for $200. We had seen them on line for around 199.99 so we thought this was a good deal. We talked for a little bit and decided to take the plunge. When we went in to buy the thing, one of the many youth hanging around the proshop had the marker down and was working on it. One of the youth asked if we wanted to buy this other one that was on display. He said it hadn't been shot very often and it was ok. I assumed we were getting a demo model and I was ok with that for the price. However, we didn't get any of the tools, the manual, or the information on how to register the thing for the Smart Parts warranty. Now the Smart Parts website won't accept the serial number. Is something funny here?
6. The snack shop ran out of hot dogs while we were there. No big deal-we weren't hungry. It just seems to be another thing they were just not prepared for.
7. Overall: Man it is so hard to say. I like the friendly, relaxed atmosphere. However, the two times I have been there, I have never played a game with a ref. The check in both times has been confusing with people who either didn't know the policies or couldn't run the register. The fields are great. So it seems that The Proving Grounds could be one of the best places in IN if it just had a little better organization, and a little TLC.| Last edited on Monday, May 12th, 2008 at 9:54 am PST |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Date There: |
April 1st, 2007 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
2 years |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
Dark Armies - don't waste your time
Gator Pit - always a good time, muddy when it has recently rained |
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Directions
to the Field: |
Real easy to get to, right off 47 just west of 38. |
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| Review: |
Had a good time at Proving Grounds. The fields were excellent although they didn't have all of their nets up yet and we couldn't use them all yet. The day we played they had team practice for all of the tourny teams with a CTS tournament coming up. There really weren't that many open play players even though the weather was awesome. Our ref seemed very new and didn't know the answers to alot of the questions we had for him. My one big complaint was their lack of organization. They have a great location and great field, but for novice players at the field, they really don't offer much direction. They made us all watch a safety video, but they didn't even make us chrono in before we started playing. We didn't really have much trouble with the lack of organization, but I can see how it would be a turnoff to new players to the field, especially when contrasted with how well organized play has always been at the Gator Pit. We will go back and check it out again.
Strengths - location, excellent field setup and offerings
Weaknesses - Personnel not entirely helpful, lack of organization
I give this field a 7 because the fields are awesome and this place has alot of potential, however, I docked it because the owners/management needs to do a better job catering to the open play players and having resources available to the novice players. |
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Mal |
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Sunday, October 8th, 2006 |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Date There: |
October 8th, 2006 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
More than 5 years |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
Whiteriver Paintball (Better then Proving Grounds but more expensive)
Gator Pit (Same as Proving Grounds but cheaper)
Chase Paintball (Same as Proving Grounds but in Ft Wayne)
Dark Armies (The worse of the worst. Proving Grounds is better)
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| Review: |
Advantages:
Bring Your Own Paint
4 fields (Speedball, 2 x tube fields, and Castle)
Shelter to layout your gear
Stressed barrel bags and masks (...when they were around)
Disadvantages:
No safety instructions
No check for Chronoing
Rarely a Ref
Had to organize your own games
Prices Paid:
Entry...................$15
BYOP.................$10
Co2....................$2.50 for 9oz fill
Myself and 2 friends decided to check out PG on a Sat. Their website is out of date give them a call for actual hours and cost. Showed up alittle after 10 and had to wait about 15min to get checked in. Two large private parties were checking in before us. Finally, got to the front of the line and had to show mask, Co2 tank, and pay the $25. After that we were pretty much dropped. No safety instruction, no chronoing, no organization of games for open play people. We chrono'd our markers to under 280fps dunno what regulation for the field was, no one was around. We waited around for about 10-15mins then went back to the front desk to ask one of the worker how we get into a game. They said ask to join one of the private parties or wait for others to show. Uhh...ok. So we ask to join a group of co-workers, after some convincing they let us join. We split up and explain the rules to the 1st timers in the group and yell go. The games were alright and the fields were in good condition. Overall we enjoyed ourselves, but what would we do if the private party said no? Wait till someone else shows up? No thanks. Safety instruction and chronoing are important. Final rating is average. I have played better fields, but I have played worse too. |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Last There: |
May 22nd, 2005 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
3 years |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
dark armies a no no |
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| Review: |
this place has a speedball airball and castle. the fields r always maintained. great staff. paintballs r a bit high but its worth it. they hav food and drinks. GO NOW GO NOW GO NOWGO NOW GO NOW GO NOW
GO NOW GO NOW GO NOW
GO NOW GO NOW GO NOW
WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR GO NOW!!!! |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Last There: |
July 23rd, 2006 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
4 years |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
Blast Factory(sycamore sports)-Great, almost as good as proving grounds
Ben Davis- waaaaay below what PG offers.
Gator Pit- no where near PG
PB Heat- Far from PG, but still a great field.
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| Review: |
Proving Grounds was the first true field I have ever played at. The prices on paint are a bit shabby but its only about 15 i think to BYOP. There entire staff are great people. I have never met any more paintball friendly people then the staff at PG. The workers that are there and reff treat it as its a tournament, even to a bunch of noobs.
Bonus- They have fields for everyone! Even if you like woodsball, the castle is pretty much the same. The barrel fields are always an excitement to play.
Weakness- They dont always have speedball fields up on saturdays, but they still have fields for everyone!
IF YOUR VISITING INTO CENTRAL INDIANA, PLAY AT PROVING GROUNDS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Last There: |
June 25th, 2006 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
More than 5 years |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
Ben Davis and it doesnt compare because BD is a crapy field |
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| Review: |
Alright i moved here 3 months ago and the first field i went and played at was PG. PG is the best field in the indi area. If you had the choice betwen BD and PG i would pick PG ALL THE WAY. you can play 3 differnt kinda of paintball there. Hyperball, Airball, Castle
Pricing:
Entry...................$15
Paint...................$40-$60
Rentals.............$10
BYOP.................$10
Misc.Rent..........$5
all day air included with entry and Co2 is $2-$4 depending on what size you have
Come down and visite us at Proving Grounds! |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Last There: |
August 14th, 2005 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
2 years |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
Dark Armies- dont even go there!! |
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| Review: |
Proving grounds is great but the only thing wrong with it is that you cant use your own paint..... I could get a cheap box of blaze or anyother box off of ebay for 30 too 40 dollars. If we could do that this would be the ultamate field!!! The saftey is great they have refs for your use anytime you want it. The players there are sometimes good but ive noticed at tournys they have alot of swearing and the refs dont really care but in all the field is great and they have 3 different ones too!! I would go there today but right now im in school typing this review!! |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Last There: |
August 5th, 2005 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
3 years |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
Blast Factory(Sycamore Sports and Recreation), Xplex, Catfish Lake, all of the fields that hold CTS or ICC tournaments, i can't remember them all |
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| Review: |
This field is by far the best in indiana, the way they run things and the way they have stuff set up is unbeatable. they're open during the winter, they have the easiest and fastest nitro fills i've ever seen at a field andit's very cheap. they fill co2 and have everything to rent for the first timer. |
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