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pbReview.com / Paintball Fields / USA / Wisconsin / Splat Tag Paintball Field
Splat Tag 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: |
651-488-7700 |
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Location: |
Burkhardt, Wisconsin 54016
USA |
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Distance: |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Last There: |
August 25th, 2007 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
4 years |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
Northside, Just Paintball in Minnesota. Sherwood Forest, Indiana. CPX Illinois |
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| Review: |
This field is the best operated field I have played at. The owner is very concerned about the safety of the players and goes to great lengths to insure everyone has a good time. Splat Tag has many fields to play on and they can be combined to make a field that is huge. Their Giant Big Games can get 100s of players. The Refs do a good job and are also safety concerned. The only negative comment I can make is the road getting to the field is fairly rough.
I give this field a 10.
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fanky |
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Thursday, August 30th, 2007 |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Last There: |
August 25th, 2007 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
3 years |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
Only other field I have played at is First Strike in Chippewa for a night game. Splat Tag is a bigger field, and I like playing there better. |
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Directions
to the Field: |
If you're coming the Wisconsin way (I-94 West), get off at exit 4 (HWY 12 North). Take a right at the end of the ramp and follow 12 until it turns into HWY A. You'll go on that for a few miles then turn right onto Highway E then one more right turn at the driveway. |
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| Review: |
Overall, Splat Tag is a great place to play. I've been going to the Monthly Jungle Rumbles and attended both Giant Games this summer. The owner, Darrin, is a great guy that makes sure you have a good time. I'll break up my review into a few key points.
Travel: The field is really easy to get to once you get off I-94. There's a State Park not even 5 minutes away as well that usually has sites open if you need to stay overnight at a good price ($15 a night and $7 for parking unless you have a pass). The driveway can be pretty rough in a few spots, but just drive slow and you'll be fine.
Cost: The entry fee of $25 for the monthly Jungle Rumbles isn't bad considering what you get. A full day of play with at least a hundred people or more usually, Free air/CO2 fills, and a ticket in the raffle which usually has some goodies and a Tippmann X7. The field paint is only $50 or so a case, and BYOP is $10.
Field Layout: The whole field is about 20 acres, but not all of it is used at once. There are plenty of hills, bases, and towers to make games interesting and challenging. My only complaint is that the woods are really thick, but that adds a new dimension to the game and gets you in closer to the other team.
Refs: For the most part, I like the refs at Splat Tag. They're great guys/gals that will help you fix your gun and answer any question. They really enforce masks on and barrel plugs, which is a good thing.
I can't really think of much else to say. It's a great field, that's why I keep coming back. |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Last There: |
March 29th, 2007 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
3 years |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
Combat Paintball |
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| Review: |
Well, Let me just start off by saying that Splat Tag is good if you're a beginner. They treat you very well there and saftey is their #1 priority. This field to me isn't as appealing for the people who have been playing for a while. But if you're new, this is a great place to start out at.
Prices-Pretty expensive compared to combat paintball. 25 for big game plus 10 for B.Y.O.P. Free CO2/Compressed Air, which is nice.
Rules- Like any other place they have good rules and they keep safety in mind at the same time so that they have fair rules and it still is safe and fun to play.
Fields- Awesome. These fields are neatley set-up with plenty amount of cover, but sometimes it gets unorganized and the fields get all mixed up and 30 min out on the field is wasted just because the refs don't know where the insertion point (s) will be and where the limits to the field are.
Refs- Fine. One guy thinks the S*** though. You'll probably know who he is once you go there a couple of times.
People that go there in general-A lot are really nice and will help anyone who is new and needs help. You do get the occasional idiots, but that's not Splat Tags fault.
Food- It's food.
Overall-Good if you are new to the sport and just want to go to a place. But once you get more into it, combat is better. When you see Splat Tag guys and the owner going to combat, that kinda tells you something. But it is a nice field and recomended to the new player and if you just want to try it out for a party and have never played paintball before. |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Date There: |
April 29th, 2007 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
More than 5 years |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
I have played several fields around the metro area, but I usually play at a private site that we have built ourselves. |
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| Review: |
I have been playing paint ball for about 5 years, splat tag was one of the worst experiences I have had in my 5 + years playing and here are the reasons why.
1.) The fields - All of the fields that we played were either one sided or were just not laid out very proportionally. Advantage to one team works for some games, king of the hill, and fort. But when you are playing team elem or flag over and over you do not want one team to have the advantage. All of the courses we played were very hilly and it seemed like one team always had the advantage. Also the thicket was terrible, the underbrush was absolutely horrible. There was the main trails and then there was woods it seemed like very little in between. None of the underbrush had been cleared out so even in spring with very little foliage you couldn't get any long shots off. Another thing is the total lack of cover, splat tag has a very small amount of cover on field other than downed trees, logs etc.
2.) The Ref - Okay this was one of my BIGGEST pet peeves about splat tag. If you pay approximately 50 bucks you should get a good ref, one at minimum 2 should be standard for a 25+ group. Other fields I have played at I had 2 refs for about the same size group. We were given one ref, and the kid was 13 years old. Only one ref for 30 people is sparse but can be managed if the ref is decent. This ref was beyond green, I could have put my 8 year daughter out there and had more accomplished.
We have all had that jerk on the field that thinks hes special and doesn't call out when you shoot him, talks to players on field after being shot to give away your position, and stays on the field after calling out. Now imagine the worst player you have had to deal with, I played with that guy today. His kid came down after being shot and calling out gave up our locations to his dad, as my friend was shooting at him(the dad that wasn't out yet) the ref told my friend to stop shooting because he was out. My friend stopped shooting but jerk off didn't, then I shot this guy totally by surprise and hit him, and he turned to me and shot me after the fact and the ref called us both out. Also while we were playing we got booted off the field we were playing mid game because they needed it for a big game that they were doing, mind you this was mid game it wasn't at the end of the game.
3.) Management - Being a cog in the corporate machine I understand good management can be a very difficult thing to come by. But this was down right shameful, the complete lack of organization was apparent. Not only was our ref unqualified (13 year old kid that probably hasn't shot a paint ball gun let alone ref'd a day of paint ball in his life) but the ref didn't seem to know what was going on what so ever as he wasn't even granted a walky talky to communicate with "Base" or a Horn to start / stop games. You can' t really blame the kid for being unqualified and not having the right tools to do his job you really have to look at the management. They are truly the ones responsible for this abomination in paintball named splat tag.
So in summary, if you are thinking about going to Splat Tag I would highly advise against it. There are many other courses in the metro area that will give you a far greater bang for your buck. The only way I would ever go back to Splat Tag to play was if it was free.
If any of you would like to further converse about my experience at Splat Tag feel free to email me at acidflash07@hotmail.com. |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Last There: |
March 31st, 2007 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
3 years |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
This has been the only field i have ever played at more than once. |
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Directions
to the Field: |
well you can go to there site, and find them its very, very easy to find. |
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| Review: |
Splat tag is a very good place to play your first time or however long you have played. they tell you everything you need to know, and will answer any questions you have. there prices of entry,paint and rental are phenomenal. the owners are fun and are very uptight on safety and having a lot of fun. Splat tag has many fields, ranging from small to enormous pending on what is going on or the population of the group. the games them selves are switched up a lot so you have the max amount of fun, such as capture the flag (middle flag, or where its on both sides), or elimination,terminator, torso shots only things like that. |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Last There: |
September 15th, 2006 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
More than 5 years |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
Special Forces Paintball in Buffalo, MN. is really the only other large, commercial scenario/woodsball field within 30-45 minutes of the Minneapolis/St Paul metro area. While I enjoy SFP, a large portion of their field is turned into a swamp w/ even a little moisture/rainfall. Wet years also produce swarms of skeeters. |
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Directions
to the Field: |
5-10 mins NE of Burkhardt, WI. Easy directions can be obtained from the Splat Tag website. |
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| Review: |
Splat Tag-
Let me begin by stateing some facts right up front:
- No, I am not an employee of Splat Tag.
- Yes, I play for a team that has chosen Splat Tag as one of our team sponsors.
- No, I was not requested or instructed to write this review.
- I am reviewing this field using woodsball criteria as I am primarly a woodsball/scenario player.
- This review is for the Burkhardt field, not the Baldwin field where Splat Tag had a presence several years ago.
FIELD-
Splat Tag has 8 woodsball fields encompassing a total of around 200 wooded acres, as well as an area set up for speedball. Each field has its own distinct feel to it. There is a field w/ large pine trees, a valley field that has a long ravine running right down the length of it, a field with a crashed plane, and numerous forts constructed on several of the fields. The only downside to the set up is that Splat Tag RENTS the land. This prevents them from building any permenant structures or facilities.
Vegatation and Terrain-
I want to be really clear that these fields are in a wooded forest environment, not a bunch of schrubs, small saplings, or barrels, and wooden spools thrown out onto an open grassy field. Many of the trees are mature with wide trunks that make good hard cover. Depending on what time of year it is, and what part of the field you are on, underbrush can be anywhere from thick to relatively open under the forest canopy. Many of the fields are somewhat hilly with small hills, valleys and ravines. They are not so hilly as to be hard to climb w/ full gear though, just enough to make things interesting.
SAFTEY-
Safety is a priority at Splat Tag. They strictly enforce mask rules, First time violators will be reminded to keep their masks down on the field (by both refs and other players). Repeat violators will be asked by staff to leave plain and simple. I have seen it happen, and I am glad they have this policy. I don't want to be the guy that shots some person's eye out cause they were lifting their mask on the field. Also for Commercial fields to stay afloat financially they need to have affordable insurance premiums (no accidents), so its in everyones best interst to see that the safety rules are followed if they want to continue playing at commercial fields. While chronoing guns on any one of the several high quality radar chronometers is and should be the players responsibility, The refs randomly will chrono EVERYONE entering a game. Many of the refs also carry handheld chonos to randomly check players during the game.
RULES-
Splat Tag uses the typically standard rules for woodsball;
-Guns MUST be chronoed 300fps or under. Some games may impose lower limits.
-Masks MUST stay down while on the field, regardless if the game is in play or not.
-Velocity ramping is NOT allowed.
-Full-auto is ONLY allowed for select games, See Splat Tag website for details.
-ANY hit and break of a paintball on a players person, gun or equipment counts.
-Friendly fire is not friendly, it counts as an elimination.
-10 foot rule. While more of a strictly enforced guideline, players should be offering an opponent the chance to surrender at close range, or you can simply tap the person with the end of you gun barrel to gain a prestigious silent "barrel tag" elimination. This rule is really an anti-bunkering rule (to use speedball terminology). You can not run up on someone hiding behind a tree/bunker and lite them up at close range.
-NO physical altercations will be tolerated.
-You MUST yell out in a loud voice "HIT" and place you marker and hands up in the air and walk off the field when you are out. Failure to immediately do so may result in subsequent shots being fired at you. It is also your own responsibility to get out of the line of fire and off the field, On you way off the field, keep your hands up while yelling "Dead Man Walking" to reduce the risk of being accidently shot again.
-Of course there is the standard "No real firearms, knives, unapproved fireworks or unbreakable tripwires allowed" rule as well.
SERVICES-
Splat Tag is a Factory authorized repair center for Tippmann paintball markers.
They do not have a Proshop or store. But paintball supply dealers / vendors like Northern Command Paintball, CC Military supply, and St. Croix Paintball do set up canopies for the Giant Big Games and some of the month end Jungle Rumbles.
Food is usually available for most weekend games. Fare includes, hotdogs, hambugers, chips, soda, gatorade, and water. Please note the food vendors are independent, and not Splat Tag Employees.
HOURS OF OPERATION-
See Splat Tag's website for specifics...
They usually have open plays on weekends,
Parties, small groups by appointment.
Larger "Big Games", now called "Jungle Rumbles" on the last Sun of every month.
"Giant Big Games" twice a year. 500-800+ players for an 8 hour game.
I believe Splat Tag may be trying some short (2-4 hours) night games for the 2007 season as well.
PRICES-
Splat Tags prices seem very reasonable.
They have Tippmann 98 customs, and A-5 (I think) for rental, as well as mask rentals. Check the Splat Tag website for prices.
$15 per person for open play. This also covers HPA and CO2 fills.
$20 per person for month end "Jungle Rumbles". This also covers HPA and CO2 fills.
$45 per person for biannual Giant Big Games. This also covers HPA and CO2 fills.
If you play a lot, Splat Tag's Yearly membership for $195 can actually save you money. This gives you discounted paint, and free admission to all Open Play, and month ending Jungle Rumbles, plus it is free to use and bring your own paint.
Paint-
Paint prices are as follows:
$65 per case for Open play
$50 per case for month end "Jungle Rumbles".
$45 per case for biannual Giant Big Games.
Splat Tag is a field paint only (FPO) field, but for an extra $10 you can bring and use your own paint.
Splat Tag uses RPS PMI paint exclusivly. Their paint should be pretty fresh as they order it almost weekly from the factory. They typically stock Rampage which is a decent and affordable rec/field paint. Occasionally, they will also stock Premiums, an intermediate grade of paint, and Marballizers (which our team shoots) which is considered a tournament grade paint.
FACILITIES-
As I mentioned before, Splat Tag rents the land the fields are on. The land owner, whos driveway you pull into to get to the field will not allow Splat Tag to make any permenent changes to the property. This fact, and the fields rather isolated location, means that there is No running water. Electricity for the lights, and air compressor are provided by a large generator. Bathroom facilites typically consist of a commercial single PortaPoti (multiple units are brought in for Giant Big Games). HPA airfills are somewhat erratic probably due to their power situation. I have a 4500psi tank, but I am rarely able to get a fill over 4K. Sometimes fills are in the 2500 to 3K range, but they average in the mid to high 3K range. The dirt road leading to the fields from the property owners house/ driveway is 1/2 to 3/4 of a mile long and can become VERY potholed after rainy weather. I have never had any problems driving my car, but a lot of people drive pickups & SUVs. I can't be too critical of the road because I know that several times a year Splat Tag pays thousands on replowing and filling the road to keep it semi-decent.
REFFING-
I have read a very small minority of reviews for this field that have been somewhat critical of the Refs. I can not say that I agree with them at all. I have visited this field since it was first opened, and can honestly say I have never had an negative experience with ANY of their ref staff. I think part of the problems may come from the difference of expectations players have between speedball refs and woodsball refs. It seems in speedball you really are not out till a ref pulls your armband. Speedball refs are a lot more involved with watching for and checking players for hits. That fine and dandy for a 3 on 3 or 5 on 5 speedball game. But you can't expect there to be the same ratio of players to refs when you often have 50 to 100 players on [i]EACH[/i] side. In woodsball, it is the player's responsiblity to call himself out, if you can't see if a paintball broke on you, ask a ref or another player, but don't expect the Ref to check it for you. The Refs will call you out if they see a ball break on you, and question you about old hits from previous games. That and ensuring that the safety rules are being followed is their primary responsibilities and they do a pretty good job of it. But in Woodsball you have to have a little more integrity and self honesty and call yourself out even if no one else saw the paintball break.
Should a ref go on company authorized break, and choose to jump in a walk-on game, who cares? When they do so they are no longer reffing and they will and do call themselves out just like everyone else. You gotta realize that most refs are also players, so can you imagine reffing all the time, but never being able to play?
PLAYERS-
99% of the players that REGULARLY frequent this field are stand-up, honest, people, that have the personal integrity to call themselves out when they are out. I have noticed that for some of the larger games, particularly the Giant Big Games, that there occasionally seems to be some wiping and playing on happening. This unfortunatly seems to be on par for larger events as you just can not have enough refs to make sure it never happens. I have played all over the country and played in some of the largest events (Michigan Monster Game, and Oklahoma D-Day). So I can say with authority that Splat Tag does a pretty good job in reducing the chance of encountering a cheater.
IN CONCLUSION-
Positive;
This is a great field, and I have pretty high standards when it comes to woodsball/scenario fields cause I have played on some of the best in the country.
To sum it up, it has great foliage, vegetation, and terrain for good paintball. I have to give props to the owner Darrin as well. He lives, breathes, and dreams Paintball. It is not just a job to him, it is his life. Because of this he really brings a lot of excitement, energy and new ideas into his games.
Negative;
Property rental situation handicaps Splat Tag from making any kind of major permenent improvements to their fields and services.
HPA airfills need to be higher and more consistantly higher.
Neither of these issues are too serious, and I know Splat Tag is seeking solutions for both of them as I write this.
I give Splat Tag an Honest 9/10!
Hope to see some of you out there this summer!
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Last There: |
November 31st, 2006 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
More than 5 years |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
air asuult doesnt compare 2 differnt things
thunder ally indoor alt for winter only but closed now |
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Directions
to the Field: |
on the website... yes the long dirt road means your in the write place and no the owner of the house doesnt care he knows its cool... you will know what im talkin about when you get there |
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| Review: |
Free air good deal on paint 10$ to bring your own. that better then every where else i looked.
i started going with the thought that its more organized then playin in the woods. it was, but i had a bad experience. Came back the next weekend with the thought it cant be a worse experience then last time and it wasn't. been going back ever since as a matter of fact i haven't missed a weekend since i started there. i even ref one day a weekend to help out because i like the field and the people that play their that much. its like a very large gun toting dysfunctional family. good times good Friends what more do you want in an experience then that. just remember its all fun till some does something mean or dumb. come with the attitude that this will be fun and remarkably it might be. we even like the new players! mostly because every one was a noob at one time and got there but kicked until they kept at it and got good or even great.
side note: i only say all this because i read some stuff that not true. and like i said i had a bad experience too so what, all in all i have had a lot more good times than bad alot more so i got love for splat tag. |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Last There: |
October 15th, 2006 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
More than 5 years |
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| Review: |
I have been playing at this field for 3 years now and over those 3 years the field has gotten better. The staff is knowledgeable of safety, equipment, rules, and of the fields. There are at least 8 different fields used on a regular basis plus a couple that are not used all the time. So there is some field variety. You might have to ask to play on another field from time to time and from my experience once a field or the field you want opens up you will be allowed to use that field. There prices are very reasonable your field entry fee includes all day air either Co2 or HPA. Paint prices vary depending on the brand of paint you buy but the prices are still very reasonable. They allow you to bring your own paint for $10. I would recommend this field to others. |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Last There: |
October 15th, 2006 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
More than 5 years |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
Farmland, Special Forces, APP and FSL |
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Directions
to the Field: |
See Website |
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| Review: |
This is my favorite place to play in the area. There are multiple fields of all diffent sizes and topography. The staff is excellent, it is a very friendly place to play. There is a pump specific game every month, that should not be missed. The refs are very fair and do their job well, the prices are very good, and nothing bad can be said about this place. If you enjoy anything from very large scenario games down to small fast pump games this is the place to be. |
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Period of
Field Use: |
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| Last There: |
September 24th, 2006 |
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Paintball
Experience: |
More than 5 years |
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Other Fields
in the Area: |
Splat Ball Inc. - Very disappointing, due to there indoors field is a small, damp basement. The floors are very slippery, and could be very dangerous if you slipped and fell the wrong way. |
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Directions
to the Field: |
Coming from Stillwater, MN, take the bridge over the St. Croix river, taking the first right (Co. Rd. E). Eventually E, will turn into A. But within 100 feet, E turns off right, take that right until you see the Splat Tag sign to your right, and go keep following the road until you see the staging area/parking lot.
www.splattag.com |
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| Review: |
The team that I play for is sponsored by this field, so I play on there at the very least once a month "End of the Month Big Game". I also show up for their other games, like the pump only games, which is nice. There's few other fields in the area that put that much effort, to try and please every player as Splat Tag. They recently put up a "work in progress" speed-ball field, and are trying to get different events sponsored there as well.
The prices they have there, are very fair. Unlimited HPA, and Co2 fills. Two, sometimes three different brands of paint you can purchase. Along with other misc. items sometimes being sold (such as paint grenades for the scenario/woods players). Along with the splat tag goods, at there end of the month "Big Games", they also have other merchants out selling their goods. Anything from masks and markers, to HPA/Co2 bottles, to even their paint.
They're staff, and refs do keep the games as far as possible, splitting up the teams and such. The try to keep groups that came together, together on the same team as much as possible. Sometimes that may make one team slightlyoutweighed, but it doesn't stay that way every game. The teams are switched up occasionaly, if one team seems to be losing a lot more than the other, to make it more even. The staff also knows their fair share about the markers, and will help you out when they can.You can also rent a marker from them, if yours is acting up, or you just simply don't have a marker of your own.
On the weekends, they do have a food stand, where they sell a variety of foods, drinks, and sometimes candies.
Most of the players there, are very good. And can give you a challenge no matter what level of playing you're at. The terrain itself is a challenge at times.
Overall, I've always been impressed with this field. |
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