SPLATXD #20

ISSUE 20FEBRUARY '10

Girls, Guns, Gear & Glory

Player of the Year - Team of the Year - Event of the Year and MORE!!

EXCLUSIVE!!!

SPLAT AwardsBEST OF 2009

TGB-SplatAd_Print.indd 1 4/24/09 8:02:42 AM

www.splatmagazine.com \ June 2003 17

TGB-SplatAd_Print.indd 1 4/24/09 8:02:42 AM

We reserve the right to reject any advertising at our discretion without explanation. All manuscripts, art, or other submissions must be accompanied by a self-addressed, stamped envelope.Send submissions to SPLAT, 310 South Jefferson St., Suite 4-E,

Placentia, CA 92870. We are not responsible for unsolicited material. Writers and photographers should send for our Guidelines outlining specifications for submissions. SPLAT is an open forum. We also reserve the right to edit any letter or manuscript as we see fit, and photos submitted have an implied waiver of copyright.Use the information published in SPLAT at your own risk.

SPLAT Internet AddressesWeb site: www.splatmagazine.comE-mail: [email protected]

I apologize up front for the use of the above photo, I have no frackin' clue of who that dude is, but when our buddy and famed paintball photographer Gary Baum sent it to me, I knew I had to work it in this issue somewhere. It looks like an outtake from a paintball-based remake of "Predator" or something. Ok, seriously now, who the heck is this guy?

Maybe he's just some juiced-up paintballer, but he might as well be the mascot for our third annual SPLAT Awards issue, where we hand out acknowledgements in a number of different categories from top player, team, event, etc. We've expanded the number of categories this year from last year, allowing us to recognize an even greater amount of talent that was on display throughout the 2009 season.

Who is the player of the year? Guess what, his first name isn't Oliver, meaning for the first time ever since forming the awards issue, we've named someone other than O-Lang as our choice for greatest on the planet. Oh, and Dynasty isn't top team ei-ther. Blame it on the big guy up top.

Dig deeper into this issue and you'll find an interview with Junior Brown from XSV, complete coverage from the first UWL event of the season, and an in-depth interview with our mystery player of the year. Now we'll give you until the count of three before we let our mascot loose.

- Chris IQ

Best of the Best and the best of the rest.

Editors Deadbox

Chris "IQ" Iaquinta Editor In Chief

Don Saavedra West Coast Editor

Alex Cadalso Managing Editor

Fernando Blando Hispanic Relations

Pro Paintball Columnists

Expert Columnists/Deities

You would think that the editor of a paintball maga-zine would actually try to find the time to get his butt out on to the field from time to time. Unfortunate-ly, his air hockey addiction cannot be cracked.

When he's not creating Blu-ray menu's for Holly-wood's biggest movies (no, seriously), Don the Magic Wand can be found tearing it up at So. California's top fields, where he punishes newbies without mercy.

Proud wearer of the world's worst moustache, our managing editor is cur-rently hard at work putting his college degree to good use, as a rag to wipe the paint off his goggles in-be-tween games.

Que diablo! Hola Juan, donde esta el gato? Maria es en el bano verde. No me gusta las papas fritas. Hace muy calor! Aye, que lastima! Mucho gusto! Estoy hablando espanol!

ToddMartinez

ToddMartinez

Nicky CubaNickyCuba

SonnyLopezSonnyLopez

ChrisRaehlChrisRaehl

AaronKarshAaron Karsh

AlbertoD'EgidioAlberto

D'Egidio

v

v

v

v

v

v

Cast of Characters

www.splatxd.com XDPub Pagewww.splatxd.com XD

........................................................................................................................WTF?

Runners-Up: Steve Dabilis, Oliver Lang, Tim Montressor

J-Rab Himself: While he may not receive the same amount of media at-tention as players like Oliver Lang, Alex Fraige or Rich Telford, Justin Rabackoff enjoyed a 2009 season that could rival that of literally any tour-nament player in the last decade. He helped lead DC Arsenal to three straight USPL pro victories, while at the same time picking up point after point in X-Ball with the Red Legion, a season ending with a World Cup win. The spawn of legendary pro player "Scuba" Steve Rabackoff, Jus-tin has been training and playing with the best of the best with multiple generations of ballers, all of which has accumulated into him becoming the most well-rounded young pro player on the field today.

Justin RabackoffJustin RabackoffPlayer of the YearPlayer of the YearPlayer of the Year

2009 was a rough year for paintball. The recession hit hard, resulting in the closure of numerous stores, fields and manufacturers, leaving many players and teams without a place to play or sponsor support. Despite all the setbacks however, many of paintball's superstars were still able to shine in a season filled with stiff competition and shortened schedules. Salaries and big endorsements are all but completely gone from the professional ranks, but that didn't stop some of our favorite ambassadors from making the most of one of the hardest years in paintball history. This year's choices for the SPLAT Awards are filled with familar faces as well as a few newcomers who aren't in the spotlight as often as they should be. We'll be looking towards these players for the leadership to get our sport through what is expected to be another rough year, so without further ado, we present to you the 2009 SPLAT Magazine Awards.........presented by GoDaddy (<---lie).

splat AwardsSPLAT AwardsBEST OF 2009

by IQ Photography by Mike Neveux, Mike Adelmann, Gary Baum, Brandon Showers, Josh Bauder

The Third Annual SPLAT Magazine Awards recognizesthe best of the best in the paintball world from

tournament, scenario, industry and more.

SPLAT

Sp

lat

Aw

ard

s 2

00

8

Sp

lat A

wa

rds

20

08

1. Justin Rabackoff2. Tim Montressor3. Steve Dabilis4. Oliver Lang5. Konstantin Fedorov6. Alex Fraige7. Brandon Short8. Kirill Prikhidni9. Chad Busiere10. Dave Bains11. Billy Bernacchia12. Bobby Aviles13. Josh Davey14. JC Wittington15. Travis Lemanski16. Mike Paxson17. Ryan Greenspan18. Frank Connell19. Matt Blonski20. Colt Roberts21. Justin Cornell22. Todd Martinez23. Greg Siewers24. Nicky Cuba 25. Thomas Taylor

Top 25 PlayersTop 25 PlayersTop 25 Players

#1 #4

#7 #11

#14 #17

#21 #25

Brandon Short Billy Bernacchia

Justin Rabackoff Oliver Lang

Ryan GreenspanJC Wittington

Thomas TaylorJustin Cornell

Best of the Best:There is definitely no short-age of amazing pro paint-ballers stretched across the globe. However, few players can say they make the same contributions to the game as our Top 25 Players of 2009. From living legends to Russian imports, these individuals are keeping the world of pro paint-ball in the spotlight.

Sp

lat

Aw

ard

s 2

00

8

Sp

lat A

wa

rds

20

08

San Antonio X-Factor

Boston Red Legion

Edmonton Impact

The A-Teams: Head online and check out the rankings for both the PSP and USPL for 2009 and you'll notice one thing in common; the same squads dominated event after event all year long. We even had to remove "Best New Pro Team" as a category this year since none of the newly-pro rosters managed to do anything against each league's powerhouses. Arsenal swept three of four USPL events, while the PSP X-Ball pro divi-sion saw the same four teams in the finals almost every tournament. Why can't the new teams compete? Be-cause all of the top pro squads have developed the Dynasty-mentality when it comes to keeping together a core roster year after year. As a result, 2010 may very well end up being one of the toughest pro seasons ever.

Top Ten TeamsTop Ten Teams1. Red Legion2. Oakland Blast3. DC Arsenal4. Philly Americans5. Dynasty6. Ironmen7. TB Damage8. Avalanche9. Impact10. X-Factor

Tampa Bay Damage

Sp

lat

Aw

ard

s 2

00

8

Sp

lat A

wa

rds

20

08

Runners-Up: Philly Americans, Dynasty, DC Arsenal

Behind the Iron Curtain: Don't let the "Boston" tag confuse you, the Red Legion is still as Russian as Soviet Union vodka. Heavily considered to be the greatest non-US team in the history of paintball, the Red Legion forced all major pro teams to rethink their training methods after the Russians came to the PSP and started laning entire world championship squads off the break. They redefined the level of seriousness required to compete at the top levels of the game, and to this day they still practice more than any other team on the planet.

Team of the YearTeam of the YearTeam of the Year Boston Red LegionBoston Red Legion

Sp

lat

Aw

ard

s 2

00

8

Sp

lat A

wa

rds

20

08

Behind the Iron Curtain: Don't let the "Boston" tag confuse you, the Red Legion is still as Russian as Soviet Union vodka. Heavily considered to be the greatest non-US team in the history of paintball, the Red Legion forced all major pro teams to rethink their training methods after the Russians came to the PSP and started laning entire world championship squads off the break. They redefined the level of seriousness required to compete at the top levels of the game, and to this day they still practice more than any other team on the planet.

Boston Red Legion

Sp

lat

Aw

ard

s 2

00

8

Sp

lat A

wa

rds

20

08

Runners-Up: Justin Cornell, Alex Friage, Thomas Taylor

I Am Iron Man: As the current all-star front player for the LA Ironmen, B-Short is only committed to playing the major PSP events. However, his reputation as one of the most overpowering individuals on the field keeps his dance card full all year long as he has become a favorite pick-up player for teams both in the U.S. as well as around the world. His clinics sell out the second they're announced, and foreign teams spend thousands of dollars to get him overseas to play in international tournaments. Simply put, he stands out on a team that also includes Nicky Cuba, Oliver Lang and Mike Paxson.

Front Player of the Year Brandon ShortBrandon ShortFront Player of the YearFront Player of the Year

Sp

lat

Aw

ard

s 2

00

8

Sp

lat A

wa

rds

20

08

Runners-Up: Josh Davey, Bobby Aviles, Oliver Lang

Mr. Smith: When we do these annual award issues, we compile a list of nominees for each category and then ask a number of industry profession-als and paintball pros for their votes. Most of the time, voting runs extremely tight, with just one player barely edging out the other. Not this time. Bryan Smith was the only player this year to be unanimously chosen as the winner for the category he was nominated for. The Florida native cut his teeth in the pro ranks on the Miami Raiders before joining up with Tampa Bay Damage, where he has become the most feared mid/insert player in the game today. And at only 24 years old, we don't expect that to change anytime soon.

Bryan SmithBryan SmithMid-Player of the YearMid-Player of the YearMid-Player of the YearBrandon Short

Sp

lat

Aw

ard

s 2

00

8

Sp

lat A

wa

rds

20

08

Runners-Up: Mike Paxson, JC Wittington, Frank Connell

Mark of the Beast: Back players in paintball don't get the kind of credit they used to. Back in the day, the guys carrying a case of paint onto the field were highly respected as the players that were able to lock down a game and let their mid/front teammates do their thing. Dave Bains is solely keep-ing this tradition alive. The only player this year to win both the PSP (Red Legion) and USPL (Oakland Blast) pro championships, Bains has cemented himself as not only the greatest back player of the last decade, but one of the strongest individual players overall.

Back Player of the Year Dave BainsDave BainsBack Player of the YearBack Player of the Year

Sp

lat

Aw

ard

s 2

00

8

Sp

lat A

wa

rds

20

08

Dave Bains

Runners-Up: Glenn Forster, Ron Kilbourne, Mike Hinman

Put Me In, Coach: Paintball has been around for roughly 30 years. Rodney Squires has been playing for 25 of those years. You would be hard pressed to use more than one hand to count up the number of still-playing paint-ballers that have racked up more experience points than Squires, who has been maintaining a stable of up and coming pro all-stars that weren't even born the first time he picked up a paintball gun. His main team, Dynasty Entourage, won all four USPL semi-pro events in 2009. He'll now be taking the squad into the pro division for 2010, where many expect them to be a top five contender right out of the gate for both the NPPL and PSP.

Rodney SquiresRodney SquiresCoach of the YearCoach of the YearCoach of the Year

Sp

lat

Aw

ard

s 2

00

8

Sp

lat A

wa

rds

20

08

Runners-Up: Shay Lyn, Katarina Van Derham

The Import Model Takes Over Paintball: We were first introduced to Lyla a couple years back when she was one of the most popular models in the world of Import cars. Since then, requests from readers to have her appear in more issues of SPLAT have been at least double that of the next girl. When we told our advertisers that Lyla would be appearing in the 2009 edition of the "Girls of Paintball" issue, they sent twice as much gear as the previous shoot and pleaded with us to send them photos of Miss Dee wearing their products. And yes guys, she actually does play paintball.

Lyla DeeLyla DeeSPLAT Girl of the YearSPLAT Girl of the YearSPLAT Girl of the Year

Sp

lat

Aw

ard

s 2

00

8

Sp

lat A

wa

rds

20

08

The Import Model Takes Over Paintball: We were first introduced to Lyla a couple years back when she was one of the most popular models in the world of Import cars. Since then, requests from readers to have her appear in more issues of SPLAT have been at least double that of the next girl. When we told our advertisers that Lyla would be appearing in the 2009 edition of the "Girls of Paintball" issue, they sent twice as much gear as the previous shoot and pleaded with us to send them photos of Miss Dee wearing their products. And yes guys, she actually does play paintball.

Lyla Dee

Sp

lat

Aw

ard

s 2

00

8

Sp

lat A

wa

rds

20

08

Runner-Up: Mikko Huttunen, Justin Cornell, Kirill Prikhidni

Remember, No Russian: When Konstantin first appeared on the profes-sional tournament scene years ago, almost every major pro player at the time agreed that he was likely the best in the world. Since then, Federov has been referred to as the "Russian Oliver Lang" countless times, where over the course of his 11-year career he has helped the Boston Red Legion and now the Philly Americans dominate the highest levels of X-Ball competition.

Import of the YearImport of the YearImport of the Year Konstantin FederovKonstantin Federov

Sp

lat

Aw

ard

s 2

00

8

Sp

lat A

wa

rds

20

08

Konstantin Federov

Runners-Up: PBNation, View from the Deadbox, Ballers Cafe

Free Mason Society: In a time where many parts of the paintball media have all but died off completely, ProPaintball.com took the opportunity to provide the sport with the daily updates and investigative reporting it needs. Few other sites have the guts to talk about the controversial issues the way that Pro Paintball owners Justin and Brandon Mason do, which is why hard-core tournament fans have listed this site permanently in their "Favorites".

Pro PaintballPro Paintball.comPaintball Website of the YearPaintball Website of the YearPaintball Website of the Year

Sp

lat

Aw

ard

s 2

00

8

Sp

lat A

wa

rds

20

08

Ryan Collette

Runner-Up: Tyler Shelton

World Famous: Ryan Collette is probably the greatest paintball player you've never heard of. His abilities helped make Entourage (USPL) and Af-termath II (PSP) two of the most unstoppable semi-pro teams of 2009. The other semi-pro teams were thrilled to hear that he'll be stepping up to the pro ranks for 2010, while existing pro teams have already earmarked him as potentially the biggest new threat coming into their division. He'll be playing with Entourage exclusively across both leagues, which is not just exciting news, it's WORLD FAMOUS news.

Semi-Pro Player of the YearSemi-Pro Player of the YearSemi-Pro Player of the YearRyan ColletteRyan Collette

PaintballPhotography.comThe Web’s #1 Paintball Photo Site

Thousands of Photos FREE HIGH-RES DOWNLOADS

THE FIRST AND STILL THE BEST!!

Sp

lat

Aw

ard

s 2

00

8

Sp

lat A

wa

rds

20

08

Runners-Up: Kat Gong, Chuck Hendsch

The Deer Hunter: If you don't know who this guy is, quit paintball. Bob Long has single-handedly done more for the game than almost any other in-dividual, ever. From captaining legendary teams, producing industry-chang-ing products, and being involved in every aspect of the sport since its incep-tion, Bob has seen and done it all. Now that he's retired from professional tournaments, he's once again making an on-field name for himself playing in a wide-range of different paintball events, from scenario games to woodball leagues like the UWL. You can argue that no one has played more week-ends of paintball then Bob, nor has the same love of the game. How do we know that? He once didn't want to have a major heart procedure done on himself because he was worried it would keep him off the field for too long.

Bob LongBob LongCrossover Player of the YearCrossover Player of the YearCrossover Player of the YearRyan ColletteRyan Collette

Sp

lat

Aw

ard

s 2

00

8

Sp

lat A

wa

rds

20

08

Runners-Up: USPL Commanders Cup, Paintball Extravaganza

We Are The World: Everywhere you look, you can see signs of the terrible Paintball economic downturn, except at World Cup. Despite field attendance being down to record-setting levels and paintball stores closing all over the country, World Cup still man-aged to be the light at the end of the tunnel for 2009. Lane Wright and his crew managed to draw over 300 teams to the PSP's flagship tournament, building good momentum leading into the upcoming season. No other tournament came even close to matching those numbers, with many believing that World Cup will continue to be the top finale event for years to come.

Event of the YearEvent of the YearEvent of the Year PSP World CupPSP World Cup

Sp

lat

Aw

ard

s 2

00

8

Sp

lat A

wa

rds

20

08

We Are The World: Everywhere you look, you can see signs of the terrible Paintball economic downturn, except at World Cup. Despite field attendance being down to record-setting levels and paintball stores closing all over the country, World Cup still man-aged to be the light at the end of the tunnel for 2009. Lane Wright and his crew managed to draw over 300 teams to the PSP's flagship tournament, building good momentum leading into the upcoming season. No other tournament came even close to matching those numbers, with many believing that World Cup will continue to be the top finale event for years to come.

PSP World Cup

Sp

lat

Aw

ard

s 2

00

8

Sp

lat A

wa

rds

20

08

You're On The Air: As the only repeat winner from our 2008 awards issue, Matty Marshall continues to prove why he is still the most important person-ality in all of paintball. The hands-down top choice for on-air tournament commentary, Matty has set the bar when it comes to paintball presentation, bringing a level of professionalism that no one else has been able to match. We're not sure if paintball will ever make it to the mainstream sports media, but if it does, this is the only guy that should be talking about it.

Best Paintball PersonalityBest Paintball PersonalityBest Paintball Personality Matt MarshallMatt Marshall

Sp

lat

Aw

ard

s 2

00

8

Sp

lat A

wa

rds

20

08

Derrick ObatakeDerrick ObatakeBest Pump PlayerBest Pump Player Best Pump Player

Pumped Up: Thanks to the recession, pump guns are making a big comeback in paintball, with pump tournaments popping up all over the country, including major na-tional leagues. Many current and former pro players are taking the pump resurgence as an opportunity to get back to their roots and enjoy a different side of paintball. However, when they want to win these pump events, there's one player at the top of their contact list, Derrick Obatake. At a spry 51-years old, Derrick is undoubtably the most feared pump player in the country, having won over a dozen major pump titles in the last year alone, often against teams stacked with pro players. He's proof positive that you can still get the job done with just one ball at a time.

Matt Marshall

Sp

lat

Aw

ard

s 2

00

8

Sp

lat A

wa

rds

20

08

Runners-Up: D-Day, ION, Decay of Nations

The Legend Continues: Many years ago, promoters used to throw events designed to let average paintball players meet and play with the biggest names in the game. As tournament paintball became more popular though, these types of get-togethers completely disappeared for a long period of time, until the invention of the Living Legends big game. Living Legends brings together many of the biggest names in the history of paintball togeth-er in one location for a weekend of fun with the regular walk-on players. It provides an unforgetable experience for the attendees, who not only get to meet their paintball heroes, but also gets a glimpse at what paintball events should really be about, community.

Scenario/Big Game of the YearScenario/Big Game of the YearScenario/Big Game of the Year Living LegendsLiving Legends

Sp

lat

Aw

ard

s 2

00

8

Sp

lat A

wa

rds

20

08

The Legend Continues: Many years ago, promoters used to throw events designed to let average paintball players meet and play with the biggest names in the game. As tournament paintball became more popular though, these types of get-togethers completely disappeared for a long period of time, until the invention of the Living Legends big game. Living Legends brings together many of the biggest names in the history of paintball togeth-er in one location for a weekend of fun with the regular walk-on players. It provides an unforgetable experience for the attendees, who not only get to meet their paintball heroes, but also gets a glimpse at what paintball events should really be about, community.

Living LegendsLiving Legends

Sp

lat

Aw

ard

s 2

00

8

Sp

lat A

wa

rds

20

08

Lifetime Achievement AwardLifetime Achievement AwardLifetime Achievement AwardChuck Hendsch Tom ColeChuck Hendsch and Tom Cole

The Gods of Tournament Paintball: The NPPL makes its official return as a series this year, where it will be spearheaded by not one but two NPPL presidents. Tom Cole, current bigwig over at Kingman and operator of the Ultimate Woodsball League, was the first-ever head of the NPPL when the organization made its debut almost two decades ago, with Chuck Hendsch assuming leadership responsibilities years later. Together, the two have held more top industry positions than any other paintball pairing, both having started out as professional players on legendary teams including Bad Company and All Americans. Together and individu-ally, Chuck and Tom have had a hand in nearly every major decision that has shaped the past, present and future of tournament paintball. Without their contributions, paintball would likely still be stuck permanently in the woods.

Sp

lat

Aw

ard

s 2

00

8

Sp

lat A

wa

rds

20

08

Chuck Hendsch Tom ColeChuck Hendsch and Tom Cole

The Gods of Tournament Paintball: The NPPL makes its official return as a series this year, where it will be spearheaded by not one but two NPPL presidents. Tom Cole, current bigwig over at Kingman and operator of the Ultimate Woodsball League, was the first-ever head of the NPPL when the organization made its debut almost two decades ago, with Chuck Hendsch assuming leadership responsibilities years later. Together, the two have held more top industry positions than any other paintball pairing, both having started out as professional players on legendary teams including Bad Company and All Americans. Together and individu-ally, Chuck and Tom have had a hand in nearly every major decision that has shaped the past, present and future of tournament paintball. Without their contributions, paintball would likely still be stuck permanently in the woods.

2

With eight victories in 2009 and a legendaryformer pro player as his father, J-Rab

by Don Saavedra Photos by Joshua Bauder

February '10

heads into 2010 as the top player in the world.

Rabackoff

2

With eight victories in 2009 and a legendaryformer pro player as his father, J-Rab

by Don Saavedra Photos by Joshua Bauder - www.BauderExtreme.com

PLAYER OF THE YEAR

1. You had one hell of a 2009 Season. But, before we get to your total dominance, I want to know more about how you got started. First off, give me a run-down on who your Dad is.

Ahhh, my Dad! Well, he was one of the biggest names in paintball (Steve Rabackoff) and still is, and without him I really wouldn't be here talking with you right now! He has been there for me in my career from start to finish. He played for Avalanche when they were dominating ev-ery tournament series (before Dynasty had their reign), and then helped build me a team so I could start playing tournament paintball. He coached us for two seasons before I went pro.

2. When did you start playing paintball and how involved was your Dad? Did you start out immediately on the tournament fields, or did you play in the woods for fun?

Well I'm not sure exactly when I started, I've been around paintball for a long time because my Dad was always playing or working for a paintball company. When I was little I played a little of both, but honestly I wouldn't even call it starting out 'cause I was so off and on and didn't even really like to play. I would say that I started playing paintball in '04. That's when I started playing 3-man in my Dad's PTS tournament series. So to answer the question; I started out playing on tournament fields but I loved playing in the woods as well. I like to be sneaky! My Dad was super involved with me and paintball since the start, so I picked it up really quick because I had someone there always giving me criticism. Two other people that were big influences on my

www.splatxd.com XDwww.splatxd.com XD Interview

February '10

www.splatxd.com XD Interview

heads into 2010 as the top player in the world.

JustinRabackoff

JUNE 2008 www.splatmagazine.com

SPLATXD Interview

paintball career are Rusty Glaze and Jon Richardson.

3. Did you feel that you had a lot to live up to?

Yes, I felt like I had a lot to live up to. Not with the fans but with all the other pro players because I thought,

right off the bat, they were expecting so much from me because of who my Dad was. It took me a couple years to come out of my shell and tell myself that I CAN play with these guys and that I'm right on the same level as them. I think I played a little timid at times because I was still new to the pro level and it's a little scary at first. As soon as I pushed all that out of my head is when I started to become the player I am now, with some help from the Russians!

"It took me a couple years to come out of my shell and tell myself that I CAN play with these guys and that I'm right on the same level as them."

"It took me a couple years to come out of my shell and tell myself that I CAN play with these guys and that I'm right on the same level as them."- Justin Rabackoff- Justin Rabackoff

www.splatmagazine.com JUNE 2008

4. When you played for Infamous, you were playing along side several of your Dad's former teammates. Were they easier or extra hard on you because of the relationship?

They were extra hard on me for several reasons; I am Steve Rab's son and because they knew the po-tential that I had, so it was not easy playing for that team. But I can say that was the most fun I ever had playing paintball and I love all of those guys on that team.

5. Let's talk about the 2009 season. You won a World Championship and almost had a perfect season in 7-man. Tell us all of the tournaments you won.

The 2009 season was my coming out and I did win a lot of tournaments last year. I won the World Championship with Red Legion at PSP World Cup, the most amazing feeling I could have ever imag-ined. I used to dream about that day all the time. I won the Chicago Open with Red Legion as well. I played with Dynasty Arsenal in the Millennium Series and we won Germany and later on I won a 3-on-1 to take the Turkish Cup. I went over to Australia and won a Super 7 tournament. And yes, a perfect season was ripped from us because of a gun penalty in the USPL with Arsenal. It happens, and I have no regrets from my season with them. We won Huntington Beach, the Corona event, and DC Challenge all in a row, and everything that could have gone wrong in Vegas, did!

6. We are naming you The Player of the Year for 2009, an honor previously only held by Oliver Lang. You were easily the winningest player of the year. What does this mean for you and for your career?

Wow! This is quite an accomplishment for me personally because I've always looked up to Oliver because he is "The Name of Paintball" and has done so much for the sport! This is a huge step for me

February '10



to win this because I do work hard to be the best player I can be and I hope to only get better because I know I have not reached my limit. Thank you for the honor.

7. 2009 was also quite a break-out year for you, but you've been playing at the highest level for a while. What would you say made the difference for you this year?

I think it was just going out there and playing, not worrying about anything else, not a care in the world but to just play paintball. I think the experience I've got from this year finally meshed with the skill I have on the field and when I put the two together I got fantastic results. For the "hopefuls," I would like to say keep play-ing and that nothing comes to you overnight. You have to work hard to be the best, and don't ever quit.

8. How do you top yourself in 2010?

Repeat! Repeat! Repeat! There are a lot of things that I am not good at still and I will continue to work on them as long as I am playing paintball!

9. Last, but not least, tell us who your sponsors are and give one last message to your Dad.

KEE Action Sports, Virtue, MacDev, SLY, Vents, Empire, Paintball Photography.com, Bauder Designs, ProPaintball.com, Clone, Guerrilla Air, KM. Dad, you were one of the great ones to play paintball but you still will never beat me 1-on-1!

February '10


SPLATXD Interview

www.splatxd.com XDwww.splatxd.com Photo Feature

SPLATXD Photo Feature

Team CAPTAIN: JAMES DAVIS

Impact

February '10

eXPosedThe So. Cal Ghosts

By IQ - Photos by Michael Adelmann

www.splatxd.com XD

Jason Barneschristian barnes

Aaron McDaniel

John ballew sr.

Scenario

104 June 2003 \ www.splatmagazine.comwww.splatxd.com XDwww.splatxd.com Photo Feature

SPLATXD Photo Feature

known associates: OCMI

So. Cal Ghosts

cartel

psycho Clown Posse

dog soldiers

Bandless Brothers

Suppliers: ANS Gear

Save phace

giant paintball

hollywood sports park

Last Known Location: www.socalghosts.com

Top SecretActive Members: 15


February '10

www.splatxd.com XD

Deidra Davis

John Ballew Jr.

Top Secret

Justin Dockery

Andy Butler

Members Not Shown1. Steve Janetzke2. Scott Barber3. Rob Hulton4. Dale Christison5. Andrew Christison6. Rick Krug7. Chris Carello8. Adam Endicott9. Tom Dragonetti10. Kevin Bender11. Ricky Krug

Travel Route- Decay of Nations- Blood Diamond- Castle Conquest West- King of the Hill

SPLATXD InterviewSPLATXD Interview

2

Known as one of the most experienced players onthe field today, Stephen Brown has moved

by IQ Photos by Brandon Showers - www.brandonshowers.com

PRO PLAYER Q&A

1. Even though most of the paintball industry is in the tank, there still isn’t a massive shortage of online outlets covering the pball world. What was the motivation behind starting Ballers Café and competing with what is already out there?

Well I actually took over an existing site that was called SacPaintball. It was a really popular site in Nor-Cal and my goal was, and is, expanding it to become the premier West Coast Paintball community for world news, west coast used sales forums, store and field reviews, store and field forums, plus much more. A one stop hub for paintball.

2. Is there a creative team behind the site or are you running a one-man operation?

I guess you could call it a one man show, although I have some great Mods and someone that helps me with some of the tech type stuff. If the site keeps going well over this next year you will see a creative team form.

3. Putting up daily updates, which is something you’ve done a great job at keeping up with, can get really tedious. How are you coping with the demands of running the

www.splatxd.com XDwww.splatxd.com XD Interview

February '10


Stephen

Brownto the world of pball media with BallersCafe.com.

"Junior"


SPLATXD Interview

website, especially since it’s not your only job?

First of all thank you! I try hard to keep people talking about paintball. This is how I feel I can help our sport. But I must say that some days it really does catch up to me. I have found that the key for me is to prioritize

things I have to get done. That is one of the benefits of having a website, I can work on it at 2 in the morn-ing or 2 in the afternoon. Rarely is there something that must be done in particular instant so I can work around my other ‘jobs’.

4. Is the plan to keep it mainly a news-driven paintball source or do you have some secret plans to grow it into much more?

"My goal is to help promote paintball and West Coast stores and fields the best way I can, right now I have a lot of things in the works and onlytime will tell. "

"My goal is to help promote paintball and West Coast stores and fields the best way I can, right now I have a lot of things in the works and onlytime will tell. "- Junior Brown- Junior Brown

www.splatmagazine.com JUNE 2008

I plan on it being much more than just Paintball news. My goal is to help promote paintball and West Coast stores and fields the best way I can, right now I have a lot of things in the works and only time will tell.

5. Most of the other paintball news sites try to stand out among the crowd with controversial articles and/or topics, will Ballers Café be do-ing something similar?

I don’t plan to go out of my way to find ‘contro-versial’ topics or articles. But if I find something relevant that is true/accurate it will definitely go up. A benefit of being in my position is that I do often know of some great paintball news before others. I like to visit a lot of paintball news sites so I will report to the Ballers Café readers some cool things I find as I’m surfing the net. 90% of the time I try to credit the site and even link it back to them. We are all trying to do the same thing! Tell people what’s going on and keep people talking about paintball.

6. What’s the hardest thing about being a part of the paintball media?

Well having a lot of friends in the industry is hard, especially if you are posting something about them!

7. On the XSV side, is 2010 shaping up to be a good year for the team?

We surely hope so. We have made some big changes for 2010 and like all teams in this tough economy, we are happy to actually still BE a team! I have high hopes for XSV for 2010.

8. With a number of paintball teams either go-ing under or forced into mergers to stay alive, what steps is XSV taking to ensure the longev-ity of the squad?

We are working hard to keep promoting our spon-sors and paintball. We are working with the RPL to

February '10



help the league get new players into the game and this will help everyone in paintball. But you just never know what will go down at the end of 2010. Who could have called the All-Americans going under or Aftermath merging?!?! So I will say this, if you have a lot of money and would like to invest in Sacramento XSV please feel free to email me.

9. What’s your own take of the current state of the paintball industry?

Well it’s tough, really tough. Having a business that is a ‘recreational sport’ during a recession is very chal-lenging to say the least. But we have to keep pushing and promoting the game of paintball and I think we will be okay.

10. If you were paintball’s commissioner and all the leagues and companies had to listen to what you say, what changes would you make to the sport?

Haha, what a question! One thing I would like to see from the leagues would be for them to come together as one but keep two formats for the differ-ent player types. Run six big events and have two of them at the same time as two of the big games so we put even more paintballers in one place. Then the big thing I would like to see from the companies would be them working more margins into products for paintball stores. We are seeing a lot of stores go-ing out of business and this makes it hard for the new players to have a place to go and ask questions about our sport. But that’s just my first thoughts!

11. Various reports show that the number of paintball players in the U.S. has dropped by as much as four million participants in recent years. Will the sport ever be able to return to its peak strength and beyond?

Wow that is a large number that I haven’t seen before. I think as with most ‘recreational sports’ it’s very cyclical. People come and go, then come back again. I have recently seen so many people that have said, I used to play x number of years ago, and I’m getting back into it. Their tanks are expired, their guns are leaking and they don’t have much money. But they know how much fun paintball is, how much of a release it is, and they want to get back out there! So let’s all hope we see it come back.

February '10


SPLATXD Interview

SPLATXD Event Coverage

www.splatxd.com XD Event Coveragewww.splatxd.com

Ultimate Woodsball LeagueUltimate Woodsball LeagueThe famed woodsball series returns to SC Village for the first stop of its 2010 season.The famed woodsball series returns to SC Village for the first stop of its 2010 season.

February '10

UWLwww.splatxd.com XD

by IQ Photography by Chris Dilts & Gary Baum

Ultimate Woodsball LeagueUltimate Woodsball LeagueThe famed woodsball series returns to SC Village for the first stop of its 2010 season.The famed woodsball series returns to SC Village for the first stop of its 2010 season.

The Ultimate Woodsball League returned to SC Village for the first stop of the series’ 2010 season, once again utilizing the world’s most popular paintball park as a home for its unique woods-based format. Although this is only the second season of the UWL, the league has

become the most popular woodsball tourna-ment series in the country, netting interest from both walk-on, scenario and tournament players, including a number of high profile pros like Todd Martinez, Nicky Cuba, Bob Long and Matty Marshall.

The UWL is ran by former NPPL President Tom Cole, who started the series in an effort



February '10


to try and return paintball to its roots, and as he says it, “Make paintball fun again”. The for-mat is 10-man with points scored by capturing on-field ob-jectives and bases (think “Dom-ination” from Modern Warfare). Games are played with a 30min time limit divided into three

10min periods, with players attempting to capture flags and hold strategic points on the field to acquire points.

This year a third division, Tactical, was added on to the existing Open and Skills division. No pro or semi-pro players are allowed to enter in the Tactical division, an important addition to the series to avoid the beat downs

106 June 2003 \ www.splatmagazine.com




February '10



from the first season when relatively inexperienced squads were thrown in against the San Diego Daggers, a team com-prised almost completely of existing and former pro players, captained by Matty Marshall.

The Daggers, however, were

unable to make the trek out to the season opener this time around, giving teams in the Open division a better chance of victory, that is at least until Bob Long showed up. That’s right, the most famous player in the history of the game returned once again to play in the UWL, bringing along an impressive roster of players that included his son Zach Long and former Dynasty player Johnny Perchak, all




February '10


playing under the “Assassins” team name. Bob’s team was the early favorite going into the event, and they did not disap-point.

Games were played on one of the more heavily-wooded fields SC Village has to offer, a field

that in no way represented what tourna-ment players have become accustomed to in recent years with airball. The terrain posed little trouble for the Assassins though, as they easily won all three of their Saturday games with wins against the Heretics, Entourage and Henchmen. Bob and company continued their roll on through Sunday, though they ended up dropping a game to Desert Edge


in the process. The two teams would meet again in the finals, were the Assassins' veteran squad was able to keep up on the pressure for the 30min fina-le, taking home 1st place in the Open division.

Desert Edge was able to grab

another 2nd place finish in the Skills division as well, with team Gat winning that bracket. Luckily, Desert Edge was finally able to pick up 1st place honors in the Tactical division, where they ended up besting the Psycho Clown Posse.

Thousands of dollars in prizes were awarded to the winning teams, with each squad prom-




February '10


ising to come back for another stop along the tour. The next UWL will take place at the Oasis Paintball Park in Florida on February 20th – 21st. Learn more over at www.PlayUWL.com

CLICK THISBUTTON TO

VISIT THE UWL OFFICIAL WEBSITE

AND SIGN UP FOR THE NEXT

EVENT!


February '10


PRESENTED BY TODD MARTINEZPRESENTED BY TODD MARTINEZ

personal luxeCUSTOM JERSEYS


GOT SPLAT XDON THE MIND?

SIGN UP HEREGET EVERY ISSUE SENT DIRECTLY tO YOUR EMAIL!

SPLATXD #20

Sports

Transcript of SPLATXD #20