Deep in the 麻豆社国产Valley, paintball history is being made.
The United Paintball League (UPL) has arrived in 麻豆社国产and made its debut on Saturday (May 23), with the District 99 paintball park hosting the league鈥檚 first local foray.
And while the 麻豆社国产Smash lost all three bouts, UPL visitors and local players feel the future is bright for paintball in Squamish.
The Smash, made up of all 麻豆社国产players, lost 10-4 to Victoria, 17-0 to Mission and 14-0 to Nanaimo in tournament games.
Games are five aside and played on a field with inflatable obstacles set up throughout. Once a shot hits players, they鈥檙e out, and the round is over when all five players have been blasted with a paintball gun.
District 99 co-owner Jason Charlton pointed out that the other teams have been playing for years, and the Smash will take some time to develop chemistry. The Smash will take on teams from Vernon, Chilliwack, Langley, along with the three teams they faced on Saturday, during eight tournaments from now until September.
Charlton said it was a nice debut for the team and his park.
鈥溌槎股绻鷋as never had an official paintball tournament or a five-star paintball park, so Saturday was a big step for us to move forward and for the paintball community,鈥� he said.
Charlton said feedback from the visiting players was positive and that he鈥檚 hoping to bring more events to District 99, including potentially the final tournament for the UPL.
He said competitive paintball is a sport all athletes can enjoy and that the sport is growing in North America.
鈥淚t鈥檚 run just like a regular sports game with penalties, time outs and referees,鈥� he said. 鈥淢any people who play soccer or hockey and want to try something different would have a lot of fun and develop new skills with paintball.鈥�
Charlton said many universities in the United States have paintball teams, and in Canada, the sport is picking up steam.
鈥淪chools are starting to get more interested, and that鈥檚 something we would like to look into in Squamish,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he sport has grown a lot in the past decade in B.C.鈥�
District 99, which is located off Mile 19 of the 麻豆社国产Valley Road, had a soft launch in September and officially opened in March. Charlton said the facility will generally be open from March to December, depending on weather conditions.
It鈥檚 going to be a busy summer for District 99, with tournaments for much of the summer, and Charlton said his park is also available for stags, birthday parties and staff parties. The facility has a competitive airball field, on which league games are played, and a warzone scenario set up for other groups.
