Paintball Dads / Moms stories

OutdoorAdventures · 04-17-2014, 08:53 AM

I became a single Dad with full custody of my 2 year old daughter in 1999. Me and my daughter were super close until she turned about 13 and the teenager mode started.

It is hard to find things a teenager wants to do with their parents and even harder to find things a teenage daughter is into that Dad is also into.

This is the point of the story paintball comes into.

I was playing semi pro for a team here in Ohio and my daughter loved to come and watch and that progressed to wanting to play.

Now my daughter is 16 and has been playing Paintball for the last 3 years. I have put a ton of money into setup's for her friends and I have a group of about 15 kids playing and staying out of trouble.

The sport, no matter what some people say, builds team skills and can help families stay close. It also gives kids something to do rather than sit on the couch or get into trouble.

Jonathon777 · 05-10-2014, 08:04 PM

You are an amazing dad!

ion_phantom · 05-11-2014, 02:36 PM

This is great man.

ItsSamu · 08-07-2014, 03:46 AM

epsilonnaught · 07-13-2015, 08:13 PM

Amazing dads everywhere

Mr. D0 · 07-24-2015, 01:43 AM

Last year on my birthday, my sister-in-law bought me a paintball pass which included all day air, 1 case of paint, and rental equipment. I always wanted to try paintball, but I never knew anybody that played. So, I call several of my friends because it was for a party of 2. It turns out everyone was busy or had something to do. My girlfriend went with me because nobody wanted to go with me. She was scared out of her mind because the "regulars" at the park looked very intimidating with their gear. Skipping forward, I absolutely loved it and my girlfriend came back home with a bruise on her head (lol). Couple of months later, it turns out that my nephew's birthday was coming up. I convinced his mom that he'd love paintball. We went for his birthday and he absolutely loved it. He wants to make it as his sport and so do I. One memorable experience he had on his first time paint balling on his birthday, his gun jammed and had a leak in his marker. A experienced player found out it was his birthday, so the player let my nephew borrow his LUX for a round because he said, " it's your birthday so try to shoot as many friends and family as you can." I thank the player! My nephew and I bond together because of the extreme sport of paintball.

ionbrother · 08-01-2015, 04:32 PM

My (to be) niece has never had a father figure in her life, and he mother hasn't given her too much attention either so she has begun to act out a bit. She's 10 now she is just looking for someone who really seems to care for her. Well I'm using this as both a way to bond with her and keep it out of trouble along with if she likes it it gives her a reason to have to behave!

MaskedSebas · 10-13-2015, 04:26 PM

I love paintball

TNCerealKilla · 11-08-2015, 07:45 PM

Well I am a dad of two boys one is almost 12 and the other is going to be 10 in less than 20 days now. I have been waiting to get them involve in this sport so long since I used to play every Saturday for years strait, and the time is finally here. I have been slowly introducing them to the sport. First we went out and I let them shoot a half a case each just to get the feel for it. Then on the next target day I let them shoot a half a case each, and then I let them shoot me a few time each, which they thought was the greatest thing on earth, then I shot them 1 time each just to get the fear of that over with. this weekend we went out and shot 3 case of paint, just doing drills such as snap shooting, hiding, running with the marker, and preparing for game day which will be the day after christmas. since i got word from the north pole santa is outfitting them with mini's and everything else need to get started in the sport.

Mondoatx · 12-30-2016, 08:37 PM

I played in the 90s and worked at a field for 5 years as a teenager...

My parents weren't the most supportive (they never stopped me from playing though)... Dad always acted like I was wasting money (doing something that I loved and that genuinely made me happy)... and it really upset him when I got a job at the field... it seemed like he thought that if you had a job you had to HATE IT AND BE MISERABLE!... god forbid you did anything for money that was (GASP) fun!

I do regret never inviting him to play though... it never even occurred to me... maybe then he would have seen the light... he is 70 now and not in the best of health... so not really an option anymore.

I got back into the it this year and have a 6 and 7 year old (soon to be 7 and 8 year old) and I can't wait to introduce them to the sport. We already shoot in the back yard and they love that.

The field I go to has .50 cal... and the minimum age for that is 8... so we are close man... I can taste it! Maybe my wife would get into it too... it could be a whole-family thing...

Kudos to all of you parents who see and realize this is something your kids love and are passionate about, and kudos to you that you are willing to participate in it with them.

Mondoatx

cyberpyr8 · 01-03-2017, 10:59 AM

Years ago as a kid, my neighbors and I played war games in the woods with toy plastic guns and every time it ended up in a fight because it was a "I got you", "No you didn't" match. We decided to do water guns so we could tell when you were hit. That was fine until someone decided if they were already soaking wet you couldn't tell if you hit them. Again, it ended up in a constant fight. We finally settled on BB guns and played until you had enough hits. That worked well but pulling BB's out of your skin hurts! I wish we would have had paintball back then (early 80's).

So when I had my own kids and my oldest son Craig and I got invited to play paintball in 2004 we jumped at the chance. That first day we played we were hooked. I soon bought us new Ions and all of the gear. We would have 10-12 kids come with us to the field every week. It was good for me because I got to know the kids he was hanging out with and not have to feel like I was prying into his life. We were all just hanging out playing paintball every week.

When my second oldest son Toby turned 10 he already had a gun and gear. We started playing 3 man local tournaments. We were never great at it but it didn't matter, we had fun and enjoyed the times together.

My third oldest son David didn't really care to play and stayed away from it except for rare occasions. Because he didn't like to play (to be fair he was 11 when we decided to stop playing) and financially we couldn't keep going like we were, we eventually stopped completely for 2-3 years and sold most of our equipment.

In 2012 my wife and I adopted 3 children. We adopted 2 girls and a boy who were 12, 11 and 9. I started taking my now youngest son Charles out to play after he turned 10. He loved it. It was not only a great bonding experience for us, but I also realized that he would open up with me more and more. We now go 1-2 times a month and bought new guns and gear. Money well spent. I have even had my daughters come with us. It's not their thing but I thought it was great that they were willing to try it. We had a lot of laughs that day!

My son David is now in college and when he is home he goes with us too. He enjoys it now that he is older and it is a great way for him and Charles to bond. We all enjoy talking smack to each other about the day.

Charles liked playing football but because I couldn't be out there with him we didn't have the conversations we have now. We can play paintball together. I think parents miss that point a lot. It's great that you support your kids in what they want to do, but you will never be as close to them unless you participate with them. It doesn't matter if you help coach the team, if you are a team mom or dad and travel with the teams, be involved. I have always done that and I am very close to my kids. Not as a friend that doesn't parent and set boundaries, but as a dad that cares enough to invest my time and energy into what they do. Too many parents these days are worried about being friends to their kids instead of parents that participate. There's a difference. My kids know that I am dad that sets the rules and expectations for them, but that we can still go out for a day of paintball and have fun together.

I am currently in my second generation of playing paintball and though I am not as fast or agile as I was years ago (no diving into snakes for me anymore!), I still enjoy playing alongside my kids. The time and memories are priceless. My oldest son is married and lives about 4 hours away from us. But paintball gave Charles and I a reason to drive down to see Craig and play with him at a new field for all of us. We had a great day and now Craig is wanting to get back into the sport again.

I hope that parents read these great stories and understand the difference they can make in their child's lives. You don't have to understand it, you just need to encourage it.

cyberpyr8 · 08-07-2017, 02:55 PM

I had a group of players come out to our field Saturday and I got talking to the one kid. He told me that he and his father and brothers were out playing because his oldest brother was going away for 2 years. I later talked to the father and he said his son was going away on a mission trip for 2 years and this was their last time together for a while. They wanted to do something as a family together. I think they had a great day. I made sure they had cold waters to drink and really encouraged them throughout the day.

We also had a dad with his son that had a brand new gun. Our local field didn't have any 68 paint on hand (the heat is really bad here and they don't have much on hand at the moment) so we gave them a hopper full to try, got them a rental tank and a barrel plug so he could get a game in with it. He had a blast.

I think even more than playing the game I really enjoy getting to know the people that play and why they came out to the field. I would suggest that if you play regularly, go talk to the rental players and ask them where they're from and what brought them to the field. Offer them a drink if you have some and be willing to help them out.