[John]

Eric Crandall recently purchased Bob Long Technologies (also called BLAST Paintball) from Bob Long.

The Intimidator is THE marker that won the electronic paintball gun ams race in the early aughts. It was simply one of the fastest, dependable and easy to maintain paintball guns on the planet and it revolutionized how tournament paintball was played. Eric is looking to revitalize the brand. We have the exclusive interview with Bob and Eric.

Bob Long said, "I think this is the best thing for me and the company. I've got a lot going on, and this allows me to focus on what I enjoy the most like designing guns and going to events while someone else is responsible for running the business. I'm excited for this new chapter, and look forward to seeing people at some of the big events next year."


Interview with Eric Crandall of BLAST:

Thanks for taking the time to talk! To the people who don't know you, how long have you been in paintball and what else do you do in paintball?

A: I’ve been in paintball since 1996 when I owned a paintball field in the San Francisco Bay Area. I even played tournament paintball once upon a time including on the Ironkids, and have been involved in the industry one way or another since then.


Anything you want to say directly to the fans of BLAST to let them know Bob’s legacy is in good hands?

A: I’ve known Bob for a little over 20 years now. Bob is still involved in the company, and will continue to be involved in product development and design as well as attending events. I believe he’ll actually be more involved moving forward than he has in a number of years.


Are you changing the name of BLAST?

A: For now it’s business as usual. Field One Paintball is the name of the newly formed company, so we’ll see what names we go with moving forward.


So did you purchase the assets, the whole company, inventory, what?

A: It’s a complicated situation. Bob is still involved in the company, and I am now running it. It’s a brand new company that owns everything, so I guess technically it was an asset purchase.


What attracted you to buying BLAST?

A: I’ve known Bob for a long time, and think he has great products. Getting involved with him was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up.


Is this a conflict of interest with Dynasty’s current gun sponsor: Planet Eclipse?

I have worked in an advisory role with Dynasty, which I am removing myself from to avoid a conflict of interest. Dynasty are a true professional Paintball team and will be conducting themselves as professionals. Dynasty is under contract with Planet Eclipse through the end of the 2016 season. Traditionally after World Cup they look at the next years sponsorships. We have already been in discussion with Planet Eclipse about my involvement with BLAST and what this means to Dynasty going forward. Actually, maybe Planet Eclipse can give you a better answer to this question? Can you ask Ledz or Jacko from Planet direct?

Originally Posted by Ledz of Planet Eclipse

Eric has been very upfront with Planet Eclipse and we have been talking for a while so we’re very much abreast of the situation. But, for now Dynasty are currently contracted to Planet Eclipse and we, as well as Dynasty, are both working hard towards the NXL World Cup to hopefully bring home back-to-back World Cup victories. After World Cup, Dynasty and Planet Eclipse will sit down to talk more about the future. Until then our focus for Dynasty, as it is for all of our teams, is to ‘Win World Cup’…

Ledz

What's the plan for new products Eric? Anything in the works you can share?

A: We hope to have some new stuff an Extravaganza in February, but I’ll wait to make any kind of announcement until we have a firm eta.


BLAST hasn’t sponsored teams in a while either, do you plan to sponsor any for 2017?

A: We’re planning on being more active which means looking at attending events again and sponsoring teams.


Thanks for taking the time to talk Eric. I want to wish you Dynasty good luck for the rest of the season, even if you are going to be less involved the rest of the year. Good luck with the new business venture, we will all be watching! Keep us posted on how it is going.

Does anyone have anything they want to ask Eric?

What does this mean for Dynasty?

What products do you think they should be concentrating on?

[Simon]

Good luck to everyone involved.

[Ryan.O]

Wow. Will be interesting to see the new direction. Good luck all!

[ScottQ]

Congrats to both Eric and Bob, sounds like a great situation. I can't wait to see some of their new products.

[bobmcshooterton]

This sounds great if they continue with good products and it allows them to up their presence/customer service/ products support. yippy

[Old-Soul]

Looking forward to seeing some BLAST teams again, it's been a while.

[ironyusa]

I'm interested to see how this plays out in the long-term.

[Turpid Porpoise]

I want to see a new spool valve platform. I loved my vcom but hat has been released for some time now.

[tall white guy]

Dynasty Dragon Intimidator? It has a nice ring to it.

[Intern1]

I'm really glad to hear that Bob is still going to be involved. I have been a fan of BLAST fro a long time. It's good to hear that they are planning on getting more involved with paintball, and still working on new products!

[LEX_BALLER 3]

Dynasty shooting Bob guns would be cool to see. I was starting to get really worried about BLAST. Glad they are taking some action to keep things a float

[Intern1]

.

[CA_Tectonics]

Nice . This definitely fills in some of the gaps and gives a more clearer picture of the company(ies) moving forward.

Best of luck to Bob and Eric.

[TheBroz]

The new owners really need to concentrate on the basic stuff that BLAST seems to have really sucked at. Sort out the website so customers can easily see what's available and actually buy stuff, improve the supply chain to retailers in the US and abroad. Also they need to do the fundamental things like building up a presence on forums and social media. There should be someone official knocking about who can answer questions and help foster the community. Get these things right and people will be more willing to buy into the brand.

[Super69ur]

Originally Posted by Turpid Porpoise

I want to see a new spool valve platform. I loved my vcom but hat has been released for some time now.

Uhhhh, the Onslaught?

And the G6R has been around for longer than the VCOM. I think a Gen7 Timmy is more likely and more deserving.

[YeloSno]

Wow first apple is buying mclaren and now this

What ****ing time did i wake up in today???

[CPT@sales]

I am excite

[Rancid1845]

Not a big surprise, Bob has been involved in other things for a while now. Plus the quality of product and warranty services have dropped drastically in the past year.

[jtguy2269]

Eric is a great guy to work with. Can't wait for February, its been a really long time since I've bought a marker brand new. c'mon new timmy!

[TheBroz]

BLAST would be crazy to put much time/effort into a new Timmy, stacked poppet markers are such a tiny part of the market. Beside a handful of diehards, it's all about single tube enclosed designs because they are just more desirable to the majority of players.

[jtguy2269]

Originally Posted by TheBroz

BLAST would be crazy to put much time/effort into a new Timmy, stacked poppet markers are such a tiny part of the market. Beside a handful of diehards, it's all about single tube enclosed designs because they are just more desirable to the majority of players.

i feel like you are under estimating the timmy following. g6rs are still a very desirable marker and the PL's still sell for a pretty penny.