I really didn't want to think about this much less write anything, but Tim deserves more than we can ever give.
Paintball lost a great man this morning with the passing of Tim Montressor. Tim has been a fixture within paintball for close to 20 years now and his influence transcended many parts of the sport and game we share in common. Tim's passion for paintball and overwhelming positivity was infectious and inspired those around him to not only do what they love, but to truly do it better to the best of their ability.
I first noticed Tim on Tippmann Effect around 2002. Tim lived near Detroit and Tippmann Effect cultivated an unbelievable amount of local talent with numerous players continuing on to play professionally, but none distinguished themselves as much as Tim, on and off the paintball field. Tim quickly moved up the ranks and played with Detroit Thunder and then literally the best team in the world at the time: the Philadelphia Americans (even though Tim was from Michigan and the team was really based on the other side of the state near Pittsburgh).
Tim became the heart the Philly Americans, a loyal player who started with with the team at its pinnacle but stayed through some rebuilding years and back to glory until the team was dissolved when Smart Parts, their main sponsor, was forced out of business. He then played with one of their arch-rivals, Aftershock, taking a leadership position and helping them take their two best franchise finishes in Xball that season. Tim went on to play on Impact, Dynapact, Houston Heat and settling in to play with his former Philly American friend, Jason "Fat Kid" Edwards, on Tampa Bay Damage for the last several years. Tim guested for numerous teams, often out of the country, which gave him the amazing opportunity to travel all over the world almost every weekend for fun, competition and work. Tim's relentless travel would have worn out any normal person, but Tim seemed to thrive on it, often only stopping home long enough for laundry before heading back out. He loved it and it became an important part of his life.
Working at the All American Paintball Park, Smart Parts, GOG, DLX (all variations of the same company), Tim "grew up" hearing about paintball's "good old days" playing 10-man in the woods. He wanted to bring back some of that fun mixed with raucous camaraderie and allow older players to relive their glory days alongside players who only got to experience it through magazines or stories. Tim's ingenious spin was to allow electronic markers on the field set at 5.5 BPS alongside mechanical markers and call it "Classic Paintball." This key detail allowed more players to enjoy the format without purchasing new gear and was one of reasons Tim's new tournament, the Iron City Classic (ICC), went from being a one-off event to one of the most envied and copied paintball formats in the world spawning a whole new format of Classic Paintball. Only in its 4th year in 2020, the ICC has become the event of the year and a touchstone within paintball that brought together players from different generations and styles to one field, for one weekend a year to enjoy something amazing together.
However, Tim's enduring legacy should not just be the Iron City Classic, as great as that event is and as much as it was Tim's creation. Tim's contributions to the world go beyond being a standout employee or great paintball player who refined himself physically and mentally to continue playing at the highest level for decades.
Tim showed us that it is possible to follow our dreams without ever giving off the impression that he was superior. He worked at his dream job and traveled the world playing professional paintball and even though he was undoubtably one of the cool kids, he made time for everyone. The lesson I hope Tim's all too-short life taught us all is that we have within us the potential to do better. Be better. My genuine hope is that Tim's zeal, his genuine smile and his work across the globe as an ambassador has lent us all some of that infectious positivity.
Tim literally was the best of us.
There will be a push to rename the ICC in Tim's honor or retire Tim's iconic jersey #40 and there will be time for that discussion later. Right now, anyone who could make decisions like that has been hit way harder by Tim's early passing than the rest of us and they need the space and time to grieve for a genuinely great soul. My heart goes out to Adam, Russ, Chad, Sam, Ryan and Tim's other close friends and loving family. As hard as today has been for me, I am sure it's been infinitely worse for you. Tim's friends were legion and his fans literally spanned the globe. None of you could have a better role model. We should all make the world a better place and try to be more like Tim.