MY THOUGHTS
OK Said this last year, year before. Fell on deaf ears.
So everybody is ramping now and a few not, everybody loves it and everybody not.
Many years ago we had something called a Turbo Board basically a ramping board to the new kids on the block and we banned it because it created an unfair advantage to a player’s ability and was deemed to be dangerous etc.
By dangerous I mean that it allowed a maintained rate of fire to basically turn the marker into an Auto fire trigger related marker.
Anyway it ceased nobody wanted it, after seeing sense. Well history has repeated itself I think.
A marker that has a chipped board that fires on assisted trigger will only be as reliable as the marker, for example a hopper capable including the power of the batteries.
And the air flow into the markers internals which stop’s the marker popping from air starvation at high rates of fire.
Now skills have changed as said before because no longer do we have the boys and girls sorry capable of rattling the trigger or using whatever skill to pull it a high rate to gain an advantage over another team.
This took practise and now has been replaced by a chip to aid those who can’t do it maybe.
The game has become one of firepower and very fast high volume paintball and yes still involves some extreme moves but with one difference that has stayed the same, we still won’t get rid of cheats.
We moved the boundaries that is all, new software will always have a “HACK” and rules can be bent. And on to breakout modes and intermittent ramping.
I also see indecision from different paintball competitions from around the world all scrabbling to have their own rules and regulations and trying to be professional or are professional before any Pballer’s try to give me a put down. And they set there rules by what they want and not the paintballer’s themselves.
I suggested we run a proper refs tent at tourneys and not only have a marker inspection bay but also a tagging system and with bottle tagging.
Runs like this….. A simple traffic light system understood by all countries
RED - FAILED (To be inspected and team fined for attempting to use a dangerous marker, head marshal or ref will confirm these details)
AMBER –PASSED BUT CAPABLE OF ALTERATION OR MECHANICAL TRIGGER BOUNCE (The marker may have a fine button adjustment or mechanical adjustment making the marker change its modes)
GREEN – PASSED (The marker can be locked off and has passed the test but ref may still test this marker if they require on request)
You sign in and register, next door is the marker register and inspection tent.
On the first day one guy registers your marker and the markers ID, this will log your marker and help if lost or stolen.
A second guy will open with the permission of the player and examine it for ramping software, if it has the capabilities of ramp or sustained fire it will be tagged with an AMBER tag.
The third guy will test the marker if needed for trigger bounce and modes and capped rate of fire, maybe to save time he will do this randomly, and gain experience to see a potential cheating marker. And then Tag accordingly.
These Tags could be placed either into the holding screw of the grip on a band around the grip to prevent it being tampered with. Any adjustments would have to break the seal then it would have to go back to the ref’s tent to be scrutinised and re-tagged including battery change.
Now with all this out of the way the field should only have to look at tags before play and during to see quickly which ones are potential cheating markers, and can be tested at the start of the game for velocity only unless a Ref sees a tagged marker and wants to test it for another reason randomly.
His log sheet will record that on a certain team he tested the marker and then let it go if happy, one only guys and it dose not need a hopper full of paint to do this refs out there.
Now the game takes place, but in every few games at the start a random stop in the ten seconds takes place and a ref will pick up a marker looking at the tagging system and ask the player to fire off his marker, if the player refuses to let the ref do this of course we know why don’t we but players must take a pot behind the start line in the eventuality that may happen to re-pot.
If the marker is found to have a mode assisting that team like a full-auto breakout mode lets say, and they are out there believe me.
Then the player and marker will be dealt with under the rules for tournament, but remember the marker and player have already been logged.
If a player uses another marker in the case of his developing a fault then it is his and the teams to inform the ref on that field he has altered his marker and changed it tagged of course.
NO TAG NO PLAY.
The rest of the arguments about how to make a fair game are up to the majority, we play and play because we love it, but the arguments fall on deaf ears even if you are right because you have to have a majority with you. One stone can create a ripple MR SMITH. But a group of stones together can make a wave.