the reason paintball will NEVER be in the X-Games on ESPN (pic)

[Tyger]

This is a serious post, actually.

A year ago I found this on the newsstand while looking for "PGI", which I found next to "Easy Rider" and "Hoggs and Hunnies".

ESPN the Magazine
Fall, 2001 Issue 4.17
Page 152, under the title "Rejected X"

This was last year. They are not receptive to it, and I think we can all see why.

Opinons?

-Tyger

 

[TJ Lambini]

IF Blake said that then my opinion is that it was a dumb, patently untrue thing to say which, if he was reminded of it, I imagine he would be mighty embarassed of, seeing as it kinda undermines his whole business enterprise.

That aside, times change, sitautions change, regimes change...tha new ESPN chairman may be a golf nut or he may be a pball nut; a market that's worth 15 times what it was and has a totally different demographic to what it used to have may suddenly become appealing.

Tha number of times in all walks of life I've seen people say 'never' and backtrack on it in a heartbeat...

 

[Tony - Stupid Troopers]

leafy forests? did anyone see any leafy forests at Campaign Cup? Chicago NPPL? X Ball? i'm pretty sure i didn't!

this seems to be a simple case of whoever wrote the article never having actually been to an NPPL or Millenium event and not actually researching the sport of paintball at all. it's a shame that someone who works for a magazine like ESPN doesn't bother actually researching what he/she is writing about and just dimisses something out of hand because of it.

maybe this is something Chuck Hendsch could address?

 

[Tyger]

Originally posted by TJ Lambini
IF Blake said that then my opinion is that it was a dumb, patently untrue thing to say
...
That aside, times change, sitautions change, regimes change...
...
Tha number of times in all walks of life I've seen people say 'never' and backtrack on it in a heartbeat...

It doens't matter if he said it or not, he's quoted as it, therefore he did. It's media.

Times do change. It's a year old mag at this point. (I found it in the office, the place you called a "landslide zone"?) If the situation changed, that's great. All for it! Just one of those things that EVERYONE needs to see in paintball.

And if they retract it, COOL! All the better! But seeing as everyone is clammoring to put paintall on the idiot box, AND the X-games, it needs to be said the ugly things that come before.

On what Blake said, I remind myself of a simple fact. It was said that Sampson killed thousands of phillistines with the jaw bone of an ass. And to this day, that same weapon is employed to kill many, MANY things that could have been good.

-Tyger

 

[TJ Lambini]

They don't even need to retract...I can see tha article now: "Remember when we said Paintball sucked? Well we were right - it did, it does and it always will. But X-Ball, well, that's a whole different barrel o'beer..."

 

[Tyger]

Originally posted by TJ Lambini
They don't even need to retract...I can see tha article now: "Remember when we said Paintball sucked? Well we were right - it did, it does and it always will. But X-Ball, well, that's a whole different barrel o'beer..."

Think we can get an ESPN Mag writer to play it? Or go watch it? Or at least acknowledge it exists?

-Tyger

 

[Mr Big]

better still

We write an article, fully researched with facts, figures, big names, personal experiences, techie panels - you know, give it the works - and send it to the editor with a load of great pics. Send em a copy of the XBall video when it comes out, send em the Smoked dvd and Push. ****, send them a load of free Angels and tell them to go have fun if it helps get an article in the ESPN mag.

But I don't even think it would be that hard. I've already been approached in the UK to write some articles on paintball for a new exteme sports magazine to be launched by the BBC...and you know how much more popular pball is in the states than over here.

Still a shame they had to print that though, but it's not really a reason to give up

 

[manike]

better still

Originally posted by Mr Big
I've already been approached in the UK to write some articles on paintball for a new exteme sports magazine to be launched by the BBC...and you know how much more popular pball is in the states than over here.

Sounds great! If the BBC put it into their sports magazines...then surely that's another step on the way to getting Paintball recognised as a sport.

I think ESPN may still have a sour taste from previous ventures, but it sounds like that may all be changing...

manike

 

[Tyger]

better still

Originally posted by Mr Big
Still a shame they had to print that though, but it's not really a reason to give up

I never said to give up. Just laying down the roadwork of what needs to be worked over, if you know what I mean. You need to know the past before you can launch into the future.

-Tyger
Paintball Historian

 

[Buddha 3]

It's just another case of 'perception is reality'. They perceive paintball as the game of archetypical rambo wannabees. DOes this guy know about the way tourneys are played today? Probably not. Most likely all he knows is what he saw when he went to play as a rental at some point in his life. To him that was paintball. Most likely he doesn't know about all the other 'colours' in the paintball spectrum. So educate the heathen. Mr Big seems to have the right idea.