1/5/2004 Old Man Winter has finally arrived and brought with him the close of another great season of paintball...or did he? Many fair-weather players do give up paintball, or at least outdoor paintball, for the cold months, but not you. Ok, not you anymore AFTER you read this article. I know you want to be playing instead of sitting in front of your computer. I’m going give you so much good advice, you may move to Alaska just to extend your winter play. I’ve got tons of tips for you. So, let’s jump in with the one mom always said. Wear Layers! When it’s cold you normally dress warm, but then someone starts shooting at you and you start to run. Suddenly, you’re warmer than you want to be and start to sweat. Oops, now you’re shot and out of the game and standing around waiting for everyone else. However, all that sweat is making you chilly. Clever players listen to mom and dress in layers. That way when they warm up, it’s easy to take off a sweater or jacket. Likewise, if they choose to sit out a game or get shot early, there’s an extra coat to fight those chills. The other kids who don’t listen to mom are shivering as we speak. In line with layering, gloves are highly encouraged. Even if you don’t normally play with gloves, I recommend you get about four or five pairs of those brown cloth gloves. They only cost about $1.00 a pair at hardware stores and with extra, you can swap out as one pair gets wet or sell them to the same kids without jackets. Whatever gloves you choose to use, make sure they allow you mobility to load your hopper and access your trigger, otherwise they’re useless. Finally, grab a thin hat to keep your ears warm and heat in. Most body heat is lost through your skull. So, conserve that heat when you’re chilly. Ok, you’re layered. What have we forgotten to wear? You guessed it—shoes. Footwear is always important in competitive sports, but winter play makes it more so. Like your body, you want warm feet. Start with good warm socks. From there, grab a pair of waterproof boots or hikers. Some people like Sorrels, but they run around $100 or more. Hit your local discount shoe store and grab some decent looking boots that will last though the winter. The object is to keep your feet dry. To accomplish this, even with waterproof boots, you may need extra socks. Bring an extra pair or two—just in case. Food and Water - Ok, we are decked out for some mean paintball. We just need one more thing...food and water (I know, that’s actually two more things). The extra weight of the clothes and energy your body expends requires food and drink to keep it going. Bring foods that are easy to eat. Some examples are granola bars, peanuts, and bananas. All three of these foods will give you quick energy for the game. More important than food though is liquid. Your body freaks out when it starts to dry up. Dehydration is very common in cold weather athletics since the cooler temperatures prevent people from feeling thirsty. Don’t be a victim. Drink often—even if you’re not thirsty. Bring Gatorade, herbal tea, water, or hot chocolate. Your body will thank you for it. Finally, we’re ready to play. Let’s get our equipment; starting with the most basic piece of equipment, the marker. The overall quality of today’s paintball gun means that most markers function fairly well in the cold. Keep in mind that once the out side temperature hits about 25 degrees or less that most semi-autos will only give you about 40-60 shots before they freeze up. You can fight this by having two or more back up tanks that will allow you to rapidly switch to a warm tank after a game. The only surefire way to avoid frozen marker syndrome is to switch to a nitrogen (aka High Pressure Air) system. Almost any gun can be converted; the only drawback is that not all fields have HPA supplies. As a side note to cold weather paintball and markers, make sure to always oil your marker with Paintball Gun Oil. This will keep all your moving parts in order and everything flowing they way it should. Use only a drop or two on components that move and make sure to wipe up the excess. Also, there is no more important a time to use quality paintballs, than after that first freeze. Cheaper paint performs poorly as the weather gets worse. So, spend the extra dollars and get balls out of your barrel in one piece instead of many. Finally keep all of your equipment as warm as possible. Plastic tends to get more brittle in the chilly weather and nothing will ruin your day faster than a busted hopper. Paint also performs better at warm temperatures. The inside of your car is a bad place to store this. Wrap it in a blanket during play or store it in the pro-shop if the field will allow that. Be nice to your supplies and they work well for you. There you go. Your winter weather guide to an awesome day of paintball. Now get out there and play. Just don’t forget to ask mom. Send me an email at marty_may@hotmail.com. I’ll write back. I promise. Thanks to those who have sent me cool emails from their neck of the woods. Keep ‘em coming! Would you like to write an article for SplatDogs? Send us an email with a sample article. Email |
