Because paintball itself may be misunderstood by someone who knows nothing about the sport or because the only press paintball receives in mass media seems to be bad press. Getting your parents to let you play paintball may not be that easy and getting them to actually buy you paintball gear may be even actually harder. You shouldn’t hold it against your parents if they’re apprehensive about your interest in paintball, as an outsider to paintball there is a lot they probably aren’t aware of. Informing your parents and answering all their potential questions should be the first part in your initial negotiations. Yes, I called it negotiations, since they can provide something you want you also will most likely have to give something back of equal value to them.
1. Your safety, the safety of those around you and the potential risk of injury to all persons involved will undoubtedly be the primary concern of every parent. Although all paintball gear seems to come with the same set of standard warnings there is no system of legal punishment for disobeying common sense, unlike seatbelt laws where you can be fined for not buckling up.
Parents should know : If you are playing on a legitimate field where you are required to pay field fees, you will be policed and require to follow quite a few safety rules. The only injuries you will come home with are the welts left from the paintballs themselves as paintball is statistically one of the safest sports around.
2. General hooliganism. Are you going to go around making youtube videos of yourself shooting your dumb friend who volunteered to be the guinea pig? Are you going to run rampant around the neighbourhood shooting road signs, cars and other peoples houses at random? I think here you will have the greatest time convincing them, as you might very well be a little jerk who shouldn’t be playing paintball. But this is where compromise in your negotiations can be played up.
Parents should know : There is something you may or may not have heard of, its called the fire triangle. Imagine a triangle; on one side you have oxygen, on another side you have fuel and on the last side you have the source of ignition. Creating fire is impossible if you take away one of these three elements. Now imagine the paintball triangle; on one side you have the paintball marker, on another side you have paintballs and on the last side you have the markers propellant source. Playing paintball and causing damage through hooliganism isn’t possible if you take away one of the three elements needed to play paintball. If you lock up the marker in a safe place, as you would a real firearm when its not in use, you eliminate any chance of wrong doing on your child’s part.
3. Paintball is expensive. There is no argument on that one, paintball can be expensive. If you don’t already, putting in extra chore time around the house will be required. Pushing a lawn mower around for a couple hours a week or doing more dishes is really a fair trade off to be able to play paintball regularly though. If your parents are going to buy your gear for you initially don’t make a rushed decision. Buy something practical that will require the least amount of upgrading and maintenance. Tippmann 98’s, BT4’s and a few of the lower end Smart Parts markers may suit you well and be more gentle on your parents pockets.
Parents should know : There are always deals to be had, and when shopping in a retail paintball store don’t be afraid to haggle or ask for a deal when making a large purchase. If you are going to buy an entire setup for your child ( marker, mask, c02 tank, pod pack, pods ) simply suggesting “Hey, since I’m buying all this you can cut me a deal right” there’s a very high chance you can get something, anything, taken off the bottom line. Shop around, look online, there’s no rush. When taking your child to a local field often you’ll find they have membership packages with an array of benefits, again lowering your overall costs. An average day at an expensive field can run up to $90, which is really a high estimate, anything you can do to lower the initial and overall costs will bring harmony to the balance of you wanting your child to have fun and your child getting what they want.
Kids, paintball is fun, you know this. If concessions are required in order for you to be allowed to play or if your parents are going to buy your gear for you, you have to be willing to make sacrifices.
Parents, your child’s interest in paintball shouldn’t frighten or alarm you, they aren’t recruited militants. You should really give this a try yourself, you might surprised and also get hooked. If you have any other questions or concerns, or you’d like guidance in making a purchase for your child, feel free to email me chris@chrisschneck.com I’m not selling anything nor am I a commissioned sales person.
