The Wild World of TB!

So some may realize that Dale interviewed me for the Ford Report a few weeks back. And now I am certainly happy to be doing the same for him. I first met Dale in 2000 in Mayflower, Arkansas when he was part of FB radio and been hanging on his coat tails ever since. For those in the Southeast, none of this will come as a surprise, as for the rest of you, enjoy this interview with someone almost a public dick as I am.

Question 1: Dale, give us a little bit about your history in paintball. Who you played for and where you've worked.

Dale Ford:I first played at a field near Bloomington, IN in 1988. I'd just gotten out of the Army and my friends wanted to go and give it a try. They (mistakenly) figured I'd have an advantage with my Army training. The fact was, I was as clueless as they were, and I got lit up by a guy using an SMG-60. I was pretty well hooked after that. I've played in Texas, Louisiana, Indiana, California, Florida, Georgia and I visited a field in Norway in 2002. I've never worked in the industry per se, but I got my start with GT2K.Com, and eventually got started with the old PaintballChannel.Com, which morphed into 68Caliber.Com. Along the way I've written for PB2X, PaintballX3, SPLAT Magazine, Paintball Sports, and the old Paintball News.

Question 2: So tell me a little bit about your involvement with The Ford Report.

D: I am The Ford Report. It started out as “The Daily Dale” that was a private thing I did for Chris Iaquinta and Evan Money to give them a hard news segment to the terrestrial radio show they were doing in California. As time went by, I started copying people I liked within the industry, and eventually those very same people browbeat me into doing The Ford Report as you know it today. Late last year I took it independent of 68Caliber.Com with it's own website to give a place for people to go and read old reports, sign up for it, and give me a place to write editorials that would have been too controversial for 68.

Question 3: Most people probably don’t remember but you were one of the first (if not the first) web radio show with FB Radio. What made you decided to step away from that and go into the written word?

D:I think I beat Tyger to the punch by about 2 weeks. Technically I was the first, but Tyger I think had been planning on his show for some time. My show grew out of a weekly webcast I did in a paintball chatroom every Friday night that I called “Friday Night Keggers” where I played music, ranted about some of the crap I saw going on, and usually drank myself stupid. Ben Torrecelli is the one who'll have to take the blame for me getting into writing. I'd been doing the 'embedded reporter' bit at his games and doing shows on-site at his games, and then I'd do a short write-up for 68Caliber.Com. He felt that I had more talent than I was showing, and pushed me into developing that skill. I don't know where it comes from, since my education and background is heavily technical, but apparently I'm a good writer, because people really seem to enjoy what I do.

Question 4: I know that you are writing with the PaintballX3, any truth to the rumors you might be an investor?

D:That's a new one on me. I'm not an investor in PaintballX3, but I am an Associate Editor, along with Josh Silverman. I'm pretty sure I couldn't afford to become an investor with John. However, when Pacific Paintball collapsed, Josh Silverman and I were the first two people that John contacted to see if we'd be interested in working with him on a new project, which was X3. I'm not usually a fanboy of anyone, but I freely admit to being a John Amodea fanboy. He's immensely talented, easy to work with, and he's taught me a lot. I consider him a legend, and he hates it when I say that in front of him, but it's true.

Question 5: As for writing in Paintball X3, what are you most excited about the possibilities that it offers?

D:Paintballx3 is a truly professional organization, populated with professionals at the top of their game in the writing, photography, video and web fronts. Amodea and his people have a plan to create and run a truly independent, unbiased, and professional media outlet. It's something that the game needs and hasn't had, ever.

Question 6: You are deeply immersed in the South East aspect of paintball. What is the number 1 thing you like about it? And you better not say the brotherhood and nice-nice feelings.

D:It came as a real shock to me how different it is down here when I moved to Florida in 2003. Even the new players are flat out nasty. Paintball down here is flat out violent and nasty. Being a former tourney guy, I love the intensity that the Deep South has, and I have a lot of fun playing down here. Players down here want to learn how to be good players and don't mind hard lessons. These guys are fearless!

Question 7: You have been connected with Billy Smith and Low Country Paintball. What do you say to people who think you are just a stooge for Billy?

D:I met Billy the first time at an MPP Game in Titusville, FL. He asked me to come check out a game at his field in Ludowici, GA. I did, and I've really enjoyed the atmosphere at LCP and Billy and I are good friends. As for being his Stooge, if that were the case I wouldn't be covering NOCER games and helping them out as much as I do. The fact is, I don't have a relationship with Dollack, and the one game I reffed there left me with a bad taste in my mouth for Dollack games.

Question 8: Unlike those people, I know that you have also been known to help other promoters like NOCER and MPP Games. What value do you think you add to helping them?

D: Well, producers like NOCER and MPP Games are run by extremely talented people, and rather than getting on whatever bandwagon everyone else seems to be trying to ride, I want to help out producers that have extremely high quality games but nobody knows about it because the media isn't giving them the attention they deserve. Then you got guys like Bill Bain, “Georgia” Joe Hamilton and Bill “Firebug” Meister who write games for LCP who do a fantastic job of entertaining hundreds of people a weekend, but nobody knows because they're not mainstream enough.

Question 9: Ever going to do a radio show again? Or maybe a weekly webcast?

D: I'd like to, but it's pretty time intensive to do those shows. A typical 30 minute show can take 2-3 hours to produce, and it's tough to balance that in with my day job, the writing assignments I have, and trying to spend some time with the Tiny Blonde Goddess. I won't rule it out, but it's going to be tough to get it done.

Question 10: What expansions can we look forward to in The Ford Report?

D: At some point I'd like to go to a different backend for the site and give it some more flexibility so I can do more with it, but I'm not in a hurry to do that. I've got plenty on my plate with the Report itself and PaintballX3.

Question 11: I noticed that you have picked up some major sponsors for the Ford Report. With the economy like it is, why do you think that they chose your website and blog over the others?

D: I've been in the paintball media in one capacity or another for 9 years now...these guys know me, know what I'm capable of and where I come from. Even the guys who don't like me will tell you they respect me, because I say what I mean and mean what I say. There are way too many guys out there that'll whore themselves out chasing sponsorships or ad revenue. If you stay true to yourself, the support will come. You know that as well as I do. I mean, weren't you one of the first scenario players/teams to get full gun sponsorships? That doesn't happen by accident.

Question 12: Anyone who hasn’t been living under a rock, knows that a lot of people have their own answers for saving paintball. Do you think it needs saving?

D: I think the tournament side over-extended themselves chasing TV, and it didn't work out. Once again the grassroots rec, woods, and scenario players are going to be keeping the game afloat while the tournament side sort themselves out and refocuses on getting profitable again.

Question 13: And how would you save it?

D: Just go back to the roots of why we all do this thing: Fun. Make products that are a good bang for the buck, are fun and easy to use, and actually work. There's too much gimickry out there, and the industry side needs to get back to their base markets, keep them happy and try to build from that solid base, rather than throwing money away on pipe dreams like the Olympics and Mainstream TV Coverage. I think the Olympics and Mainstream TV Coverage are possible, but it's going to take time, and require a lot of patience.

Question 14: Most people also know about your recent split with 68 Caliber. And while I am sure that there is a no comment coming soon. Do you think that 68 Caliber will continue with the success that it saw under your direction?

D: You know, Steve and Karen did what they felt was best for the business. I obviously disagree with that, but that's neither here nor there. It happened, and I've been trying like hell to move on from the whole situation. I don't know if they're going to be the next media empire or if they'll crash and burn. I do wish them the best of luck, but it's out of my hands now.

Question 15: I hear you are part of a team now call the South Beach Pimps. Tell me how that came to be?

D: Since I've moved to Florida, I've met some amazing people. John Navarro is one of my closest friends, and we played together on the old 68Caliber.Com tournament team, and once we got out of the tournament side, playing together on a scenario team just kind of happened. The South Beach Pimps are the nastiest, most violent team in the Deep South. We're useless on missions or at night, but we play harder, party harder, and have more fun than anyone else out there. I was one of the first people invited to be on the team, and the invitation was pretty much John threw a Jersey at me and told me I was playing for him.

Question 16: Will your new team be unveiling any new sponsors this year?

D: The South Beach Pimps are sponsored by Kila Products, Planet Eclipse, and Guerilla Air. I'm not sure who else we're talking to right now, but Johnny is on the phone constantly with people.

Question 17: Will you guys be travelling out of the South East to spread your ‘goodness’ to others? And if so where will you be?

D: We all have full time jobs and families, so it's tough to get away. Having said that, I'm going to make a supreme effort to get to Viper's end-of-the-year game this year, mainly because he called me out and told me to get my ass to TX. I know there's been some talk about doing EMR as well, but I'm not sure what's going on with that.

Question 18: So without telling us, since the first rule is you don’t talk about it. What is this new thing that is happening in May at LCP?

D: It's really a new thing. I can't get into too much detail, but the environment there will be as politically incorrect as you can get legally, and I'm really looking forward to it. One of the things I really despise about the way things are right now is the attempt to make paintball politically correct. You run around shooting people with something that looks like a gun. Call it a marker or whatever you want to try and avoid that reality, but it doesn't work. The game will never be politically correct, and trying to make it all Disney like is doomed to failure.

And for the last two questions:

Question 19: Tell us about Dale Ford; Are you married? Do you have any children?

D: I'm married to Jamie, also known as “The Tiny Blonde Goddess” (She's 4'11”) and we don't have any kids. We do have 'paintball kids' that we enjoy being around, but none of our own. Phatty The Cat is our 17 pounds of Calico Love. I'll be 39 this year, and I'm trying to figure out a way to avoid it. I work full time as a copier repairman, plus full time as a writer/photographer with PaintballX3 and TheFordReport.Com. Jamie does a lot of a camera work too, and I'm slowly bringing her into the writing side of things as well. Eventually we'll be a lot like Dawn and TJ Alcott or Bea and Mike. Except hotter.

And the final question:

Question 20: What's your favorite beer/alcoholic beverage?

D: When I drink, which is pretty rarely I dig Bass Ale or Amaretto Sours. Jamie drinks beer and tomato juice. I think she has issues.

And on the drinking part, I beg to differ sir, I partied with you at World Cup in 2007. Then again, you might have been too tore up to remember. :)

Make sure you head over to the Ford Report and get signed up for all the industry news goodness. Dale really does have minions all over in paintball.

By Jeff “Orion” Burhans

How many of you remember your first time? Of course, I mean playing a full-blown scenario game,not that other first time…Well, mXs Men was my very first experience with Scenario Paintball. I’ve been playing rec ball for a grand total of 3 months now with a whopping half-dozen full days of games under my belt. I have loved every game played and that left me with a serious appetite for a more involved and cohesive game - something with some continuity.

When I heard about Mackz Xtreme Sportz and their 26-Hour mXs Game, that was pretty much all that was needed to hook and land my interest. I signed up as quickly as I could. Game day finally arrived and my friend Mike and I drove out to Paintball Headquarters’ field in nearby Marana. Everyone I met pre-game was friendly, open, helpful and obviously quite nuts. People in camouflage. People in bee costumes. People dressed as comic book characters. People driving The Mystery Machine (I never did see Scooby.) This looked like the place to be to have a great time! We got our information packet and chrono’d in as quickly as possible. I read my ‘Grunt’ card and started to get into my role.

I’ve played a fair number of Role-Playing Games (RPGs) from Traveler to AD&D to Champions, so I was expecting something on that order. What I found was a massive variance in the level of roleplaying. There was everything from Tournament-style players who were there for only one thing (I was reminded of Tom Lehrer’s “The Hunters Song” - “You stand there looking cute, and when something moves, you shoot.”) to hard-core role players who got into character from the start and stayed that way. I have to say that at the grunt
level, I was disappointed. My few attempts to role-play with other grunts bombed miserably.

I’m afraid that even some of the major characters I interacted with on the field were not ‘in character’. They were much more focused on getting the job done than on playing a role. Wolverine was one notable exception to that experience. We were pinned down and flanked - I recommended pulling back. In true Wolverine style, he said something like “Pull back? Not a chance Bub! Attack!” and promptly led us in an assault. It failed, of course, but DID push the enemy back from our base and was totally in character.

Since most of my time was spent either alone and sniping or on recon missions, the majority of my experience was with other grunts. Even the times I spent on base defense assignments were usually alone or with another grunt or two. From what everyone helping me on the MXS message boards says, the way to RP the most is to play a major role or work closely with those that do. I enjoyed trying many different styles of play on the field - next time I want to be a bit more in the thick of the role-playing.

The vast majority of my experiences on the field - and off - were positive. I had a few negative experiences during the day play (some hot shooters, one person wiping off paint) and several hours of misery with some real low-ball players at night. People shooting hot enough to knock splinters off plywood, inserting at the other team’s point, not leaving the field when shot, shooting neutral players, massive overshooting, shooting in the parking lot, my car getting shot, and so on.

Those experiences left me very upset and bitter. I spoke with Mother and left for the night - Playing angry is no way to play. The next day it looked as though nothing had been done and I was even angrier. I gave it another shot and played most of the day and had a blast. There was one person who kept shooting long after people were out - even shooting one player 6 times WHILE he was talking with a ref (and shooting the ref as well). I left early feeling that I would probably not play another scenario game - The risks were too great. After all, if a shot were going fast enough to knock splinters off plywood, the plastic in my facemask wouldn’t even slow it down.

However, people off the field were wonderful. Ted D’Ottavio, Cabledawg, Preacher and others spent quite a bit of time giving me an education on Scenario paintball playing, as well as how to play stand-up ball. They were also telling me that what I was experiencing was quite unusual. There were several entire teams that I spent time chatting with that really helped put a positive spin on things. I came home and posted a few messages on the MXS message boards - and then I started to learn.

First of all, Mother filled me in on the things that were done to some of the low-ball players that I had not seen done. That’s one thing I would stress - If you have a problem and make a complaint, something IS done. You’re probably not going to see it though as there are 200 other folks running around with you. Second, I found out that one of the people shooting hot (hot enough to break my toe through a combat boot) wasn’t doing so deliberately. His marker was malfunctioning. My original feeling was of course that this was just someone cheating - And that was a completely unfair assumption based on anger. If you run into someone who’s giving you a hard time on the field, remember that they might be new or might be having equipment problems. Let the refs deal with the issue and play on. Finally, no matter HOW many stand-up players there are, it only takes one or two low-ballers to spoil the fun if you let them. The choice is YOUR’S though.

There is one rule everyone has tried to drill into my head - Make sure that the person you’re shooting is having as much fun as you are. If that other person happens to be playing low-ball, tell the refs and let them deal with the trouble. Remember, there are about 20 times as many players as refs, so if you have to complain a few times do so. In the end, the choice to have fun is yours.

I’m hoping that my move will be complete in time for me to play in the Stargate: SG1 game that’s coming up. This time, I’m going to have even more fun because I have a better understanding of what’s going on and of the complexities of running these games.

Hope to see some of you out there!

Editor’s Note: Jeff is a new player from out there on the Left Coast. We are glad that he submitted a story from a new player’s perspective. Hopefully he’ll get us some more coverage from out that way. Thanks Jeff!

Question 1: Sean, Give us a little bit about your history in paintball. Who you played for and where you've worked.

I started in 1995-96 in Lawrence, KS with my friend Galen Adams playing at Drop Zone paintball. I was hooked from the very beginning and started to ref at the field in order to pay for my hobby. I then became very interested in working on the paintball gun and very soon, I was one of the main techs up keeping the rental fleet. Ken Farris decided the wanted to open a paintball store, so Galen went to work for Ken. Later on, Ken decided to open another store and I started to work for Drop Zone full time. During this time, I learned on how to work on almost every paintball gun out there and got factory certified on many of them as well. Galen is the General Manager now and Ken is still the main owner. In May 2001, I moved to northern California. And I started to work for KAPP. I was first in sales, and then moved around to tech and R&D. This is where I met my future wife. In 2004, Darryl Trent asked me to come work with him at Smart Parts on the west coast sales office. I decided to make the change and later on moved to PA to work at the headquarters. And that is where I am today.

As far as playing, Galen and I created a team called the Dislexic Dogs. We started as a 3-man team and built it up. In 2000, we won many tournaments including the 5 man am at the IAO, 4th in 10 man am at the IAO, 2nd place overall for the WPF series, among many other local and regional events. Our team was then broken up to form a new team called the Brass Eagle All Stars at the beginning of 2001. I then moved to cali, so I stopped playing. By the end of 2001, I was playing with a Norcal team called Momma’s Boys. I played on there for a bit and I just got burned out of all the cheating, the BS, the politics, the whining… etc. So I quit. I played a Black Cat Scenario game at Ft Ord in 2004 and was hooked back into Paintball and the passion was again alive. I have been doing Scenario ever since.

Question 2: So tell me a little bit about your involvement with the Smart Corps.

I am the Captain of our SPPL team and the co-founder of the Smart Corps. David Brewer (fellow sales rep) came to me with an idea he had, which was to create a woodsball division of Smart Parts. He had some basic ideas, and then he and I sat down and brainstormed. He had a vision and an idea of what we wanted to do and what we wanted to accomplish. We brought that to the late Kevin Rayman, our creative director, and he said run with it... and we have been running with it ever since.

Question 3: What brought about the invention of the Smart Corps?

The SP8 was really the main starting point I guess you could say. As we were testing it and playing with them at some local scenario games, it brought back the love of the game to many people here at Smart Parts. Everyone here wants to be on the Smart Corps and be a part of it.

Question 4: We know from the press releases that you sponsor a few of some well known scenario teams as Smart Corps Tactical Squads. What do you look for in picking a team to represent Smart Parts and Smart Corps?

The first place I look is the resume. You can tell a lot about a team from looking at the resume. Team Voodoo, Team Thunderstruck, and Team Delta had some of the best resumes I have seen out of the hundreds I have gotten. I also look for teams that not only win, but win and get media exposure. What is the point of sponsoring a team if they are not getting in magazines and getting exposure? The Tactical Squads are definitely a force of intimidating teams. We took on Special Ops at Blanding and won. The Grassy Knoll Gunmen joined me to take the Tippmann Challenge, and helped serve up Tippmann’s first lost in years. Team Thunderstruck won a ridiculous 31 awards in 2007. Team Delta was in almost every single magazine of 2007. So, these teams are no joke. It has been a painful process selecting teams. I was able to only bring on 2 teams for 2008. There was a 3rd team I wanted to bring on, but we just did not have the budget for it.

Question 5: I am sure all deals are confidential, but can you tell us a little about what a sponsorship from Smart Parts within the Smart Corps brings?

It brings notoriety. It brings fame and fortune. Maybe not the fortune part anyways. I do not hand out a sponsorship to just anyone. Even if you think you earned it, you may not get it. I have given them to whom I think are some of the most elite teams in scenario paintball. Many sponsorships in paintball are programs to where you buy packages at discounts, and they are given to anyone who asks. So, it has made the word “sponsorship” mean less than it ever has before. I truly sponsor my teams and take very good care of them.

Question 6: If a team wanted to be taken into consideration for the Smart Corps Tactical Squads, what advice could you offer them?

Get out there and play. Get noticed so magazines take pictures of you. Make sure to travel and play bigger games. If you don’t get noticed, then how is a sponsor supposed to notice you?

Question 7: Smart Corps (the team) have been the two time back to back champions of the SPPL. Why do you think that they have been so successful in that format?

We are all old. Many of us have been playing since the 80’s in the woods. I am probably one of the youngest people on the team. But, the sheer experience many of the team has is amazing. Billy and Adam had the All Americans, which were the winningest woodsball, team ever. We are successful because the SPPL is woodsball! And that is what most of us have the most experience in. Plus, woodsball is so much more fun. I am so happy to see paintball headed back to the woods again.

Question 8: Do you see Smart Corps remaining at the top of the heap with all of the reported influx of pro-players and the divisions that have been implemented?

Most definitely. I am very happy that some of the older guys are getting back in, like Bad Company with Tom Cole. I hear Greg Hastings is putting together a team. I do not know how many current pro teams will have people in the finals since it falls on the same weekend as the final millennium series in Europe.

Question 9: Can you try out for the Smart Corps SPPL team?

Nope. Factory team with a few friends on it such as Schlumpy and Reeg who used to play for Punisher PB. But, we are truly a factory team.

Question 10: Any thoughts on creating a separate Smart Corps team for each division?

Never crossed my mind. It costs a lot of money to send a team to an event. And sending multiple teams can cost quite a bit of money.

Question 11: So what brought about the Legends game at CPX?

Viper asked me in 2006 to general a game at Blanding May 2007. We ended going against Special Ops Paintball and had a blast. I wanted to do another game, and after playing at CPX, I found an amazing facility ran by great people. I wanted to do a game there for many reasons as well. Since it is in the Midwest and near Chicago, flights were very cheap and it makes it more affordable for people to go. That one late night with Craig Miller of DXS and Paul Dagnino of CPX at the Kobe Steak House during World Cup, we came up with a dream. The dream of bringing the fun of the old IAO days back, but during a scenario game. This will be one event that you will want to add to your calendar every year. What other time can you play side by side or shoot at people in the Industry? This game will only become bigger and better every year.

Question 12: Why bring in Wayne Dollack and Viper to 'co-produce' an event?

Why not? Wayne brings some the best role-playing and script writing to scenario and Viper does an amazing job on missions. Wayne is also the Godfather of scenario, so it only seemed right that he should be doing this game since it is all about the legends and paintball. And both are definitely deserving of that title.

Question 13: What does it take to be a 'legend' for the legend game?

You have to work in the industry or have had a hand in the industry over the 27 years that paintball has been around.

Question 14: Will you be inviting any of the scenario legends? Such as Black Cat, Doc John, Darkman, Mother, or some of the other scenario legends? Or maybe even trying to bring Shatner out? I know he isn't a scenario legend but he is a draw, just the same.

Shatner was invited amazingly enough. We obviously cannot remember everyone or know how to contact everyone, so we do what we can. Between our network of friends, I am sure we will have a fantastic turn out of legends for the game.

Question 15: What can you tell us about the XO's chosen for the event?

I have chosen Lawrence “TB” Wright from Thunderstruck as my XO. He may be a little too hard core for some people, but he is one of the most intelligent leaders on the field that I have seen. I know that I can depend on him 100% to get everything done and accomplished that I want done. He probably has forgotten more about commanding a side than I have learned throughout the years. The other team will have Ed “8-ball” Mentz and Duane “Kahuna” Bell. 8-Ball is a good friend of mine. I know he is looking forward to battling it out with TB. Duane was one of the XO’s for Special Ops at the Blanding game, so he has experience. This game will be a major battle between XO’s that is for sure.

Question 16: Will this be an annual event? And will it move or stay at CPX? Ever thought about doing one on the East Coast and West Coast as well?

This event will stay at CPX and it will be an annual event. The Midwest locale just is perfect for travel for anyone. With as much time as I put into this for the players, it takes away from my real job of sales. If I were involved in 2 of these per year or more, I would never get anything done. The guys at CPX sports have been very proactive and extremely helpful to help bring this game to the players in a short amount of time.

Question 17: Any smack you want to throw at Craig Miller?

God... it is so hard to talk smack to a guy who is a friend and has been a great help in pulling this game off. He has been a team player since day one, and I don’t think I could say anything bad at him at this time.

Question 18: Thanks Sean for taking the time to answer these questions. If someone wanted to get a hold of you about events for the Smart Corps or things like that, how would they?

They can email me directly at sscott@smartparts.com or post to our Smart Corps Forum which can be found at http:/smartcorps.smartparts.com.

Question 19: And for the last two questions: Tell us about Sean Scott; Are you married? DO you have any children?

I am married to a wonderful Limey from across the pond. She is my love and she is my best friend. She also plays paintball as well. You can find her in the Command Post of our side. She will be my radio operator.

And the final question:

Question 20: What's your favorite beer?

I would have to say that it is Goose Island 312 or Boulevard Unfiltered Wheat. If you like Hefeweizens or Unfiltered Wheat beer, pick up some of the Goose Island 312 locally around the Chicago area. It is the only brewery that I have every been to that ever single beer is amazing. 2 locations in Chicago!