Did You Know That The First Paintball Match Was Inspired By A Bet?
Paintball was invented in the good ol’ US of A by two men who wanted to settle an argument about whether a city man could outshoot an outdoorsman and hunter.
A Match To Settle A Bet
In 1981, a countryman and a city guy had an argument about whether the city man would survive in the woods against someone who had been hunting and fishing his entire life. They saw a paint gun in a catalogue and decided to settle their argument with a good old-fashioned duel – by shooting paint at each other! Ten other men joined in the first free-for-all paintball game.
It Caught On As A Sport
After the match (which was won by a forester) was reported in the media, it caught on as a sport that’s now played professionally and recreationally all around the world. Originally created to mark trees for logging, it makes sense that a forester would be most familiar with the paintball gun. It’s now gone on to become an internationally used piece of equipment!
Paintball pellets can be painful, and the oil-based paint is tough to get out of clothes. That’s why most players use protective clothing, like Kolossus overalls, to play in.
