Paintball "troops" take aim on Brownsville sports park

The rapid tap and rattle of paint pellets flying from pressurized guns was part of paintball’s comeback in Brownsville as a tournament was staged Saturday at the Sports Park, organizers said.

“It’s picking up again,” said Manuel Montes, owner of Garmon Paintball, which coordinated Saturday’s event. “It used to be big at one time.”

Montes said he recalled the last tournament taking place in Brownsville about two years ago, but paintball fields appear to dot the Rio Grande Valley now.

Volunteer organizer Norman Esquivel said the city approached his former paintball business to suggest using the park.

Now, Montes heads shooting bouts there each Sunday. His team Demolition Krew hosted Saturday’s tournament.

A tough economy has put a damper on things, but there are still those ready to play, Esquivel said.

This Saturday’s open tourney pit six three-member teams, four who came from the Upper Valley and two from Brownsville, against one another in a capture-the-flag battle.

Montes said teams from Mexico make their way to Brownsville to play on occasion.

Esquivel said safety is key because play is open to all ages.

Montes said even families can join in.

“Paintball is out there and it is growing, but we need to get it to a point where you can play it safely,” Esquivel said, noting there are strict regulations for play such as wearing a mask and using a muzzle for a paintball gun at all times.

A rainbow of bright colors whizzed through the air Saturday.

The pellets flew at 280 feet per second, Montes said.

The paint splashed against the inflatable obstacles on the course surrounded with a net for the safety of spectators.

All the contestants were young males, many shouting and coaching one another in an effort to achieve victory.

“Paintball builds teamwork,” Paintball Depot Krew team captain Benjamin Cortez said. “It helps people work together and helps people who have aggression at home. They come out here and they shoot people. You don’t get in trouble for this.”

Cortez, who moments before had intensely watched a bout while doing his own coaching, came to the tourney from McAllen.

“The talent pool is a lot different,” he said. “Over here there’s people here who play paintball more than in McAllen.”

He pointed to a welt on his neck made by a pellet, leaving little doubt the game can be intense and physical.

“Some guys just like to get hit and that’s OK,” Esquivel said with a laugh earlier, when another paintballer showed a scabbed welt, the result of not wearing chest protection.

Cortez said there is more involved paintball than one might think.

“You come out here, you sweat together, you bleed together,” he said. “It becomes a bond. Whenever you develop a friendship like that it lasts a lifetime.”