Tucson Region

Tucson Time Capsule : LET THE PAINT BATTLE BEGIN

Although it looks pretty fierce, according to Ron Barela of Arizona Survival Games, "This is not pretend war — it is sport." But on July 24, 1988, when the Nomads of Phoenix squared off against the Screaming Javelinas of Tucson, it looked rather serious. The teams were armed with rifles, had lots of ammunition and wore protective goggles and headgear. The quiet of Mount Lemmon was abruptly ended when they began to do battle, er, make that "started to play." Fortunately, though, in paintball, the bullets are biodegradable paint pellets, and the worst injury might be a sprained ankle. Said one player, "It's like a tag game. Tag at long range."