Paintballing

On the 27th April Transition Year went paintballing. We made the journey to Supershot Paintball just outside Stradbally and spent approximately four hours playing games.
On arrival the year was split into two groups and then further divided into four teams. Group One was geared up with protective clothing and visors, given their guns and taken away. I was part of Group Two. We were divided into Red and Blue teams. We received all our equipment, were told the rules of paintballing and made our way to the first game.
We started with a game similar to a capture the flag situation with ammo boxes. We were each given 100 paintballs. The object of the game was to capture the opposing team’s ammo box while defending your own. This first game ended a draw, as both teams attempted to take the objective through simply blasting the opposition. Stalemate took hold and neither team had achieved their aim when the game ended after twenty minutes.
The second game was similar to attacking a port. The defending team each had a single life while the attackers had unlimited lives. This game was played twice so that each team had a chance to both attack and defend. The objective was for the attackers to capture an oil drum with the defenders trying to stop them. The blue team managed to both attack and defend successfully. As they were 2-0 up in games with only one to play they were declared overall winners of the day.
The last game of the day returned to the ammo boxes. The blue team completed their victory by capturing the red’s box sealing a 3-0 humiliation. This was despite a particularly commando red walking calmly into the open shouting ‘who wants some’ and being met by a veritable wall of paintballs.
When it was all over a group of nearly 100 transition year students departing for home battered, bruised and smiling. The day was tremendous fun for all and almost all would agree was well worth the time and effort. Definitely a day that would be laughed about and remembered for years to come.
By Eoghan Stafford 4A