who was/is the greates influence on the paintball?

[CKY_Alliance]

Im doing a report on a famous sports person, someone who has made a difference in the community through their sport or in that sport in general, seeing how i dont pay attention to professional sports much except for paintball (and dont pay that much attention to that either) i was wondering who AO thinks had the greatest effect on paintball? present or past.

[BigEvil]

[NukeGoose]

the Tippmann family
Gino @ NPS
Bud Orr

[Arstron]

the internet?

Its hard to narrow it down to one perons, alot of people have brought inovative ideas to the sport as far as equipment goes. When it comes to players, well I dont think there has been a single player or team that has made a real diffrence in the sport....

[warbeak2099]

Ever since about '97, yeah lol.

Early in the sport there were a lot of companies that really intorduced a lot of innovative ideas. Tippmann came out with the pin valve, thus we get our screw-in air systems that we have today. AGD came out with compressed air tanks. Palmers came out with using pneumatics to create semi-auto, closed bolt markers. PVI, CCI, and some other companies were all working on electronic technology to make our guns faster.
There were also organizational leaders in the sport. Field owners and high level tournament organizers worked really hard to get the sport out to everyone. I forget their names, but there were a few famous ones in specific.
And that's carried over into today. We still have some hard working individuals who work to mainstream our sport into society. The PSP has done a great job with this kind of PR what with the Disney games and the ESPN deal.
One individual I'm thinking of would be perfect to write about. He was a field owner and tourny organizer, and had some incurable disease. But he worked really hard to the day he died, promoting the sport. I forget his name, but he was in a recent (within a year) APG article.

[Lohman446]

Most influential - the Gardener brothers (nvolved in PSP, All Americans, SP and the various accomplishments)or Dave Youngblood (the entire "bring the sport out of the woods" movement and of course the Dye fashion era).

However, Ben Tippman, TK, Palmer, all have to be in there as the most innovative. And I do make a point to draw a clear distinction between the two.

[Muzikman]

There are two people that I look highly upon when it comes to paintball. Glenn Palmer and Tom Kaye.

They both have very interesting backgrounds and are both very approachable people. They are both also very opinionated and very fun to talk to.

There is also quite a bit of information on these two.

[Kevmaster]

Gino @ National Paintball
Lynn Scott @ Brass Eagle

Lynn scott more than gino, but those two brought paintball from a small sport, to a big market, big money sport.

[BigEvil]

There are two people that I look highly upon when it comes to paintball. Glenn Palmer and Tom Kaye.

Ditto. Although I have never had the chance to meet either of them, or owned a Palmer marker. (I will ONLY use Palmer neumatics on my cockers)

These are two guys that IMO genuinely cared about their customers and did their best to put ou the best products possible.

[SCpoloRicker]

My cup o' tea: TK, Palmers, Orr, Shatner (yes... bill... shat... ner... .)

Not my cup: Gardners, Youngblood

[Muzikman]

Dave as a player was so much fun to be around. Dave as a corporate man, not so personable.

I have met and talked to Tom and Glenn on many occasions and find them both to be interesting people, but for different reasons.

Props should also be given to Jessica Sparks.

I guess as someone else did, you need to look at it from different angles.

Technology Influences: Tom and Glenn
Media Influences: Jessica Sparks
Marketing Influences: Dave Youngblood and Bud Orr
Patent Influences: Gardner brothers.
Player Influences: Fred Shultz

[magman007]

in all honesty, ive gotta give WDP and adrenaline games the word as well, for bring the sport out of the woods with hyperball, sup air ball, and eventually ultimate airball.

Dave youngblood is probabally the biggest sucess story, starting out with a tube, and having it grow into a multi national, and very desired company

Gardners

Innovation wise

Tk, Palmer, Tippman, Lynn Scott for bringing the sport to the masses, Gino, and WDP for the angel and the electro revolution.

[Jackel411]

Fred Shultz....








Wait no

[Alpha]

Probably Sam R from boston paintball..

Oh nevermind thats me :dodgy:

[GT]

The guys over at WDP are the guys that brought paintball out of mill-sim into an "alternative" sport. For better or worse that is where we are.