I had a pretty fun day, myself. While the facility looks clean, you guys weren't brushing up against walls or posting up on the floor like I was doing a LOT. I was covered in sawdust from lying and kneeling on the floor.
The facility is fairly large, but not really large enough for 20v20 games, like they were running. I did have fun in the last game though, after you guys left. I went commando with my pistols and rushed the other side. Took out 2 with safety kills at first, weaved through the back, killed 2 with side/back shots, killed a 3rd who was in the open, safety killed another around the corner, then posted up while they called for a stoppage of play for some reason. Used the pause to reload, then when the game restarted, ran out and shot 1 more, dived back into the cover (behind enemies the whole time) then safety killed about 6 kids who were all huddled up in 1 room looking the other way, lol. At that point I called myself out because one of them probably would have gotten a shot at me if they were really shooting.
The arena itself is fairly closed off. This makes for some very tight firing lanes and choke points - which can make it hard to move around. Also some of the rooms along the sides are "dead end" boxes - which only have 1 way in and out, which make them deathtraps. Also, the play is setup completely for side-to-side play. This is very short and very wide. I would like to see some variation for play down the whole length of the arena. The middle rooms, to me, were a huge hindrance. A lower wall or more open space would have been much more conductive to shooting.
This is a fairly decent facility. To me it's best for Pistol/Shotgun only games. AEGs tend to put out way too much fire for me to like this in CQB. With 20 v 20 it was constantly POWPOWPOWPOWPOWPOWPOWPOW against the walls.
This list of pros and cons may seem chock-full of cons, but it was opening day and everyone has a lot to learn about this. I'm going to list the cons as some tips to improve play and safety.
Pros:
Fairly large facility
Nice area setup for staging and observation (With lots of seating and tables)
Lots of store area with display cases
Clean bathrooms (Definitely a plus)
Good location - easy to get to
Well lighted and heated
Kept a good mind towards safety - heavy on the chronoing. I did see the chrono officers turn away a few people saying their guns were too hot.
Can be used as a CQB/MOUT Training facility
Can be used for airsoft camps for kids to train for safety, etc.
Suggestions:
#1 - safety - this means lowering the FPS limits to 300FPS with .25 for AEGs. Pistols and 3-shot shotguns should be ok for 325FPS because they're harder to regulate. At 350FPS in such close range, I got a couple of bloody welts on my arm and leg. The volume of fire plus closed nature of the arena made telling ricochets from regular hits hard.
#2 - Safety - Mesh goggles! Don't allow them! I saw the kid with the Army of 2 Mask - it had mesh eyeholes.
#3 - Safety - While the chrono officers made sure people were chronoed, I didn't notice any particular check for chrono tags when everyone went in to play. I don't think this was a big issue but some of those shots I took felt really hard and those were from longer range.
#4 - Safety - the "dead box" was an ok idea but have one on both sides of the arena. Also - put up mesh on the top and potentially on the entrances for additional safety. The chrono room could have been used as a dead box as well. Also another big thing to me - while they require you to pull out mags and put on barrel condoms in the dead boxes, there are still live rounds in the guns. A couple of clearing shots as you walk in (towards the ground) would be good.
#5 - Training Kids - A lot of the kids there today didn't know how to play. A lot of times when I was advancing in the back of obstacles and there were "dead" kids walking back, i would come around the corner (they would have their hands up) and they would be nearly crap-your-pants surprised and freeze. Experienced players will have enough fire discipline to not shoot in those situations. Some additional training for kids would be good.
#6 - Speed of play. The games were fairly slow to jump off. Chronoing took a long time due to there being only 1 chrono. Yes, there were a lot of people, but when you have large events, you have multiple chronos and chrono stations. Setup a chrono in one of the windows of the boxes in the back.
#7 - Rental guns - they need to be marked better than just some blue tape on them. Get some RFID tags and door sensors so they don't walk out the door.
#8 - Lighting - The level of lighting is very bright which is good, but variable lighting would be nice as well. Turn down the lights for some nice play. I would LOVE to use my tracer unit in there.
#9 - Ending games - I would notice that a lot of the times the games went on longer than they should have. Add something to the briefing for a team to yell CLEAR if they think it's over. We did that one game and that ended the game. All of the guys were out though and had been for a few minutes. If there's any enemies still left alive, they should shout "STILL ALIVE". In CQB like that, it's not really giving your position away because the echoes would make hard to pinpoint the actual location unless they're close.
All in all it was a good day. I was not surprised with the large number of kids there. I was pleasantly surprised with the number of receptive parents that were there. I referred several of them to the AirsoftNJ website and our site as well. Many want to get their kids into larger, more organized games.
Thanks to the GF Airsoft Crew. It's understandable there were problems with the registers and the registration, but everything moved smoothly after that was cleared up. The free food and drink was greatly appreciated. You should setup a stand in there with snacks and drinks - that's another good source of income for you. Players were getting thirsty out there!
Filforce Execom Member
Recruitment Manager
Email:
krdshrk@gmail.comCell: 908-705-1408
