This layout is significant on a national level as their is a rumor floating around that the PSP will be utilizing elements of the PSP regional series layouts throughout the remainder of the season.

Be sure to check out the full story for the grid layout and a snake side view of the field.

Snake side view:

Grid layout:

The 2 day event started Saturday with lots of cold rain, wind, and teams getting ready for the start of the season with the AZPPL. The Arizona Paintball Players League is one of the new regional series associated with the PSP and their Race 2 format. The teams played hard in their matches fighting to play in finals on Sunday.  A decent number of spectators showed up to watch the matches even in the rain. The Sidelines were filled with people yelling and screaming trying to help their favorite teams win.

 Sunday the rain decided to stop to allow for some fierce action between the lower divisional teams, and this is especially true with the premier division. In the Premier Division Nuskool went undefeated all the way through finals beating the Hellcats in a 5-2 victory. The event was run extremely well thanks to Ryan Bosch and Jay Martinez of NXe. The quality of the reffing was great thanks to Tim Schroepfer of the PSP and the Players of Scottsdale Elevation making good calls, constantly checking players, and having a good reffing structure to follow. This is definitely the best regional series offered right now in the Southwest and cannot wait to see the progress it makes over the next few events and following seasons.

Scores:

Premier
1st – NuSkool ABC123
2nd – Hellcats
3rd – MPS
4th – ByF8th

D3
1st – Biting Rabbits
2nd- NuSkool Wrecking Kids
3rd – Crash Test Dummies

D4
1st – War Paint
2nd – Friendly Fire
3rd – Merc Kids
4th – MPS Kids

Event Photos
http://www.seansuriano.com/Paintball
http://www.cmaroniphotography.com/

Teams and Scores
http://www.paintball-players.org/cgi-bin/showteams.cgi

January 15, 2010 – Paintball Sports Promotions (PSP) is pleased to announce the creation of a network of affiliate regional tournament leagues that, along with the PSP, share the goal of introducing the “RaceTo” format to players throughout the country.

These affiliated leagues will work together to provide a consistent experience for players across leagues and divisions, as well as create a universal player ranking in conjunction with the APPA that fits both the regional and national levels.  Over time, this system will provide a national ranking for teams at every level across the United States, allowing a player to compare his/her team to those playing in other leagues on the other side of the country. As this system grows, the ability to rank teams will extend to ranking individual players.  For the first time, the sport will have a true national ranking for both categories, enabling players to measure themselves against competitors.

The affiliate leagues heading the 2010 Unified National and Regional RaceTo Format include:

Ryan Bosch, Arizona Paintball Players League (AZPPL), www.theazppl.com
Larry Motes, Carolina Field Owners Association (CFOA) Tournament Series, www.thecfoa.com
John Smith, Central Florida Paintball Series (CFPS), www.cfpsevents.com
Jeff Stein, New England Hurricanes
Lane Wright, Paintball Sports Promotions (PSP), www.pspevents.com
Carl & Karen Bortol and Greg Pauley, Vicious Series, www.pbnation.com/forumdisplay.php?f=531
Mike Hinman, West Coast Paintball Players League (WCPPL), www.wcppl.com

By partnering with these leagues and implementing player rankings, the sport of paintball will be unified from top to bottom, coast to coast.  This network will continue to pursue expansion across the country with the ultimate goal of creating a more unified sport.

2010 Unified National and Regional RaceTo Format Schedule:

• January 23 – 24, 2010: CFPS Event #1
• February 20 – 21, 2010: AZPPL Event #1
• February 20 – 21, 2010: CFOA RaceTo-X Event #1
• February 27 – 28, 2010: CFOA RaceTo-2 Queen City Masters
• March 6 – 7, 2010: CFPS Event #2
• March 6 – 7, 2010: WCPPL Event #1
• March 19 – 21, 2010: PSP Phoenix Open
• March 27 – 28, 2010: CFOA RaceTo-2 Dirty South Open
• April 9 – 11, 2010: AZPPL Event #2
• April 10 – 11, 2010: CFOA RaceTo-X Event #2
• April 17 – 18, 2010: CFPS Event #3
• April 24 – 25, 2010: CFOA RaceTo-2 Tarheel Open
• May 1 – 2, 2010: Vicious Series Event #1
• May 15 – 16, 2010: WCPPL Event #2
• May 22 – 23, 2010: CFOA RaceTo-X Event #3
• May 29 – 30, 2010: CFOA RaceTo-2 River JAM
• May 29 – 30, 2010: CFPS Event #4
• June 5 – 6, 2010: Vicious Series Event #2
• June 24 – 27, 2010: PSP Chicago Open
• June 26 – 27, 2010: CFOA RaceTo-2 Carolina Classic
• July 9 – 10, 2010: CFOA RaceTo-X Event #4
• July 17 – 18, 2010: CFPS Event #5
• July 17 – 18, 2010: WCPPL Event #3
• July 24 – 25, 2010: Vicious Series Event #3
• August 7 – 8, 2010: CFOA RaceTo-2 Atomic FallOut
• August 13 – 15, 2010: PSP Mid-Atlantic Open
• September 11 – 12, 2010: CFOA RaceTo-2 Dog Daze Challenge
• September 11 – 12, 2010: CFPS Event #6
• September 11 – 12, 2010: WCPPL Event #4
• September 18 – 19, 2010: CFOA RaceTo-X Event #5
• September 18 – 19, 2010: Vicious Series Event #4
• October 2 – 4, 2010: AZPPL Event #3
• October 20 – 24, 2010: PSP World Cup
• November 6 – 7, 2010: CFOA RaceTo-2 Homecoming
• November 13 – 14, 2010: CFOA RaceTo-X Event #6
• November 13 – 14, 2010: WCPPL Event #5
• December 4 – 5, 2010: AZPPL Event #4

Take my word for it folks, North American Paintball is about to get real interesting! We are proud to present the official release for the Arizona Paintball Players League.

Official update as written by Jay of the AZPPL:

“I would just like to outline some of the minor changes that we will be making for the 2010 AZPPL season, as well as put out some tentative dates.

1. For season 2 of the AZPPL we will be moving to a 3 event season.

Event 1 FAP – February 20 and 21
Event 2 Disruptive – April 24 and 25
Event 3 TBA – October 2 and 3

We are doing this to allow us to capitalize on Arizona’s best weather and to close any of the gaps that the summer months cause on a typical paintball season. Over the next year we will be able to shift the season for Arizona so that the AZPPL season will occur October through April. Season 3 will start immediately after season 2 in December and be another 3 event season which will run through April. Finally, for Season 4 we will be able to move back to a 4 event dates and run October through April.

2. Rules and format – We will be moving to a true PSP affiliate series which means that we will be adopting the Race 2 format as well as the PSP rule book.

3. Divisions – Right now our plan is to have a D3 and D4 5-Man Race 2 divisions, as well as the Premiere league. If you have previously played AZPPL you will be automatically classified as Division 3. I am aware that not all teams feel they should be classified as such, so I will be reclassifying players on a case by case basis. If you feel that you should be allowed to compete in Division 4, please send me your APPA ID# and I will review your history and make a decision from there.

4. Refs – For the season we will be bringing in Tim Schroepfer (PSP’s Ultimate Ref) to be our ultimate ref. We will also be bring in 2 NXL refs to oversee and head ref each field throughout the day.

5. Paint – Paint will be handled in the same manner as the last 2 events from the previous season. You will be able to bring your own paint as long as you purchase the paint from one of our sponsoring stores and fields.

6. Pricing – Division 4 entry will start at $300. Division 3 entry will start at $375. Entry fees will increase as the deadline approaches. Each division is capped at 15 teams.

7. Premier League- This Premier League will still be an invite only closed division. We will only be allowing one APPA semi-pro player per roster. There is currently one premier spot open and if you are interested please contact us at info@theazppl.com

8. Website will be updated shortly.

We look forward to a great 2010 season and thank everyone for there support of the league.

Regards,

Jay Martinez
The AZPPL”

For further information be sure to check out the leagues official website @ TheAZPPL.com