A few months back Chris Raehl of the National Collegiate Paintball Association started a discussion with the College paintball teams regarding a limited paint Race-To based format. The NCPA has been considering moving to a limited paint based format to decrease the cost of competing in the college paintball circuit. Apparently the NCPA limited paint concept has caught hold with several folks within the industry. Rumors circulated during the 2010 off season and well into the 2011 season that the PSP has been looking for ways to decrease costs for players competing. According to a press release we received this morning via email, the Tactical Paint RaceTo format will be unveiled at the PSP 2011 Chicago Open.
Do you possess superior precision shooting, communication, and movement skills? Can you make every shot count? Or might you simply want to reduce the impact on your wallet or affordably double up on your play time? If you answered yes to any of these questions, your team will want to play the new Tactical RaceTo or Pump divisions at the June 23 – 26, 2011 PSP Chicago Open.
Tactical RaceTo builds on PSP’s current world-famous RaceTo format, adding one enhancement: Each team starts each point with a full hopper for each player, plus five 140-round pods to divide up amongst the team. Give a pod to each player, or give them to your back players, or give it all to the player who has to hold down that key lane into the snake. The decision is yours, and in Tactical RaceTo, these decisions matter.
Tactical RaceTo will not just bring new strategy elements to the game and put greater focus on communication and precision technical skills, but also cut paint consumption by up to 80%, dramatically reducing the cost to compete.
3 new divisions will be offered:
- Division 4 Tactical RaceTo-4 (Thu-Fri Prelims, Sat-Sun Playoffs) – $2,600 Entry
- Division 4 Tactical RaceTo-2 (Sat Afternoon Prelims, Sun Playoffs) – $1,000 Entry
- Open Pump RaceTo-2; Classification Counts as D4 RaceTo-2 (Sunday Only) – $500 Entry
Prizes for all divisions:
- 1st Place: Free Entry, Trophy and Medals
- 2nd Place: ½ Entry, Trophy and Medals
- 3rd Place: ½ Entry, Trophy and Medals
How is your stamina? Think you can complete the paintball quadathalon? Players have the option of playing on up to four teams at the Chicago Open: One Traditional RaceTo team, one Tactical RaceTo-4 team, one Tactical RaceTo-2 team, and one Pump RaceTo-2 team.
Teams playing both Traditional and Tactical D4 RaceTo-4 will not have any schedule conflicts.
Teams wanting to play both Traditional RaceTo-2 and Tactical RaceTo-2 should request to have their Traditional RaceTo-2 games scheduled for Saturday morning to avoid conflict with the Saturday afternoon Tactical RaceTo-2 prelims. Traditional and Tactical D4 RaceTo-2 playoff schedules will not conflict.
Teams wanting to play both Traditional RaceTo-4 and Tactical RaceTo-2 may sign up for Tactical RaceTo-2 through the evening of Friday, June 24th, providing a great way for RaceTo-4 teams who may have been knocked out to use any leftover paint to get more play time. Late registration fees will be waived for any Tactical RaceTo-2 team with at least 5 players who played RaceTo-4 at the Chicago Open.
Similarly, registration for Open Pump RaceTo-2 will remain open through the evening of Saturday, June 25, and late fees will be waived for Pump teams with at least 5 players who played in other divisions at the Chicago Open. Because Pump prelim play starts Sunday morning, conflicts with playoff games in other divisions are possible. Teams who make the playoffs in another division and would have a conflict with their Pump games may withdraw from the Pump division up until Saturday evening.
PSP is very pleased to provide extra opportunities for players to play even more paintball at the Chicago Open. Make sure you take advantage! The first registration deadline for the Chicago Open is Friday, May 27th, so visit www.pspevents.com to register now and secure the lowest entry fees
What are your thoughts? Will limited paintballs change the way we play the game? Do you think decreased costs will impact the amount of paintball you will play? Share your thoughts in the comments below!