NEWSPAPER ARTICLE

exciting, suspenseful and addictive: it's none other than paintball, and three local men have caught on to the craze by forming their own A.W.O.L. Paintball Renegade League, "Team Warpaint."
     "I attribute the game to being as close to bungee- jumping; you get the same heart-pounding rush," Chris Morant, paintball fanatic and co-founder of the team, said.
     "The adrenaline is great," David Price, fellow fanatic and founder, agreed.
     The love of the game began when Price received a paintball marker for Christmas one year, and Chris found his in the back of a car he had bought. They formed a league with friend Mike Courtney to make the sport accessible to others, advertising with fliers around town and web sites.
     "When we started, there were just four of us," Price said. "Now the league has around thirty members, ages 14-45. We have some buying power now. Because of it; we get a discount from a store because we buy so much paint there."
     The group welcomes new faces, "variety is good," they say and have had people drive from Tallahassee to check out the hype, as well as player's wives and girlfriends.
     "I started out just taking pictures of them - I thought they were crazy!" Wina Courtney, Mike's wife, laughed. "Then I got to thinking that it looked pretty fun." Wina said she is trying to get more women to join the game; so far, four have participated.
     The group plays on various pieces of property around Thomasville, including several wooded fields and in an old school building. The whole point of this madness? Stay "in" for the whole game, while eliminating your opponent.
     Tips for the avid paintball player, which appear on Morant's and Price's web sites, include "familiarize yourself with your surroundings and plan defenses,""check your rear side - make sure you are not seen when you are not looking" and "plan escape routes and secondary cover."
     Although it all sounds a little intense, Morant and Price stress safety and substitute "kill, enemy and gun" with "eliminate, opponent and marker" when discussing the game.

    People have to wear goggles to even be around us when we're, playing," Price said. It's not militia training - it's a game and it's fun."
     The game has even sparked corporate interest, with several companies playing to build and improve their teamwork. It's also ideal for organizations and clubs like church youth groups, the league founders say.
     The league plays a variety of paintball games, including center - flag, elimination, speedball (the game of choice for tournaments), capture the flag (for the beginner) and The Fugitive (the league's trademark game, their own creation).
     They play a minimum of every two weeks, and as Morant said, "Any time we can in between!" Interested players must meet with the league at least twice and have the correct gear (goggles, .68 caliber marker, air and paint) to become part of the league.
     "Play once and you'll be hooked!" Morant promised.
     Ready for action? Visit
www.oocities.org/divadcom/
ASSASSIN_PAINTBALL.html

www.dlsweb.com/chris/paintball

or call 226-7966 for more information.