He was a scrawny kid, maybe 80 pounds with a mop of tightly
curled hair on his head. His physical size was a fraction of his personality.
He was quite loud, with a squeaky yet raspy voice. He was also a bit boastful
and cocky, but utterly likable. And on the day I opened The Paintball Sphere for
business, he handed me a five dollar bill, my first sale ever.
That was July 12th, 1999. Billy brought his
friend Chris in that day. Shortly after Matthew, then Justin Pancake came in.
Both are friends of the store and my family to this day. All of these young men
spread the word and business grew immediately. In years I’ve see hundreds of
faces and probably filled thousands of tanks. I sold millions of paintballs and
repaired more paintball markers than most people have ever even seen. But change
is inevitable.
After this Saturday, July 25th, 2015, The Paintball Sphere
will cease operations from 7271 West Blvd.
To use a military term, our present situation has become untenable. With
the continuing decline in regular and consistent sales at our leased location,
plus massive changes within the industry, our way of doing business has now
become impossible.
Does this mean that The Paintball Sphere is out of business?
Not hardly. Remember, like many of you, paintball makes me laugh and cry, bleed
and cheer, and even sometimes vomit. Besides my wife, it is the thing I have
had the longest in my life (to be fair, I met her about a year after I started
playing). I will pass it on to my sons when they are of age.
We are evolving. For local service, Dimension Paintball has
graciously offered us a place in the sun at the field. We will be there at
times and will help to support Chris and his growing field. The website and
email addresses will remain the same. Drop us a line for anything you may need.
Most importantly, our service and support WILL NOT change. We are there to help
paintball succeed, even if in the end, this part of our endeavor didn’t. We are
The Paintball Sphere. That is one thing that will not change.
Thank you all, it has been one hell of a ride.
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