VILNIUS - Adrenaline was rushing through my body as I ran through the woods. I was hunting and being hunted, rifle in hand looking to splatter my friends. Suddenly I felt a pellet hit me, I was dead. I fell on the floor in pretend agony and made everybody around me laugh. It was my first time playing paintball.
Paintball has nothing to do with painting or really playing at soldiers. It's a bunch of adults running around a field playing hide and seek in awkward outfits, smeared in paint from head to toe. Mark, hide and then hunt your friends. That's all you need to know to become an expert in paintball.
It is a perfect fast-paced activity for you and your mates. Twenty years ago the game became one of the most popular outdoor activities in the U.S., and today it draws more and more adrenaline seekers in the Baltics.
After bungee-jumping and parachuting, my daredevil friends and I decided to put paintball to the test for a bit of team-building fun. A quick 20-minute drive from the center of Vilnius brought us to the Vismaliukai polygon, where we found the forest set up with a paintball field.
After registering and paying 50 litas (14.5 euros) each, we had to wrap ourselves up in special paint-proof clothing. We were equipped with camouflage overalls, full-face paintball goggles and padded helmets. Our operator provided us with huge air guns and explained that colorful paintballs were our ammunition. We got 100 balls each and every extra paintball was an additional 0.30 litas charge.
It seemed we were all ready for battle, so we divided our happy crowd into two teams: red armbands for the girls and blue ones for the boys.
Paintball is like the childhood game of capture the flag. All of us went into the forest and had to find the rival team's flag. I cannot describe the amount of adrenaline that pumped into my brain when I captured the boys' flag and had to bring it back to my team's base. Apart from having only three minutes for such a mission I had to watch out for paintballs from the rival team. A splat on my back would have eliminated me from that round of play.
I had luck on my side that time, but it was impossible to avoid a green paintball during the second round. After it broke on my tummy I had no other choice but to act out an agony of defeat.
Surprisingly, I hadn't got a single bruise afterwards. The paintballs are made out of gelatin and filled with a biodegradable water-based paint. So any remains of the paint I had on my hair or face was easy to remove with water.
Our referee noted that according to statistics people get more injuries while playing basketball or football than paintball. To enforce the safety rules and game regulations our referee started and stopped the game. Also, we had couple of breaks between the games. A perfect moment for having some light snacks, drinks, and a chance to share the stories of victory thrills or funny defeats.
It was the first time I'd ever played paintball, but it was fairly easy to grasp the principles of the game. Paintball is a perfect outdoor activity for team-building for small or large groups. Go to Vismaliukai with a group of friends, colleagues or simply families. And it doesn't matter if you win or lose 's a good time is guaranteed.
Vismaliukai polygon
www.paintball. lt+37052497232
