PAINTBALL SAFETY. WHAT TO WEAR FOR PAINTBALL
Playing paintball for the first time, you are likely to wonder exactly what you should wear while in this thick of battle. Firstly, the nature of paintball needs to be considered as it is an outdoor sport, meaning that you will be exposed to various weather conditions.
Depending on the type of park you will play at, you will be exposed to rain, snow conditions, muddy slippery trails, hilly terrains as well as warm or cold temperatures. It is important to always dress in layers to be able to adjust to weather and temperature fluctuations throughout the day. T
he ideal attire of paintball game offers full coverage of arms and legs. This thin layer of clothing will act as a protective barrier between your skin and paint. Below is the list of what to wear for paintball.
Headwear
Paintballs travel at a high speed of 200 miles per hour, which can make for head shoots uncomfortable. So it is best to protect your head. The speed that paintball fly in the air can hurt your head if you are not wearing protection. It is recommended to add on a do-rag, winter hat or baseball cap.
It is imperative to wear a mask that is designed specifically for paintball. All the paintball mask cover the face, but there are others that cover the entire head. However, it is important to note that covering your head will often cause your mask to fog up and as a result decrease your vision.
When you buy paintball mask, you need to go for one that fits the most comfortably. The mask should stay firmly affixed to your head and not fall off while you are running or when performing any activity during thick of battle.
Gloves
Hands are the most common target when playing paintball as you expose them by pointing the markers down range at your opponents. Hands usually have a tender spot on them and paintball shots to the hand. Thus you do not attempt to play paintball without gloves.
Many players wear fingerless gloves and this gloves may affect the trigger sensitivity. You can opt for football gloves, lite duty mechanic gloves or gardening gloves. It is important to note that your gloves should have extra padding or a plastic protective component on the back section of the hand. While some people choose to wear fingerless weight lifting gloves, this is not the best option. Also stay away from welding gloves, winter gloves as they tend to be too thick and cumbersome for trigger sensitivity.
Pants
Paintball can expose your legs to a variety of elements depending on where you are playing eg ro9cks, dirt, thorns and twigs that can cause you to have a scratch on your legs and knees. Therefore, you should wear two pairs of baggy elastic sweat pants and avoid wearing shorts.
Many players choose to wear cargo pants, jumpsuits, jeans or paintball specific pants. But paintball specific pants are ideal because they come with built-in knee padding to enable crawling, kneeling and for impact protection. Therefore the thicker and baggier the pants the better, as they allow you to move freely and reduce the chances of a bruise as compared to tight garments.
Shirts
The rule of thumb for paintball is to have little skin exposed to paint as possible. So you need to wear a long sleeve t-shirt as the initial base layer. Many players wear dark colored loose sweatshirts, paintball specific jersey, hoodies with long sleeve t-shirt and a little rain resistant. Also, you can find padded shirts that offer important protection. These t-shirts are usually fairly costly and are very comfortable.
You also need to wear loose clothes that will help you with hits and to not break on targets. This means that you will get eliminated less and shots won’t sting as much.
Some players have also adopted sniper suits that are typically worn by hunters as they provide camouflage and can break up the head’s outline.
Also, some players add vests to the outside of their t-shirts. Vest are ideal for woodsball players and usually, have built-in padding that absorbs the impact. They are also good as they have several pockets that hold anything that the player may need like watch, maps, radio, water bottle, personal items etc.
Shoes
You need to consider good shoes when you decide what to wear for paintball. Shoes are the most important components as ankle injuries from paintball are the most commonly due to running, jumping, diving and lower body movements.
You need to wear high quality and durable old sneakers. Most players choose to wear football sneakers, hiking boots or army boots. You need to wear shoes that you don not mind getting them wet or dirty. There are certain shoes that you need to avoid when you want to play paintball. To ensure your ankle and foot safety and comfort you should not wear open toed shoes or sandals.
Goggles
For most frequent players, they need to invest in their own mask. Goggles are the most important piece of gear as players are required to wear on the field so as to protect their face and their eyes. So it important to consider goggle when you choose what to wear for paintball.
When you choose between single lens goggles and thermal lens goggles, you need to go for thermal variety and also choose quality masks that provide anti-fog shields and comfort lining. You need to avoid goggles that are not intended for paintballing use. Goggles that are designed specifically for paintballs are a necessity. This is to help you to prevent lose of sight in the eye if you get stuck in the eye with paintball.
Paint on your skin or hair usually wash out quickly in a shower and paint is hypoallergic, so there are no adverse reactions when you take a hit directly on your skin. But protection is the main thing to consider when you are deciding what to wear for paintball. Always remember not to leave any skin exposed as paintball sting a lot more on bare skin.