WAILUA — “I taught her how to be a sniper,” Shauna Castle said, smiling after emerging victorious from the brush. The mother of eight children said her daughter Mariah, 13, was experiencing only her second tournament, but teamed well, both
WAILUA — “I taught her how to be a sniper,” Shauna Castle said, smiling after emerging victorious from the brush.
The mother of eight children said her daughter Mariah, 13, was experiencing only her second tournament, but teamed well, both anchoring one corner of their sector and leaving the arena victorious after the younger Castle sniped the remaining opponent.
This was the first time a paintball tournament was held in the Wailua area, organizer Danny Genegabuas said.
A paintball enthusiast for two years, Genegabuas said when he started shooting, he was surprised at how many kids would come and ask if they could shoot.
The motorcycle enthusiast said one thing led to another and when he approached the county about using some land for a paintball course, they consented, provided he had insurance.
That led him to discover that the firm formerly providing insurance for paintball courses cut Hawai‘i from its coverage. After scrambling through various inquiries, he was able to get an insurance quote which surprised him.
“It was going to cost more than $500 for one day’s coverage,” Genegabuas said. “When I asked them, they said if I had coverage for one year, it would cost me $1,400. That’s a no-brainer.”
Nestled behind the motorcycle moto-cross track in Wailua, five teams took part in the first tournament on this new site with proceeds to benefit the American Cancer Society.
“The paintballs cost $38 a case,” said Preston Nakamura, one of a team that advanced through its opening heat. “But that’s how they generate the funds for the ACS.”
Genegabuas’ son Jason is currently waging a war against cancer, and the tournament was originally scheduled for last month, Danny said. But that had to be re-scheduled because Jason was on O‘ahu for treatment.
Nakamura, who coupled with Jason and Keoni Carineo, Leo Resinto and Ruben “Duby” Alalem, said the group has been together for several years.
“We’ve won some tournaments here and there,” Nakamura said. “But this can get expensive. We started because Alalem lives next door to Genegabuas, and he’s now a distributor, so we started out by buying some stuff from him.”
Norberto Garcia, a paintball enthusiast who spearheaded the recent Kaua‘i Police Activities League hands-on demonstration at the close of flag football, said taking part in a tournament on a course is a big difference than just shooting at targets.
“Several of the people who came to the K-PAL demonstration have found out that it’s altogether different when you have people shooting back at you,” Garcia said.
For the tournament, Garcia headed up the tech station and kept track of timing the 15-minute heats.
Castle said for the tournament, everything is toned down because of the proximity to the moto-cross track which was hosting practice runs, and the nearby villas.
“There’s a lot of brush that helps muffle the sound,” Genegabuas said. “When you get near (the villas), you can’t hear a sound.”
Before any competitor takes the course, the weapons are checked and calibrated by Garcia, or Genegabuas. Once certified, the competitor’s arm is marked with a colored duct tape indicating his team.
“This is different from the more static courses where people shoot from behind barrels and inflated barriers,” Genegabuas said. “This is the real environment. It’s more like hunting.”
The two teams leave and approach each other from opposite ends of the course, and the team with the most members surviving after 15 minutes is declared the winner.
“It’s about teams,” Genegabuas said. “Nobody can do everything themselves, and this teaches them that lesson. They learn that it takes teamwork to get things done.”
Genegabuas said he only helped find the location. There are others who helped do a lot of the work. These include Mary Manguchei who had a lunch wagon on property so competitors could have food and drink. Additionally, Genegabuas said Wal-Mart contributed $500 to help with the tournament.
“Hopefully, this one turns out well so we can have more tournaments in the future,” Genegabuas said. “We have insurance for at least a year.”
