Airsoft: Tried, tested, thumbs up

Imagine an urban landscape littered with dangers, opponents around every nook and cranny. Imagine stalking guerilla-warfare style and leopard crawling into position. Now take the excitement of laser gaming and paintball’s fun, multiply it by a hundred and Airsoft is today’s hottest property.

The sport is growing fast with new fields regularly launching around the country. Airsoft comprises real-looking guns that shoot plastic pellets at opponents. According to Airsoft Player’s Association’s Grant Cameron Ellis, it’s so accurate that you can hit a R10 note from 20 metres away.

[WATCH] Airsoft Player’s Association’s Grant Cameron Ellis talks all things Airsoft.

Airsoft has been in the country for just over a decade and is gaining popularity, says Cameron-Ellis.

“Where perhaps eight years ago there were only about 40 players, today there are around 20,000 players of which 5,000 are estimated to be regular players.” Gauteng has the largest concentration of players with Cameron-Ellis saying the association’s Facebook page hosts around 3,000 members of “which about half are regular players”.

It is a gear-up sport with most players owning and adding to their ammo and camo collections regularly.

“It’s better to rent when starting out, as you have to get used to the sport and find out what works for you and what doesn’t.” Gaming company B&T Ops just launched a new Blades and Triggers urban warfare arena at Clearwater Mall on the West Rand.

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It is not a new pastime though. Airsoft was invented in Japan in the 1970s when inventor Ichiro Nagata created real-looking guns that were not capable of hurting people, but still powerful enough for sporting purposes.

Originally designed for target practice, it became a recreational sport during the ’80s as casual wargames began gaining popularity. In fact, many law enforcement agencies around the world use Airsoft equipment to simulate real-life during situational training.

There are about 20 Airsoft fields in South Africa with some doubled up with paintball. Players can register with the South African Paintball and Airsoft Association and keep abreast of developments, competitions and more.

“What makes Airsoft so cool is that you know exactly what you are hitting,” says Cameron-Ellis. “With paintball the rounds tend to go all over the place. These guns (Airsoft) look almost exactly like the real thing and you can hit a R10 note accurately from as far as 20 metres away.”

In Gauteng there are around 300 people who play every weekend and, says Cameron-Ellis, many women are joining up too.

“Most players tend to stick with the sport for a very long time.” Getting into it, he recommends playing at a field where large rental ranges are available and long-term players congregate who, he notes, will always be very happy to help newbies get into the sport.