Notes from the Author:
A reader asked about our use of duct tape-

"In one of your recent comics you showed a new player inquiring
the ref(Doc) what to do because he had lost his barrel plug/bag.
It looked like Doc duct taped the fellows hand in front of his barrel.
Don't you think that might give inexperienced players that read your comic
kind of a bad view of refs or how they might be treated when they have legitimate concerns."

First off, the use of duct tape as shown in TWB is purely my invention.
I don't know of any field that uses it that way- It's simply comedic exaggeration.
In the same vein, I'm not actually a polar bear, I've only eaten an
entire walrus once, and that was just on a dare.

That said, the tape technique has some merit.
Goggles are a mandatory safety device, as necessary to the sport
as a space suit is to the guy going out to fix the Hubble Telescope.

New and inexperienced players can almost be counted on to pop their
goggles off at least once, and once is all it takes to lose an eye.
Most players learn after being yelled at once or twice, but sometimes
you get that one kid that thinks the rules don't apply to him. "It'll be
okay", he thinks, "they're not shooting at me right now."

For these, a bit of embarrassment goes a long way. A quick strip of duct
tape serves both as a firm reminder for the player, but also a visible
warning for the others, but not physically harming anyone, and not
adding any additional safety risk.

When I visited WestWorld in Phoenix in 1992, their method of handling
a player that had taken his mask off on the field, was to haul him out into
the street and shoot him. Seriously- they gave him a padded vest and a spare
goggle to hang from his belt, and let three other players shoot him. (Once each.)

Due to the protective vest, there was no harm or injury, but the player got a bit
of mild embarrassment, and the rest of us watching got a firm reminder.

It only happened once while I was there- the rest of us needed no reinforcement.

As far as barrel plugs/barrel bags go, that's another safety issue.
Depending on the field, typically the player keeps track of his or her own blocker.
If the player loses it (or sometimes steals it) that's both a safety issue and
a recurring cost to the field. Again, a physical reminder and a bit of embarrassment
could help the players keep track of their blocker as well as reinforcing the
safety aspect. (I've played some outlaw 'ball lately, and maybe one out of
ten players even owns a plug/bag/blocker, and taking goggles off while not
only on the field, but in the middle of a firefight is all too common.

So yeah, using tape in the comic is done for laughs,
but it just might work as well in the real world, too.

The Wormhole Gun!	Paintball in the winter!	Let's try a Tourney!	Sandy's First Game!	The Fridge- monster!	Pirta plays Paintball!	The impromptu PVP crossover!	The Craigslist Strip!	Doc OD's on caffeine!	Zombie Apocalypse!

[ Doc's Machine ] [Paintball Classifieds ] [ TWB FAQ ] [ TWB in the Wild ] [ Sculpture ]
The Making of TWB! A behind-the-scenes look at your favorite Paintball Webcomic!

---

All images, text, graphics and characters are Copyright 2002 - 2011, Doc's Machine & Airsmith Services. All rights reserved. Unauthorized use, duplication, off-site posting or publication strictly prohibited.
If you would like to share the strip with others, please send them the URL and do not copy the strip itself, thanks. Any resemblence to persons living or dead would be an incredible, if not impossible, coincidence.
If you would like to use this strip in any non or for-profit publication, please contact us at docsmachine.com