The conflict between those that seek to speak for the NPPL and Paintball Sports Promotions has reached critical proportions.  Charges, innuendos and misstatements have become commonplace.  We believe that it is time to set the record straight.

The NPPL was formed by 13 original teams in 1992, each owning a single share of stock.  New teams were added that met the standard of playing at least three sanctioned tournaments in a calendar year.  Promoters were selected to organize and manage the tournaments, and the organization was to solicit teams for participation and administer the attending teams.

In 1996, the organization stagnated. Elections were a thing of the past, meetings were no longer called, teams no longer participated in the organization, and the NPPL ceased to function. The only body representative of the defunct organization was the rules committee which expanded to a rules and disciplinary committee.  The promoters continued to function and grow the series.  Some tournaments set standards that others aspired to, and some were less than stellar, but through the years, without raising prices and remaining bring your own paint events, the series continued to grow.

In the late spring of 2001, a meeting was held in Chicago in which representatives of the NPPL governing body which resurrected itself in 2000, and the promoters worked hand-in-hand to address the concerns of the players, including air, safety, netting and prizes.  The promoters responded by purchasing a state-of-the-art air system, hired a set-up crew managed by Robert “Rosie” Rose and gave allocation of the prize package to the teams to a committee chaired by Jeff Stein, a member of the steering committee elected by the teams.

The 2001 Chicago Open was hailed as a great success.  Some said that it was the best event ever.  Atlantic City was next, and didn’t disappoint, and the World Cup with 350 teams and the biggest trade show in paintball to date was universally hailed as the best World Cup held.

This year, the Los Angeles Open, held at SC Village, was bigger than anyone could have imagined with more than 100 ten man teams in attendance.  The event was clouded by some very serious rules infractions by the current “self-proclaimed” President of the NPPL, who then used all the influence of his office to avoid serious consequences.  It should be noted that Chuck Hendsch has never been elected to that office and has been reluctant, especially since Los Angeles, to hold elections.  For someone who claims to represent the interest of the teams, he has no intention on giving them a voice in that representation.  That should surprise no one.  He proved in LA that his interests come first.

A great deal of friction resulted from those unfortunate incidents and the lack of meaningful action taken to address the infractions, as the promoters pushed for stiffer penalties, even when it would have effected them.  This is where things started to unravel.  In all the years that the NPPL remained non-existent and only the rules committee functioned, neither rule nor disciplinary action was ever challenged, even when directed against a promoter’s team.  Never!  Never did any promoter use his weight to protect members of his team that transgressed.  Unfortunately, that was not the case regarding Mr. Hendsch’s team.

There have always been elements that wanted to take the tournaments series away from the promoters for their own benefit, and they have and continue to exist within the NPPL hierarchy.  Some facts that you may find interesting:  The NPPL is no longer a player based organization.  The only stockholder in a new California company with that name is Chuck Hendsch.  The name was co-opted by one Scotty Flint, now in bed with Mr. Hendsch as his, appointed, and not elected, Vice-President.  The NPPL steering committee has been demanding elections, and Mr. Hendsch’s response has been to reduce the members on the steering committee to three, one member being himself, and the other two appointed by him.

The promoters, in consultation with members of the existing steering committee elected by the teams in Gettysburg, stated in March that elections will be held in Chicago for a new rules and steering committee.  Teams are eligible to vote with those who participated as playing teams and/or judging teams in four of the last eight ten man events put on by the promoters.  Hendsch and Flint could not tolerate that, because they knew that they would win such a fair and open election when pigs flew. Those elections will take place as scheduled, and, as in the past, the promoters will listen to the players and act on their concerns. We may not always hit one out of the ballpark, but we will always try, and overall, we have raised the bar higher than anyone could have imagined two or three years ago.

Now let’s put an end to the rumors and misstatements being circulated.
 

• All major sponsors are sticking with PSP, the promoters’ series. They include Custom Products, Diablo/Draxxus, Dye Precision, JT USA, Kingman/Raven, National Paintball Supply, PMI/RP Scherer,  Shocktech, Smart Parts, TC, WDP, WGP and Zap.

• The World Cup, in which the semi-finals and finals of the five and ten man competitions, will take place this year at Disney’s Wide of World Sports, will be a PSP event only.

• Points and rankings will be determined only by participation in the PSP series, which includes Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Chicago, Atlantic City and Orlando. They will not include events put on by the duo of Hendsch and Flint.

• Lane Wright as team liaison, Rosie as infrastructure manager, Emily Mood as operations administrator and Bill Cookston as ultimate judge continue, and their talents and hard work are most appreciated.

• The Chicago Open and World Cup remain Grand Slam events in the World Paintball Series.

• If you want to play the best, you have to play at Badlandz, in Atlantic City and at the World Cup.  No pro team or amateur team has openly bolted, and, more significantly, in the vast majority have stated they  will continue playing the PSP series.

Look beyond the lies and innuendos, and your choice becomes clear. See you in Chicago at Badlandz for the 3rd leg of the series that is now in its 10th year.

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