by Austin Hale

Created on: July 07, 2009   Last Updated: July 08, 2009

You're sitting in the middle of the forest. There are trees everywhere. They completely surround you and your fellow paintball players. The air is suffocating and is thick with mosquitoes from the nearby stale pond. Often times when playing in these type of conditions you'll wish for a change in scene. A man-made paintball field can fill this void and be built into anything you can imagine.

Inflatable Bunkers

Inflatable bunkers are one of the most common items found on a paintball field. They are basically in essence giant inflatable shapes usually seen in squares and rectangles. These provide basic cover and help shape different areas and sides on your field. Often times these can be found at sports stores and sometimes can even be spotted on the shelves of Wal Mart.

These bunkers have the issue of survivability and storage. They'll only last a few fights if you keep them on the field in the sun and rain so you'll need to decide on a place to store the deflated bunkers. Companies are getting better at building bunkers with more hardy material, but they still have a ways to go.

Wooden Structures

If considering a more permanent field building some long lasting structures will be important. Using wood can be a great choice. You can use wood to build nearly any type of structure that you can imagine. Castles are becoming increasingly popular as well as WWII style bomb shelters.

There are a few negatives when it comes to wooden structures. Cost is the biggest deterrent when looking at using wood to build permanent structures. Another concern presents itself only when building inside of city limits or subdivisions. If you're not careful your paintball structures could be violating building codes so just be careful.

Trenches

Another option if you don't have the means to build up is to dig down. The cost of a shovel is trivial in comparison to a large order of wood. Just like the WWII style bomb shelter wood structures, trenches are also pretty popular. They provide an awesome source of cover as well as a good area partitions.

The downside of trenches is the intense labor required for their construction. The easiest way to do it is to invest in a few shovels as well as a can of spray paint. Decide what grid of trenches you would like to dig and then spray the pattern down on the ground. Recruit a few of your fellow paintball buddies and get to work.

Building your own field can be an enjoyable endeavor and can offer days of hard work that will leave you impressed with yourself. Hopefully with a few of the options provided you'll be able to create an impressive field that will be a awesome place to paintball.

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