Reminder: D-Day at Voodoo Paintball this Saturday!

How time flies! The 2011 edition of D-Day at Voodoo Paintball is already here, taking place this Saturday, June 25th at the field in St-Etienne Des Gres, Quebec. Once again, hundreds of players will be gathering to storm Omaha beach as the allies, and taking a turn to play the role of the Axis defenders as well. This year the game is timed to (almost) coincide with the 67th anniversary of the real D-Day landing, which happens to be this Monday.

Those who read my News From the Front report on the 2010 D-Day event will know that this is a DO-NOT-MISS event if you're in Ottawa, Montreal, or Quebec City. Hell, for this I'd even drive out to Voodoo from the center of the universe (Toronto).

The annual D-Day game at Voodoo is huge, despite humble beginnings 5 years ago:



Of course Yours Truly will be there Saturday, among the hundreds of players now attending the event annually. If you live within driving distance, come on out and see what the game's like. You won't regret it!

New Milsig Sponsorship: Inops Suspicio

As seen on Milsig's website.

A big congratulations goes out to the members of Inops Suspicio, for their brand spanking new Milsig sponsorship! These guys have a great presence not only in the Ontario paintball scene, but also in various online media, where they contribute a lot to the milsim community. Keep up the great work, and hopefully I'll get the chance to play with you guys some day.

Announcement video after the jump.

CQB Paintball Location Directory - CQB Week

So you've read Paintball CQB Tactics 1, 2 & 3, pimped out your milsim (or ugly milsim) marker and have money in your pocket. Now all that's left is a great CQB Paintball location.

Canada

Action 500
Montreal, QC
Website

Arnold Indoor
Montreal, QC
Website

CQB Tactical Paintball & Training Academy
Toronto, ON
Website



Defcon Paintball
Toronto, ON
Website

Mirabel Paintball
Montreal, QC
Website

Sgt. Splatter's
Toronto, ON
Website

Skorpion Paintball

Montreal, QC

Website

United States

Paintball Kingdom
Marshville, NC
Website

Urban Warfare Center
North Salt Lake, UT
Website



United Kingdom

Urban Warfare Paintball (opens Summer 2010)
Wiltshire
Website

There must be places that I've missed, so leave me a comment or email me, and I'll add to the list! 

Canadian Media's Take on Replica Firearms

This piece aired over a year ago, but I hadn't seen it till now. It provides an insight into the Canadian media's view of what they term "fake guns". Featured around the 8 minute mark is a cool (although CBC would lead you to believe otherwise) organization called the Fighting Arts Collective.

Here's another quick video on them, taken from another Canadian media outlet:

Canadian Paintball Laws (out of date - historic to 2010)

Update (February 18th) 2021

With some new laws potentially coming down the line, thousands of people still referencing this web page on a yearly basis and no updates on this page for 10+ years it's time to mothball it. 

I am not updating this page going forward (nor have I for a very long time), so please consult with relevant paintball forums for references to current paintball laws, or better yet seek competent legal advice.

Everything below this point of the page is to be referenced for historical purposes only, and is likely not valid, out of date and super wrong.

Too often, new players in Canada are unaware of the laws governing paintball. This is due to inaccessible legal information on the government's part, and the existence of many grey areas. For prospective milsim players, an added complication is thrown in with markers and devices that try to mimic or even replicate real firearms and accessories.

Disclaimer: I am not an authority, legal or otherwise. I will not be held responsible for any criminal/negligent/boneheaded action on your part. For hard, firm and official laws contact your municipal, provincial or federal government.

Replicas: Any paintballer marker/launcher that is a 1:1 scale replica of an authentic firearm/launcher is illegal to import into Canada. It is legal to purchase a replica marker within Canada. 

Examples of replica markers/launchers include: Many of the RAP4 .43 markers (e.g. P99 RAM), and any M203 replica.

Silencers/suppressors: Any modification that allows you to temporarily modify the volume of the sound output by a paintball marker is prohibited. Furthermore, charges may be laid against you. This is because any non-permanent suppressor (e.g. a barrel attachment) that allows you to reduce your paintball marker's loudness could potentially do the same for a real firearm.

Criminal use of paintball markers: If you strike someone with a paintball that did not consent to be fired upon, you may be charged with "Assault with a Weapon" and face up to ten years in prison. The same applies for threatening to harm someone with a paintball marker.

TC stamp: Any compressed air tank used for the sport of paintball must possess a valid TC (Transport Canada) stamp to be legally transported across official borders in Canada. This includes provincials borders, and the U.S./Canada border (for U.S. laws, search for DOT stamps on google). Any tank that is found to not have a TC stamp will be seized at said border.

Hydrostatic testing: For a paintball tank to be filled, it must have a valid and current hydrostatic testing stamp.

Age restrictions: There is no age restriction on who can play paintball in Canada. However, most retailers will not sell a paintball marker or accessory to someone under the age of 18. In addition to this, fields require minors to have written parental consent before playing.

Paintball on Crown Land: This is a large grey area. It can be legal (but not in all cases), but isn't always a good idea. The best way to find out if you can play on Crown Land is to contact both your local police and the RCMP.

Paintball on private property: What you do on your private property is your own business... until you endanger the safety or well being of others. Once again, contact your local police and talk it over with them first, and make sure that you have consent from every party involved (this includes the landowner, participants, neighbours and the community).

Update to private propery (March 21st) for Ottawa readers: The City of Ottawa by-law definition of "firearm" is a lot more lax than the Firearms Act definition. Under Ottawa By-Laws a paintball gun is considered a "firearm". Generally a resident is forbidden from discharging a firearm anywhere in the urban limits, but in the rural limits there are areas where there are excepted. There's a map in existence that shows the areas where firearms by-laws don't apply, and your local city of Ottawa service centre could provide it to you. But generally if you're in Kanata or Gloucester and start to play "backyard ball", Ottawa Police or by-law services will come knocking on your door shortly (depending on how paranoid your neighbours are about PB markers, or how annoyed they get by the sounds). Posted by Mike Gatti

Paintball on public property: Illegal unless organized through the governing body.

Liability as a promoter: As a promoter of a paintball game, you are potentially liable for any injury that occurs during play. This is true even if the players have signed waivers.

Sources:
Canadian Criminal Code
Firearms Act
Importing a Firearm or Weapon Into Canada (CBSA)

If I have missed anything or you disagree with anything that I've said, please comment here or email me at Connor@GreyOps.net.

Project: Foymount

As a result of my cabin fever due to the infamous Canadian winter, my mind has turned to paintball pipe dreams. That, combined with my love for abandoned locales/ghost towns turned my thoughts to where would be a great place to play some urban milsim paintball. Immediately, the town of Foymount, Ontario was brought to mind, as I had made a trip to the eerily picturesque town this past summer.

Built as an RCAF Station during the 50s, Canadian Forces Station (CFS) Foymount was designed as a radar facility to counter possible Soviet incursions during the Cold War. Foymount is the highest point in Ontario (a whopping 500 meters above sea level...), and was thus perfect for early detection purposes. However, the station became obsolete in the 1970s, and has become what some dub a ghost town (it is not my intent to call it that, as there are people who still live in the Foymount area, and they certainly wouldn't appreciate such a title). 

Since the exodus of the vast majority of the area's population, many of the building and former station facilities have been sold to private parties. While it's just a fancy at this point, I'd like to contact some of these parties, or the Canadian Forces, and see if it would be possible to play paintball in some of the building/environs.

Here are some things to consider about this idea:

• There are a ridiculous amount of unused building that would be perfect for CQB play, including 65 houses, a school, medical and dental facilities, a recreation room with a gym, swimming pool, general store, post office" (Ghost Town Pix)
• A good location to meet up for those in Ottawa/Toronto and anywhere in between
• Proximity to towns for recreation pre/post games
• Possible danger from buildings in disrepair
• Would require to transport scuba tanks for fill purposes
• Anyone letting paintballers use the building would have to deal with the mess that comes with paint slinging
• A huge part of this would be contact with the Foymount community, and being mindful of their presence

Preliminary plan for how to go about this venture:

• Obtain permission from owner of buildings used
• Contact Canadian Forces and inform them of intent/see if they own any of the buildings still and would be willing to let us use them
• Contact OPP and inform them of our intent
• Ask OPP and Canadian Forces if they would like to become involved in the venture in a formal or informal manner
• Broadcast intent on milsim forums/websites
• Contact paintball fields that may be interested in making this more than a grassroots playing area, although it may be that it would be best to keep it small
• Find a building inspector who would be able to check out any building that would be used

For more pictures of CFS Foymount, check this website out.

If you would like to help make this a possibility or share some information you have on Foymount, please comment or shoot me an email at connor@greyops.net.