You really like someone and want to do something unique for a first date. This is a big risk, but you know what they say about not getting the big reward without a large risk. Paintball can be a fantastic time for a first date, but you need to know the girl or guy that you’re taking on the date!
Paintball can make for a good date, but it depends on your prospective partner and what you believe they would enjoy. Paintball can let you challenge each other in the dynamic arena of a casual sport. Paintballing can also lead to dividing you into separate teams during a time you should be forging a connection.
Making a bold choice for your date could bring the two of you so much closer together and be the most fun time you’ve had in years. I personally would love to go paintballing for a first date, but this guide will help you understand what factors to consider for your prospective date. The pros and cons will help you weigh out it’s practical for the girl or guy you’re crushing on.
Would Paintball Make a Good Date?
The short answer is, yes, for someone that loves competitive sport and adrenalin. But conversely, if your date is not very athletic and hates to be on opposing teams, this probably isn’t the ideal situation for him or her.
You could be putting forth the effort to take a big risk, wanting to impress your date and show them you have more to offer than a boring movie or status quo meet-up at Starbucks. You want to throw each other into a dynamic that could bring you so much closer together so much faster.
That being said, it could result in an unforgettable memory or a complete wreck of a date – depending on who you take.
Because of this, I’d like to preface the article with the advice that all this wisdom needs to be filtered through to what you know about this person that you want to take on the date. Synthesize what applies to them and what is superfluous information that doesn’t apply. It will be different for each reader.
First, we will cover the pros and balance those with the potential cons of bringing your date into a paintball tournament, then make a decision on what’s best for your top-game. This leads us into our first section –
5 Pros of a Paintball Date
Although it sounds odd to bring someone you barely know out into the woods to literally shoot at them, we all have our quirks. It may not be the idea which comes to mind first, but for an adventuring heart that loves the rush – this could be the perfect way to forge a new relationship.
#1 It’s Active
Instead of having a passive date like sitting back and watching a movie, or something that doesn’t engage the senses, do something more active! Paintball is not the kind of sport in which you passively sit back and allow things to happen. You’re involved and a huge part of the action.
This can be a light-hearted way to get you connecting and doing something together, instead of having two completely separate experiences in a movie theatre.
Paintball can help you bond, and it will release endorphins. These happy hormones along with Oxytocin are the bonding chemicals that will trick your brain into loving someone even faster. Being on the same team, or even opposites and seeing how amazing the other player does, can be a real turn-on.
Paintball also provides a small hint of danger, which according to most movies and 10 Things I Hate About You, is a strong aphrodisiac.
#2 It’s Competitive
This one will go on both lists! This is where you really need to evaluate what kind of date you’re bringing on this adventure. A little healthy competition is always a good thing. But you’ll want to be aware of how you come off while in a competitive state.
Have enough self-awareness to know if you’re a jerk and all your friends hate you when you get competitive. If that’s the case, have enough brains to not take a person you like out paintballing for a first date. Hide your faults until at least the second date!
If it does work out, it’s fun to see how your partner reacts in a competitive arena. It can be hilarious and have you both cracking up. You’ll see what kind of partner they would be and even have room to exaggerate a little and show your playful side early-on.
If you do well, you may look even more sexy to your potential partner. If you suck at it, maybe consider another sport. Or in that case, make it a light-hearted laugh the whole time for both of you and don’t take it too seriously.
It’s a great opportunity for some serious horseplay. You could really tease him or her and have a fantastic time.
#3 It’s Physical
You’re getting exercise and doing something good for your body. A little sweat never hurt anyone, and you want someone who enjoys being active like you. It’s a twinge of danger without the actual consequences.
There’s nothing better than an activity that gets your blood pumping. The body can even mistake this for loving feelings towards a person and push the romance to brew more quickly and deeper. Setting this tone for the rest of the night will be a great starting point.
If you’re an athlete or want a fit partner that enjoys things like volleyball, gym-time, jogging, etc. then perhaps you’ll love to have a partner that you can go paintballing with. Definitely better than having a couch potato spouse that never wants to move their body!
#4 It’s Affordable
Hey! I’m all for wining and dining a girl, but maybe not one you barely know. This isn’t to say your date isn’t worth it. If you’re interested in him/her then I’m sure they’re sexy, smart, and wonderful dinner company!
But if you’re just at the point that you’re getting to know each other, you may not want to drop $200 for dinner on a stranger. You could risk blowing all your weekend spending cash on a date when there was no connection.
Imagine you realize there’s absolutely zero romantic connection. Like your heart does the opposite of race, and your stomach does the opposite of butterflies. In this case, you may want to save some of your dough.
Opting for paintball should be around $10-20 per person to rent equipment, and you may already have some yourself. It can be a cost-effective way to have some playful fun.
Bringing it back to being an active activity (meaning you’re each involved) compared to a passive activity (when you both sit back quietly not interacting), the activeness will allow you both to connect deeper. You’re saving money and not being passive at dinner which exchanging small talk. It could allow you to open up in the midst of your laughter and jubilee, showing your true self to this person much sooner than if you’d taken it slow.
Save money and connect faster, yes please!
#5 You’ll Learn More About Them
Doing something this unique right off the bat will really show you this date’s true colors. You’ll see if they get upset and ruin the good vibes, or if they can roll with the punches and have fun!
You’ll see a unique layer of their personality, and they could turn out to be much more tactical than you ever expected. You could see their empathy on the field, their hilarious competitiveness, and so much more than if you just asked each other boring questions like your favorite color or favorite food.
You’re in a ‘life or death’ game of sport! This is sure to connect you and at the very least, give you tons to talk about for the rest of your date. You’ll see layers of how they problem solve, deal with others, their confidence in difficult situations, and more.
Seeing them in this new light can advance your relationship faster than taking them to ten movies, guaranteed.
I’m a firm believer in playing devil’s advocate. That is to say, I try to see things from all perspectives. I play out hundreds of potential outcomes, so I’m not surprised by whatever happens.
To understand what I mean, consider the 5 possible cons of taking the wrong person out for a paintball competition on the first day.
5 Cons of a Paintball Date:
Seeing a brand-new partner in an unfamiliar situation can go either way. It could be a tremendous success or an epic fail. Some reasons why paintballing may not be the best option for your date includes:
#1 It hurts!
This is no lie and also the top complaint that comes up in Paintballing and AC tournament forum pages. The impact of that little paint rocket is excruciating to some!
Do you think you’re bringing a fragile girl onto the field that can’t take a hit? Then it’s probably not a great idea. Competitors often have bruising, and some argue that it’s not fun, it’s nuts!
An anonymous poster in a forum said, “If you think paintballing is fun, then you must think root canals are too.” Quite a statement to make against the testaments of paintball’s effects.
Let’s play out another scenario, though. You pick up your sexy date, but they had a crap day. They’re in a piss mood and really need to let off some steam. They’re frustrated, and something passive like a seminar or movie will only have their gears churning when they should be focused on getting to know you.
This is the perfect case to take someone paintballing. They need to be physical and attack something! They won’t feel the pain as fiercely in the same way when adrenalin is pumping. The paintballs won’t be as ferocious but instead will serve as a needed decompression to their bad mood.
#2 It’s Competitive
I told you this would be on both lists. That’s because it is a pro and it’s also a con. It depends on who you’re contextualizing and what you believe they would think of the healthy competition.
Let’s say for argument’s sake that you’re a girl trying to plan the first date. You want to take your new guy crush out, but he gets super competitive. You’ve seen him on the basketball court or football field or just in traffic. You don’t like how he reacts when placed in competitive situations.
If their competitive behavior is more of a turn off for you than a turn-on, you probably shouldn’t put yourself in that situation with them. It’s not really giving your date to put their best foot forward, and it will be over pretty quickly if he’s hitting you over and over with paintballs just blasting you to Saturn. Not cool.
If you feel the competition will only make you further apart instead of closer, skip it. Get to know each other on a deeper level, and perhaps the competitiveness won’t be of consequence in the relationship. If you choose it for the first date knowing that your partner sucks in competitive environments, it will define the relationship.
#3 It Could Friendship Zone You
This is a tentative one, but since it is notorious for being a bro’s game, she may feel left out. Your potential chick may feel that you’ve chosen a date for you instead of her. A woman wants to feel considered.
Because of this, you want to be very wary of what kind of person you bring to paintballing for a first date. Perhaps for a third date, she’d be 100% down! But she’s a lady who’s used to being courted by respective men, and she wants to feel like you respect her too. This may mean a nice dinner, or it may not.
You’ll need to be able to read what is appropriate in his or her eyes and what they expect from you. Paintballing may lead your date to believe you only see them as a friend, or you want her to be one of your dudes. That won’t appeal to many ladies, especially on the first date when she wants to feel like a prize to win over. She doesn’t want to chill at the bar with your buddies every night, let alone right out of the gate!
Paintballing could be a deep-into-relationship territory activity, or you run the risk of friend-zoning yourself. Know your audience and proceed wisely.
#4 No Alone Time
Another hang up that many discuss when considering paintballing as a first date is that you really won’t get any alone time.
You could make a point to bond about the game afterward, but during the game, you’re going to be running, jumping, hurdling and sliding. There will be people everywhere, so you probably won’t get a lot of romantic moments just the two of you.
This may not ignite the kind of romance you had in mind.
Your date may also feel like they’re out with your group of friends and you don’t really want to get to know her/him. The buddies are constantly interrupting you, and your date doesn’t feel like a priority.
Your guys are ragging on you whenever you try to be sweet to her or make a move. You may feel watched and like you can’t escape all the pressure! Perhaps one of the guys is a sleazy friend that’s trying to put the moves on your crush!
These are all warnings to consider, and perhaps you can still make that connection-time if you’re very intentional about it on the field. However, a date just the two of you may be a better option for a first date. This is a time to get to know each other and seep into the heart of things.
My advice here would perhaps be to start with the paintball but make a dinner plan afterward once you’ve done all the exercise and want to replay your amazing adventure.
If your date is down for a round of paintball, I say go for it! Just be sure you’re setting aside that alone time for later. They’ll feel special, and it will let them know it’s not just a friend zone situation. You’re ready to make a move and demand that quality time that you both need to truly begin something romantic.
#5 It’s Not Fancy
This is the kind of reason you’ll need to weigh against what kind of person you’re taking out. Again, I’m the kind of girl that would love paintballing for a date! I don’t need the fancy dinners, especially not before I am certain if I want to talk to your for an extended period of time! I’d rather see if the connection is there first.
But many girls want to do their makeup, do their hair pretty, smell nice for you, and not roll around in the mud. This is fair, and you should accept this. If you have a sporty or adventurous girl, I say just surprise her and see what she thinks!
However, in the case of a Glamizon-Barbie, I wouldn’t assume that she will enjoy paintballing. She might, but I wouldn’t assume it. In this case, I would recommend you do not surprise her but instead consult. Ask if she would be into paintballing and really listen for her honest opinion. You’ll hear any hesitation in her voice if she’s not sure in which case, she’s probably not tough enough to be shot at.
So Is it Worth it?
I think it’s all about open communication. Know enough about the person to know if they’d want to be surprised with a physical sporty date or if they’d love to be surprised.
A little mud never hurt anyone, and it may be just the kind of playful activity that really gets your heart pumping and your romance brewing!
Contextualize all of this knowledge I’ve just bestowed on you and decide if you have a date who would hate paintballing, love it for a first date, or perhaps save it for down the line.
They could love the date just not for the first date. Understand your crush and know if he or she would be much happier with a cocktail and your company rather than fierce competition and bloody knees.
It’s not for everyone, and you’ll both be happier for recognizing that.
Happy sporting and enjoy being back in the dating game. You’re a catch! Knowing this will go a lot further than whatever kind of date you take them on. Your confidence in yourself is what will make them fall for you, so never place the activity above what you have to offer.
Paintballing could be a magical time with the right person, so I hope you save it for someone worthy of you as a partner. You know what they say. Love is a battlefield, right?