Master Blasters (paintball team)

Master Blasters is an American tournament paintball team based in New York, with origins dating to 1986. The team was a prominent competitor during the early woodland tournament era and has continued competing in traditional 10-man paintball, including the International Classic Paintball League (ICPL) and World Classic Paintball League (WCPL). [1][2]

Master Blasters won the 1989 North American Championship at Skirmish USA and the 2022 WCPL Open 10-man season championship. Longstanding captain Kevin Donaldson was also involved in the discussions that led to the establishment of the National Professional Paintball League (NPPL) in 1993. [3][4][5]

History

Formation and early competition

Master Blasters traces its origins to 1986. The team became associated with New York's Hudson Valley region, particularly Newburgh, where it maintained a longstanding training programme. [1][2]

During the late 1980s, Master Blasters competed in major woodland paintball tournaments in the eastern United States.

In 1989, the team won the fourth annual North American Championship Tournament at Skirmish USA in Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania.

The event was organised through a partnership between Pursuit Marketing Inc. (PMI) and Skirmish USA, with substantial prize support.

Master Blasters finished first ahead of Florida Bushmasters and Gang Green. The result was documented in the December 1989 issue of Paintcheck magazine and subsequently in a historical account based on the archives of PMI co-founder Jeff Perlmutter. [3]

National competition (1990–1992)

Master Blasters continued competing in major American tournaments during the early 1990s.

In 1990, the team won an indoor Arenaball tournament held at Survival New York. Paintball journalist John Amodea, who participated in the event, recalled the victory in a historical retrospective. [4]

In May 1990, Master Blasters competed in the inaugural Paintcheck Five-Man tournament at Skirmish USA.

The competition attracted 57 teams and included leading organisations such as the California Black Diamonds, Lords of Discipline, PMI Piranhas and Wild Geese.

Master Blasters finished third, behind the PMI Piranhas and Lords of Discipline. [4]

The team's continued involvement in national competition placed it among the established American tournament organisations during the transition from 15-man woodland events to five-player and ten-player formats.

Formation of the NPPL

Master Blasters was represented at the November 1992 meeting in Chicago that helped establish the National Professional Paintball League.

The meeting brought together representatives of leading American paintball teams, equipment manufacturers, tournament organisers and publications.

Its purpose was to address concerns about tournament entry fees, prize money, officiating and competition rules.

Kevin Donaldson was identified as a representative associated with Master Blasters and Bo Peep and was appointed to the rules committee alongside Bob Long, Al Podufaly and Skip Swift. [4]

The meeting resulted in proposals for a new professional tournament structure, including standardised rules, prize requirements and a national competition schedule.

The NPPL began organising its inaugural season in 1993. [4]

Continued woodland competition

Master Blasters remained involved in competitive woodland paintball following the early NPPL period.

The team's later activities included traditional ten-player events, regional competitions and woodland tournaments.

In April 2015, Master Blasters achieved a sweep of the divisions at an Ultimate Woodsball League (UWL) tournament held at OXCC in Maryland.

Three squads competed under the Master Blasters name:

Master Blasters OG won the Tactical 10-man division.
Master Blasters Black won the Open 10-man division.
Master Blasters YG won the Open 5-man division.

The results were reported by John Amodea in Paintball Media. [6]

The use of separate squads allowed the organisation to participate in several tournament formats.

Return to classic professional competition (2019–2021)

Master Blasters was among the established historical teams invited to participate in the NXL Classic competition programme introduced in 2019.

The league's professional 10-man division included other longstanding teams such as the Ironmen, Aftershock, All Americans and Farside. [7]

Master Blasters competed at the inaugural ICPL Windy City Classic in June 2019, finishing 13th among 20 teams in the professional division.

The team subsequently finished sixth at the 2019 Florida Open. [5]

In January 2020, Master Blasters finished eighth at the ICPL Sunshine Classic.

At the 2020 Windy City Classic, held at Badlandz Paintball Field near Chicago, the team finished fourth among 20 professional teams. [5]

The team continued competing in the ICPL during 2021, appearing at the Old Bay Classic, Iron City Classic and Windy City Classic. [5]

In contemporary ICPL reporting, Master Blasters was also identified by the abbreviated name N.Y.B.. [8]

2022 WCPL championship

Master Blasters enjoyed a successful season in the World Classic Paintball League during 2022.

The team won the Open 10-man division at the California Classic in February, finishing first among 14 teams.

It subsequently finished fifth at the Florida 10-man Classic before winning the ICC/Montressor Classic in July, where 18 teams competed in the Open division. [5]

Master Blasters also competed at the Gateway Open in October, finishing ninth.

The team secured the 2022 WCPL Open 10-man season championship with 420.23 ranking points.

All-Americans 2 finished second with 273.21 points, followed by Lockout on 197.65 points. [9]

The 2022 championship demonstrated the team's continued competitiveness more than three decades after its earliest documented major tournament victories.

Later competition

Master Blasters remained represented in classic paintball tournament records following the 2022 championship.

The team was registered for the 2024 St. Louis Classic in October, although the available record does not establish a final placing. [5]

Notable players and personnel

Individuals documented with Master Blasters include:

Kevin Donaldson – Longstanding captain and manager who represented the team during the early development of the NPPL.
Rob Navas – Veteran player associated with Master Blasters and documented as a general at the 2015 Cousins Paintball Big Game.
James "Howdy" McGuffog – Longstanding paintball player and former member of Master Blasters.

[1][4][10][11]

Selected tournament achievements

Year	Competition	Division	Result
1989	North American Championship, Skirmish USA	Main tournament	Champions [3]
1990	Survival New York Arenaball tournament	Indoor tournament	Champions [4]
1990	Paintcheck Five-Man, Skirmish USA	5-man	3rd place [4]
2015	UWL Maryland	Tactical 10-man	Champions, Master Blasters OG [6]
2015	UWL Maryland	Open 10-man	Champions, Master Blasters Black [6]
2015	UWL Maryland	Open 5-man	Champions, Master Blasters YG [6]
2019	ICPL Windy City Classic	Professional 10-man	13th place [5]
2020	ICPL Windy City Classic	Professional 10-man	4th place [5]
2022	WCPL California Classic	Open 10-man	Champions [5]
2022	WCPL ICC/Montressor Classic	Open 10-man	Champions [5]
2022	World Classic Paintball League	Open 10-man	Series champions [9]

Media coverage

Master Blasters was featured in the 2021 Fox Nation documentary Paintball: America's Secret Pastime.

The documentary followed Kevin Donaldson and members of the team as they prepared for the Windy City Classic.

Donaldson, a former vice-president at American International Group (AIG), discussed leaving his corporate career to pursue paintball professionally.

The production also documented the team's training sessions in Newburgh, New York, and the relationships between its longstanding members. [1][2]

The programme introduced the history of Master Blasters and competitive woodland paintball to a wider American television audience.

Legacy

Master Blasters is notable for its longevity in American competitive paintball.

Its 1989 North American Championship victory places the team among the documented leading competitors of the early woodland tournament era. [3]

The involvement of Kevin Donaldson in the discussions preceding the establishment of the NPPL also connects the team to the development of organised professional paintball in the United States. [4]

The team's later success in the UWL, ICPL and WCPL illustrates the continuation of traditional woodland and mechanical-marker competition alongside modern tournament formats.

Its 2022 WCPL Open 10-man championship provides a documented example of competitive success across widely separated periods of paintball history.

References

External links