SIEWERS RECAPS FRANCE MILLENIUM EVENT
The first European Millennium Series event of 2017 is over. The event was held in Puget sur Argens, an area near the city of Nice in the South of France. Typically this event is a classic, sunny event with a beach side vibe to the area. This year, that was not the case!
I started my venture to the event just 16 hours after getting home from the NXL Las Vegas Open. With just enough time to do laundry and re-pack, I headed to the airport for a 6AM flight to Frankfurt, Germany. The adventure started early as I walked in to the airport to find a 3-hour delay and was re-routed on an 11AM flight. After two stops, I finally arrived in Frankfurt a full day and a half later. I landed just in time to meet all of the guys on Comin’ At Ya, a DYE factory team and my team for the year, and jump in the car for a 9-hour drive to the event. Needless to say, caffeine played a major part in my ability to play over the weekend!
After all of the travel and a chance to have a short practice with the team, we were ready for the event. What we weren’t ready for was the torrential rain! The event had the most severe rain I have ever played in over my 15 years of playing paintball! The only up side to playing in the rain is that the other team is just as disoriented as you are. Overall through the prelims, we went on to finish 2-2 and unfortunately did not move on to Sunday’s quarterfinals.
It’s a bit cliché to say “we beat ourselves” because that seems to be the excuse of every team after a loss, but I honestly believe that was the case at this event. Comin’ At Ya has new players, a captain, a coach and owners that all have input on how the game should be played. A small clash between any of these opinions can easily cause a little confusion in the game plans or cause players to second guess their role on the team. Unfortunately, the only way to fix it and perform at the next event is to learn how to play together and to buy into the team’s game plan. So, whether you’re going into an event as a mercenary or building a team, it’s up to you to find your role and do it the best you possibly can! - Greg Siewers #14 of Los Angeles Ironmen
