Find Bob’s Paintball Creator’s Memorabilia page on facebook at:
https://www.facebook.com/paintballcreatormemorabilia
Bob Gurnsey, the creator of paintball, is starting to go through some of his personal collection, which are essentially the remaining National Survival Games archives, and offer these items for sale to the public. Bob’s items have been stored away for the past 25-35 years and survived the NSG fire and several moves.
Over the past few months I’ve been talking with Bob on the phone and trying to help him with various questions of value on some items and he’s been telling me endless stories relating to the items. After each of these conversation I’m just blown away by the memories he shares, from what he (and NSG) had to stand up against to keep paintball moving forward in the 1980s and the massive production numbers of the NSG Splatmaster they produced during that time.
Listening to many of Bob’s stories I’m starting to learn about the virtually forgotten contributions of National Survival Games to paintball and just how much recognition NSG deserve for over a decade of work and innovation to the sport and the remarkable achievements they accomplished. Hearing Bob recount the major to the minuscule details and his perseverance to keep moving forward, blow after blow would make anyone enthusiastic to learn about NSG.
And what better way to learn about the beginning of the game, and exactly why Bob is “Paintball’s Creator,” than by reading an article published in the September 1992 issue of Action Pursuit Games.
In this issue, APG published the first of an excellent two part interview with Bob Gurnsey by Editor at the time, Randy Kamiya. In an email from two years ago, (February 4th, 2013), Randy wrote me regarding this interview:
“[Bob Gurnsey and I] were at Randy Baxter’s place in Knoxville [(Splat 1 Paintball)], TN. Bob McGuire was shooting a video for his show. Russell Maynard, Dave “youngblood” De Haan, Bob Gurnsey, and I made the [interview] tape in my hotel room after I took everyone out to dinner. Bob said it was the first time anyone had ever asked him to tell the complete story of paintball. ”
After talking to Bob today I dug out those two issues and scanned the articles. I’ve included the scans from the September issue, which covers the planning and carrying out of the first game of paintball. The second portion of Randy and Bob’s interview was printed in the October 1992 issue of APG and will be posted next week. It covers National Survival Games after the first game of paintball.
This article is especially relevant at the beginning of Bob opening up his archives because it explains exactly why Bob is “Paintball’s Creator!”
And now that Bob is offering what is remaining of his National Survival Games memorabilia I hope we can hear some more of those stories.
From what Bob and Tina “Golden Girl” Ruzzo have mentioned there will be a gigantic amount of items being offered for sale which will range from books, to patches, to Splatmasters and to some really exciting and historical one of a kind items.
With the help of Tina and Drum Taylor, these pieces will fall start popping up on the Paintball Creator’s Memorabilia facebook page, Mcarterbrown.com and an ecommerce site that Bob and Tina are working on. These pieces of paintball history from NSG and GZ will be available in all different prices ranges (depending on the items), and whether you want an unsigned patch or a signed side cocking Splatmaster there will be something for all those interested.
I’m excited to see some of these items unearthed and read/hear Bob perspective behind many of the pieces. And for some of the one of a kind items or signed pieces he will even provide Provenances / certificate of authenticity.
So regardless of whether you use facebook, take a look at Bob and Tina’s page at https://www.facebook.com/paintballcreatormemorabilia and watch the neat items that Bob digs up and the stories they bring with them.
And the video Randy Kamiya mentioned was filmed the weekend he interviewed Bob was also recently put on youtube by Bob McGuire. It’s embedded above, along with a few other videos with Bob telling various stories.
