By the time I had changed from Comet to Boomer it was apparent that there would only be one more game for the day. So I decided to go 'steppin.

I'm getting married in a few months, and a large of that means you go to tuxedo stores. And at a Gingis Formalwear I found a used blue vest and bow-tie which I couldn't help but get. It works for Boomer. I decided to wear it at the Sam's game. I mean, why not? Go formal, ya know.

I had also decided to change paintguns to my Phantom. I got a blue acid-washed phantom with Boomer in mind, so there you are. Center feed body, a full VL-2000, full pods and a fresh air tank. What else could you want? (Besides lots of water?)

We started at the far fort, and I realized on the walk to the barrels that I had left my armband with Comet. Oops. But I figured, and the referee I asked did as well, that I wasn't about to be confused for a member of the white team any time soon. But, if they asked I could not lie. That was fine. I didn't intend on being in a position like that.

Blue team just mowed down the barrels like a Lawn Boy. The barrel fort, the new obstacle, was more difficult, but we did it. Nobody believed it was clear until two guys with semis and myself "cleared" the fort. We took a breather before going headlong into the prairie that leads to the close fort. I was just walking before I realized that there were easily 50 guys following me. I stopped, they stopped. I moved, they moved.

"We're following the elephant." Boomer? An elephant? I know I'm not the most svelte of bunnies, but come on! So I walked into the brush with Rookie trading point with me. We did a lot of "Figure 8" movements throughout trails before we got within breathing distance of the fort. Rookie and myself agreed that the best way to get the fort, from where we were, was through the dense canopy of trees.

Remember, this is a hot and humid day. So the woodlines are just sweat houses. Also remember that Boomer is not camouflage by any stretch of the imagination. So, picture this (because I didn't have a ref nearby to take this picture). Rookie, in camouflage and black, crawling on the right side. Boomer, a bright blue bunny, wearing a tuxedo vest and a bow tie, crawling up the left side trail. Both signaling, using the radios, and otherwise being silent.

The punchline is we managed to sneak up on a small bunker with guys in it and take some out! I was even shooting the Phantom offhanded, for a change. The white players never saw or heard us coming. The remainder of he blue force had either flanked behind the fort, around the side, or otherwise surrounded it. After some shooting my Phantom was experiencing loss of velocity. But I used it to my advantage, by lobbing balls just over the fort wall I managed to eliminate at least one player with a headshot. Those just feel SO good.

Blue had set up for the endmove on the fort. There was a gun coming out of a window, and guns on the hill blocking our path. One player made a run for it, and attracted several of those barrels. That was my cue, and I broke cover and made it flush to the castle. My teammates were thundering the side with paint, inches from my mask. And the referees were yelling "5 minutes left!" No pressure.