Several years ago, something that had been talked about in paintball circles for years finally came to be - a Paintball Hall of Fame.

There are so many people who have contributed to our sport, to our industry, people without whom it is safe to say that paintball would not be what it is today without their contributions, that many felt, for a long time, that we needed a collective way to show our thanks.

In 2017, that goal was realized with the first set of inductees.  Since then, the Hall of Fame has inducted numerous people every year, with this year's class  recently posted to the group's Facebook page, which you can find here.

You'll find lots of familiar names, maybe even learn a little bit about paintball's history that you didn't previously know.  And that's a good thing, because that history is responsible for where the game is at today.

One interesting thing that I noticed is that an awful lot of Hall of Fame inductees have played or are playing in WCPL events.

If you think about it for a second or two, this makes eminent sense, as most (if not all) of the current list of inductees hail from the first few years of our sport, playing and getting into the industry in the mid-80s through the early 90s.

Woodsball was what drew them in, Woodsball was what they played, Woodsball was how they made a living, Woodsball was where they innovated and it was Woodsball that inspired them.

Now that Woodsball is being revived through the World Classic Paintball League - where else would they go to play for an authentic, original paintball experience?  I don't have to answer that, do I?  I'll answer anyway.  They'd go to WCPL events to play.  And they do!

Below is a current list of Paintball Hall of Fame inductees (sourced from the Hall of Fame Facebook page).  There are currently 46 of them.  A few, sadly, have passed and are still sorely missed.  Their names are marked out in italics below.  Of those remaining, WCPL attendees are marked out in bold.

Now here is the cool thing about this list:  If YOU attend a WCPL event (one of which is coming up real soon The Southern California Classic at Ambush Paintball Park February 18th & 19th and YES, there is still time to register!), there is a good chance that not one, not two but several Paintball Hall of Famers will be in attendance, and we're sure that they'd be happy to meet with you, talk to you about paintball history and then SHOOT YOU IN THE WOODS!  Because while they may have been around for a while, believe me, they still know how to play!

Think about participating in a WCPL happening.  They're like no other paintball events anywhere else.

PAINTBALL HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES 2017 - 2022

2017

SAL BRIGUGLIO

BAMBI BULLARD

DAN COLBY*

BOB GURNSEY

MIKE "BLUE' HANSE

TOM KAYE*

JIM LIVELY

BUD ORR*

2018

SAM CALDWELL

KEVIN DONALDSON*

FOREST HATCHER

DEBRA DION KRISCHKE

RYAN KRISCHKE

DAVE MASSEY

2019

DAVE BELL*

JUVY BOUCHER

RENE BOUCHER*

DEAN DEL PRETE

WAYNE DOLLACK

MIKE GRUBB

LOU GRUBB

PAUL SATTLER

2020

GIOVANNI D’EGIDIO

TRACY HATCHER

RUSS MAYNARD

BILL MILLS

DAWN MILLS

FRED SCHULTZ*

DENNIS J. TIPPMANN, SR

DENNIS TIPPMANN, JR

BEN TORRICELLI

BONNIE TORRICELLI

2021

JERRY BRAUN*

ROCKY CAGNONI*

KEN “HOLLYWOOD” GILDER

CRAIG MILLER

TIM MONTRESSOR

GLENN PALMER*

TIM SCHLOSS*

2022

ROSS ALEXANDER

JIM ANDERSON

THOMAS GHEE*

RANDY KAMIYA

RENICK MILLER

ROBERT “ROSIE” ROSE*

DAVE RUDIG*

You can currently register for the Southern California Classic and the Panhandle Paintball Classic at www.pbleagues.com;  registration for the New York Classic will be opening soon.

And remember, also, that you don't need to be playing just to hang out and have a good time!