As stated on the beachbody.com site:

“P90X^® is a revolutionary system of 12 sweat-inducing, muscle-pumping workouts, designed to transform your body from regular to ripped in just 90 days. You’ll also receive a comprehensive 3-phase nutrition plan, specially designed supplement options, a detailed fitness guide, a calendar to track your progress, online peer support, and much more. Your personal trainer, Tony Horton, will keep you engaged every step of the way, and you won’t believe your results!”

One of the main selling points of P90X is the concept of muscle confusion. The workouts are intense work each body part daily. After the first month, you are introduced to a new set of exercises so your body doesn’t plateau. This is one of the reasons that many other exercises fail. Furthermore, the program stresses a dietary program. This is the hardest part, really. LOL You may also need to invest in a pull up bar, barbells, and a good workout mat so you don’t destroy your floor. I would recommend hitting up second-hand stores for used equipment. I found barbells for a fraction of the cost of new ones.

So far I am in the middle of my second week.  This program is tough. I would say it’s very difficult for beginners or people who are not in good shape. The AB Ripper X DVD is the hardest for me so far. You do about 350 situps of different varieties. Luckily, you can scale down the intensity of the exercises and work your way up.  Each DVD consists of one hour of non-stop workouts. After two weeks, I am already noticing quite a difference! It’s crazy. The first week I was completely exhausted. This week I have been feeling much better and I am not as tired. My body is starting to get used to it, and I am stepping it up with each session.  The trainer in the video, Tony Horton, is very motivational and likeable. This really helps. It’s like he’s there in your living room. So we’ll see how it goes. I will update this thread as time goes on.

Anyway, I have comitted to finishing the 90 day program. Sometimes I don’t want to do it, because I hate it. But I also love it! … if you know what I mean. So that helps me to turn the DVD player on. I am always very happy after I finish a workout session, and feel like I worked my ass of. I have been told that many people give up within one week. This alone gives me the determination to complete it. Check out beachbody.com for more details.

Grinder, out

On Friday night, Cobra setup camp and displayed their team new team banners, including the Tippmann banners. Our camp looked pretty sweet, complete with popup campers and massive popup tents. The fire was roaring and the team was mingling with players from all over. We were lucky to have Wolf (of Wolf’s Den fame) come down from Canada to play with us. We also had the pleasure to hang out with Camojoe (of Woodsballgear.com) and Fern (of Kobraline or KLAirproducts.com) from Canada. In the wee hours of the night, we had a team briefing and went over the game strategy.

The game was scheduled to start on Saturday at 10am and end at 10pm. It consisted of an estimated 350 players and our side, the Somalis, were outnumbered this time, so the odds were against us. (Which is how we like it!) The game was a recreation of the Blackhawk Down event that occured in Somalia in 1993. The main battles occured in the city field at Tactical Paintball. The main objective was to see if the Rangers could win their all of their objectives and recover the downed pilots. Once this occured, the players would switch sides and become the Rangers and start the game all over gain. Both the Rangers and the Somalis eventually achieved their objectives.

The Rangers completed their obectives faster, and therefore were considered the winners. The Rangers made for a very formidable army. But, both sides played very well and made it difficult for each other to achieve objectives. Furthermore, Cobra was honored to win the Most Valuble Team award and the Most Notorious Player award. We led a lot of pushes and were one of the few Somali teams to use LAW rockets attacks to achieve mission success. In addition, our entire team now rolls with either X7′s, TPX’s or X7 Phenoms and we represented Tippmann proudly!

After the game, there was an award ceremony. Cobra picked up their awards and Conley Shepherd (Joker) also grabbed the mic and announced our Tippmann sponsorship and how happy we were to represent. Overall, this was a great event for Cobra and the start of a great year for our team and our sponsors!

Grinder, out

I am proud to announce that Cobra has signed a sponsorship agreement with Tippmann Sports for the 2010 season! http://www.tippmann.com/usa/teamevents/team_sponsorships.aspx We have always used Tippmann  markers since our team’s inception. We stand behind the Tippmann products and their awesome customer support.

We are also proud to state that the Tippmann X7 Phenom is Cobra’s marker of choice for 2010! We will be rolling with our Phenoms at Scenario games and UWL tourneys nationwide. Check out our equipment page for pictures of our Phenoms. I have also written a review here: http://www.cobrawoodsball.com/reviews.shtml#0

This is one of the biggest games of the year. This game will have over 500 of the best scenario, woodsball, and speedball players from all over the country. Some of the best teams from all over will be present!

This is Tactical paintball’s Biggest Event!! The Tactical Smackdown lll – WE WERE SOLDIERS.

This year the stakes are higher. The Generals Are bigger and the Game is is ALL NEW!!  The Generals are Sean ” Spyro” Riggs of the Texas Based Team Loyalty playing the part of Col. Hal Moore
VS Ben Tippman of BT Paintball as the North Vietnamese Colonel General Nguyễn Hữu An. Yes that’s right! This game will be of epic size and we are opening a portion of the field for this game that no one including the field staff and owners have EVER played on.

Registration package includes all of the following :
Event RegistrationSpecial Event Shirt
Evening Meal
All event air ( to 4500 psi) and co2
1st case of paint
Free camping
Party friday night
Movies
Prize drawing

Cost is 100.00 for everything. This is the best deal going in scenario paintball. Extra paint available at the normal price of 65.00 per case

Prize package is worth Thousands of Dollars Many new markers, tactical vests, masks, and much more. There will be special effects and pyrotechnics throughout the game.

Tacticalpaintball is a 122 acre scenario-mil/sim paintball facility. We are rated as one of the best in the nation!! Free WiFi Free Camping, Running water, RV (dry) slots, Misting tent.

Call today to register 830-540-4200 or log on to http://www.tacticalpaintball.com

At the seventh UWL event on September 12, our team had an absolute blast! We had no idea what to expect, but we were impressed. It rained the entire time, yet the event pressed on. The game was cancelled on the second day because of flooding. So, some teams only got to play once. Regardless, the rain did not take away from the fun. The teams played some hardcore paintball. It was great to meet some new teams and go head-to-head with them on the diamond shaped field. The format kept the game challenging. There are 4 bases, two of them being swing bases. The challenge is keep the flag up on your base as you try to control the swing bases and also pull the opponent’s flag. All of this in 30 minutes. At the end of the game, the teams would come by and chat with us and discuss the fun of the game. This adds the icing to the cake, if you ask me.

Our team did well, we won 2 out of 3 games. We got first place in the Skills Division, but that’s only because no one else entered the Skill Division. LOL. We ended up playing in Open and Tactical divisions, which was fun. Next time, hopefully more will enter the Skills division.

I would also like to mention that the reffing and staff did a great job. The refs were outstanding. The event coordinator (Tom Cole) was out there in the rain and mud ensuring that everything went smoothly. He even tried to move the field when the flooding started. So my hats off to those guys.

All-in-all, I really enjoyed this event and will definitely return. If I had the $, I would attend all of the UWL events. I really hope that this league takes off! For more information about the UWL, go to http://www.playuwl.com/.

Grinder

This design will shoot about 220 feet with a 12 gram CO2 and shoots very well even though the barrel is not that long. It’s a lot of fun to shoot and demonstrate to neighbors. LOL. Anyway, I recently used this LAW at The Raid on Entebbe on May 16, 2009 at Tactical Paintball. I will say this, I was not very effective with it because it was my first time to use one. So, here are some things that I learned:

1. It is very hard to find Nerf rockets in Houston, TX and it’s hard to find them for cheap online. Lucky for me, I found a good source.

2. If you have a LAW rocket, you will get continous requests to go and take out a target. You have be prepared to say “No” if necessary or your current mission prevents you from being sidetracked.

3. Avoid shooting the LAW while running. I learned this pretty quickly. You pretty much have to stop, stabilize, aim and fire.

4. It’s not that easy to shoot a moving tank from 100 feet away. I guess I just need more practice.

5. When you miss a target, be prepared to hide and reload because your target may take you out!

6. Do not drop a Nerf rocket! LOL. You will blow yourself up.

So that pretty much covers it, I think. As I create new LAWs, I will post here and let you know it goes.

Grinder

Some people don’t like this big event because they feel that it’s just a mass of people spraying paint all over the place. Some don’t like that it’s a recreation of war. Some don’t like it because of this and that. But anyway, no has to like this event and I won’t criticize them for it, even though they might stereotype you because you attend this event. It’s not for everybody, and that’s ok. So, why the heck to do I like this event?

Here’s a few reasons:

1. Hanging out with my team. My team travels to this event and camps out for days. Hanging out with my friends and talking nothing but paintball, bar-b-q, beer, campfire, etc. What’s not to like about that? Sure you can do that anywhere. But this event gives me an excuse to do it for a week if I like!

2. Friends. Since my first trip to D-Day, we have made great friends there. Chances are, they will be there when we attend the following year. This is a great place to make friends and network with people.

3. We roll with the 82nd Airborne. This year we are running as Pathfinders. This group falls behind enemy lines and has to be on the move all day long. This is a group that will get into a ton of firefights and has the potential to do a ton of damage. We don’t just tag along with anyone and just start firing into every direction. We try to make a difference. So how can you make a difference in a game with 4000 players? That, my friend, is the challenge.

4. The terrain. The D-Day field is pretty cool. Some players don’t get to see the whole field and remain in one area all day. Pity. There is beautiful terrain out there with rolling hills and man-made paintball bunkers. What a combination. Over 1000 acres, if I am not mistaken.

5. The vendor area. This is a cool place to go checkout some paintball gear and find some good deals on some gear. You don’t see this type of thing at normal scenario games.

6. Props. The D-Day field is loaded with props, military transport vehicles, fast tracks, home-made tanks galore, etc. No other game has such a large array of machinery for game use. Sure, I don’t make it down just for this, but it’s nice to see it.

Ok, I think that’s enough for now. So that is why I like D-Day. Someday I may get tired of it, maybe not. I don’t know, and I don’t really care. My glass is always at least half full. So, I won’t lose sleep over it. But I’ll be there this year.

- Grinder out

Every now and then, I get the “why do you use that marker” look. Some people will think you are a fool for using a specific type of marker. This doesn’t just apply to mechanical markers either. I will start by saying that I don’t believe that the marker makes the player. Definitely not in the scenario world. I believe skill and use of strategy will go a long way. Have you ever seen a player do a lot of damage without a marker? I have. Have you ever seen a player do some real damage with a cheap pistol from Academy? I have. Really, each player should choose a marker based on their play style and tastes, regardless of what anyone thinks or their forum signature states. Forget the norm. I’ve shot many different types of markers. I’ve shot Macdev, Smart Parts, Tiberius Arms, Warsensor, Invert, BT, Tippmann, Bob Long, etc, etc. All are great markers. I don’t judge a player by the marker he or she uses. Everyone has their reasons for what they choose. Those reasons are theirs and theirs alone. As for me, I use a milsim-style marker.

My main squeeze is a Tipmman X7. Some might think that I use that marker to fit my “milsim” style or look. That is not the case. I want a marker that works well in any weather condition, requires little maintenance, doesn’t cost a fortune and can take a serious beating. I prefer to concentrate on scenario game tactics and not have to worry about my marker’s performance or functionality. When I get home from a long day of play, I don’t clean my marker. I don’t hold it and stare at it for hours, and I certainly don’t sleep with it. LOL. Don’t get me wrong, that’s ok if you do, I just don’t.

First and foremost, I play scenario paintball. I play rain or shine, mud or ice. It all works for me. Early in my paintball adventures, I saw countless players stop playing a scenario because of the weather. I knew I didn’t want to be like that. I don’t like the idea of paying X amount of dollars to have to sit on the sidelines. Luckily, my marker works in any weather condition. The simple, mechanical design makes this possible. I did have problems with the original A5 E-grip under wet conditions, but the X7 E-grip has been able to withstand such conditions. Even then, I have a stock Egrip for backup purposes. Just pop a couple of pins and drop that sucker in. The other thing is that this marker can take a beating and keep on keeping on. I don’t have to worry about damaging an expensive, $1000 marker. If I do damage it, it will be cheap, if not free, to repair it.

Another reason I like the X7 is the low maintenance factor. I rarely take the thing apart and clean it. I don’t really have time to strip the marker after each play. The marker is very reliable and requires little maintenance. When I get to a scenario game, I don’t want to worry about a non-working marker. This is not to say that they don’t break down. I know they do. But they are so simple to fix when they malfunction and they don’t require a lot of batteries. Plus, Tippmann customer services is incredible. Their turn-around time is amazing.

Another reason I like this marker is because it shoots well. Yes, that’s right. I know it does not shoot as well as other electro markers. But it does shoot very well. With a Python barrel kit, Lapco barrel and other minor upgrades, my X7 shoots quite accurately for a marker. It shoots fast too. Does it currently shoot 30 bps? No. But every field I play does not allow that. Yes, it does use more air than electro markers. But I really don’t shoot that much anyway. I enjoy trying to make shots count. That’s just my style. I usually have my Egrip set to semi-auto. But sometimes you need a little help and that’s when the other modes come into play. Of course, there really is nothing wrong with shooting a lot of paint as long as you don’t overshoot.

What about the weight of the marker? I hear about this a lot. Well, considering that my air tank is attached to my vest, my marker does not weigh much more than an electro marker with the tank on. Therefore, my marker is actually light in that sense. If I were to put 1000 different contraptions then I guess it could potentially weight a ton. Regardless, I love the feel and weight of the marker.

I am sure I am leaving something out. But in a nutshell, that is why I like my X7 so much.  On the other hand, to those who rock electros and play with good sportsmanship, my hats off to you!!

-Grinder out

Last year, Cobra accepted the responsibility of protecting the terrorist leader and succeeded in preventing anyone from getting a single kill shot on him! We are proud to say that we will once again ensure that history repeats itself, and that the terrorist-thugs slams home yet another victory. So if you think that you have what it takes to stop him, please step up and make it happen! Otherwise, make it over to Tactical Paintball to run with the coalition and give the terrorists hell! There will be plenty of scenario teams to run with or against.

At the Hunt for Bin Laden in 2008, the Bandits from Bandits Splat Paintball flew down from California in full force to help defend the terrorist leader. They will be doing the same this year.

The coalition side will be lead by none other than Greg Hastings. That is correct, I am referring to the Greg Hastings of Tournament Paintball and Playstation fame. He was also on Sacramento XSV. Needless to say, this is gearing up to be the best Hunt for Bin Laden ever!

HERE IS THE OFFICIAL ANNOUNCEMENT:

Come and join in the most exciting and fun role playing scenario around! ITS H4BL09!!! Play with the coalition and track down Bin Laden and his band of no-good thugs, Secure WMD’s, and mount major operations to crush the terrorist threat! OR, Play with the terrorists and dress the part, Conduct hit and run ops, ambush convoys and patrols, send suicide bombers on missions, and drive the infidel from your lands!!! H4BL09 will be bigger and better than years past! More smoke and pyro, more missions, more game props, and best of all MORE PLAYERS!!! So dust off that paintball gear and break out the boots and utes’ ! Its terrorist huntin time!!! This will be one of the most amazing games in US scenario paintball’s 2009 season. DO NOT MISS THIS GAME! HUGE prize package, new sponsors,vendors on site, and an AWESOME PRE-REG PRIZE DRAWING!!! Come out and be a part of the rebirth of epic scenario events in Texas and come sling some paint with your friends. Not on a team? Never played scenario? Die-hard speedballer thats dying for more action? THIS is the answer, More targets, more missions, more fun. Come see what all the hype is about. Texas’ Premier scenario paintball facility. Tactical Paintball.

Tacticalpaintball encompasses 122 acres of pure paintball scenario excitement. With over a dozen large and permanent installations, including a city MOUT site, a close quarters killhouse, large firebase, missile sites, commo sites, a newly opened airfield and much more. Tanks, APCs, FastAttacks, and helicopters!!!! Players Will have a choice of 3 different Premium Paints! This is Field paint only. All Paint will be sold at $65.00 a case at the field on game day.

**EARLY BIRD PAINT DRAWING
Get in the drawing to win 10 cases of paint OR 5 full registrations ( to any Tacticalpaintball event) Or 500.00 cash The winning team makes the choice of what they want. Get ten folks registered in your group before the deadline and your group is entered. Its that easy. Registration is available online at http://www.tacticalpaintball.com.

**For the pre reg only drawing we are giving away:

1 Tippmann X7 marker
1 Scenario Dreams P90 marker

MORE TBA!!!!

This is for the Pre Regs only and will be drawn for at the opening briefing.

Your $100 PREREGISTRATION INCLUDES:

Game registration
All event Air and CO2
1 case of paint
Event Tshirt
Free Camping
Dinner meal Saturday
Entry into the colossal prize drawing
Free play on Sunday after the game
Party Friday night before the game
Free WIFI onsite

Your $150 WALK ON REGISTRATION INCLUDES

Game registration
All event Air and CO2
1st case of paint
Event Tshirt
Free Camping
Dinner meal Saturday
Entry into the colossal prize drawing
Free play on Sunday after the game
Party Friday night before the game

YOU NEED GEAR TO PLAY!?!?! ITS INCLUDED IN YOUR ADMISSION!!!!! BRAND NEW TIPPMANN RENTAL MARKERS!!!!!

MASSIVE PRIZE PACKAGE FROM OUR AWESOME FIELD & EVENT SPONSORS:
TIPPMANN
TACTICALPAINTBALL.com
SCENARIODREAMS.com
OPSGEAR.com
PAINTBALLONLINE.com
SAVE PHACE
SMOKINPRODUCTS.com
TECHPB.com
PINOKIOHOPPERS.com
KOHNSPORTS.com
TIBERIUS ARMS
WEB DESIGN BY PJ
TKO HEATING & AIR
DESIGNERPAINTBALL.com

Tactical Paintball is located on I-10 between Houston and San Antonio Texas @Exit 637 on the westbound side of the interstate. We are also a full service paintball field and proshop. We are open weekends Friday-Sunday for recreational play and groups. We are also open Wendsday & Thursday to private civilian groups. In addition we also are available for closed session law enforcement and military training exersizes. We feature a full force on force 360 degree vunerability environment in our killhouse and MOUT city. We also allow for several special LE requirements such as vehicle deployment of tactical teams, simmunition friendly facility, and night training. For more info on these services or on any of our major event scenario games please contact jtharris@tacticalpaintball.com or 830-540-4200.

HUNT FOR BIN LADEN
TACTICALPAINTBALL
MARCH 14th 2009
Harwood Texas
WWW.TACTICALPAINTBALL.COM
830-540-4200
jtharris@tacticalpaintball.com

Well, there are four main reasons why I purchased the iPhone:

1. I needed a new phone.

2. I liked the idea of having a phone that is also a music player. I already own an iPod, which was given to me as a gift by a dealership when I purchased a car. I got tired of carrying around a phone and an iPod with me everywhere. Plus, I already use iTunes so it made sense to get the iPhone.

3. The applications available for the iPhone are awesome. Many of them are available for free. The most impressive ones are Pandora and Shazam. Those definitely helped reel me in. Pandora is an Internet radio application that lets you pick a song or artist that you like and it will play songs from that artist and also from similar artists and genres. All of this for free! In addition, Shazam is absolutely amazing. It will recognize any song that is playing and tell you what song it is and give you information about the artist. I use this app almost every day. I just used it to figure what stupid elevator song was being played while I was on hold. I also use the Paypal app to send money to people. I use the RSS reader to keep up with forums and blogs; this is very time saving for me. I use the Myspace and Facebook apps to check my pages and comments. I can even remote into another computer while I am on the road. (well, if I pull over) It’s absolutely amazing what I can do with this device.

4. Great looks. The iPhone is beautiful. If I am going to look at this thing all day, I might as well like the way it looks. LOL.

So after using the iPhone for a few weeks, I still think of it as a little bit of a leech. However, it does prevent the need to turn on my PC just to check emails and such…which eventually leads to work and more work. I do love using it though. I am truly connected now. Using the toilet no longer requires a book or newspaper!

The iPhone does have a few shortcomings, in my opinion. Here they are:

 1) No support for copying and pasting text. I could NOT believe that such an advanced multimedia device could not do something so simple. I almost returned the iPhone when I found out about this. There are, however, some tools that help you get around this somewhat. But this feature is much needed. It turns out that this is the top most requested feature for the iPhone, or so I have read.

2) No MMS Support. I can’t freaking send a photo to another phone! I have to email it. Another one that blew me away. There are apps you can install that will sort of help you get around this, but they are not true MMS apps.

3) You have to use a MAC to write iPhone applications. Crap! I want to write my own apps. I don’t own one and I don’t want to use the one at work. Oh well, you can’t win them all. If you want to make money writing iPhone apps, you will need to invest in a MAC.

4) It has a built-in GPS navigation system, but it does not replace a conventional GPS system. It doesn’t give you verbal directions like the conventional GPS does. Maybe this feature will get added eventually.

5) Lack of camera features and settings. All pictures come out blurry if there is any movement. No way to configure anything about the camera.

6) Can’t shoot video. I knew I would not able to do this, but it is still a bummer. There is, however, an application that you can install that will simlate a video camera by taking about 10 pictures, or so, per second. It’s called Cycorder. At the moment, you will have to jailbreak your iPhone to get that application.

There are a few more annoyances, but that’s the main list. Regardless, those annoyances are not enough to deter me from enjoying the use of my iPhone. Lastly, there’s one more thing I discovered: jailbreaking an iPhone. Basically, jailbreaking unlocks an iPhone and lets you install any application that you want. You are no longer tied to the iTunes store. There is a lot you can do once you jailbreak your phone. If you are thinking about doing this, be sure to read as much as you can about it before you jump into it. Ok, that’s all I got for now. I am not an iPhone expert or anything; I am a new user. If you want a real, in-depth review of an iPhone, try this link.

- Grinder out