(Where's the photos? - Sorry guys, it was literally raining so much that I didn't dare take the camera out of the bag, and to be honest the rest of the gang were feeling a bit too miserable to pose!)

Despite the atrocious weather conditions - heavy rain which was forecast to persist all day - I was quite looking forward to my first visit to this airsoft site near Matlock. I had trawled through their photo gallery and liked very much what I had seen, and their web site seemed to tick all the boxes by way of giving the impression of a well organized and experienced field management.

As usual, actually finding the site proved a little tricky, and we drove past the entrance to it and had to backtrack and gamble that an anonymous looking farm track was actually the site access! It's a growing impression of mine that anyone associated with running an airsoft site is bereft of the skill of good signage! (Laughingly, the one directional sign marking the entrance was a small arrow pinned to a post, but this was being blown around and around in the wind like a Catherine wheel - where it was supposed to be pointing was anyone's guess!)

First impressions
The track from the main road to the site area itself was a rocky and bumpy 'cow track', and our overloaded car scrapped and scratched itself all the way down a windy and narrow path. Finally reaching the base area was a relief in two ways, ending as it did our rattling drive, but also we were very pleased to see that quite a few other dogged airsofters had braved the weather and there were a good number of cars already parked up.

The safe zone/base was a small circular opening in the otherwise densely wooded surrounds. The first thing we noticed was the apparent absence of any site facilities whatsoever, the 'HQ' comprising of two small canvas tents! Players were huddled - quite pathetically - under these shelters as the wind and rain buffeted them from all sides. One small garden gazebo tent acted as the 'mess hall', with a single wooden bench for all to share, while the larger canvas shelter was the 'office', come shop, come field kitchen!

Briefing and organization
To me, the initial briefing sets the tone for the rest of the day, and my 'spidey senses' started tingling right away when a very softly spoken chap skipped through what must have been one of the shortest safety briefs that I have ever witnessed, while players at the edge of the huddle continued their chatting! I realized then that I had been somewhat 'spoilt' with the two site managers that I had experience of so far. Both Shaun of South Yorkshire Airsoft and Razor of NSC are 'mouthy' characters (no offence guys, it's meant with love!) and they do not stand for anyone who does not pay strict attention to the mandatory pre-game lecture.

Please remember that we are talking about a 'safety briefing' - I am not being petty when I emphasise this failing at 'First & Only'. I realize that there were probably a lot of regulars and that 'informal' is probably the site 'style', but with so many very young players there on the day I personally don't think there is any room for compromise when it comes to this aspect of the game.

The 'mission' briefing was likewise 'short and sweet', though the backstory was interesting enough. Today we were to play out an imaginary clash between the forces of North and South Korea - very topical.

If you go down to the woods today, You're sure of a big surprise.
So, off we tramped into the woods, two straggly lines of soggy airsofters making our ways to our respective regen points. Already the ground was getting soft and muddy, and even through the closely packed trees we could feel the rain hammering down in ever increasing torrents.

We were split into an attacking and defending forces and pointed in the direction of the opposition and summarily told to 'go get 'em'.

And thus the mayhem began...

Woods are terrific things. Good woodland can give the impression you are almost anywhere - from the jungles of Vietnam to the forests of Eastern Europe, and in this 'First & Only' Matlock did not disappoint. Their woodland is as lush as I have ever seen and it was big - very big, in fact here is where the problems started.

There were two issues that plagued my friends and I, our lack of knowledge of the site and it's layout, and the rather disorientating effect of flat terrain and tightly packed trees. There was little natural variation to the actual land at Matlock - no hillocks or depressions - and all the trees as far as the eyes could see in one direction looked pretty much exactly like all the trees in another direction!

Were you to loose contact with the battle, as you do if you try a wide flanking manoeuvre, or you have to return to regen, then you had a real problem relocating the battle again. Particularly if they fire fight has moved on from where it was when you were last involved.

Soon the woods seemed empty, and you found yourself stumbling around in thick undergrowth looking for your team mates. Stopping and listening for the distinct noise of AEG fire was very much hampered in this case by the racket of torrential rain as it clattered down on the canopy above you, and when you did come across another member of your team your query about 'which way to the front' was inevitably met with a confused shrug!

The whole situation started to become farcical - at least in my case - when I accidentally found myself in the opposing team's regen area by mistake, having wandered in completely the wrong direction looking for my own regen. I was shot from all sides, repeatedly, as I tried to make my way back out again!

A silver lining?
Not everything was bad news. When I did manage to make contact with the enemy I was very pleased with the performance of my Kalash AK74. On the occasions I could get a clear shot through the maze of trees my AEG shot far and with accuracy (and I haven't even installed the new Prometheus barrel yet). Though the price of this was the additional weight I had to lugg about, and I did at times envy my team mates who mostly went for shorter, lighter AKs.

On one particular occasion I had a wonderful experience where the trees just seemed to open up before me and there, in the distance, was an enemy player framed perfectly through windows of branches. I took aim and let loose a stream of BBs and covered his side and back. At first he did that 'you didn't really see me' freeze that some players try on - but I knew I had plastered him. However, luck was on my side for once and standing right behind him was a Marshal whom I assume (I couldn't hear what was said) politely and gently asked my target if he was going to 'take the hit'!

I do find that it's the younger players who try on this ruse. You hit them and they become frightened rabbits in headlights - one can only assume that what is going through their mind is 'if I don't acknowledge he hit me he might think he missed'. Unfortunately, this ploy is exactly what leads to over-kill and magging - where, through frustration, you hose your target with superfluous BBs in order to emphasise the hit.

Of all things, your AEG performing correctly is a key aspect to any skirmish outing. At least this element didn't disappoint - despite being soaked through, dropped and muddied. I actually had to scrape out mulched leaves and mud from the muzzle after one comical fall, but the beast still went on serving BBs quite happily.

In summary
There was a few good things that came out of the day, principally the team spirit of Team AKA. I was very proud of my mates who came through the day's experience with a very mature and very philosophical attitude to the event. Summed up it went 'if you don't try these these things you don't know'. Other satisfying aspects of the day were my Russian wet weather suit - which was greatly appreciated - and my HotCan self-heating meal pack. Both served to make the unseasonably cold and wet day more bearable.

However, 'First and Only' Matlock was not for us. We had all picked up on the subtle little quirks of the site and it's foibles just didn't sit right with the communal team ethos about airsoft and what makes a good skirmish. But, to be fair, we were not the only ones who were critical of the failings on that day, and the attitude of a few can be summed up by the frustration of one player who commented: 'I've come to shoot people, and NOT for a stroll in the woods!'.

Whether due to the horrible weather, or the disjointed game play, or both, some players decided to vote with their feet and left during the lunch break. Reluctantly, Team AKA decided to do the same (the reduced numbers making it even less likely that you could find a 'needle in a hay stack').

I don't like giving any site a panning. I hugely respect any person or group of people who decide to put all the effort into making a site and running it. But at the end of the day running an airsoft site is a business and if it doesn't provide the service you expect then you just go elsewhere. As my team mate Dewey said, this would be the 'First and Only' time for us at this site.

'First & Only' Matlock woodland site - assessment:-

The negative

> Non-existent facilities
> No map of the play area and it's landmarks
> Skant and under-stated safety briefing
> NO CHRONOGRAPHING
> Too far ranging play area under the circumstance
> Games were too long
> 'Suprise' floating regen areas
> Devoid of navigation way points

The positive

> Lovely natural woodland (thickest I have seen)
> I particularly liked the clumps of thick ferns (sniper heaven)
> Site did offer a 'meal deal' with a burger and canned drink
> Very friendly staff

Personal positives

> Team spirit really has come together
> My Kalash AK74 performed faultlessly and accurately
> My Russian wet weather over suit was a blessing
> I think I have finally cracked the fine art of packing (didn't forget anything)
> My HotCan self heating meal was fantastic

Personal negatives

> Still don't have a 'fogless' googles for heavy rain days
> Had to revert to borrowed mesh goggles
> Still not happy with my boots - still uncomfortable
> The Team needs to sort out a comms system as a priority


'First & Only' Matlock - Site rating:

Facilities:
Organization:
Game scenarios:
Marshaling: *
Safety: *
Site builds (bunkers, etc):
Friendliness:

* Marshalling and safety were both marked down as there was no chronographing

Related links:

> 'First & Only' web site - Matlock woodland section
> 'First & Only' Matlock photo gallery

Recce: First & Only Airsoft woodland site, Matlock, Derbyshire, UK

Having broken the ice with my return to skirmishing with my visit to NSC this month, I fully intended to go again as soon as I could. I don't have to wait long though, as it turns out that the next Team AKA outing is to First and Only Matlock Woodland on Sunday 6th June.

View Larger Map

This is the first time we have visited this particular site so it's time for a bit of a virtual recce. Fist stop is the site web pages of course, and as usual I am particularly disappointed that First & Only is one of those sites that chose not to put up a good diagram or map of the game area. People like to know the configuration of a site, see it's facilities and check out the lay of the land. But there you go.

The saving grace here is that First & Only do have a nice photo gallery and there are some very impressive shots of their woodland and bunkers. I was excited to see that their woodland was mainly coniferous, which makes it w very different proposition from the deciduous woodland at NSC. Farmed fir woodland tends to be more densely populated, with less undergrowth between the columns of firs and is also more shaded.

Above: First & Only has certainly gone to lengths to provide an emmersive experience, this bunker looks excellent! Source: First & Only Airsoft

So while the trees provide shade, cover and do provide good opportunity for camouflage usage they can be more conducive to faster movement than mixed bush and deciduous tree woodland. Plus, I like fir trees!

The look of the site itself gives me great hope for the forthcoming mission. From the set-piece construction - like the bunker - it is obvoius that a lot of care and thought and work has gone into making an interesting game area and that bodes well.

Chosen team loadout: Russian Flectar-D

> Link: First & Only Airsoft - www.firstandonlyairsoft.com
> Link: First & Only Airsoft Forum

Finally, back in the saddle! After a miserable start to the year where illness has prevented me from taking part in *any* airsoftng at all, I made my return to skirmishing at NSC Airsoft.

The day started well as we journeyed up to the North East – NSC is near Durham - as the weather promised to be ideal, it was dry, slightly overcast so not too bright and no wind. The BBC had forecast sunny intervals; so all seemed to bode well.

A snipers day
When we reached to site my companion and I took one look at the wonderful foliage and trees of this little woodland site and turned to each other as we noted the lack of any movement of the foliage and said ‘it’s a snipers day’!

There was zero wind, and Mark’s smile said it all - being as he had brought his sniper rifle - as he looked at me like I was a sheep being led to the butchers shop. It was absolutely no surprise then when players started setting up that there was a excited huddle of snipers around the chrono - your could almost hear the metaphorical sharpening of knives.

AEG grunts like myself could only look on nervously.

Meanwhile back at the ranch
One initial disappointment was the depressing amount of vandalism that had taken place at the site since my last visit. The local urchins (why aren’t these kids in Afghanistan?) had taken much glee in wrecking and setting fire to the ‘village’ in the quarry.

My heart goes out to all the NSC members who put so much time and effort into their build days and try to make their site an interesting and fun site only to have their work trashed by a bunch of cretins.

Razor et al were sick at the mindless vandalism, but were philosophical, as they had also just created some excellent new trench systems that provided nice deep fire pits.

Incy wincy Spider…
Moving on, the morning’s games were informal ‘ice breakers’ with minimal rules other than ‘go out and shoot people and enjoy yourself’. These less structured game formats, with their simple objectives, were great for getting everyone warmed up, but especially useful to get the brace of first time players that we had up and going.

There can be nothing worse for a newbie, already nervous about ‘da rulz’, to have to remember complicated tactical and strategic orders and procedures on top of everything else. And as it turned out all the new guys lapped up this fast and furious baptism and were eager and enthusiastic players.

In truth, the more experienced players seemed happy to let these newbie’s do a lot of the heroic running around while they hunkered down and found their angles or – in the case of the snipers – scampered about in the undergrowth like the little creepy crawlies that they are!

I love the smell of Fogtech in the morning
One element of the first half of the morning was the lovely weather, and this soon took its toll as the furious fun caused those with plastic goggles to suffer from fogging. One guy who was next to me looked like he had a Turkish sauna going on inside his Bolle 500s.

I was using my new Tokyo Marui Pro Goggles for the first time and so I seemed to fair better than most. Don’t believe the hype, they will fog eventually. But with the addition of some FogTech and by using the build in exhaust fan I faired better than I ever have and at no point had my vision completely obscured with condensation (as has happened in the past with even my Bolle X800s).

We all felt sorry for a couple of the new guys who had decided to wrap up (presumably for some protection) – one actually wearing a leather jacket! I don’t think they will do that again, and I for one advised one of the initiates to bring a canteen of water with him the next time…The poor guy was mafted!

Then it all went pair shaped...For me!
I had an absolute ball in the morning. Having just returned to aisrofting after a long spell of illness I promised myself I would take things easy, but this was hard to do when the games were just so exciting. Everyone was throwing themselves into the games, and as it turned out the challenge of pitting ourselves – the grunts – against the excellent snipers got the brain working as well as the legs!

This didn’t stop ‘Spider’ (resident sniping aficionado) from taking me out with – what I thought – was the most amazing headshot. I knew he was lurking, and knew roughly where he was, but his Ghillie suit hid his precise position and all I could do in the end was keep popping out from behind my cover to lay down a stream of auto in the hope I would keep his head down…But…

-- THWACK! --

One single shot, right in my forehead – he even managed to hit just above my TM mask so it caught me right on the top of my unprotected head!

Kudo man, kudos!

And as far as I heard, all the other snipers were having just as much ‘happy hunting’ on that morning!

Above: My JG BAR 10 springer - never used, but NSC's sniper action made me think that maybe should dust this aquisition off and give it at least a one try (otherwise sell it and make some space). Mind you, I have to ask myself - do I *really* want to try and take on some of those sniper guys at NSC at their own game. Maybe not! LOL

It’s a bit hard to explain why you can have fun by having someone else playing a great game – but the way I look at it the best games are those fought against great opposition, and the marshals had made sure both teams were very well balanced, with newbies and veterans alike spread between them.

But just as things were going so well, I started feeling a bit knackered and suddenly began to feel my absence from the game catching up with me. And if to add insult to injury that’s exactly when the pitter patter of the rain started…

Pissing on our bonfire!
Yes, the BBC had got it wrong (again), and as if from nowhere a torrent descended down on us and literally poured water on our fun and games!

The combination of tiredness and wetness brought the pussy out in me and I had to beg off (a big thank you to Mark for his understanding as he drove me home early).

Well, I only got a half day, but what a half-day it was. In particular the first of the day’s games – defending the quarry – ranks as one of the most fun games I have ever played, so I wasn’t too disappointed as we trundled off home. The day broke the ice and has got me back into playing again for the first time this year.

All in all it was an excellent return, made all the more enjoyable because of the friendly and enthusiastic people at NSC Airsoft. The only real disappointment was that I didn’t get to try out all my different bits of new kit or take as many pictures as I had intended to. But hey – you can’t have everything!

I’ll end this little report by thanking literally everyone who took part in the proceedings at NSC on my visit. From the marshals, to my team mates, to the opposition and even all the new guys – absolutely everyone played their part to the full to make it a cracking (half) day for me.

Cheers NSC!

Above: 'Spider' - sniper extraordinaire - helps 'Pinkie' with his comms set up - NSC is that sort of place, everyone just lends a hand and is happy to do so.

--------------------

Da Linx:

> NSC Airsoft - Elemore Lane half way between Pittington and South Hetton (A182), near Durham.
> NSC community forum - join in the fun! (Registration required.)
> My 'NSC photo Album' on Flickr

Featured items:

> FogTech anti-fogging juice - At Airsoft World (UK)
> Tokyo Marui Pro Goggles - At ZeroOne (UK)

(Not my video - but this gives a good idea what to expect at NSC!)

Well it's been a while since my last airsoft outing. But - happily - I am now beginning to feel that I have got over my health problems, and with the weather improving as well it looks like I will be back in action next month.

My team mates have been visiting Phoenix Airsoft - in the Sherwood Forest - and have been telling me some very good things about their woodland site (Phoenix also have an urban and CQB site too). It's apparently a very friendly site, with imaginative and challenging game formats.

Having decided to get back in the saddle, so to speak, it only remains for me to put together a suitable loadout - Russian themed of course!

What's quite exciting about this mission is that I have the chance to finally complete a full loadout to my satisfaction. So far I have collected together several only partially completed loadouts, and so I want this return to airsoft with a satisfyingly comprehensive loadout.

I had an idea, right from the outset, that I wanted to collect four different Russian style military loadouts, matching four different types of AEGs representing the AK family of rifles. Here are the loadouts I envisaged:

• CQB - black 'Bekas' style uniform with short 'Beta' AK
• Spetsnaz - Russian 'Tiger' camo with mid-length AK (AK104)
• Assault - Flecktar-D camo with full length AK (AK74M) & grenade launcher

However, over and above these loadouts - loosely based on modern Russian Army uniforms - I also wanted to have a loadout that represented the transition from the Soviet era to the new Russian Army. The main items in this loadout would be the Russian 'birch' camouflage Bekas BDUs and wooden furnitured AKs - my AKS74U and my CYMA AKM.

So, for the Phoenix mission I have several things to do; I need to have my CYMA AKM repaired and downgraded (as it's a bit hot), I need to acquire Birch Bekas in XXL, I need a full set of my team badges, a pair of new boots and a new gun bag. My old cheap one from Wolf Armoury having come apart at the seams - literally!

A batch of nice metal AK47 mags would't go amiss - UNCompany of Hong Kong have a box set of 5 King Arms hi-caps that would do very nicely. But they also have a very cool sound activated electric driven 1000 round dual AK mag that would keep me well supplied with BBs all day!

I have my new Tokyo Marui Pro fan googles in black, to which I'll be adding neoprene balaclava for protection. This will give the black balaclava look of Russian special forces - but I am definitely going for protection over authenticity with this loadout.

> Link to Phoenix Airsoft

It was great to get back with the lads for a Team AKA outing. This mission was to South Yorksire Airsoft and their 'Battle Isle' themed event. There were some worries that this event might end up being a wash out, as the weather forecasts during the previous week had predicted very heavy rain, but as we got closer to the day this was downgraded to heavy showers and then to cloudy with occasional showers.

So, having packed our wet weather gear just in case, we crammed the four of us into Dewey's Beamer and tootled off to SYA (although it's getting to the point where we need a team van to transport our kit comfortably!)...

'Battle Isle' - Rise of the Hay Bales
We arrived at South Yorkshire Airsoft in good spirits, mainly because we had read on the site forum of a new format that Shaun (site fuhrer) had devised where the camp had been divided up into a number of small 'islands', separated by the roads which were now 'rivers'. Joining each island to the next was a imaginary series of bridges (hay bales with tape strung between them).

Above: Yellow team squad take one of the bridges leading to their main objective. This was one of the highlights of the morning session, as there was some excellent teamwork and mutual support involved in this action. Excuse the shaky photography at this point, as I was under fire and snapped this on the move.(Click on photo for larger version and additional description.)

This was a really cool idea, as it focused the teams on advancing on and capturing these hot spots. Additionally, there was the chance throughout the day to 'blow' particular bridges to stop the enemy advancing or retreating!

On top of this there was a plot line centred around to defence or attack of an imaginary regime and, in particular, it's Prime minister. Red team were assigned defence of the PM and his nation, and Yellow team were to be the rebel contingent. Throughout the day Shaun updated the teams with new objectives depending on the success or failure of previous missions, and there were a few surprises thrown in - like covert 'chopper' landings to keep the rebels on their toes.

Above: 'Battle Isle' mission map. Black lines are rivers, 'B' marks a bridge crossing. Click on map for larger version

In game - how did the format work in practise?
There was quite a mix of regular and first time players on the day, and for a big site like SYA this meant there were a lot of problems with navigation. Despite furnishing all players with maps, newbies were taken by surprise by the sheer size of the playing area, and as usual this led to some groups getting 'lost' or disorientated.

A proportion of players found that the designated bases for regen were too far apart, and the long walk back took far too long to complete. This meant that in order to gain a head of steam to undertake a large scale attack - say, to take a bridge - there were some long waits while enough players accumulated to make an effective push.

Some of the younger players grew frustrated by the periods of waiting while numbers built up - but once these bottlenecks were taken there was plenty of action on the 'islands' themselves.

However, a great many players did recognize that for a site the size of SYA a mobile regen (maybe in the form of a forward command post) or Medics would have helped to keep the action flowing.

Communications - the perennial bugbear
In a game where command orders and changes to orders are a central theme, communications are absolutely crucial. Yet, with so many first time players on the field there were not enough radio comms available and because new orders were posted at the [distant] regen this led to a great number of misunderstandings where players in the field were not privy to the latest changes in orders.

Team AKA made a whole-hearted decision to - finally - get our radio comms sorted. Once again, we found we got split up and couldn't find each other. Also, screaming tactics at each other from a distance isn't exactly a good thing when the enemy are within ear-shot! So the coming month will be one of organizing our comms kit and practising.

Because of this general breakdown in communications, Shaun wisely modified the format in the afternoon session, bringing the two team regen points closer to the action and issuing the team orders himself to groups of players as they waited in regen. So, in effect, he acted as commander in chief to both teams (with his marshals radioing back to him the progress of objective missions).

Conclusion
The biggest surprise of the day was how the weather changed. From a very autumnal grey British day - which is actually ideal airsoft temperatures - the weather completely changed in the afternoon to quite a hot summers day, complete with blue skies and beating sun!

With the newly modified format the afternoon games were a lot more flowing and cohesive, and objectives were understood and achieved with less fuss on both sides (so nice call SYA). There were some terrific 'house to house' battles, and everyone pretty much stuck to larger groups - there was no room for lone wolves on this day.

The ranging distances involved in getting from 'A' to 'B' (having to take the long way via the chain of bridges) combined with the rising heat to wipe a lot of us out by about 3 o'clock. It grew harder and harder to mount effective pushes as the old legs turned to jelly and the sweat poured down our brows.

Above: The long trudge back to the safe zone at the end of the days play.

When 'Game' was eventually called everyone was pretty much beat - by the temperatures that is! And there followed a slow mass trudge back to the safe zone by a pose of the tiredest looking airsofters you've ever seen!

Overall the day was declared a success and much fun, and with some of the bugs ironed out it's looking good for the second half of the two part themed event (scheduled for next month). Well done to the organizers, marshals and or course all the players who did their part to make it a memorable days airsofting.

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly...

> Good: The sense of achievement we got taking a bridge under fire (team work rocks!)

> Bad: When some of our hard won ground was immediately lost due to a 'misunderstanding' concerning ground which the map had designated 'out of bounds' - but wasn't (apparently)! :(

> Ugly: Dewey's very manly falling over when he found a hidden divot - the girly screech didn't do his image any good either! LOL

Usefull Links:-

> South Yorkshire Airsoft
> Team AKA
> Milgeeks Flickr album of the 'Battle Isle' mission
> South Yorkshire Airsoft Flickr photostream