Ballahack Airsoft

Ballahack Airsoft is an outdoor field in wooded country. Many buildings are spread across the site, some two or three storeys high, alongside shipping-container structures, bunkers, vehicles, props and lighting that are part of the scenery. Games mix movement through the woods with fighting in and around the structures. Boundaries are marked with yellow caution tape. A large white three-storey house on the property is off limits, and players keep at least 15 m away from it. Wildlife such as snakes, turtles and squirrels lives on the field and is left alone.

The games are story-driven and run by marshals. A skirmish day follows a set format: check-in and chrono, a general briefing, warm-up games, then several missions of about an hour each with a lunch break in between. Scenarios use respawn points and medics, who revive team-mates with a 60-second tap and, unless briefed otherwise, only on ground floors. Players must attend the briefing for each game to take part in it.

Open skirmishes run every Saturday and Sunday and on selected Fridays, rain or shine. Players are brought off the field when lightning is close. The minimum age is 10. Every player and observer needs a signed digital waiver, valid for a calendar year and signed by a parent or guardian for under-18s.

Groups can book party packages for eight players, with or without rentals, for birthdays, group outings or team-building, or hire the field for a private day with staff running the games. Military and law enforcement units can ask about training. Visitors can look around without playing, escorted by staff, except on event days. The field also hosts larger ticketed events, and play can be booked online.

Replicas and protection

Replicas are chronographed on every visit, including on both days of a weekend, with limits set in joules. HPA and gas rifles, gas or CO2 revolvers and non-blowback pistols are tested with 0.40 g BBs, and HPA regulators may be fitted with tournament locks.

• Pistols and shotguns: 1.49 J, no MED on semi, 15 m on full auto
• SMGs, rifles and LMGs: 1.64 J, 7.5 m MED on semi above 1.49 J, 15 m on full auto
• DMRs (qualifying semi-only replicas with a long barrel): 2.09 J, 15 m MED
• MMGs (qualifying replicas such as the PKM or M60): 2.09 J, 23 m MED
• Bolt-action sniper rifles: 2.81 J, 23 m MED
• No replica may fire more than 25 BBs per second

Inside buildings all replicas are on semi, full auto is not allowed within 15 m and blind firing is banned. Only bio BBs may be used. Eye protection must be fully sealed with a factory gasket, rated to ANSI Z87+ and held tight by a strap. Mesh goggles are only allowed over glasses.

Face protection depends on age:

• 10-11: full-seal goggles with nose, ears and mouth covered (a full paintball mask is recommended)
• 12-15: nose and mouth cover
• 16-17: mouth cover or mouth guard
• Adults: lower-face protection is recommended

Pyrotechnics are not allowed apart from Enola Gaye EG25 and WP40. Improvised grenades, 40Mike launchers, binary triggers and shields are banned. Replicas need a retained barrel bag in the safe zone. Every player carries two high-visibility dead rags of at least 30 x 30 cm, and red headwear is not allowed.

The rental set consists of an electric replica, one spare high-capacity magazine, a tactical vest and eye and face protection. BBs are bought separately. An all-day air pass keeps HPA tanks filled. The warehouse holds the toilets and the pro shop, which sells replicas, parts and gear as well as BBs, batteries and gas, and also opens on Fridays. Cards and contactless payments are accepted. A stocked fridge is available, though bringing food and drink is recommended. Gear can be left at outdoor tables or in covered staging pods, or locked in the car. The car park is part of the no-fire zone.

Closed-toe shoes, durable clothing and a change of clothes for the drive home are advised. Music is only allowed through headphones on the field. Filming is allowed within the field's media rules, and patches or clothing with hate symbols or explicit content are not permitted.