In March I posted the Florida Terminators’ Bushmaster pictured above, which was one two Bushmasters I picked up from Robert Turner.  When I purchased Rob’s two Bushmasters, I asked if he would be selling another paintgun I saw he had posted a photo of, a Minimag with a camo anodized Smart Parts accessory kit.

Rob said he would be selling it and gave me a shot at it for a decent price, which I considered but ended up passing on.  At the price he had offered it I was sure it would sell quickly but had already purchased too many paintguns I knew I would end up keeping for the month.  
Rob listed his Minimag on mcb and AO with even more accessories that I expected.  It sat unsold for another month and I kept checking it but I guess the camo didn’t appeal as much to others.

After that month went by I message Rob again and he showed me some patches he dug up as well so I offered his asking price if he included the patches.  He agreed and wrote me back, “The camo spoke to ya! Most everyone likes the flashy colors but not camo.”

After receiving the Minimag package in from Rob I realized he sent a bunch more paperwork and memorabilia than I expected.  A few of the unique pieces that Rob included in the package were his IPPA card, his MSPA card, a business card for Skeeter Gordy of Laser Dynamics and Proline, his NAPRA paperwork and more. I started asking Rob questions about some of the stuff and he replied with, “hard going back 20+ years, but let me see if I can give you a timeline…”

Back and Front side of Rob’s 1993 IPPA membership card.  Rob’s member number is 6105.

Rob’s timeline was pretty comprehensive and brings up a lot of fields, tournaments and teams I didn’t know much about. 

Robert Turner first paintballed in 1991.  Rob writes, “I decided if I played 10 times I would buy a gun.” After playing three time Rob ended up purchasing his first Bushmaster.  “On a computer training trip for work, I bought the black bushmaster out in San Jose,California at [TAPS’ indoor field],” He explains.

Every couple months in 1991 Rob played on and off at the Arkenstone Paintball field.

Rob was definitely hooked by 1992 and on a company trip up in Nashville he visited the Masters.  He recalls, “[While] staying with my brother over the weekend, I went to the 1992 International Masters (Jim Lively productions) and got the 92 Masters patch. I also bought a little red bushmaster complete with the 12 gram adapter for my wife.”

In 1993 Rob and his wife started on their first team, Dragon Clan, out of Arkenstone Paintball in Georgia. Turner writes:
“We were playing fairly regularly and asked to join a new team called the Dragon Clan up at Arkenstone, and we bought a pair of F2 Illustrators. Dragon Clan was a second team for the field, (their A team was named No Quarter), and we had 3-4 couples on the roster. [While on Dragon Clan we] traveled mainly in Georgia, but also over to Alabama for some local tourneys on the Mid South Paintball Association tour.

 

 

While playing on Dragon Clan, Rob and his wife were responsible for referreing once a month. This would likely have been 92-93. 
Rob writes, “Part of being sponsored [on Dragon Clan] was the responsibility to Ref one weekend day a month. During this time, my wife and I went to Disney World for 4 days, then went to NAPRA [(North American Paintball Referree Association)] training in Zephyrhills, Florida on the way home to Georgia.”

Around 1994 the Dragon Clan was loosing steam and Rob began trying new fields in Georgia, including Paintball Atlanta and Wildfire Paintball. Rob remembers:
“[In] 1994 I started playing quite a bit with 2 personal buddies and we stopped playing with the Dragon Clan, as the team became less active.”

He continues, “We started branching out a bit, going to other fields [including] Paintball Atlanta and Wildfire Paintball, and a small strip mall indoor paintball place near my house. During this time [our group] took first place in a 3 man pump tournament at Paintball Atlanta and then took 2nd place in a 3 man semi/indoor tourny at Wildfire Paintball. Met a couple of other guys and decided to make a team and go to the [1995 (?) Splat 1] Indoor National Championships just for grins and giggles…”
At the Splat 1 Indoor National Championships Rob and his team played as Fire and Ice.

Around summer of 1994 Rob made the step up to an Airgun Designs Minimag which he purchased  from “the airsmith named Tony at Paintball Atlanta. They were the Atlanta Blue Team that had been a pro team since the 80’s and somewhere in this timeframe changed to Team Xtreme. They were changing over to cockers. The minimag had camo rail, barrel and maybe trigger frame, whispering death exp chamber and the Airgun Design logo bottom line asa.”

Rob next year started off rough, as he ended up getting divorced from his wife. 
Turner recalls, “In February, [we] went up to the Indoor National Championships near Knoxville as a 5 man team called Fire and Ice. Since me and my 2 buddies had played together a couple years, we made a good team core.  The rest of the other guys had played with us a few months.”

Fire and Ice did alright for a new team, taking 17th out of around 40 teams.
Rob says, “Only one other team from the Atlanta metro area did better than we did, and most all of the teams in the top 20 had been playing together for years! About mid-way through the tournament, I tore a ligament in my thigh and had to quit playing for the remainder.”

Describing the Splat 1 Indoor arena, Rob writes, “The Indoors were held in a horse arena I believe. The fields were in the bottom and then around the top floor of the arena, there were all kind of vendors selling everything paintball imaginable. I believe that was when PTP introduced the Micromag, which was almost too tiny by the day’s standards… I found all kind of camo gear for the Minimag. I bought the bottom line asa, the shoulder stock and the sight rail.”
It was at this tournament that Rob had the sight rail of his Minimag engraved by Proline employee and Laser Dynamics operator, Skeeter Gordy.

“Skeeter Gordy was there with the debut of his computerized laser engraving machine. I had the camo sight rail engraved with my name and my post divorce indian name, “loneeagle crynomoor”  I [also] met many celebrities like Tom Kay and Bud Orr [at Splat 1].”

Upon his return to Georgia from Splat 1, Rob and his Fire and Ice team were approached by the owners at Paintball Atlanta:
“After we came back to Georgia, the owners at Paintball Atlanta asked if we would like to be on a new second sponsored team they were forming, so we played there on a team that was named Atlanta Reign.”

Playing with Atlanta Reign, Rob participated in the Mid South Paintball Association. He writes, “We traveled mainly around GA playing local tournaments, venturing once up to Chattanooga and then Nashville.”  

Unfortunately Rob’s tournament career ended later on in 1995 as his car died. “My car died, and I was too financially strapped to play, so I retired.”

After 1995, Rob took a few years off from paintball.  He writes, “Most of [Fire and Ice] went on to be picked up by a local field as a second team (practice fodder for their semi-pro team) and became Atlanta Reign, which then became 2Xtreme, but that was after I left them… My divorce and “car death” made paintball too expensive for a couple years…” 

Thanks to Rob Turner for the Camo Minimag, great timeline and spectacular memorabilia.

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