On September 12, the Gun Gamer’s SpeedSim Series on YouTube released one of the most honest and brave videos an airsofter could ever make into the wild. The video, which is about an important update on the SpeedSim series and Gun Gamers YouTube Channel, began with co-host Andre’s introduction:

"What’s up, guys? I’m Amy.”

It was a first in the male and cisgender-dominated airsoft community.

There were less than enthusiastic responses, some of which questioned if it was an elaborate prank.

(Source: All Things SpeedSoft On Instagram)

Despite the negativity, Amy has been receiving well-deserved support and encouragement.

The video’s description formalized the announcement, standing by their friend and teammate:

So this video has been a long time coming, but we finally thought this was a good time for it. Enough of the double life, from here on out on the channel, Andre is Amy. Ultimately, this really changes nothing on your end, SpeedSim will continue and Amy will continue to appear on the channel, finally as herself. It's just a change that needed to be made as part of the transition. We support Amy's choice to go forward with the coming out process, and we stand with our friend 100%. - E House, and the rest of Gun Gamers.

A long way from neighbourhood Nerf wars, Amy Rivera now proudly sports Tapp Airsoft and SpeedQB merchandise on Gun Gamers’ YouTube show, SpeedSim. If she’s not working six days a week or tinkering with old and new gear, she spends weekends at River City Airsoft.

Armed with customized colourful builds, and honest to goodness commentary and reviews, Amy Rivera is indisputably a trailblazer on and off the field.

Ms. Amy, good day and thank you for giving us the time to chat. :)

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Popular Airsoft: Not many people know about you outside of what’s on YouTube and other social media. Can you start by telling us briefly about your life outside of airsoft?

Amy: Outside of airsoft, I work two jobs. I work at my mom’s landscaping company where I work six days a week. I also work at my family's airsoft field from Friday-Sunday. Besides that, I usually hang out with the Gun Gamers crew and/or play video games with one or more of the Gun Gamers.

What do your non-airsoft friends and family think of what you do?

Funny enough, most of my friends and family are in the airsoft industry. They know what I do and have no problem with it.

If you didn’t get into this sport, what do you think you’d be doing instead?

If I didn't get into airsoft, I think I would have gotten into producing video game content on YouTube or continuing my tattoo career.

When you started getting into airsoft as a teenager, what was your first impression about it?

My first impressions of airsoft was how realistic the guns looked and functioned and immediately fell in love.

Can you describe to us the evolution of your loadouts?

My loadouts throughout the years started off very similar to most players my age. I had a UTG M14 with a cheap paintball mask and surplus vest. From there, my loadouts became very MilSim. Plate carries and whatnot, then not too long ago I became very interested in speedsoft and my gear slimmed down a lot along with my guns.

 Can you tell us about River City Airsoft?

River City Airsoft is my family’s airsoft field and shop.

Gunsmithing is a highly valued skill that you’ve been successful with. Can you tell us about what made you decide from being a consumer and buyer of airsoft guns to a builder?

Teching on my equipment was very nerve-racking at first, but with the help of my brother teaching me the basics, made it very easy to get into. Then knowing what to look for in good guns helped me learn more about AEGs, but my pistol adventure of learning how to tech was purely on me. Took me a long time to understand the ins and outs of a hi-cap. Now I own 12 of them!

You have a lot of custom guns and builds! Can you tell us about your favourite build so far?

My favorite build so far has to go to my very first one. Going through so much trial and error on making it work perfectly was so much headache and fun all at the same time.

What’s it like being part of Gun Gamers and producing SpeedSim?

Being part of Gun Gamers is amazing. Not only are they supportive of every topic each one of us brings to the table, we also support each other emotionally in times of need. If one of us needs help with anything, there’s no hesitation to help one another out. Producing SpeedSim with my best friend Eric is super fun. We see eye to eye on a lot of things even though we have different play styles and this is super enjoyable.

Can you describe to us your three most favourite game sites to play at?

My favorite game site of all time has to be Insight Interactive. That field when it was still open was super fun. They kept it fresh and fun.

My second favorite has to be TAC City. When I went there, that field taught me a lot about CQB and being quick on your feet.

My third favorite place to play at has to go to my field. I just love our community and field layout something to do for every play style. It’s just so much fun.

Do you have a wishlist of game sites you’d like to visit?

So I actually do have a few sites I wanna visit. First one being HSP Combat Center, then CQB City, Gamepod, and Miami Airsoft.

We’re curious as to how you have a better grip on speedsoft over MilSim. You said you gravitated towards the former for its aggressiveness and skill, but can you tell us more about how this came about?

My speedsoft days came about when I was on YouTube watching airsoft videos as many of us do. I came across a team that unfortunately no longer exists, but their aggressiveness and MilSim style with dye masks just caught my eye because they just had a flow with their team members. I was super intrigued and started to give that play style a shot at my home field and quickly found myself in love with this play style. I still find myself learning new skills every time I go out.

Have you ever gotten trolled by Eric and company or other people in the airsoft community for being a speedsofter? Have you ever trolled back at the stereotyped MilSim-ers?

Oh my gosh yes, the trolling never stops at Gun Gamers. It’s all in good fun, but I rarely troll back. Only certain situations allow me to troll back, but when I do get the chance, it’s usually very funny to watch people’s expressions.

Many players get bored or lose interest in the sport as time passes. What keeps you interested in it?

My interest in this sport continues not only because of the new innovations in the industry, but mostly with how the Gun Gamers crew keeps people engaged and excited to go forward with this sport.

Has there ever been a moment after you got into airsoft when you stopped and realized that this sport could really help people as more than just a medium for entertainment?

So I didn't realize how it could help people until I met Eric when he was still overweight. He started to treat airsoft as his gym and quickly started to slim down. Obviously not with airsoft alone as he did hit the gym in conjunction with airsoft, but that was the point I realized that airsoft could help kids in getting out and playing.

What types of behavior from other teams or players do you most admire?

I admire SYG for their continued support in the speedsoft game. They continue to engage people and teams to get out and give our play style a shot.

It’s amazing and inspiring to see how much more open society and the airsoft community has gotten. I understand why you were uncomfortable with coming out earlier. Can you tell us about any expectations you had when you released the September 12 coming out video? Can you also tell us about any conflicts you might’ve experience since?

My initial expectations were that everyone would unsubscribe from our channel and would ridicule me for being Transgender, but after releasing that video, the amount of support from the Gun Gamers crew and community was just awesome. I couldn't have asked for a better sport to be in. There aren't a lot of conflicts I’ve had aside from my family not supporting my decision. Obviously, I’ve had community members hate, but it rarely happens.

If you could improve airsoft in any way, what would it be?

One thing I would love to be changed is parts support from more companies. More companies need to offer parts for their products. It's such a hassle getting parts for a gun or gear that is proprietary.

Can you describe to us why it’s important for our communities to treat each other equally and respectfully?

If our community doesn't treat everyone with the utmost respect, you are driving new players away because they are different from you. Yes, this sport is very male-driven, but if you treat others with disrespect, you're just creating a toxic community that no one will want to be a part of and you will have no one to shoot at.

To cap off, what’re your plans for the rest of the year and beyond? Do you have any gear upgrades you’re planning, other sites and games you’ll be playing at, and events you’ll be dropping by?

I don't have any plans for the rest of the year besides going to Shot Show again hopefully.

Thank you so much for taking an interest in me and doing a full on interview. I hope I could give more people insight to what I do and what I have been doing all these years!

For more on Amy, check out Gun Gamers on Youtube and Facebook as well as all_things_speedsoft on Instagram.

Photo Credit: E. House