Despite a week of thunderstorms and an impending storm the next day, Saturday proved to be a perfect day for airsoft at South Jersey CQB & Tactical. The field was just a few miles inland from the "Jersey Shore" communities damaged by Hurricane Sandy last year. The competition was Pararescue Jumper inspired scenario with a team of "PJ's" on a mission to assault an OPFOR compound and rescue a kidnapped VIP.

The course was challenging and required teamwork. At the first two stages, one teammate was the designated shooter who had to hit two 4" targets positioned somewhere downrange. The other teammate was overwatch guarding against a live OPFOR player tasked with taking out both players. The teammates switched roles at the next stage and if either was hit, both had to respawn from their previous STAGE while the clock was ticking.

The first stage was a long-range challenge with both targets and OPFOR in a 2-story tower (try hitting two 4" wide steel targets from 100ft away while somebody is shooting back at you.) This was the waterloo for many of the teams who didn't have the accuracy to take out the targets or the threat in a timely manner.

The second stage was a CQB challenge inside the maze-like interior of the village complex. The teams had to again find their defensive shooting position and take out two 4" targets, easily lost in the clutter of the shanty-town's backdrop. As soon as they reached their position, an OPFOR player would jump out and engage the pair from less than 30ft away.

The final stage was a breach and clear with 3 colored balloons representing OPFORs holding a 4th balloon hostage. The teams had 5-seconds to rush the room and take out the 3 OPFORs without popping their OBJECTIVE. The color of their NO-SHOOT balloon wasn't disclosed until just before the team were signaled to enter. Speed and control were key to this stage.

After the competition a raffle was held with the proceeds going to the family of PJ, a member of field's home team, HALO-O.C. PJ's family home was destroyed by Hurricane Sandy. The prizes were donated by Evike.com and Moondog Industries.

FINAL STANDINGS

1st Place: Reptar 01:00
2nd Place: Murika 02:12
3rd Place: A.O.D. 02:13

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Moondog is the founder of Moondog Industries and New York's definitive guide to airsoft: NYCAirsoft.