Spokane Airsoft

So you're interested in coming out to play at a Spokane Airsoft event but you're not sure what to wear. Well we've put together this handy guide to what the fashionable airsofter will be wearing this season (and the next and the next ...).

Footwear. We ask people to wear good, sturdy, comfortable boots. You want to wear military issue jungle boots, go ahead. You want to wear hiking boots, well, that's fine too. Just as long as they've got good traction, are comfortable and have ankle support then you're good to go.

Now if you think it's a hassle that we ask you to wear boots I have a story for you ... I watched a kid step on a board with a nail at a skirmish once. That kid was wearing tennis shoes. If he had been wearing boots that experience would have been a lot less painful.

Eyepro. No eye protection and you don't step on the field, period. See the separate section on Eyepro for details on our requirements for eye protection on the field.

Headwear. We recommend that you wear a hat on the field. Not only is it going to offer some ballistic protection from getting hit upside the head by BBs, but in the summer it keeps the sun off your head and in the winter a knit wool cap can trap your body heat and help you keep warm.

Gloves. Ever get shot in the hand? Hurts doesn't it? Gloves can offer a minimal amount of protection from BBs but in the winter can also keep your hands warm.

Uniforms. Here's the sticky wicket. You have ACUs, Woodland BDUs, Flecktarn, Russian Spetsnaz, Tri-Color Desert and Olive Drab to name a few. But which one is right for you? Hey, we're not here to tell you can't buy Swiss Alpenflage ... if you want to buy it go ahead. However at our MIL-SIM events only specific types of uniforms will be acceptable for wear. No ... we won't ask you to buy a set of Italian Digital Camouflage you might wear once.

Here are some uniform suggestions based on outfits that fit into a number of MIL-SIM events we have hosted in the past.

Olive Drab -- Olive Drab (aka OG 107 for you history buffs out there) Commonly used for Opposing Force (OPFOR) loadouts, as well as third-world country depictions (In this case, a Cuban Regular during Operation Urgent Fury).

Olive Drab is also most commonly associated with period re-enacting such as for Vietnam re-enacting (Namsoft).

The Olive Drab uniform will also be the standard uniform for the Spokane Airsoft Club Opposing Force Team (aka OPFOR).

Woodland Battle Dress Uniform -- The Woodland BDU was for many years the standard uniform for both the Army and the Marine Corps. You can pick up a used set of Woodland BDUs at most any Army / Navy Surplus Store for a steal.

Asides from being easy to obtain because of the abundance of these uniforms, Woodlands are used as a general utility uniform for MIL-SIM current events scenarios as well as Cold War period skirmishes.

MARPAT -- MARPAT is the US Marine Corps' Battle Dress Uniform, introduced as a replacement to the Camouflage Utility Uniform (Woodland Camo, see above).

Most commonly worn locally by members of two Eastern Washington squads, the Spokane DevilDawgs and the TC Jokers.

The MARPAT uniform is versatile in that it used in local MIL-SIM events by players who are trying to do a Marine impression in specific or when doing a general US Military impression.

ACU -- The Army Combat Uniform is the successor to both the BDU (See above) and the Desert Combat Uniform (DCU) worn by the US Army during the 1980s and 1990s.

Most commonly worn locally by members of Spokane-area squad TF-Delta.

The ACU uniform, like MARPAT, is commonly used to represent both a specific US Army impression as well as a general US Military impression.

These are suggestions based on the more popular flavors of camouflage in our community. In general we tend to organize MIL-SIM events around uniforms that help the most people possible get more immersed in their roles. If 20 guys have ACUs and one guy has Desert Camouflage Chocolate Chip pattern chances are we're going to set up one team to wear ACUs.