Paintball F8MOUS

Quarantined
over 4 years ago – Wed, Apr 15, 2020 at 10:45:36 PM

Hello from the quarantine bunker.

We wanted to check in real quick to let you know that everyone on our end is healthy and, after some initial disruptions, work is continuing to move forward on F8MOUS.

For the time being we've had to abandon the small office that was serving as combination studio/photo archive and shift to remote work, but fortunately at this point we have digital files of most everything and we're well into the creation of the book itself.

Shortly before the world shut down, we sent out the 160+ "lost rolls" of film to be developed -- but with photo labs now closed or operating with skeleton crews, we're still waiting to get all the photos back. We'll have more updates on these soon though, as well as (hopefully) a first look at some of the photos themselves. 

We've been working with a few potential printers, all of which have suffered production delays due to the shutdown, but they're hopeful they will be back up to speed within a few months.

As of right now our goal remains to have the books printed and shipped to backers by October 31.

At times like this, paintball can seem small or trivial -- but it can also feel like a lifeline. One of the best parts of this project has been reconnecting with old friends, and plugging back in (even if at a distance) to the larger paintball world. It's good to have company, now more than ever.

Stay safe,

—Christopher Hass, Chris Dilts, Dan Mouradian, Dan Napoli and the rest of the F8MOUS team

Update on release date + 2 big announcements
over 4 years ago – Fri, Jan 10, 2020 at 09:31:56 PM

Apologies to everyone for the recent radio silence—we’ve been heads down at work on the project for a while, but we wanted to take a quick break to give you an update on timing, as well as two big additions to the book.

The response to F8MOUS has been incredible, and it's grown into a bigger and more important project for all of us than we'd ever expected. It's also made us determined to produce a book that's worthy of your support.

Over the past months we've reconstructed digital files for thousands of pages of P8NT Magazine, re-edited more than 100,000 words of articles and interviews, and created high-resolution scans of more than 10,000 photos. We chose to make this book because of how incredibly rich, exciting, and important this era of paintball was, and there’s no shortage of material to draw from.  

But as the book has grown in size and ambition, it's become clear that our original production schedule was simply too short. In speaking with potential printers, we realized we’d have to make a choice between cutting corners and getting books printed sooner, or waiting longer for higher production values—including better paper and printing techniques, higher resolution photos, and a book that will hold up under heavy reading and last for years to come.

When we began this project, we knew there would be hard choices we'd have to make along the way, and we agreed from the beginning that our guiding principle would be to make whatever decisions were best for the book itself.

Given that, we've made the hard decision to delay the release of the book until the fall of 2020.

We plan to wrap production and send the book to the printer by June. It will likely take two to three months for the printer to produce and deliver all the books to us, at which point they'll be packaged up and shipped to backers by October 31 at the very latest.

Everyone will have a chance to update your shipping address or adjust your order before the books ship. And if for any reason you prefer a refund to waiting, just email us at [email protected] and we'll take care of it right away.

We intentionally chose a new schedule that we believe is achievable—no one wants there to be any additional delays from this point on.

But we also made a decision from the outset to invest all of the money raised back into the production of the book itself. That we reached (and then exceeded) even our stretch goal means that we can now announce two big additions: 

1) We're expanding the book to 400 total pages. There is simply too much good material, and we don't want to leave any of it out. By adding pages, we'll also be able to include some of the unpublished pieces we've uncovered, including:

• An unpublished, early profile of Renick Miller, Bad Boyz Toys and the Chicago scene, written by Matt Marshall and with photos by Chris Dilts.

• An unpublished interview and photos of John Gregory, founder of JT USA and one of the true godfathers of tournament paintball, conducted in San Diego just a few months before he sold the company and disappeared from paintball.  

2) The Lost Film: In going through the photo archive, we recovered more than 150 rolls of film that were shot during the final part of the 2004 season but never developed. Not only are these photos unpublished, they've never been seen by anyone—even us. The effort and expense of having this film developed is considerable, but we've decided to move forward with processing all 150+ of these lost rolls so that they can be included in F8MOUS.

These are the final P8NT Magazine photos ever made, and they're from a crucial point in this era of paintball: the moment NXL players and teams were first allowed to compete in the NPPL Super 7, when the best players in the world were able to go head-to-head again after having been split apart for more than a year. 

We hope you'll agree that the chance to add more pages, more photos, and higher production values is worth the wait.

Moving forward, we'll provide updates on the status of the book at least once a month between now and when backers receive their copies. And as always, we’ll be available to answer any questions you might have.

We recognize that any delay is a disappointment, and we appreciate your patience in waiting for the book to come together. In actuality, this is a project that began all the way back in the summer of 1998, and F8MOUS represents the culmination of a long and winding journey for all of us.

We want this to be a book you're excited to hold and experience not just when first receive it, but also five, ten, and twenty years from now.

Thanks again for all your support,

—Christopher Hass, Chris Dilts, Dan Mouradian, Dan Napoli and the rest of the F8MOUS team

Info on BackerKit surveys + ordering additional copies of F8MOUS
about 5 years ago – Wed, Sep 25, 2019 at 08:34:06 AM

This post is for backers only. Please visit Kickstarter.com and log in to read.

1,111 Thank You's + Next Steps
about 5 years ago – Fri, Aug 30, 2019 at 09:25:00 PM

This post is for backers only. Please visit Kickstarter.com and log in to read.

Tell Your Friends: F8MOUS Ends Tonight
about 5 years ago – Thu, Aug 29, 2019 at 10:20:52 PM

It's been an incredible ride, but the Kickstarter for F8MOUS ends tonight at midnight (11:59 p.m. Central to be exact). 

We'll have more updates soon just for backers, but for now we have one last favor to ask: Let your friends know that today is the last day to order their copy. Take a few seconds to share this post on Facebook:  

What matters most to us is that everyone who wants a copy is able to get one. This will be a very limited edition book, and the print run will be set based on the number of orders we receive by midnight. 

So tell your friends: It's ride or die time.

—Christopher Hass

P.S. In case you haven't already seen, earlier this week we crossed the $50,000 mark for funding—which means we'll be increasing the page count of the book by 100 additional pages. F8MOUS will now be a 350 page, hardcover photo book. Reinforce your coffee tables.