FIRST & ONLY
First and Only Airsoft operates 11 sites in the UK.
Ron Mahoney checks out its Manchester Woodland site
I
f you ever need to find the main
man at First and Only Airsoft’s
numerous events, then the
best advice I can offer is to
find someone that looks like
a combination of an AEGIS Operator
and General George S Patton. You’ll
soon see what I mean when you spot
the leather-holstered single action Colt
revolver.
John Bibby approached me with
a big smile and a handshake. As we
walked and talked about the day he was
being pulled in a number of directions
with things to organise, but it was a
measure of the man that he still
had time to make sure that he
gave attention to all the players at
today’s event.
With his background in
corporate training he knows
how to get the best out of
the site, the scenarios and
the players; running around
068
January 2012
like headless chickens and spraying and
praying is not what First and Only is
about. While on the subject of training,
FAO has introduced a number of skills
enhancement days including Sniper,
CQB and Hostage Rescue Experience,
so players can take their game-play one
stage further.
John’s ethos is that every FAO site
you turn up at should offer the same
level of customer service, game
management and facilities, though
this will vary slightly from site to site.
Currently it operates 11 sites but new
locations are constantly being scouted
and their suitability as a premier airsoft
site assessed.
I was at the Manchester Woodland
site, which is actually based near the
Lancashire town of Bolton and set in
the shadow of Winter Hill. The terrain
is undulating and incorporates over
150 acres of mixed woodland including
rivers, bunkers, bridges and even a large