THE FAIRER SEX
REFLECTS
Sian Westall’s female airsofting buddies on why they
started playing, and what keeps them coming back
Sian: Airsoft has been filed away in the
collective consciousness as a bit of a sport
for the boys. As the long-suffering cohabitants
of avid airsofters, many women might be
forgiven for thinking it mostly involves fondling
guns and fiddling with balls… er, I mean BBs.
That said you’d be hard pressed to find
an airsoft battle without at least one female
present. So one evening, instead of washing
our hair, Carrie van der Zee, Carly Webb and I
talked about what brought us, as women, to
airsoft – and what keeps us coming back.
I attended my first game with my boyfriend.
As soon as I hinted that I’d like to have a go
he leapt at the idea and was really excited to
share his hobby with me.
How did you end up at your first airsoft
game?
086
January 2012
Carrie: I’d heard a lot about airsoft from
friends who played but as much as I’d
wanted to go I’d never had an opportunity to
participate. So I asked a friend if he’d be kind
enough to invite me along the next time he
went. Two months later he and his flatmate
took me to a themed day at their local site.
I’ve never looked back.
Carly: I was introduced to airsoft when my
boyfriend at the time dumped me. I was
gutted so my friends, deciding I needed to
be distracted, told me to get some British
DPM combats and go with them one day.
Sian: Apart from being cold (it was January)
and a bit knackered (we’d been up since
0600 hours) my thoughts at my first game
were that I’d probably make a bit of a tit
of myself. I’d never even played paintball
before so had no idea what to expect. Once
I realised it didn’t hurt – much – I got a
massive buzz from it.
What do you remember the first time you
played airsoft?
Carly: By the time I had my Spetznas slung
and my hi-caps loaded I was excited to just
go out and play. At first I was not sure what
to do; I think I ended up shooting some
members of my team as I could not tell who
was who!
Carrie: I did get nervous after ‘Game on’
was called, but once I’d taken my first hit that
subsided and the adrenaline kicked in. After
that I was well into it, charging around without
hesitation. I subsequently gained a reputation
as a purveyor of mindless suicide charges.
Sian: I’ve had my share of those! But
I also really enjoy sneaking around, and
take advantage of the fact I’m smaller and
(theoretically, at least) more soft-footed to