The Second Coming that kept on giving
Sean
Just a quick note to congratulate the Galway Tactical Airsoft Center or G-TAC on the success of “The Gathering II“. A great time was had by all which is a testament to the work put in by the organisers! Keep up the good work.
Conor
What a weekend! I’m sure most of you were off at Oxygen enjoying the music but those who ended up in Portuma listened to the melody of multiple M249’s with happy gunners and jovial laughter around the fire. Now If i was to treat this like a restaurant review i might say that the service was excellent, that the food was a feast for hungry eyes and tummys and that the atmosphere was buzzing. Thankfully I’m no columnist so i shall spare you the boring comparisons and opt for the Jeremy Clarkson approach to modern metaphors.
Normally the widlife in Portuma doesn’t migrate much but for that weekend im sure they went south.
I arrived on Friday at approx 8pm with my team (The Band of Hawks) and setup camp in pretty much the same spot as the last Gathering. Thankfully Martin was on the scene immediately to inform us that the field had been flooded and to stay clear of the damp areas. Naturally we passed this information onto the next team to camp near us (The Stray Dogs) 🙂
Friday night was spent laughing around a camp fire retelling old war stories of incredible ranged bang kills and sniper hunting games where the sniper actually won. I made a kind of speech to welcome those dedicated airsofters to the site, thanked Martin and Evelyn for having us and introduced myself accordingly.
Fire
Saturday morning came and went quickly as the sound of nature rang loud in my ears at 7.30am. The weather was good, the breakfast rolls were a treat and surely once the smell of sausages hit the noses of the sleeping they began to stir. Once again Evelyn and her team of mystical beings kept the food coming until the armies were ready to begin.
2 teams were created for the games, Those with armbands and those without. The first games played were fast paced CQB games where the guns with incredible ROF (Rate of Fire) took the victory. As the day progressed the games got bigger and the entire woodland area was brought into play. VIP, Downed Pilot, Take and Hold and other games were played.
As we broke for lunch the familiar smell of Evelyn’s burgers filled the air and soon the masses were queueing up for double burgers and cans of coke. My team had our own supplies and although we cooked our own food i still could not resist the temptation to get a burger, so i got a double. More games were played that evening but my lack of fitness and desire to sit down got the most of me so i retired to the warmth of our BBQ. All i will say of Saturday night is that the banter and conversations around the BBQ were of the “internet” variety. I met many new people who came over to us, had some sausages and joined in with some of the strangest topics that i have heard discussed in public.
My most excellent BBQ
On Sunday the daytrippers arrived and brought with them the desire to shoot the new targets. To them i’d imagine the sight of campers sitting on chairs and waltzing around in boxer shorts might not have been what they expected to see at an airsoft site but since this is the Gathering, well anything can happen.
Local Comedian senordingdong welcomes the Newbies
Then it got hot, very hot and some people got burned (myself included). The weather man had got it wrong again and soon the slightest drizzle of rain was welcome to cool down the masses lying in ambush as the VIP (me again) made his way through the back lane with a handful of marines to protect him. Sadly most of them were taken out within minutes and soon i found myself alone with only a sniper to sacrifice himself for me, and a stray dog with eyes like a hawk.
More CQB games were played but the sun had taken its toll on many and others, having packed up their tents, were eager to make tracks on the voyage home. But not before The winners of the Raffle were announced and the prizes handed out.
Now i’m sure i have missed loads here but i’ll fill it in as it comes to me.
Also Many thanks to Martin, Evelyn, Andy and all who helped make the Gathering MK2 a worthy sequel.
– Conor
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