I recently moved into the bay area (from TX) and was looking for a place to "call home". American Paintball Park is absolutely, 100%, no questions asked my new "home field". On a Sunday (27 June) I had originally planned on visiting another local field but after seeing the rave reviews I was convinced to spend the extra 20 minutes driving to experience this field. I was thoroughly impressed! I showed up as a solo player wanting to join the public games (and dragging my girlfriend and daughter along to watch as well).
The experience was above par from the moment we pulled into the driveway (speaking of which, Google Maps will give you the incorrect directions, having you enter towards the back of the property, a trip around the block has you at the right spot). Paintball masks line the fences and as you pull up the owner is standing there to shake your hand, thank you for you coming out and pointing you in the right direction for registration.
Prices were fair, if not below what I've seen available elsewhere in the area. It's clearly a family run operation and I like that, the owner was excellent when it came to making the rounds during breaks, talking with everyone and getting good conversation going between separate parties. When I was out playing a game, then rejoined my family, they were always relaying stories of how the family came over and talked to them, introduced them to their pets (Chicken Dog!) and made them feel more than welcome.
The players at this field are exceptionally nice, assisting with equipment needs (I forgot to bring a rag and a squeegee) and the regular players step in and assist the staff with tasks like air refills. The staff was always on point, calling players out as necessary and emphasizing when an out player was leaving the field. They also chrono before every game which I found to be extremely professional - this field focuses on safety! Masks on early, well before the chrono station and barrel socks on before exiting the field.
There's a nice, unique, selection of fields - although I would rank them on the smaller scale of what I've experienced in the past (coming from a woodsball background). Games are primarily elimination style and the park features a number of different fields focused on various themes (hay bails/rock walls, stool bunkers, door (provided by Google I learned) and dirt mounds. The doors field is a particularly unique design I had never seen before that was a joy to play on. There's also an attack/defend field consisting of an uphill climb for attackers against a small team of defenders within a building facade.
There's a minimal snack bar that's not outrageously expensive (50 cents for a bottle of water) and they grill hot dogs for lunch ($3 gets you a very large hot dog and a bag of chips). Games were run very frequently, with 10-15 minute breaks in-between. I arrived around 10:30, left at 3:00 and played 5 games experiencing every field except for the dirt mounds. There's plenty of shaded seating for observers and break periods and they seemed very accommodating when it came to moving benches/tables around to setup personal grills, birthdays, etc.
I absolutely love this park, probably more so than my "home park" in Texas. They did such a great job at making us feel like part of the family, we were more than welcome there and they were truly appreciative that we would come spend the day with them,
My only cons (and they weren't enough to mark this review down from a 5):
Some of the fields are close together. I noticed some players engaging players from another field.
The "out players" area isn't clearly identified on each field and often times in a danger zone between the two games - you may very likely get hit while waiting for the next round.
The field design is entirely centered around elimination - you won't find any long-form or scenario-type games here.
I've certainly found my new home field. If you see a blonde in a tan flight suit, enjoying every damn moment he spends out here, give me...
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