Post-season Interview #4 - Vancouver Thunder

This interviewee is relatively new to the sport and first played recreational paintball in 2006 when his boss invited him out with a group of friends. Mason Hwu so enjoyed his time that he gradually went from playing once a month to once a week. He made the leap from recreational to competitive when a group of regular players at Doodlebugs  Sportz asked him to join them in a local tournament. From then on, Mason has continued moving up through the ranks!

            Hwu played local and regional tournaments with Gunslingerz and DBS Titans for the 2008 and 2009 seasons and then went on to play nationally with DBSpaintball.com and DBS Kidz 2 from 2010 until 2011. Most recently, he has played with CDR, Joint Force, and of course Vancouver Thunder in the CXBL. Mason also debuted with Vancouver Vendetta in the Pro division at NPPL DC where the team managed a fourth place finish.

            Mason has moved around the field playing many different positions but is often first or second snake or centre insert. He explains that his coaches, Danny Cort and Mike Carrey have taught him, “that in order to help your team, play the position you feel you can make the most impact to help your team win. With that said, the biggest impact I can make is up the gut or in the snake!” 

Hwu, like many of you, has especially appreciated the many life long friendships that he has made throughout his paintball journey. His teammates, coaches and mentors have become like family and Mason finds that he often spends more time with these guys than with his immediate family. He hopes to continue creating memorable experiences winning CXBL and NPPL events with his Thunder and Vendetta family.

Photo Credit: Sheldon Carless

• What is your general impression of the 2012 Elite standings? Were there any major surprises or did the season finish as expected?

“We didn’t know what to expect in the Elite division since we were the only team from the West. But we practiced all year long and we were ready to give our best performance. It’s nice to see that our hard work resulted in multiple wins and finishing as the 2nd seeded team.” 

• Due to the merge of the Central, Western, and Eastern CXBL conferences this year, your team has had to journey a long way to compete in the CXBL Elite events. How, if at all, has the travel affected your playing this season? What is the most challenging part of travelling long distances for events?

“The biggest challenge for traveling long distances is the organizing all the logistics. We only play about 4 hours out of a 96 hour event trip. It’s the preparation for those 4 hours of play time that is most challenging. With proper planning, we were able to step on the field every time as comfortable as if we were playing at our own home field.”

• Vancouver is one of several teams with a handful of professional competitors from the NPPL. In your eyes, what separates the CXBL Elite from other professional leagues?

“CXBL is a set up as a season leading up to a championship. NPPL and PSP have series champions as well as individual winners for each event. CXBL just has one winner at the end of the season. In the end, they are all awesome.”

• What do you feel was your team’s greatest strength this season?

“Our team’s greatest strength would have to be our biggest supporter, Matthew Jantzi from Tsawwassen Paintball. He is not just the owner, but also our biggest team supporter. Without Matt, we wouldn’t have had the opportunity to play this season. Thank you Matt!”

 

• What are you able to take away from the 2012 season that will allow you to develop as a player and as a team throughout the off-season?

“Personally, there are so many things that i’m taking away this season that will help me grow as a player. The main thing would probably be reaching the 50 bunkers. This would be the same for the team. We play on our heals a lot of the time, but we can’t rely on that to win games. We’ve got to get great at reaching the 50 bunkers first.”

• What was your highlight of the season?

“My highlight of the season was meeting new friends and revisiting old ones. Carolyn Burden and her sons were an awesome surprise this season. They came out to help us in the pits for both events out of the kindness of their hearts. Thank you Carolyn, Ty, and Jacob!”

• Which individual on your own team do you most respect as a player and why?

“I most respect Danny Cort. His values of integrity and hard work are practically written on his forehead. Anyone can attest that he has the strongest work ethic and passion for paintball than anyone on the team.”

• Your team had a very successful season winning 6 of your 8 matches, losing only to Tremblant Cowboys and Drummondville Daytona by 1 point each. To what do you attribute your success this season?

“I would have to say that teamwork was the biggest attribute to our success. Teamwork on and off the field is so important to a winning organization. It was blatant that our teamwork was off during the second half against Drummondville Daytona. And as for Tremblant Cowboys, we again were on and off with our teamwork. When playing with such high caliber teams, there is little room to veer from perfect teamwork.  In the end, I’m so appreciative and grateful to be surrounded by a group of professional and talented athletes.”

• If you had to choose a team other than your own as most likely to win NAX, who would you choose and why?

“I would have to say Tremblant Cowboys. That team has pretty much the same guys that beat us last year at NAX. They bring a good fight.”

• Is there anything else you would like to add?

“I would like to thank all the CXBL staff and refs that made this season possible. Big super thanks to Louie Dalesio, Matthew Jantzi, Ian, Joey DeCaire, Marco, Chris, GI Paint, and everybody involved with CXBL.”


Mason, Thanks for taking the time to chat with me! It was great to learn about your rapid journey up the totem pole in the world of paintball. Congratulations on a successful first event with Vendetta and all the best to you and your teammates at NAX!

Signing off,

The Paintball Wife