Maurice Gibb

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Maurice Gibb (22 December 1949 – 12 January 2003), also known in paintball as Commander Mo, was a British musician, tournament paintball player, team founder and paintball business owner. Best known as a member of the Bee Gees, Gibb played tournament paintball in the United States and Europe, founded and captained the Royal Rat Rangers, and operated Commander Mo's paintball shop in Florida.[1][2][3]

Gibb also developed plans for a tournament combining competitive paintball with live entertainment. Following his death, the National Professional Paintball League (NPPL) used the name Commander's Cup for the final event of its 2003 Super 7 World Series.[4][5]

Paintball career

Early involvement

Gibb recalled first playing paintball in 1984, when the activity was being marketed as Survival. He played at a woodland field in the Florida Everglades using the comparatively low-velocity equipment available at the time. According to Gibb, players did not use the protective equipment that had become standard by the time of his January 2002 interview with Crossfire Paintball Digest.[1]

He continued playing for approximately a year before music commitments and the disappearance of the fields he had been using led him to leave the sport.[1]

Gibb returned to paintball during the late 1990s or early 2000s after discussing the game with his friend and later teammate Frederick Retucci. They searched online for a local field and began playing at a Florida facility that Gibb called Royal N' Tough, operated by Team Rage player Pete Bofill.[1] Contemporary reporting identifies Bofill as the owner of Ruff n Tuff Sports in Miami.[6]

Equipment

In his 2002 Crossfire interview, Gibb identified the Angel as his preferred marker and said that his first marker had been a black Angel. He particularly favoured a version prepared by Warped Sportz. He also owned Intimidators and E-Mags and estimated that he had approximately nine markers at the time of the interview.[1]

Royal Rat Rangers

Gibb founded the Royal Rat Rangers after a regular group of approximately six players began practising together on Sundays. He served as the team's captain.[1]

The team's first tournament was the 2001 Paintball World Cup in Orlando, Florida. Contemporary schedules list the Royal Rat Rangers in the event's 10-player preliminary competition.[1][7] Gibb later described the World Cup as his most memorable paintball experience to that point. He emphasised communication as the most important part of the team's play and said that his priorities as captain included speed, teamwork, learning and maintaining a positive atmosphere.[1]

Detailed information about the team's roster, tournament results and subsequent history is covered in Royal Rat Rangers.

Campaign Cup

Gibb competed with the Royal Rat Rangers at the 2002 Campaign Cup, held at Crystal Palace in London as part of the Millennium Series.

Contemporary reporting by Simon Stevens described Gibb as an active supporter of paintball who had discussed the event on radio. The Royal Rat Rangers reached the semi-finals of the novice division. During a match against JCS Inferno, Gibb completed the flag hang after his team defeated its opponents.[8]

Beyond 2002

Gibb and the Royal Rat Rangers also attended Beyond 2002, an extreme-sports and music festival held at Bicentennial Park in Miami from 12 to 14 April 2002. The event combined a 24-team seven-player paintball tournament with concerts and other sporting exhibitions.[6]

Gibb supported the idea of introducing paintball to a wider audience through combined entertainment events. However, he believed that the music and paintball portions needed to be arranged so that one did not interfere with the other. The volume of the music at Beyond 2002 made communication between players more difficult during matches.[6]

Commander Mo's Paintball Shop

Gibb owned a Florida paintball equipment business known as Commander Mo's Paintball Shop. Contemporary obituaries described it as a local paintball store situated near his Miami Beach home.[2][3]

The shop represented a separate part of Gibb's involvement in paintball alongside playing, team organisation and tournament promotion.

Commander's Cup

During 2002, Gibb developed plans for an international tournament called the Commander's Cup. The proposed event was intended to combine tournament paintball with musical entertainment and was initially planned for the Atlantis resort in the Bahamas.[4][6]

Restrictions affecting paintball markers in the Bahamas made the proposed venue impractical, and planning shifted towards Miami. Gibb subsequently discussed incorporating the event into the NPPL Super 7 World Series with representatives of the NPPL and Pure Promotions.[4]

Gibb died on 12 January 2003 before the tournament could be held. The first event of the 2003 NPPL season at Huntington Beach was dedicated to his memory. Later that year, the NPPL held the inaugural 2003 NPPL Commander's Cup at Tamiami Park in Miami. The event served as the final tournament of the 2003 Super 7 season and incorporated fundraising for charities associated with the Gibb family.[4]

Legacy

Gibb's paintball activity extended beyond celebrity participation. Contemporary sources document his involvement as a tournament player, team captain, retail business owner and prospective event promoter.[1][2][4][8]

The Commander's Cup continued as a named NPPL tournament following his death, while the Royal Rat Rangers remained the team most closely associated with his competitive paintball career.

References

Crossfire Paintball Digest, Carmen Borgia, “Maurice Gibb Interview”, January 2002, pp. 66–67. Contemporary interview with Gibb covering his introduction to paintball, equipment, formation of the Royal Rat Rangers and tournament ambitions.
The Independent – “Maurice Gibb: Singer and bass player with the Bee Gees”. Chris Welch, 13 January 2003. Contemporary obituary documenting Gibb's paintball interest and Commander Mo's shop.
The Washington Post – “Maurice Gibb Dies”. Richard Pearson, 13 January 2003. Contemporary obituary identifying Gibb as the owner of Commander Mo's paintball store.
WARPIG – “NPPL Super Seven Commander's Cup 2003”. November 2003. Contemporary account of Gibb's original tournament proposal and the memorial event held in Miami.
WARPIG – “2003 NPPL Huntington Beach Open”. February 2003. Contemporary coverage of the NPPL event dedicated to Gibb.
WARPIG – “Beyond 2002”. 12–14 April 2002. Contemporary coverage of Gibb, the Royal Rat Rangers and his plans for the Commander's Cup.
WARPIG – “2001 NPPL World Cup 10-Man Preliminary Schedule”. 22–28 October 2001. Documents the Royal Rat Rangers' participation.
WARPIG – “Campaign Cup”. Simon Stevens, 2002. Contemporary tournament report documenting Gibb's participation and the Royal Rat Rangers reaching the novice semi-finals.

External links

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