If you’ve ever taken a drive around Hobart, there’s a good chance you’ve seen Blastcamp Paintball & Airsoft. Located on Nike Missile Site C-47, which was used as a safe space for air defense in the Chicagoland area during the Cold War, the paintball and airsoft site carries a lot of historical weight in the Region. That being said, the historical context of the site wasn’t the main reason that owner Virgil Frey was drawn to the location.
Growing up in both Lowell and Hobart, Virgil Frey studied marketing at Ivy Tech Community College and always wanted to own his own business. Through his brother, who had previously managed Blastcamp, Virgil Frey fulfilled his dream and purchased Blastcamp in 2009.
“The history of the place really excited me. That’s what drew me to it initially,” Virgil Frey said. “When I walked onto the property, I was like, ‘Wow, this is cool.’”
Virgil Frey wasn’t a paintball and airsoft enthusiast at first. Though he was familiar with the sport, it wasn’t until owning Blastcamp that he truly realized what a community-driven activity it was.
“In the fifteen years I’ve owned Blastcamp, I’ve realized what amazing, dynamic sports paintball and airsoft are and the community they foster,” Virgil Frey said. “I have lifelong friends across the country that I’ve met from traveling and everything that paintball can bring to you. It’s really made me appreciate and love the fact that I’m in the airsoft business.”
Frequently serving as a location for birthday parties as well as various airsoft events, Virgil Frey views Blastcamp as a valuable part of the Northwest Indiana community. Virgil Frey sees the site as an outlet that connects friends and families across generations.
“I think we serve as a valuable outlet for people in the community,” he said. “As far as the paintball community is concerned, it’s an incredible group of people from all ages. We have guys that are 70 years old out here playing with their son who’s bringing his son. There’s three or four generations playing paintball at one time.”
The family aspect doesn’t just apply to the community Virgil Frey serves. His 23-year-old son, Jackson Frey, has been a highly successful paintball player since Virgil Frey and his wife bought Blastcamp back in 2009. Jackson Frey has been so successful, in fact, that he represented Team USA’s paintball team in Amsterdam in 2019, a memory that Virgil Frey will always cherish.
“He got to represent our country,” Virgil Frey said. “We had a trip to Amsterdam, and it was amazing. That’s by far my fondest memory.”
Though paintball and airsoft play a large part in his life, they aren’t Virgil Frey’s only passion. When he’s not running Blastcamp, Virgil Frey is playing keyboard across the Chicagoland area with his group: The Ramos Band.
Picking up piano in middle school, Virgil Frey was inspired by the rich era of music while growing up in the ‘80s.
“Some of my best memories are in the ‘80s,” he said. “When I was 10 to 20 years old, music played a really big part in my life. I loved it. It was really what spurred on my desire to want to play.”
Frequently performing at weddings, clubs and casinos, Virgil Frey and his band play roughly 12-20 gigs a year in what he describes as the “best part-time job ever.”
As for the future of Blastcamp, Virgil Frey says that there are some big announcements on the horizon including bigger fields, updated bunkers and more events. In the meantime, he’ll continue to run the business day in and day out with his wife while still performing across Chicagoland with his band.
For more information about Blastcamp Paintball & Airsoft, their history and events, visit their site here.