December 10, 2004

Tom Kaye, the former president of one of the oldest and and respected names in paintball, Air Gun Designs, officially announced his retirement from the sport of paintball and his ownership of AGD.

Here is the address in his own words from this thread at www.automags.org

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To all my friends on AO and in Paintball,

It has been no secret that AGD has been under financial stress for many years. With the recent downturn in the industry it no longer makes sense for me and my family to pursue a living from this great game. Effective today I will be retiring and moving on to other business ventures outside paintball.

Dave Zupan who many of you know as my vice president, has bought out our inventory and will be taking over running the company. For most people AGD will still be in business as usual and you will still be able to call and order product. Please give him the same respect and feedback you have given me for so many years.

It has been a privilege to watch an industry grow from a spark into a raging fire that covered the world. I am proud to have contributed in my small way. Most of all I was glad to know the people of paintball, especially my customers. AO has been my constant companion for years now and I never expected all the benefits, joys and sorrows that came from knowing you all.

I will still continue to promote and participate in the Shatner event but its unlikely that I will be attending any other events during the year. I certainly didn’t think it would end like this but I am the last of a long gone group of paintball founders that are not around any more.
I sincerely hope that paintball gets past its recent flurry of issues and comes together as the great game and industry we all know it can be. To all of the players I want you to remember that its YOU who control this game and this industry. Treat it wisely and vote with your dollars so your kids can play along side you some day.

Thank you all for being the greatest customers and friends that a guy could wish for!!

Tom Kaye AGD

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Madpaintballer.com would like to thank Tom Kaye for all that he has contributed to the great sport of paintball, and we wish him best of luck!

Thank you Tom Kaye!