 |
|
|
|
|
by Scott Gracia sgracia@wi.rr.com http://www.throwzini.com ======================================= IN THIS ISSUE 1. What's New 2. Combat Run for Knife Throwers - Part 1 of 2 by K.E. Sackett 3. Recreational Knife Throwing Video 4. 2000 International Convention by Rick Lemberg 5. Contact Info/Reprint Guidelines ======================================= 1. WHAT'S NEW We have another new look at The Great Throwzini web site! But this time I think we have a keeper! Besides improving the look of the site, we also switched hosting services. I was getting a lot of email in the past telling me that the site was unavailable at times throughout the day. We can't have that! Everyone should notice a quicker load time for pages and pictures now. Another small improvement, but a good one. Ok, now on to the good stuff! A few days ago on the Thrower List I mentioned I was looking into a small carrier/throwing knife. Well, I looked into it, tried it, took some pictures of it, and then added it to the new Throwzini Store. I think it's great! I have never carried a knife before. But I love the idea that I can carry this knife with me, (it comes with a belt sheath), and always have something to throw, no matter where I go. I always want to bring something with me to throw when I'm going to a friends. Just incase I could talk them into throwing a few rounds. But I usually left my knives behind. Not many of my friends throw very often, so even if they did want to throw a game, they wouldn't have a big enough target. Or any target. Or they would want to quit after the first hole in the wall! Can you believe that? C'mon...live a little! Why do you think they invented Spackle? ;-) Anyway,now if I want to throw all I need is a few 2X4's and I'm good to go! More people have old 2X4's laying around than tree trunks. Believe me, I've asked. It's called the "Ace in the Hole" and it's made by L&H Knife Works. If you want to see some pics of it, just follow this link: http://www.throwzini.com/normal_throwers.html DISCUSSION FORUM We also added a Discussion Forum. Here you will be able to ask a question, share something that you have learned, or just check out some comments from other throwers. I'm sure that this is going to be a great tool for this web site. I get tons of questions and thoughts about throwing every week from all over the world. Really! But I just haven't had a way to share them with everyone. Until now! Anyone interested in The Great Throwzini Discussion Forum can get to it from our homepage. Just follow this link for more details: http://www.throwzini.com Thanks again to everyone that submitted their info/pics!!! ======================================== 2. GUEST COLUMN A COMBAT RUN FOR KNIFE THROWERS - Part 1 of 2 by K. E. Sackett Ask any buck skinner of your acquaintance to describe the joys of the Mohawk Run, a popular event at muzzle loading jamborees. The Run covers a course, run against time, with targets of various kinds. The competitor must load his fire lock while on the run (a necessary skill on the frontier, by the bye), and at certain points he must throw his knife and tomahawk at designated targets. All in all, a challenging event, and loads of fun. The Mohawk Run reminds me of the tree-to-tree throwing I did as a boy, trotting through the woods behind our house with a battered old belt knife. At one point, a fallen log lay across the trail, a little more than waist high. I thought I was the last word in stuntmen as I vaulted that log and, in mid-vault, threw my knife at a nearby cottonwood. Well, it was a lot of fun. Nowadays, I 1) know better than to throw at live trees, and 2) would need a lower log to vault over. But the idea of a combat run for knife throwing has stayed with me, along with recollections of various targets and throws I practiced in those long-ago days. With knife throwing increasing in popularity and even becoming a competitive sport, maybe the time has come to introduce a COMBAT THROWING RUN! For starters: We all know that knife throwing has no combat or martial use; it's show business; it's Hollywood. So let's keep the tone of our run light and a bit corny. Just as at the black powder rendezvous, we can award a few points for the best costumes. If a competitor signs up as the Tinhorn Gambler, the Gypsy Prince, Xena II, or Chief Flying Hawk, and wears the gear to match, let's give him/her a big hand, folks. The space needed for a knife throwing combat run can be quite modest. Unlike shooters, we don't need elaborate backstops or bullet traps. Of course, safety for throwers and audience must be our first and greatest concern. For this reason, I suggest a widely triangular course with its apex, the starting and finishing point, nearest to the spectator area. This way, no competitor will throw directly toward the spectators. A roped-off safety zone at least twenty feet wide and strictly maintained is the next requirement. This zone will separate the spectator area from the start-finish point. The course can be run in either of two ways: 1) The competitor carries a single weapon, and retrieves and re sheaths it after each throw (re sheathing is a must for safety). 2) The competitor carries a knife for each target, and the weapons are collected afterward. The first option is slower, since the competitor must extract his/her knife from each target (or hunt for it in the grass) before starting toward the next one. The second option makes for a faster run and allows the judges to score more carefully, but obliges people to own and carry as many knives as there are targets. There's also a greater safety factor involved in the second option: all those knives must be carried in a secure fashion that's acceptable to the judges. We can't have people running, jumping, and rolling on the ground with a bunch of naked knives in their hands. I would prefer option 1) as being the fairest and least troublesome for all. It's also a bit more "realistic." This run is supposed to simulate a desperate (if pretty implausible) scenario. In such a situation, you'd probably be carrying only a single knife, and you'd do everything you could to keep it with you, including re sheathing it after an encounter. After all, each target situation is supposed to be a deadly surprise! Calling for a fresh reaction! Well, I said it was Hollywood, didn't I? Part 2 of 2 continued in our next issue. Article Contributed by: K.E. Sackett sackett@dbo.eng.wayne.edu ============================================= 3. RECREATIONAL KNIFE THROWING VIDEO If you want to learn the insider SECRETS, TIPS and TRICKS that the masters use to hit their mark every time, then John Bailey's Recreational Knife Throwing Video is for you. Here is a taste of what you'll get: - 9 inexpensive target designs - 11 demonstrations - How to eliminate the most common throwing error - Master grips, stances and throws and so much more! For a limited time, you can have the ultimate knife throwing video for only $19.95. By acting now, you'll save 33% off the regular price of $29.95 For a full description and ordering details, follow this link: http://www.throwzini.com/tgt_video.html AOL USERS LINK ============================================= 4. 2000 INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION by Rick Lemberg Wild West Arts Club Int'l Convention and World Championships will be held at the Tropicana Hotel in Las Vegas from March 20-23, 2000. The Knife Events are run by Bob Karp and the IKTA, who come to Las Vegas from their instructional facilities in Phoenix AZ. Bob and his club instructors teach throwing techniques at the convention all week as do the masters of the other western arts. The events (all inclusive) cost $145 for the 4 days, including the wonderful annual awards banquet that always features the stars of the western arts. You must also be a member of the WWAC to attend the event. Non-Participating guests are only charged $95 to have access to the floor and instruction, but not to compete. There is prize money for ALL of the many events. ALSO: John Goss from Dragon knives has announced that he will award a special CUSTOM Throwing Knife for each of the top three finishers this year! The PKT ran the Tomahawk contest the 1st year and we will do the same this year, and we will also have speed, distance and other contests over the 4 days of events. The highlight is certainly the IKTA World Championships, in which each thrower gets only 25 total throws*** to qualify. The top 6 scores make the finals, held the following day. The finals always promise to be extremely tight and exciting to watch. Lee Fugatt, the (1998, 1999) two time defending champion will return to go for #3. The field promises to be (as always) most impressive. Last year, there were easily 15 expert throwers that could have made the finals, and many more that could squeak in on a "good day". It makes for a great event, packed with suspense, and challenge. *** The IKTA rules call for a thrower to throw at a single target (you can change each round if you wish) with 5 throws, BEFORE retrieval. Set #1 is from 8 ft. = 1/2 rotation required. Set #2 is from 12 ft. = 1 rotation required. Set #3 is from 15 ft. = 1 1/2 rotations required. Set #4 is from 18 ft. = 2 rotations required. Set #5 is from 21 ft. = Any rotation may be used, as long as the knife sticks point first. The targets are 16" (worth 1 point), with an 8" secondary circle (worth 3 points) and the Bullseye is a 3" equilateral triangle (worth 5 points). The maximum score is therefore: 5 (throws) x 5 (sets/distances) x 5 (maximum score per throw) = 125. Last year it took around 60 to make the finals. A 70 + will always be competitive, although most of the experts probably average more like 80-100 at home. There are special $49 rates available at the Tropicana, and we (the Pacific Knife Throwers Club) may have members looking for roommates at the Tropicana. Contact me (Rick Lemberg at: Knifethrwr@aol.com) if you have an interest. Call Mark Allen, President of the WWAC at 702-873-1100 for more information on the convention. Call Bob "Master of the Blade" Karp for more information on the IKTA events at 1-800-The-Blade. Hope to see you all there! Rick Lemberg, President of Pacific Knife Throwers Knifethrwr@aol.com http://www.commonlogic.com/knife/pkt.htm ============================================= If you have any questions about throwing that you would like answered in one of our upcoming issues, simply send an e-mail to: sgracia@wi.rr.com with QUESTION FOR NEWSLETTER in the Subject Line, and your name and question in the body. ============================================= (Copyright 2000, Scott Gracia, The Great Throwzini.) Reprint permission granted in part or whole when the following credit appears in full: Reprinted with permission from Scott Gracia's The Great Throwzini Newsletter. Get your FREE 101 KNIFE THROWING TIPS and Newsletter, filled with throwing tips and ideas to help you with your throwing game, at The Great Throwzini web site http://www.throwzini.com ============================================= Scott Gracia, The Great Throwzini, 5321 4 Mile Rd. Racine, WI 53402-9791 Phone 262-681-7942, E mail: sgracia@wi.rr.com http://www.throwzini.com It's free, and there's no obligation. |
Want to improve your accuracy?CLICK HERE "...the ability of David to throw different turns at different distances was outstanding and the impalement acts were 1st rate..." Chuck Fogarty Countryside, IL FREE STUFF CLICK HERE for FREE 101 Knife Throwing Tips Info-Pak Want hundreds of great knife throwing tips, ideas, articles and interviews with some of the biggest names in the sport of knife throwing? Get our FREE, twice-a-month Great Throwzini Online Newsletter. Just click below and send. CLICK HERE for FREE Online Newsletter or send e-mail to: sgracia@wi.rr.com with SUBSCRIBE in the Subject Line. I respect your privacy and will never share or sell your e-mail address to anyone. |