Why is Axe Throwing so Addictive?
“It’s the latest craze sweeping the nation!” You’ve heard it all before. We could go on and on about how axe throwing is one of the fastest-growing hobbies in America.
We could explain the health and social benefits of flinging sharp axes at a wall during an afternoon. It would probably be worthwhile to describe how people are discovering new muscle groups and engaging workouts. But that doesn’t explain why axe-throwing is so addictive. We could talk about our Viking roots, and how we naturally want to prepare for battle. We could talk about how the West was tamed by axe-wielding Paul Bunyan wild men, and how we’re culturally inevitable to connect with our forebears. We can talk about this or that. But really, people just like throwing axes at stuff. It’s really that simple.
Axe throwing is one of those events you used to see on the sports channel on an early Saturday morning. Along with log-rolling, 90-foot speed climbing, hot-dog eating, rally-car racing, and other extreme sports, it’s one of those things that makes us think to ourselves, “Wow, I wish I could do that.”
But unlike speed climbing (not many of us have a 90-foot pole we are willing to climb without safety gear), or extreme wingsuit flying (that’s a one-time attempt for most of us), axe throwing is something you can pick up and try any time you want.
It’s just far enough outside our comfort zone that every throw is as exhilarating as the last. It’s cheap enough that a weekly practice won’t leave you eating ramen for a month. It’s easy enough to learn that anyone can learn. And it’s cool enough that throwing out “I throw axes on Thursday evenings,” will grab anyone’s attention.
That sounds like the perfect recipe for an addictive pastime.
It’s a sport you can play alone, or with a group. You can throw big axes or small ones. The true fun comes from finding out your personal style of throwing sharp objects. It really is a mysterious force that compels us to throw axes. Whether a natural drive or a cultural instinct, axe throwing is something you can’t just try once. (Trust us). Once you throw an axe it’s hard to forget, and you always want to do “just one more!”
So yes, axe throwing is the latest craze sweeping the nation. If by that you mean like a crazed barbarian sweeping an axe over his head at a wooden block.
