Four coaches will represent West Virginia and Mountain Man Axe Throwing on the national stage in December when they compete in the wildcard round of the World Axe Throwing Championship.
The coaches each entered a random draw to decide the 50 wildcard contestants and all four were selected, Mountain Man Axe Throwing owner Chris Atkins said. In fact, the manager and assistant manager were the first two selected.
“I was floored,” David Guentert, assistant manager said. “We’re training really hard now. We hope to do well. We’ve got a pretty good shot at it.”
The training involves simulating what the Dec. 6 wildcard matches will be like — 40 throws with target switching and aiming for the one-and-a-half-inch “kill shots” every fifth throw, Guentert said.
The kill shot is normally optional in World Axe Throwing League play, but the target is mandatory in the wildcard round. The target, worth eight points compared to a bullseye’s six, earns zero points if you call it and miss.
Hitting the kill shot can be a challenge because most throwers develop the muscle memory to hit the bullseye and many throwers opt to not attempt it, Guentert said.
To overcome that, Guentert and another coach are using a different axe and practicing hitting the kill shot four times and the bullseye for the fifth shot to develop a second muscle memory.
The tournament is in Tucson, Ariz., Dec. 7 and 8 and will be broadcast on ESPN2.
Mountain Man Axe Throwing spent about $2,600 for the flights and hotel for its four coaches and to help make some of that back, a fundraiser is being held from 6-9 p.m. Wednesday at Mountain Man Axe Throwing, Atkins said.
Customers will receive three hours of axe throwing for $20, rather than the traditional one hour. Atkins said the fundraiser will also feature a 50/50 raffle, a bake sale and a donation jar for each coach. For every $25 in a coach’s jar, they will take a pie to the face.
“It’s a good chance to try axe throwing,” Atkins said.
Manager Anthony Kechter said axe throwing is an awesome sport that everyone should try.
“Once you get that first bullseye or that good stick, it’s a good feeling,” he said.
Joining Guentert and Kechter at the tournament will be Dakota Smith and Tyler Lalka.
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