Boomeranging is fun! It doesn't matter if you are throwing alone or with a group, it is still a blast. Boomerang throwing, however, can be more than just fun. Fact: Since 1984 the United States Boomerang Team has won every International competition, except for 1997. Many nations have a boomerang team; Germany, Japan, Italy, Switzerland, France and England are just a few.
Here is a list of fun games to start off with.
Accuracy: Throw the boom and let it land. Closest to the target scores a point. Best out of 5.
Slap: Same as Accuracy, except you can correct for a bad throw by slapping it to the target. You must slap the boom for a point. Best out of 5 wins.
Suicide: Everyone throws at the same time, and everyone must catch their own 'rang. Most catches out of 5 wins. The more people throwing, the wilder this one gets. Be careful with this one.
Boom Golf. Lay out some holes on the field (use a rag for each hole). Everyone tees off (throws) and tries to get to the first hole. Each hole is a par three. The boom must land within 5 feet of the tee to count as a hole. Lowest score wins. Points are earned by the number of throws on each leg. Great game to increase your understanding of boomerang flight dynamics.
BOOM: Same game as pig or horse. Toss the 'rang. For every catch dropped, you earn a letter. You must use a different catch for each throw. Last one in wins.
Invent your own games. Please write to me (steve@vcnet.com) and let me know about them, though.
For the serious competitor. The following are the sanctioned events of competition. The field is laid out in concentric rings. The bullseye is 2 meters across. Each ring is laid out from the center of the bullseye at 4, 6, 8, 10, 20, 30, 40 and 50 meters.
Accuracy: The 'rang must travel out past the 20 meter line. Let the boom land on return.
Trick Catch: The competitor throws a boomerang which must travel past the 20 meter line. With each throw, a different catch is attempted. Here is the list of catches: two-handed catch, one-handed left hand catch, one-handed right hand catch, behind the back catch, under the leg catch, one hand eagle right, one hand eagle left, foot catch. ( An eagle catch is where the forearm is above the plane of the boomerang when the catch is made.)
Fast Catch: The object is to throw and catch one boomerang five times in the shortest time possible. The boomerang must travel out past the 20 meter line. All throws must be from within the bullseye, but they can be caught anywhere. World Record: 15.03 seconds for the five throws and catches, using one boomerang.
Doubling: Two boomerangs are thrown at the same time from the same hand. Each boomerang must be caught with a different style of catch. See Trick Catch for types of catches.
Aussie Round: The ultimate boomeranger's event. Points are awarded based upon the distance the boomerang travels, the accuracy of its return, and your ability to catch the boom.
MTA (Maximum Time Aloft): A boomerang is thrown and timed for the duration of the flight. Flights of a minute and more are not uncommon. The World Record is around 1minute 40 seconds.
Endurance: Same rules and objective as Fast Catch, except now you're "playing" for 5 minutes. Most catches in five minutes wins.This is a killer event! World Record: 73 catches.
Juggling: Two like-flying boomerangs are used. The object is to throw your first boom, followed by the second one before the first is caught, and on and on... World Record: 503 consecutive catches. Juggling is no longer a sanctioned event is USBA Competitions. Never the less it is a challenge to say the least.
I strongly encourage anyone even remotely interested in boomerangs to join the United States Boomerang Association (USBA). The USBA is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the sport of boomeranging. The USBA has a quarterly newsletter called "Many Happy Returns". It contains detailed information on the sport, people that make it happen, tournament results, boomerang making plans, history of the boomerang and current technology being used. It even has it's own "Ask Chet" section. Chet Snouffer is a 6 time US Champion, he fields all those "what you want to know" type questions. For more information contact the USBA at:
USBA
P.O. Box 182
Delaware, OH. 43015
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