Axe throwing is, like any other non-traditional sport, one that struggles with an even spread of players who have participated for a very long time, and brand-new players (I mean throwers, of course, but I didn't want to mix up my terminology).
I'VE SEEN THIS BEFORE
I do have some experience with this: Hardcourt Bike Polo--another fringe sport that had/has diehard players, suffered from the same problem: how do you keep the sport healthy and growing while still satisfying the "spirit" of the game/keeping the more experienced, longer-term players involved and excited. I'll add to that: how do you keep the old guard from gatekeeping to a point (either by specializing the rules so much that the sport is unapproachable to new players, or by becoming so cliquey that it feels more like a club than a sport) that there isn't growth at all.
If I had to hazard a guess, I'd say that axe throwing is just on the precipice of growth and decline. More axe houses are opening, to be sure. But I also am seeing some signs of axe houses closing, or struggling to get enough throwers to be outright profitable. While this certainly could be the result of a number of issues, it's just as likely that axe throwing is hitting a very real turning point. And the result of that turning point can be either continued growth or a gradual decline.
I don't mean for this to sound all doomy-gloomy, but I do mean to present it in a stark way. Any sport, indeed any activity, has its growth and decline periods. Fads change, interest moves on to the next big thing (think about the unbridled rise of POGS. Where are they now?), so it becomes a question of concerted effort: do the "leaders" of the sport (IATF, WATL, axe houses) need to have a plan for continued growth, or is it up to players? BOTH? NEITHER?! LOUD NOISES?! Does sport growth even matter?
SUCCESS RELIES ON COMBINED EFFORTS
I'm no Johnny-on-the-spot with answers, but I'm sure you've come to realize I give my opinion freely and often, and without much regard for accuracy.
I believe the best time to promote and grow a sport is when doing so isn't needed. Waiting for the decline in interest is the worst time to try for growth. To that end, whether the sport is reaching the height of its popularity or not, isn't really a relevant question. The relevant question is this: what can we do now to make sure axe throwing continues on its merry way to becoming as large/accessible as it can be. Because, friend, I don't wanna go and find another goofy thing to do with my free time.
So it comes down to combined efforts. In my mind, it looks something like this:
Organizing bodies keep the ruleset and point of entry (read: $$) as accessible as possible while stabilizing the amount of changes it makes to said ruleset.
Axe houses provide information to organizing bodies so metrics are clear on growth/decline of sport.
Players act as ambassadors, bringing new, potential players into the sport.
Equipment makers (both big outfits and individual artisans) are able to make a healthy amount of money plying their trade, creating growth opportunities that are tangentially related to axe throwing.
I think those four, when working together, help create a healthy, growing and thriving sport. Lemme break down those four points a bit:
ORGANIZING BODIES STABILIZING RULESETS TO SATISFY NEW AND VETERAN THROWERS
No easy feat to accomplish, but an important one, tbh. New sports (or, to be more clear: sports that are just starting to be quantified via a ruleset), often go through radical changes pretty often. As the limits of a sport are reached OR advantages are discovered, sports change how they are played to either showcase that high-level play, or to level the playing field for everyone taking part.
By way of example: the Premier ruleset in IATF was created because high-level players are pretty boring to watch when they play the Standard ruleset. It doesn't make for surprises or for driven competition. The Premier ruleset was an attempt to push the skillset of high-level play. Now, we can argue if it was too little or too much--and even now, those rules are being fiddled with. BUT that's what I mean when I say "showcasing high-level play."
As far as "leveling the playing field," I mean, primarily, that nobody is getting an unfair advantage via having a nonsense sort of axe, or is using big magnets or whatever. I don't feel like I need to explain this one very much. But if you need it, friend, just send me a text and we can talk through it. Together.
AXE HOUSE DATA PROVIDED TO ORGANIZING BODY
Understanding the waxing and waining of player involvement is the tasty, tasty data that any organization wants to sup upon. Now, I'll be the first to admit that I have no idea what kind of data the IATF gathers around player involvement, longevity, or whatever else - but I do know it's an important thing for figuring out if what you're doing, generally, is having a net positive or net negative effect on growth. Not much to add here. Sorry.
PLAYER AMBASSADORSHIP
This point is honestly where I started when thinking about this post, and I think it's the one that is most applicable to anyone still reading.
Being someone who actively grows the sport is a very different role than someone who is just excited about playing it. Being an ambassador, in this way, takes effort. It's more than saying "oh I love hucking them axes," when people ask about axes, and more than having a profile pic of getting your 81 coin or whatever. It's a matter of actively and purposefully reaching out to the people you know (or don't know) and encouraging them to try out the sport.
To give a quick example of this: When I'm at league night OR I'm practicing at Medulseld Meadery, I make it a point to welcome customers who try axe throwing. If they show even the littlest bit of interest, I take a moment to tell them about league nights, and invite them to join in or stop by during league to see what it's all about.
This honestly doesn't take much to do, outside of being aware of opportunities to preach the good word of Clutch, and I've brought in at least two or three people in the last two years who are still throwing today. Now, if all of us managed to bring in just one other person like this every year, our sport would be gangbusters.
I am also aware that this makes me somewhere near the top of this pyramid scheme, and I'm comfortable with that.
What kills a newer sport, honestly, is when the players are comfortable with things staying exactly how they are. And I get it: you and your axe throwing buddies are something special, and you don't want it to change, ever. BUT it will change.
People will move away, or have a baby. Or they will lose their minds and go to North Dakota to start a fish-kissing cult or whatever. And when that happens, if you haven't done anything at all to grow your own league/club/axe house, you'll find fewer and fewer people are involved. Give it enough time, and you'll find it unsustainable.
So instead of waiting for life's inevitability of everyone leaving you at some point, why not stack the deck in your favor? Grow the sport so much that there are as many new throwers as there are veteran throwers. Make it a point to bring at least one new person into your league ever year, if not multiple people every year.
Axe throwing is going to be around as a funtime goodsport for as long we want, so long as we're doing our part to keep people coming in the door and joining in on the fun. While that takes a little bit of effort, the reward is well worth the time.
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