Hello friends! C-man coming at you as we enter the changing of the seasons here in the UK with another thrower interview, from the frosty badlands of North East England. His voice might be recognised if you watch any Valhalla North live streams, it is none other than Ian Thomas aka Kooks!
Let's start with a fun fact about yourself!
I absolutely adore the theatre! Whether it be in the audience or as a performer myself I just love it, and if I had my time again I really wish I could have worked within the performing arts. I have a particular love for musicals, and I'll usually get to a show or two each month as well as my own little drama group putting on a show every few months.
What is your axe origin story?
My Wife, whose throwing name is Elsa, said we should try something new one weekend a couple of years ago and booked us a social session at Valhalla North. I have to admit, I was a bit sceptical at first - I present as being quite visibly queer and I thought there would be a lot of stereotypically scary looking men there with big beards and black metal t-shirts!
As it happened, that was actually pretty true apart from one thing - nobody at all was scary, everybody was just absolutely lovely!! I must have felt comfortable because the next time I came through the door a couple of months later I was in a dress and a pair of heels for Halloween! From there we quickly joined a league, then two, and then everything went from there really. I now turn up for a beer and a stint on commentary even when I'm not throwing, I love it so.
Why do we call you Kooks?
I've been playing Dungeons and Dragons for years, and get very invested in my characters. For 3 or 4 years I played an assassin rogue girl called Kookie, who the rest of the party nicknamed Kooks.
Anyway, as I turned up for week one of my first ever league I was distraught, as she'd been sentenced to life imprisonment by the Dungeon Master the previous night for a small genocidal incident that she'd accidentally caused. So when asked what my throwing name was I went for her nickname in her honour. Ironically while Kooks was Kookie's nickname, now I'm Kooks a few people actually now call me by the nickname of Kookie. It's all become very strange! I've said that if I ever win a big Open tournament one time that I might evolve Pokemon-like and officially change my name to Kookie, but I'm not holding my breath!
(I tried to pry more into the small genocidal incident however after Kooks quietly chanted to himself, he said it was better that I forget any mention of it. As if under his charm- wait, what was I saying?)
I recently watched you commentate for almost 19hrs straight, how do you keep that energy so high and still throw with a smile?
Well firstly I have to say that there was definitely a difference in commentary quality between the first couple of hours and the last. I could barely string two coherent words together by the end I was that tired!!
It was a whole lot of fun though, and I just loved the experience. I'm generally just a happy person who is quite chatty and just likes to talk a lot, but there are a number of things that also help. I have lots of fun with both my amazing co-commentators and also the people watching who are kind enough to get involved in the chat and make it all interactive. I'm very happy to just ramble on by myself, but it definitely works better if I have someone else to chat to and bounce off. Plus I just genuinely really enjoy watching axe throwing and get excited by it! It's such a simple sport, but I love the unpredictability of it. Even the very best throwers can miss a clutch or dip into the three every now and then, but similarly I've seen newbies who have never even held a big axe before smack it straight in the dead centre of the bullseye on their first attempt. Those moments are just amazing, and I feel very lucky that I'm there to experience them alongside the throwers.
What axes are you throwing?
I am very loyal to my axes, and aren't one to change them without a very good reason. Naturally they're all individually named and have their own personalities as well - I am very emotionally invested in them all and would never even contemplate selling them.
My hatchet Tisha is the same Coldsteel Comp that I've been throwing since day one, and she's been joined recently by my clutch axe Kitsy - who is a Queen of Hearts with a cute Hello Kitty engraved into her courtesy of Pendragon. Finally I have Hanneke, who is my lovely Draper big axe. Unfortunately if I'm being truly honest she is a bit of a big lump, and my big axe throwing definitely needs a lot of work, so there may be an awkward conversation to come between the two of us!
One piece of advice you would give to a new thrower?
Enjoy the journey! I sometimes see people stressing about never having hit an 81 or whatever, but looking back I think going after it was just the most fun time. I can guarantee that there is nothing to replicate those moments when you have a 54 in the book and that bullseye just seems to get smaller and smaller with every shot and your heart is pounding as you get closer! People also tend to latch on to what is happening and there becomes this indescribable tension in the venue. Enjoy the drama of it all - every second of it! Once you actually have that 81 and your coin it's likely to be quite a while before the Premier one comes along, so just enjoy the ride and don't get frustrated.
Any events\tournaments coming up?
I'm really looking forward to Regionals in November. I was away last year so missed out, but I've signed myself up for this one. Apart from internal leagues there's nothing else, but I would really like next year to be a year when I start to visit a few other venues around the country. I'd also love to get out to Krakow one time as well and visit Axe Nation - it looks very cool over there and it's a lovely city.
What goals do you have set for yourself?
I realize this is a bit unusual, but as I mentioned earlier, Kookie was an assassin rogue in her DnD campaign - so I'd just love to follow her lead and take out a really big name sometime at a tournament. I love commentating when there is a big upset, and I'd really love it if just for once it was me that was doing it! In the UK Open this year I drew the defending champion Punisher in Round 1 - and I thought right, this is the perfect opportunity to actually get this done. I went 1-0 up as well, and I was just feeding off the excitement of the crowd that was watching - it was ace!! Anyway, he then proceeded to absolutely batter me for the next three rounds and ruin everything - it was fun while it lasted!
Do you have a favourite thrower?
Look, it's just impossible for me to pick one thrower, so I'm going to cheat and pick lots - sorry!! I'll also divide this answer into two - some of my favourite throwers to throw with at Valhalla North, and my favourites that I've never got to throw with yet but just watched as a total fanboy! I have two very friendly rivalries at Valhalla with both Chucky and Queen Bee. Me and Chucky have always been closely matched and have kind of grown together as throwers. We call each other Anime Red and Blue, as we have that type of super close rivalry that you see in sports anime which flips one way and then the other all the time.
Queen Bee is just an amazing thrower, but has also become like a big sister to me as well - checking in on me and making sure I'm okay and feeding me vegan treats! Talking of sisters - The Greater Good is my queer sister who I love to bits and is a wonderful person. And finally of course, as I am the president of The Legendary Thor Skin fan club I couldn't miss him out either. Get well soon Thor! Further afield I just loved watching these exotic throwers at the UK Open that I'd only heard about or seen before on streams. Seeing the likes of Stormy, Pop Tart, Sasha, Goose, Sauce Boss, etc., up close was just amazing. I'm a huge fan of the Axe League of Their Own podcast though, so meeting Jacy at the Open and getting to commentate with her was just fantastic and my absolute favourite moment!
Will we be able to find you at IATC 25?
I mean, it's still possible! I have a holiday budget for 2025 which is likely going to involve me traveling around Scandinavia which is a part of the world that I love very much. However, if Regionals or Round 1 goes beyond my expectations and I qualify then the funds will be diverted to Toronto. I've only been throwing for 18 months, so I'd like to think I'm still on an upward trajectory and therefore 2026 is probably more feasible. I'll give it my best shot though!
That was Kooks! What a whirlwind of information that was, you can find Kooks on the Valhalla North live streams whether he is commentating or throwing. Once you meet him, you certainly won't forget him!
Thank you for reading, have a wonderful day and remember; good isn't something you are, good is something you do.
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