If you've spent even one drunken hour throwing in a league, you've likely bumped into one of the unofficial slogans of axe throwing. No, not "Premier is dumb" and no, not necessarily "I'm getting a new axe and I swear, this one is gonna be the last one I buy. I'm all set after this purchase FER SHER."
I mean, of course, "throw better," (often paired with "suck less").
And I get it. Nobody is suggesting that "throw better" runs the gamut of throwing advice, or that by hearing those magic words, you suddenly shake the dust off and become the next Rander or anything. It's intent, at least how I take it, is to make a flippant, throw away comment that reminds us that we, one and all, are just amateurs in a sport with no professionals.
Man. I hope I'm right about that interpretation. Otherwise my fee fees are gonna be pretty hurt.
But here's the thing about that cute little quip: if you're a newer thrower, or you're just not at all confident in how you're throwing, the net benefit is, you know, zero. It can get in your head a bit, and maybe a bit more than a bit. Then you're messing up on throws that otherwise you wouldn't have a problem with.
Alright, maybe I'm being hella hyperbolic. But stick with me for just a cute little second. Just a cute little fuzzy kitten of a second.
I think there is big value in comraderie. And as evidenced by most of this blog, I also think there is big value in being flippant about axe throwing. But I also...I dunno...I feel like "throw better" as part of the standard lexicon of things to say is...tired? Worn out? Doesn't really add anything to the well-meaning hazing that throwers give to each other for free.
I propose this: Don't worry about throwing better. If you're practicing and giving yourself time to devlop as a thrower, it'll come. Instead, learn to throw however.
THROWING HOWEVER
"But Badger," I hear you say, reading this on your phone whilst, I dunno, sitting on a toilet or ignoring a teacher as they explain why your child shouldn't try to sell Four Loko on the playground, "I've barely read this post and still I don't quite know what asinine point you're trying to make."
Let me put it more succinctly: Don't be so serious. Don't emphasize the mess up or the easy-to-get-but-you-donked-it-anyway throw. Instead, accept it. Throw however.
You missed the clutch? Meh.
You got a 3 when you were trying for your 81 run? That's a crumbled cookie. NBD.
Your axe somehow bounced off the board and stuck into the ceiling? Kinda cool, tbh.
When you accept the "throw however" mantra, you're not putting some dumb fence around what's good and what's bad in axe throwing. Bad throws can be...uh...good?
Wait a second. I'm losing my point, here.
Bad throws don't have to be as important as good throws. There we go. That's what I'm trying to say!
"Throw better" suggests there was nothing redeeming about your flub. And as a very flubby person myself, I can say with a fair amount of hope and certainty: flub is A-OK. Throw However celebrates what is really important: you're not doing something that is stressful and has an impact on the world. You're throwing a sharp piece of metal at a wet piece of wood. Big whoop.
Celebrate the achievements. Don't get hung up on the donks.
Throw however.
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