Knife Throwing. Harry K. McEvoy

10. Professional stance for handle throw 26 11. Professional stance for blade throw 26 12. The stance 27 13. The wind-up 28 14. The throw 28 15. The follow-through 29 16. Hanging target 40 17. Hanging target from rear 41 18. Tomahawks 48 19. Classic Bowie knife design 50 20. Gurkha and Bowie knives 51 21. Emblem of The American Knife Throwers Alliance 61 22. Professional throwing-knife 64 23. A group of professional throwing-knives 67 24. Handle grip for professional throw 68 25. Blade grip for professional throw 69 26. Kenneth L. Pierce in action 71 27-30. Paul LaCross in action 74,75 31. Bowie-axe throwing-knife 89 32. Peter S. LaGana and his fighting tomahawk 91 33,34. Jim Ramsey with his multiple-pointed throwing weapons 93 35. Throwing-knives for hunting game 94 36. Collection of Scagel knives 100 37. W. D. "Bo" Randall and his son, Gary 101 38. Victor and Carmen Corrado 103 39. The late Charles V. Gruzanski 103 40. Dan Dannenberg 104 41. Major General (USAF ret.) J. B. Montgomery 105

      KNIFE THROWING

      IT'S FUN TO THROW A KNIFE

      It's fun to throw a knife. Not only is knife throwing fun, it is also great sport, entertainment, recreation, a body developer, a mind relaxer, and a stimulant-all rolled into one! It can also be a wonderful hobby, pastime, or even a profession, depending on how you go about it.

      Practically any man, woman, or child from an early age on up can learn to throw a knife with skill and accuracy. All it takes is practice once the fundamentals are mastered.

      These fundamentals are easy to learn because anyone who can throw a stick, baseball, or rock, crack a whip, or cast a spinning rod can also quickly learn to throw a knife. The only other requirement for successful knife throwing is to use a weapon that is properly designed and balanced and is of sufficient length and weight for maximum control.

      Sportsmen knife throwers are increasing in numbers every year at a rapid pace. From the early 1950s, when suitable throwing knives were designed and became available for the first time, to the present day, when various throwing types have been perfected and widely distributed by top-notch cutlery dealers throughout the United States, knife throwing as a modern sport has grown and thrived.

      Perhaps this rapid growth of interest in knife throwing is because the sport is fundamentally still a back yard recreational activity, with only a small amount of throwing room needed. The fairly recent availability of inexpensive, well balanced, and virtually unbreakable throwing-knives has also helped.

      Less obvious reasons-but important ones-are the desire of growing numbers of sportsmen to use the throwing-knife as a hunting weapon, which necessitates considerable back-yard practice, and the interest generated by many returning servicemen, who took up the sport with deadly seriousness while overseas.

      Vast numbers of throwing-knives were airmailed to servicemen stationed in Viet N am from dealers in the United States, and these special weapons served a double purpose. They relieved the boredom of camp life by providing recreation and also helped many a G.I. in a desperate, close-quarter combat situation.

      As a modern sport, knife throwing has many advantages. All a sportsman needs is a good knife-or set of knives-designed for the purpose, whether made to throw by the handle or balanced to throw by the blade. Both techniques will be fully described in the following pages. A suitable target is cheap and easy to construct, and only a small portion of the back yard is needed for the throwing range.

      There is hardly any other sport that can provide so much recreational pleasure at such small cost as knife throwing. It can be enjoyed as a "solo" activity or can be expanded to include other throwers for keen competition.

      A certain amount of care and several appropriate safety measures are required in practicing the