We had an axe throwing battle at Lumberjaxe. Here are rules, prices and safety measures.
The CharlotteFive Podcast team wanted to feel what it’s like to throw an axe, so we headed to Lumberjaxe (933 Louise Ave) to chat with its owners, Scott and Ashley Gadd. After a brief talk, the Gadds taught us the correct throwing form and the team went head-to-head to find who was the true “lumberjack”.
Please click and listen to the full interview with the Gadds right below. Farther down are some small excerpts of what was talked about on the podcast. The video of our competition is also below.
If someone has never heard of Lumberjaxe, can you explain the concept?
Scott: “We are an indoor competitive and social axe throwing facility. Indoor axe throwing has been an activity in Canada for about 10 years now. Just in the past year it has been trickling down to the United States and how four years ago I saw it on social media, the guys in Canada doing it, and told Ashley I wanted to do it. I always wanted to own my own business and I saw this as a great opportunity, at the time there were none in the United States, and I wanted to bring it to Charlotte.”
How is this legal and/or safe? We’ve got beer here and we’ve got axes.
Ashley: “I think that’s one of the most common questions we get. The legality of it is that there is nothing illegal in what we are doing here. From a city standpoint, we have had every inspection, every test we’ve had to pass, just like any other business that would have alcohol or an on-site business. We’ve had all of the paper work signed off on and approved at the city level for the ABC board, as well. We have a safety manual that is probably larger than anyone would ever think they need a manual to be that our insurance has approved.”
Sallie vs Sean: Who will reign as the C5 axe throwing champion?
Are injuries common at indoor axe throwing places?
Ashley: “If you look at the history, over the last decade, of all the companies that have been in Canada, they have had injuries. We took their business and safety model and amplified it. They don’t necessarily have an axe coach that is going to stay with you the entire time. They don’t necessarily have some of the regulations that we do on age restrictions or whatever other rules we have here. The two most common injuries they ever reported were dropping an axe on your foot and cutting your toe, so we have a closed toe shoe rule. So you can’t come in here in flip flops and throw axes. Number two, league members who have been sharpening their axes on site and [cut themselves]. So we have a rule — no sharpening axes in-house.”
What are the hours and prices?
Scott: “Monday and Tuesday, we are only open for leagues. We allow spectators to come and watch. We are closed on Wednesday. Thursday and Friday, we are open from 4-10 p.m. Saturday is noon-10 p.m. Sunday is 1-8 p.m. Prices are $20 a person an hour. Fridays and Saturdays book up really quick, so we highly recommend doing a reservation. You can do that on our website. We do offer parties, which is a two and a half hour format. You are able to stay for a little bit longer, bring in food, play more games, learn some trick shots. That starts at $40 a person. We also have group discounts at above 25 [people]. Leagues are $125, and that’s for eight weeks.”
What are the details about the competitive leagues?
Scott: “The competitive leagues are an individual, one versus one, match style format that happens Monday and Tuesday nights. We are a member of the National Axe Throwing Federation, which is now worldwide. We have two leagues, both of them are full. We have a wait list for the next season that is starting in March. We are trying to see if there’s room to add more, but it’s a lot of fun.”
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The CharlotteFive Podcast — presented by The Charlotte Observer and powered by OrthoCarolina — is a weekly podcast that aims to get you Charlotte Smart, Fast with fun, interesting and useful news about the city. It’s co-hosted by Sean Clark-Weis and Sallie Funderburk and is a production of the Charlotte Observer and 2WAVES Media.
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Photo: Charlotte Observer file
This story was originally published January 23, 2018 at 11:00 PM with the headline "We had an axe throwing battle at Lumberjaxe. Here are rules, prices and safety measures.."