An evening of axe throwing as Whistle Punks prepare to open in Bristol

Before urban axe throwing comes to Bristol within the former Panache nightclub on All Saints Street, Ed Stokes visits Whistle Punks’ original home in London for a taste of what’s to come

Good axe throwing technique is about the transfer of weight rather than pure strength. It’s all in the legs, apparently.

This advice came from the experts at Whistle Punks – the growing business that will be opening their first permanent home in Bristol in November – as I took part in an axe throwing session in their original London home.

I arrived at their Vauxhall centre without really knowing what I was getting myself into.

On leaving 90 minutes later, however, I felt that if ever civilisation as we know it falls apart I would now definitely stand more chance of successfully hunting for my dinner.

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Like most of the other participants, this was my first time my first time urban axe throwing, but the activity is growing in popularity.

The staff cheerily told me that they have been running for three years now and are due to expand to five sites in 2019, with new venues in both London and Bristol.

The arena definitely has its own feel. It’s an urban bunker hidden in the capital and the smell of wood is noticeable when I walk in. I’m not sure what the setting for axe-throwing is supposed to be, but this felt right somehow.

The bar serves snacks and drinks as participants chat before the session starts. The coaches are a fun and quirky bunch, which I suppose shouldn’t come as a huge surprise given their chosen profession.

After a few minutes, two instructors called us in to go over the safety basics and provided a quick demo.

There are two primary methods when it comes to throwing axes, double handed and single handed. Either is acceptable and everyone has their own preference. We were given some pointers, including about that transfer of weight.

After the introduction we were split into four groups. Each group was assigned two lanes to allow for the head-to-head competition.

Bristol24/7’s Ed Stokes (second from right) did not win the evening’s session but did hold its axe up the highest among his competitors

We had our own instructor who took us through the techniques in more detail and provided some much needed one-to-one tuition. He also kept a watchful eye open to make sure that we were never in danger of hurting ourselves or each other.

A match-up took place between two competitors over five throws. One point is awarded for the outer target, three for the inner and six for the bullseye. There are zones outside of the main target which give seven points for a hit, but they are all-or-nothing.

When an axe does stick, it sinks into the wood with a satisfying thud.

After a few practice rounds, the competition stared in earnest. Cheering and general rowdiness are encouraged and as we rolled through the first two rounds of one-to-one match-ups everyone began to get a little more comfortable axe in hand.

At this point I was on two wins and I felt the pressure ramp up as the atmosphere became tense. Four throws pass by and it was neck-and-neck, all coming down to the final shot.

Excitement grew but I failed to keep my composure, glory lost as a wayward axe bounced to the floor.

After all that emotion, we were in need of a wind down. Our instructor stepped in again to demonstrate a few trick shots. It was certainly impressive to watch what a pro can achieve as axes flew into the bullseye with a difficult underhand technique.

As I returned to Bristol, I was visualising hitting the bullseye with my newfound axe throwing skills. I’ll see you axe in hand when Whistle Punks come to Bristol, challenging all comers as we prepare for the end of the world.

Whistle Punks Bristol is due to open on All Saints Street next to F45 on November 13. For more information and to book, visit www.whistlepunks.com/book-now

Read more: Urban axe throwing coming to Bristol