In Search of the Elusive Axe Throwing Target....

Written by
Alissa
World Champion LumberJill
​Founder & Owner of the Axe Women Loggers of Maine

Axe throwing targets. As you can imagine... the bigger, the better! (It's easier to hit something the size of a barn door than something the size of a postage stamp!)
That being said... axe throwing targets are not the most convenient thing to travel with - trust me, I know!! They are literally just big, heavy, tree stumps. I've cut and dragged countless targets from deep in the woods! I've driven hundreds of them coast to coast over the years... 

I've flown with one once... I've wrestled them in and out of elevators and rental cars... rolled them through fairs and festivals, conventions and tradeshows... brought one to Hollywood for Queen Latifah, and hauled another one through downtown New York City for Harry Connick Jr.!
 
Axe throwing targets seem to be the one thing I overlook until just before we're heading out on the road to a show or demo. Then, once I realize we need one, it's a scramble to find just the right one! 
Sometimes we're lucky and a nearby log yard will have a few big stumps we can cut targets out of. But usually we're not that lucky! 
Sometimes our targets decide to take their final throws in the middle of shows. That happened once halfway through the month long LA County Fair in California a few years back! Our target split right in half... no amount of ratchet straps could hold it together... it was done. Where were we supposed to find an axe throwing target overnight in LA?? We ended up finding a scrap pile in the back of a city maintenance yard that had a few dead palm trees in it! So, we cut a slice of palm tree stump, painted rings on it, bolted it to our stand... and the show went on without a hitch the next day! Who knew... palm trees make ok axe throwing targets! 
 
Another time, in the Ozark Mountains, our target did the same thing. Split right in half during a show! This time I was able to put a ratchet strap around it and hold it together for the rest of the day... But we knew it wouldn't last for long. Thankfully during the final show of the day we had a family of loggers in the audience! They noticed right away that our target was struggling! After the show they asked if we wanted to come out to their property and cut a new one the next morning. Of course we did! 
The next morning Andrea and I loaded up a chainsaw in the back of the truck, called the loggers and told them we were on our way. We asked for their address to put into our GPS. But they told us that GPS couldn't find them. They gave us the name of a grocery store in a neighboring town and told us to look for their truck. Once we pulled up beside them in the parking lot, we were told to follow them. We drove out of town... eventually the pavement ended... we drove on unmarked dirt roads (needing 4-wheel-drive at times) through the mountains for miles! Our GPS unit didn't even show the roads! It was just a black screen with our truck in the middle! And... we had no cell phone signal! The other AxeWomen back at the hotel couldn't get ahold of us... and they had no idea where we were going! 
Eventually the trees cleared, and we drove out into a field and a log yard in the beautiful Ozark Mountains! We cut new targets, got a tour of their logging operation, and had a nice visit with their entire family.
After thanking them and saying goodbye, and thankfully remembering our way out of the maze of unmarked dirt roads, we had a good laugh at our morning's adventure... but also realized that things could have taken a very different turn if they hadn't been such good people! 
 
The constant hunt for axe throwing targets is always an adventure... just like traveling the world with a team of AxeWomen and a goofy PlottHound! Something we wouldn't trade for the world!!