Throwing in the dark?

Windwhistler · Jan 19, 2015

OK, I have finally gotten consistent and am getting great throws with heavy knives at as far as I can push them. High, low and even through small openings and down long hallways. Thanks to "The Combat Knife Thrower" on You tube, I started throwing my axes no-spin and even my wife has changed over. It doubles the striking power of the axes and adds about 1/3 to the range that I get with a knife. So I thought what next??

My dad served in the Philippines at the end of WWII. He came home talking about the knife throwing prowess of certain "Huks" that did all they could do to push American troops out of the area after the Japanese were defeated. Apparently throwing knives coming out of the dark and into their tents was a problem. (They dug trenches in their tents and slept in them because the tents were sometimes shot-up bedroll high with auto-fire from vehicles while they slept.) My head was filled with these stories in the 50's and so I have been experimenting.

Can you throw in the dark with any efficiency? It seems that my hand and eyes have to act together to make the release and point strike come out right. If I can't see much, what then?

Has anyone tried this? Suppose you hold a spotlight on a bullseye outside, will your hand and eye work together to make the point? Can you guestimate or imagine a target in front of you and hit something you can't even see? If there is a light on inside a tool shed, can you throw accurately into the shed from darkness outside and score a hit? This action simulates the throws sustained into a lit tent from the woods outside at night. At least when you miss doing this, the knife is in the shed and not lost into a dark expanse of woods.

I will be doing some experiments but if anyone has experience with this I would love to hear about it.

HCCPete · Jan 20, 2015

I've definitely thrown a lot in very low light. In the summer we sometimes just stay out after dark and continue to throw with spotlights on the targets but dark everywhere else. It's just like throwing in the day time, though shadows can sometimes mess with you a bit, and when you get a ricochet you have to hunt around in the dark to find your blade. If you can see your target, you can hit it. If you can't see your target, you can still maybe hit it, but depending on the circumstances it may not be very safe or convenient to throw in a no-light situation.

Windwhistler · Jan 20, 2015

Interesting! Low light causes me trouble but not too much as long as I see the target. Not too worried about safe or convenient right now because I have no wish to make this a regular thing. Just curious about how it works or doesn't. It was almost a year before I could ignore nearby limbs and branches enough to throw effectively down narrow path. I still sometimes balk at the low ceiling on my tool shed and miss one. It is nothing really tangible. Just a feeling in my gut that at the last minute spoils the shot. Like tripping over a piece of debris just as you throw can mess up the shot.

FishGillFinger · Jan 27, 2015

You have to identify a target somehow. Seeing it isn't necessary but visual identification is more precise. I did a little experiment throwing at sound. It was a half-ass setup but it still worked. The hardest part was remembering where the target was since I had to wait until I could throw. Basically, you can map it out in your head without actually seeing it. No spin is probably your best option with the most point-forward flight time. It leaves more room for error if the target identification is a bit fuzzy.

[video=youtube;PTe11uvNIso]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTe11uvNIso[/video]

Windwhistler · Jan 28, 2015

Very interesting experiments. I have been concentrating on hawks for the last week because my wife is into that but I will be experimenting with darkness tonight and tomorrow night so I'll let you know what I find out. I tried a brief video the other day but darkness made it so grainy that it was impossible to see what was going on.

jeverettk · Feb 23, 2015

I've thrown in the dark ok, but I'm always a little better in the daylight. I've found that neon orange duct tape and/or spray paint helps in finding your misses.

MES · Mar 15, 2015

There's this saying here that goes something like: 'You can only do something when you can do it blindfolded.'

That being said I did throwing no spin with a blindfold on and somehow its easier than throwing in very low light circumstances. Your mind seems to be open towards sound. And you map the target in your head a lot better.

KnifeThrowing · Mar 31, 2015

We had knife throwing in the dark as fun event at a throwers meeting in 2009 in Kacice, Czech Republic. (Trust the Czechs to come up with such games!)
As you can see, there was a torch below the target, to help you throw into the correct general direction (it was much less visible than shown on the photo). No chance for you to identify if your knife hit tip-first. Also, we don't do this event any more, because you can't see riochets, either, and that's pretty dangerous.