Boomerangs

If you’ve ever thrown one of these next items, you know how difficult it can be to learn and how painful it is if you don’t keep your eye on it. We’re going back to Australia for the ancient hunting weapon called the boomerang.

NOTE: This post does not cover anything about Boomerang the television channel. If you were looking for vintage cartoons instead, click here.

A boomerang is a curved piece of wood that was originally used for hunting. The most famous style of boomerang is the returning, which when thrown follows an elliptical path and returns to its starting point. Non-returning boomerangs make up the rest of the designs which have been referred to as throwing sticks and ‘kylies’. The weapons have been traced back to the Egyptians, Native Americans, and inhabitants of southern India.

However, some boomerangs were not thrown at all but used in hand-to-hand combat by Australian Aborigines. On this island, the oldest traceable boomerangs have been recorded at 10,000 years old.

It has been speculated the returning boomerangs could have also been used for hunting in help to the noise generated by their movement. Their wings could clip leaves in trees or scare birds lying in an open field into flight where they would be captured in nets managed by other hunters. Throwsticks were used mostly for larger game, such as the Kangaroo, that when thrown would strike the animal’s legs and prevent it from escaping.

Today, this sport is mostly just that. Competitive boomeranging has sprung up all over the globe and includes these contest types:

• Accuracy
• Endurance (number of catches achieved in five minutes)
• Fast Catch (time taken to throw and catch the boomerang five times)
• Trick Catch
• Consecutive Catch
• Maximum Time Aloft (MTA)
• Long Distance
• Juggling (a boomerang must be in the air at all times)

Boomerangs aren’t just a great physical activity for adults but kids too. With advances in technology, boomerangs can now be mass produced from lighter, less dangerous materials like foam and plastic. To find multiple designs for children, competition, and recreational purposes go to boomerangs.com for your perfect match.

I want to know?- If there was a villain who attacked his foes with a boomerang, what would his/her name be? Leave a comment.