Axe-throwing club wants alcohol licence

A Canadian battle axe-throwing association has applied for a liquor licence to serve alcohol at its Ontario locations, mixing drinks with a medieval sport popular with lumberjacks.

The Backyard Axe-Throwing League (BATL) has been bringing together axe-slinging enthusiasts since 2006, starting life in backyard. It soon outgrew its home and moved to a warehouse in 2011. There are now six BATL axe-throwing locations in Ontario and one in Calgary.

Axe throwing is a sport in which competitors throw an axe at a target, attempting to hit the bulls eye, and is a featured event in most lumberjack competitions – a common pastime in Canada.

BATL’s CEO, Matt Wilson, says some 10 to 15,000 people regularly attend BATL’s two Toronto locations each month to take out their frustration by chucking an axe at a target board. A decade after it formed, the association has now made an application to the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario to be able to serve alcohol at its six Ontario venues, as reported by the Toronto Star.

Currently, axe-throwers are allowed to bring their own food and non-alcoholic drinks to the league, but CEO Matt Wilson is “optimistic” that he’ll be able to soon serve alcohol.

“We received glowing reviews on the safety to go ahead with the application for the liquor license,” said Wilson. “They were very impressed with the safety of the facility, as well as the training of our staff.”

“We want people to leave with a smile, and we’re excited for the upcoming change” Wilson said. “Axe-throwing can be quite cathartic.”

Any person who picks up an axe signs a waiver and is brought to designated axe throwing areas alongside training staff, with each axe thrower given a 20 to 30 minute training session.

It’s not known if axe-throwers will only be permitted to purchases alcohol after an axe-throwing session, as was the case when a US gun club in Oklahoma was granted an alcohol licence last year.