Official AKTA competition rules.

Events description, rules and requirements: follow this link 1999 new competition format

General Rules

No member shall represent the AKTA in communications, transactions, and other arrangements with businesses, the public, communication media, or represent him/herself as a spokesperson for the AKTA, or use the AKTA logo in their stationary or club literature withour written permission from the National Director.

The National Director shall have the authority to appoint Regional Directors.

Any AKTA sanctioned contest must adhere to all safety rules set forth by the AKTA

Anyone competing in the AKTA National Championship must be a member in good standing.

In an AKTA Regional Contest, you do not have to be an AKTA member but you must pay a maverick fee to be set by the AKTA.

Anyone Exhibiting unsportsman like conduct will be asked to leave the contest site.

A Protest Committee at all sanctioned contests shall be formed, all will consist of AKTA officers when present or at least 3 or more AKTA members in good standing.

Practice Sessions are not mandatory and may be subject to time constraints. Practice Sessions will be held at the discretion of the contest holder.

Scoring

No contestant will be allowed to interfere with the scorekeeper while the contest in underway.

All scoring will be index. Index events are those in which each score is recorded and all recorded scores are totaled to determine the overall winner.

Recorded scores will be totaled then immediately re-totaled by a different scorekeeper.

Safety

Each contestant will be required to sign a release of liability to compete.

The General Seating Area must be at least 20 ft. behind the area that has been roped off.

No alcohol or drugs are to be consumed before or during a contest.

No foul language.

Every contest must have a first aid kit available.

Anyone not complying with the Safety Rules will be asked to leave the contest site.

Contest Rules/Regulations

There is to be a minimum of four targets for the competition. The targets will be a cross section of a log such as pine, spruce, etc. The targets will be a minimum of 20 inches in diameter. The targets can be attached to a series of vertical backstops made from 2x10 or 2x8's as shown in Fig. A. The backstop shuld be a minimum of 36 inches wide and at least 6 feet tall. The targets can be attached to the backstop using lag screws. The height of each target will be measured from the floor to the center of the bulleye as shown in Fig. A. The targets will be placed at various heights as shown in Fig. A, so that you will not be throwing at the same height and target every time. The idea behind placing the targets on a vertical backstop is so that we can minimize the number of knives that will go past the targets and hopefully the missed knives will stick in the backstop or will be deflected toward the ground where we will have plywood covered with carpet to help protect our knives.

Ther will also be a staging area exactly 10 feet behind the thrower's line a 22 feet so that throwers waiting their turn will be a safe distance away from the thrower in case a missed knife becomes airborne.

The whole area, at least 25 feet in front of the targets and all areas on the sides and behind the targets, will be roped off with only one opening as shown in Fig. B. to make an entrance and exit for the throwers. No one will be allowed to walk behind or to the sides of the targets while a practice or a competition is in progress.

There will be a range officer in charge of the throwing range during all practice sessions and competitions. The range officer's main responsibility is to ensure safety during practice sessions and competitions, to score the thrower's knives, and to watch for throwers stepping over the line. Anyone disagreeing with the range officer can protest his call to the protest committee.

Each contestant will be issued a number. The range officer will call the first four throwers to the staging area. He will then call the first thrower to the first target.

Each thrower will be allowed to throw only one knife at each target. Each thrower will be allowed three practice throws to help determin their distance away from the target at the beginning of the first set only.

The range officer will then call the first thrower to the first taget. After their practice throws the next throw will be scored. After the throw, the thrower will step back to the staging line and the range officer will call the second thrower to the thrower's line in front of the second target. The second, third and fourth throwers will repeat the same scenario until all the throwers have thrown. The range officer will then call each thrower to stand in front of their target while he scores the knife. The range officer will straighten the knife to a 90 degree angle to the target face, and the highest number ring that the blade cuts will be your score. The tip or point of the knife has to penetrate the target face to score.

If the thrower has any objection to the scoring of the knife, he or she may protest to the protest committee.

After the scoring of the knives, the throwers will go back to the throwing line with each thrower advancing to the next target.

This series of events can be continued any number of times according to the number of throwers and available time.

Anyone stepping on or over the throwing line will receive a zero for that throw.

Rules Governing Tomahawk Throwing

All hawks must be of traditional style, metal head and wooden handle or shaft. No modern, all steel integral head and shaft models. Wooden handles must be between 15 and 19 inches measured from bottom tip of handle to top of hawk head. The cutting edge of the hawk blade must be no longer than 4 inches (see Figure A.). The hawk must make one full revolution and stick in the target withh the handle pointing down. As in the knife throw, the throwers score will be the highest ring on the target that the blade cuts. The hawk must remain in the target long enough for the judge to score. The minimum distance line from the target will be 14 feet (see Figure B.).