Atl Whatl? The fine art of throwing board repair.

When people ask what I do all day at FortWhyte Alive, there is no easy answer.

What makes the answer comlicated is the "Special Programs" part of my title.  What's a special program?  It can be just about anything.

Today, for example, I repaired the throwing board of an atlatl.

For those of you out there who think I also spend my time making up words with too many consonants and too few vowels, rest assured: atlatls are real.  Atlatl is a Nahautl (Aztec) word referring to a device consisting of a throwing board and spear.  Most every culture on earth has used the device at one time or another.  The throwing board is used to propel the spear at a target, faster and more accurately than unaided arm strength can manage.

We use the atlatl to help students connect with the challenges faced by people living on the Prairies in the past. At some point, everyone (regardless of geographic or cultural heritage) has had an ancestor who held a throwing board and a dart, and knew that this simple tool was all that stood between their current situation and starvation...all of a sudden, the little things that divide us pale, and the common human needs for food, shelter, and the drive to care for family come to the forefront.  Standing in front of grade five class and saying this all would get an interpreter laughed at.  Standing in front of a grade five class just finishing THROWING SPEARS!!!!, the interpreter has the class' full attention.

A full summer and fall of atlatl use left one of our throwing boards worse for wear.  The leather finger straps had torn away from the throwing board, the result of too much enthusiastic use.  This was not a worn out, damaged good, to be disposed of or junked, as we are so prone to do these days.  This was a colleague in need of help and rest - granted, I don't feel the same bond with the non-living chunk of wood and leather as with my living, breathing, teammates...however, I can't fix my living, breathing teammates when they need help and rest.  I can only listen.  I can fix an atlatl board!

I cannot disclose all the details involved in repairing an throwing board - any organization needs a few secrets!  I will let you know that the process involves milkweed stems, general-purpose epxoy, and time.

The repair part of the job was a challenge.  I love trying to get the look of the repair right, while at the same time ensuring it is structurally capable of handling pretty heavy use.  However, the really fun part of this task comes tomorrow...when I field test the repair!

Watch for pictures.  Talk to you then!