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For many of us, receiving a boomerang as a kid was tantamount to finally getting a guitar but having no idea how to play it. Eventually both items became a decorative conversation piece. End of story? Maybe not, as far as the boomerang is concerned.
For nearly 30 years Cleveland Boomerang School owner Dave Boehm has been staging clinics around Northeast Ohio in hopes of edifying and intriguing the public on that curved piece of wood most often associated with Australian Aboriginals and kangaroo hunting. This leads us to the next series of events, a Boomerang practice on Sat 8/21 at Howe Meadow in Peninsula and then Boomerang Extravaganza on Sun 8/22 at the same venue.
“Basically it’s to educate people about the boomerang and give them the chance to fly boomerangs,” said Detroit, Michigan native and Madison resident Boehm. “I lived and worked in Australia in the early 70s, and upon returning stateside I would be in the parks flying the boomerang and people would say to me, ‘I never saw one of those work.’”
“I never realized that this might be something people would be interested in, so back then I wanted to see what it took to get boomerangs to become popular,” said Boehm. “I thought I’d do that for about two or three years and everybody in Cleveland would know about it and it would all be over with and everyone would be out flying boomerangs. Like this is the way you bowl, this is the way you ride a bike and this is the way you fly a boomerang. So I’m amazed here we are 29 years later.”
A retired market analyst from Parker Hannifin, Boehm holds roughly seven Boomerang Extravaganza events annually with the practice classes setting up visitors nicely for a competition the following day. The tournament of sorts is a friendly affair where boomerang throwers test their ability with accuracy circles. In a tongue-in-cheek fashion, the winner actually receives a sample of the Australian Outback. That’s right, Boehm brought back some of its dirt and now hands that out as a treasured prize.
While winning a competition is one thing, most people want to know how exactly does one throw a boomerang?
“Throwing boomerangs, they’re not intuitive,” Boehm said. “In other words, everything we throw we throw up in the air. But a boomerang has to fly, so it has to be thrown dead ahead. And people throw them up in the air and therefore they don’t give them enough power. In order to really power up a boomerang, you really have to hang on to it until your arm is level to the ground and then it goes out straight and flies. There’s no trick of the wrist or nuance-ing. There is some in the sense of direction of the wind and speed, but the boomerang throw is very consistent, with you just varying your strength.”Boehm can’t stress enough the social aspect of “Boomerang Extravaganza.” He promises those that take part in the event will leave with a new appreciation for the sport.
“This event is really for anyone who is interested,” Boehm said. “Some people take it very seriously, like they’re world champions, but we don’t think that’s necessary. You can just show up and learn to fly a boomerang in 20 minutes. And more importantly, it doesn’t cost anything, and it’s a lot of fun.”
The boomerang practice day takes place from 2 to 4PM on Sat 8/21 at the Howe Meadow, 4040 Riverview Rd., Peninsula. Boomerang Extravaganza takes place from 11AM to 4PM on Sun 8/22 at the same venue. Boomerangs provided or bring your own. Both events are free. More info here: http://www.nps.gov/cuva/planyourvisit/upload/FINAL!_CVNP%20Summer%202010%20SOE_web.pdf
Free-lance writer John Benson spends most of his time writing for various papers throughout Northeast Ohio.
When he’s not writing about music or entertainment, he can be found coaching his two boys in basketball, football and baseball or watching movies with his lovely wife, Maria.