Are you any good at darts?

[bobb]

Some years ago, I won two pounds in a pub for throwing some darts into the requisite parts of the board. But I wouldn't say I was any good. I once missed the board by about 2 feet in a pub up north - which obviously confirmed my southerness and homosexuality with the locals.

So, are you any good with the arrows?

[Kim]

My brother had a dart board in his room (which wasn't really big enough for a dart board, but he had a big noticeboard thing that prevented wayward darts from taking chunks out of the wall).  I was banned from playing darts after one rebounded off the wire bit and landed in his (bare, as was his habit) foot.

Nevertheless, one bored afternoon watching progress bars on his computer^[1] found me fiddling with assorted cardboard and stationery, and without really paying attention I fashioned a kind of elastic-band-powered dart crossbow.  What it lacked in accuracy it made up for in muzzle velocity, as we discovered when the errant dart thoroughly impaled his teenage boy standard-issue can of Lynx Nevada.  The resulting shock and awe meant that neither of us were quick-thinking enough to lob it out of the window before the contents had finished escaping, and the upstairs of the house smelled like a PE department for weeks.

The moral of this and other stories, is that I shouldn't be allowed to play with projectile weapons.



_{[1] Which reminds me, it being the post-Thatcher era, he had a particularly smug looking photo of Bill Gates on the dartboard for a while.}

[Basil]

No. Not very good at all.

[madcow]

Used to be in my youf , but not played much since then.
I don't even know where my darts are any more.
The arrows available in most pubs do not lend themselves to good marksmanship.
You are lucky to get 3 the same weight and circumference and even luckier to get 3 identical and intact flights.

[pcolbeck]

I used to be OK when I was younger and we frequented a pub with a dart board. I even had my own board in the garage. Darts is like anything put a bit of practice in and you will be reasonable at it. Being really good though takes obsession and talent. Having your own darts helps a lot as then your throwing something thats the same weight and has the same aerodynamics every time.

[Torslanda]

When I worked at the tuning shop we all ahd the same lunch break and two of the mechanics played 'round the board' starting on a double , finishing with the bull.

I joined in and was initially quite crap. After 2 or 3 weeks they'd decided I was a ringer. I doubt I'd be any good now . . .

[Ham]

What was that SF story with the guy with the "super-power" of precision throwing? I put myself down as OK-ish as I used to be good, during a mis-spent youth when pretty much every lunchtime and quite a few evenings were spent in a pub. Lunchtimes (
 extended lunches, me and a mate were "in charge" of a couple of departments, outside of month end we used to send one person up by rota to man all the phones) were the key periods. Was 40 years ago, though.

I reckon the most important aspect is the knowledge that you can - and knowing how - to repeat and trim a throw, I suspect you won't lose that any more than riding a bike. Following that, the tactical aspect of knowing how to do the darts maths  and probabilities shouldn't be underestimated.

[Robh]

I’m rubbish but I’d better get good pdq, as the ‘lads’ that I work with have decided that some sort of electronic (?) darts emporium somewhere in the square mile is the preferred destination for our Xmas shindig 

[Asterix, the former Gaul.]

Have aimed for OK-ish altho it's years since I used to play for a pub team.  I did play Keith Deller once but not in a proper contest. 

[SoreTween]

I joined in and was initially quite crap. After 2 or 3 weeks they'd decided I was a ringer. I doubt I'd be any good now . . .

Mate 1 at uni was a keen competition player at his local with years of experience so I started and after a while was good enough to only lose by the lower end of 3 digits.  Mate 2 started playing and within a few weeks was winning among us pretty much every game.  Mate 1 pronounced him Git.  Then Mate 2 broke his hand and had it in plaster.  For a laugh one night he threw a couple left handed and within a week he was winning again.  The Git.

[dim]

I spent 2 years in the army in South Africa (had no choice .... it was conscription)

of those 2 years, I spent 16 months in South West Africa (now called Namibia) ...

I never ever had to pay for a beer whilst there .... won them all on darts ....  and I was paraletic drunk every night 

I was also table tennis champ

[T42]

OKish in my misspelt youff, but rubbish compared to a chum who could lodge three darts side-by-side in the treble 20 every turn. He used wee tiny ones - dunno if they're still legal these days.  Anyway, when he showed up nobody would play for drinks so he either bought his own or went thirsty.

[clarion]

I was very keen as a yoof, and had my own Standard and Yorkshire* boards.

Long time since I have played, though I do still have a few sets of darts.  Given my collarbone injury, I doubt I could manage more than a few rounds anyway.

* For the curious, the Yorkshire Board has no treble ring and no outer bull, which increases the hazard, and forces accuracy.

[pcolbeck]

For the curious, the Yorkshire Board has no treble ring and no outer bull, which increases the hazard, and forces accuracy.

And is the one true board and far superior to all other darts boards.

[clarion]

For the curious, the Yorkshire Board has no treble ring and no outer bull, which increases the hazard, and forces accuracy.

And is the one true board and far superior to all other darts boards.

'Appen!

[bobb]

Isn't there also a Manchester board? IIRC it has an extra ring.

Typical of Yorkshire bastards to take away scoring opportunities, the tight fucks 

Edited to correct my spelling of Manchester 

[clarion]

Isn't there also a Manchetser board? IIRC it has an extra ring.

Typical of Yorkshire bastards to take away scoring opportunities, the tight fucks 

There are lots of other boards.  I *think Manchester may well be one.

[Jaded]

I was very keen as a yoof, and had my own Standard and Yorkshire* boards.

Long time since I have played, though I do still have a few sets of darts.  Given my collarbone injury, I doubt I could manage more than a few rounds anyway.

* For the curious, the Yorkshire Board has no treble ring and no outer bull, which increases the hazard, and forces accuracy.

Lots of inner bull?

[clarion]

Gewgall tells me the Manchester board is like Yorkshire, but smaller (the tight fucks)

[bobb]

I currenlty have an image of Geoff Boycott playing darts on a Yorkshire board. Just going for 1 every time or perhaps throwing his dart to the offside for no points....

[Ham]

Although I've always known of its existence, I've never played London fives.

[Cudzoziemiec]

So we've got a darts thread as well? I'm rubbish at it and unlike pool, I'm not interested, to the point where I just aim at the board and ignore the numbers completely.

The moral of this and other stories, is that I shouldn't be allowed to play with projectile weapons.

Oh yes you should! But only in isolated areas.

[TheLurker]

Trying to remember the last time I played darts.  Ermm.... *probably* a Friday after work with mates from work at the Sugar Loaves on Xmas Steps in Bristol late '87 mebbe early '88.

[Cudzoziemiec]

Oh... I don't think the Sugar Loaves is even there anymore.

[Butterfly]

I'm rubbish. Equally rubbish ambidextrously. I don't always miss the board though, so just rubbish. My dad has a trophy for darts. Probably from the 60s.