Variables

There are many tiny variables in a dart throw which have an exponential effect on the trajectory of the arrow. A hint of drift as it leaves the hand for example can easily send the dart skewing into the 5 or worse still the 12 bed instead of a straight 20. It is therefore important to eliminate all stray movement in the throw and in a recent video of my own throw I noted a tiny lurch forwards every now and again.

To tackle the problem of body and head movement I have been altering one variable in my stance every session and recording videos of straight throwing.  I then watch back the footage and make notes on stray movements which work against a smooth consistent throw. To begin with I tried sinking into my stance a little before throwing which felt solid straight away. I even threw a maximum 180 shortly after changing to this stance from my former more upright position.

As anyone who has experimented with alterations to their throw knows that this one moment of darting perfection was more than likely the result of a short term increase in concentration than a product of the stance, so it will take further research before I am totally confident in how I hold my body ready to throw. In a subsequent session I then varied this stance by widening my feet placement to create a more stable platform but in turn this altered my entire balance and orientation, so it felt too different to be a simple variation on the one basic stance. Interaction of the variables in a darts throw is the root cause of the frustration we all experience when trying to put it all together and make improvements to our game.

What I have discovered is that if I compare my most recent video with earlier takes I am definitely becoming more stable in the upper body but there is still work to be done because my new stance is hard on my lower back. Whilst a twist in the body lines up the arm nicely with the middle of the board it forces my head into a slight lean towards my shoulder which I expect is not great for back pain in the long run either. The overall lower height of the stance also leaves me feeling as though I have to tilt my head up to look at the treble 20, but then in between each throw my head will sink back down a little. I have also learned that a slight twist in my lower abdomen is often the cause of drift into the 5 bed aka the dreaded 'Mardle drift.' The other recurring errors I make are an overly paused and exaggerated draw back in the throw which leads to an odd follow through and usually a dart that loops too high over double top. I have also noticed a deterioration in the quality of my stance over time which manifests itself in more body wobble and an indecisive setting of the aim point before throwing. This last observation explains how I can start throwing a 501 leg with promising straight darts, deteriorate a little with a couple of 45s and then completely slide into uncontrollable wild throwing and 22s when the total creeps down below 200. I used to think that this problem was a mental one and that I could concentrate my way out if, or think positive and throw positive. I am now of the opinion that this is a declining stance issue because my oche position it is not solid and repeatable. Furthermore wild darts are the result of a pull back and follow through issue that I intend to focus on once my stance is improved.

In my quest to work on one variable per practice session I am surely in this for the long haul and it is very difficult to watch and assess my own footage whilst remaining focused on one aspect of the throw. My mind is very quick to forget that I am watching like a hawk for head bobbing for example and I start thinking about the angle of setup, or follow through hand positions for example. This tendency for the mind to flit about and latch onto new variables, combined with the interaction of the variables is surely the reason why so many darters go slightly mad or lose focus and do not progress. I am determined to be methodical in the deconstruction of my throw because I have spent years developing a semi-useful dart throw that is all too easily ruined by a wobble on release, a pause on drawback, or an odd follow through. I am keen to move onto experiments with other aspects of the throw but the next variable I will work on will be the height of throw again: I am not totally convinced by the sunken stance and I think that if I can use the best features of this method in a more upright stance I will lessen the pressure on my lower back and give myself a more repeatable throw that I can settle into more easily on the oche.