Category Archives: News

Remembering John Morris

January 29, 2014 Cheryll 3 Comments

We are sad to report that our dear atlatl friend and supporter John Morris passed away this past Friday, January 24.

John of Grand Isle, Vermont, fell in love with the atlatl on a visit to the annual atlatl event at Chimney Point Historic Site in Addison, Vermont several years ago. John, a man of many interests, immediately started practicing with the atlatl at his beautiful homestead on Grand Isle. He and his late wife, Bette, often would show and demonstrate the atlatl to local school groups, scouts and many others.

John Morris demonstrating his atlatl skills at the Chimney Point Historic Site in Addison, Vt. (Photo Courtesy of Chimney Point) — John Morris demonstrating his atlatl skills at the Chimney Point Historic site in Addison, Vt. (Photo Courtesy of Chimney Point)

John participated in many atlatl contests and devoted many hours sharing his love for the sport with countless people. John was instrumental in extending the atlatl program at Chimney Point by adding a Sunday master class/coaching class for young people and anyone interested in learning about the atlatl.

John Morris (far right) with fellow atlatlists competing in an ISAC contest at Chimney Point Historic Site. (Photo Courtesy of Chimney Point)

When ill health over the last couple of years prevented him from competing, John still made the effort to come to the Chimney Point program and support his fellow atlatlists. We all were fortunate to know both John and his amazing kindness and generosity. John and Bette were both members of the Secret Ear of Corn Oooga Booga Society

We will miss you John. Farewell dear friend.

John’s obituary can be viewed in The Burlington Free Press Services will be Friday in St. Albans, Vermont at the Heald Funeral Home

News, Our Products

Harvesting Bamboo for Atlatl Darts in Georgia

January 23, 2014 Bob Leave a comment

Cutting cane on Gardenia Island and Tortuga Island is the high point of the year for me because it is an escape from the torture of Arctic air that we experience this time of the year up here in the snow belt of Upstate New York. It almost seems like spring time when we step onto our favorite island sanctuaries, where bamboo grows like giant stalks of grass waving in the soft warm winds of the Okeefenokee Swamp.

The bamboo grows strong and straight in those parts and makes outstanding dart shafts that fly like the Thunderbird. It takes a lot of hard and careful work to harvest, season, heat treat and straighten these shafts but the effort is worth it. It is always kind of a downer as we travel north through Pennsylvania on our way back and start seeing the snow again. Oh well, itâ€™s back to winter.

Hunting & Fishing, Tributes

Thunderbird Atlatl’s Memorial to Friends who Rediscovererd the Arts of Hunting and Fishing with the Atlatl

January 21, 2014 Cheryll 3 Comments

Wendel Adams, my good friend who passed away several years ago was a fellow atlatlist who helped in the Great Atlatl Hunting Experiment where we relearned how to use atlatls for hunting big game. Wendel was from Kentucky. He was an amazing machinist and an avid outdoorsman.

The art of atlatl hunting had been lost and after about a decade of experimentation we figured out how to do it again. We also shared atlatl fishing trips in Florida and Kentucky.

Wendel helped me build my first dart tapering machine when he and his wife Bobbi came to visit us in New York. I think it was 2001 or 2002. Not to forget, the many times Bobbi and Wendel helped make my life and my family’s life much more comfortable on the road through their gracious hospitality.

Our dear friend and fellow atlatlist the late Wendel Adams.

I also remember the late Lou Becker, an atlatlist and boyer from Michigan who was an inspiration for me also in the effort to discover how the atlatl may have been used for hunting. I met Lou in the early 1990s when he was experimenting and making atlatls. Lou was a kind and gentle friend who shared his enthusiasm for hunting and learning with me. Along with his many other responsibilities, Lou served as President of the Michigan Atlatl Association.

Good friend and fellow atlatlist and boyer the late Lou Becker.

News

World Atlatl Association Ties Atlatlists Together

January 20, 2014 Cheryll Leave a comment

We still treasure the handwritten notes we received many years ago from World Atlatl Association secretary Leni Clubb. When we first started going to atlatl events in the early 90s, we were thrilled to find our there was a World Atlatl Association.

We became members and have been members ever since. Leni attended atlatl events and kept everyone informed about atlatl events and rules for over two decades. Many of us fondly remember her handwritten notes and support as we set up atlatl events in those early years. Leni has been retired from her secretary job now for a few years but her dedication and loyalty to the World Atlatl Association made it the terrific organization it is today.

Membership in the World Atlatl Association is well worth the minimal annual dues. The WAA has an informative webpage and members receive quarterly newsletters. Check out Thunderbird Atlatl’s Bob Berg hunting with one of our Wyalusing atlatls on this page of the World Atlatl Association web page.

Interested in joining? Go to the webpage or print the application form below:

News, Our Products

Look Forward To Spring! Think Atlatl Fishing!

January 19, 2014 Cheryll Leave a comment

Okay so it’s snowy and cold in a lot of places but we can dream of what awaits us (or if you live in a warmer climate, get ready for an adventure)! We’re already getting seed catalogs in the mail so think spring!

Fishing with atlatls and harpoons is exciting and fun. It’s one of the most satisfying uses of an atlatl even if you don’t get anything. We and our customers have experienced atlatl harpoon fishing in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, on lakes in Kentucky and New York, Michigan, Florida and Michigan. Thunderbird Atlatl’s harpoons have proven themselves over and over again.

Bob Berg with a blue fish caught with a Wyalusing atlatl and a Thunderbird Atlatl harpoon. Bob was fishing in Long Island sound off the Connecticut coast with Gary Nolf and Scott Van Arsdale. — Bob Berg with a blue fish caught with a Wyalusing atlatl and a Thunderbird Atlatl harpoon. Bob was fishing in Long Island Sound off the Connecticut coast with Gary Nolf and Scott Van Arsdale.

Last July just off of Drummond Island in Lake Huron, Michigan, a group of us spent an enjoyable day and night making our equipment and preparing for atlatl fishing. We fastened two canoes together to make a pontoon so people could stand up in the boat safely so they could see into the water to shoot fish. This was all part of the Great Lakes Traditional Arts Gathering which will take place again in July 2014.

Fishing with harpoons in Lake Huron, Michigan, just off of Drummond Island. No fish were harmed in the production of this photo.

One of our canoes used battery powered lights. The other more traditional setup used birch bark torches. The piece of birch about the torch is a blind to keep the harpooner from being blinded by the light.

Night Fishing at Drummond Island with birch bark torches at the Great Lakes Traditional Arts Gathering.

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