Please Note: This archival text is unmodified. Many of the addresses, phone numbers, etc. may no longer be valid, including contact information for the editor of this issue of Boomerang News. Updated contact information can be found at: Ted Bailey's Contact Information

Boomerang News #44 - 12/97

News From The: USA

The 1998 USBA rankings have been compiled by Chicago Bob and posted on the internet. For those of you who are not on the web, the top 15 throwers are:

1 - Gary Broadbent

2 - Chet Snouffer

3 - Mike Dickson

4 - Michael Girvin

5 - Rob Parkins

6 - Mark Weary

7 - John Flynn

8 - Gregg Snouffer

9 - John Gorski

10 - John Koehler

11 - Chicago Bob

12 - Eric Darnell

13 - Adam Ruhf

14 - Betsylew Miale-Gix

15 - Steve Kavanaugh

Note that the top 3 throwers and 5 of the top 10 are from Ohio! Could Ohio have sent a viable team to the 1998 World Cup?

Betsylew Miale-Gix emailed rang-list the following update on USBA activities: The USBA Board is exploring the possibility of participating in a Foster's advertising campaign that would be geared toward the 2000 Australian Olympics. The board is attempting to establish a two way relationship that advances public awareness of the USBA, the art, science and sport of boomerang throwing in addition to utilizing the novelty and athleticism of our boomerang athletes.

The USBA Toss Across America boomerang demonstration and teaching event has been occurring once a year in May since 1990. The 1998 Toss Across America will take place on 16 May 1998. To obtain a Toss Host Packet containing information on how to hold a Toss Across America, as well as suggested illustrative and promotional materials, please write to Betsylew Miale-Gix at the address below. The 1998 Toss Across America Packets will be mailed in March, 1998.

Betsylew Miale-Gix

3351 236th Street SW

Brier, WA 98036

The USBA has officially announced the three teams that will compete in the 1998 World Cup.

Team Red

Gary Broadbent

Mike Dickson

John Flynn

Rob Parkins

Chet Snouffer

Mark Weary

Team Blue

John Koehler

John Gorski

Chicago Bob Leifeld

Betsylew Miale-Gix

Adam Ruhf

Gregg Snouffer

Larry Ruhf (coach)

Team White

Tony Brazelton

Eric Darnell

Spike Frazier

Will Gix

Dennis Joyce

Steve Kavanaugh

It should be noted that because of the USBA Team selection procedure, there may be changes to team rosters if a thrower is unable to participate. In that case, all throwers rated below the declining thrower move up one position.

Beverly Wachtel writes for the science radio series Earth & Sky. The program answers listeners' questions on the air. Earth & Sky is planning to answer the question "How do boomerangs work?" in the near future. Listen for it and let BN know if you hear it.

Tony Brazelton is working on an article about pets and boomerangs for the Winter issue of Many Happy Returns. If you would like to share your experiences with Tony (even one-liners), please send him the material as soon as possible. Photos are most appreciated. Mail to:

Tony Brazelton

2405 Lawndale Drive

Champaign, IL 61821

Richard Pollock-Nelson plans to ring in the new year with a Rocky Mountain Boomerang Night Throw at Village Green Park. Bring your own night-rangs or use night-rangs that Richard will have for sale. Throwing will start at 8 PM and end with a toss at 5 sec. before midnight so everyone can throw in 1997 and catch in 1998. There will be prizes and trophies. There will also be heaters to keep warm. For more information, call Richard at (303)-368-5933 or write to:

Richard Pollock-Nelson

2530 So. Ouray Way

Aurora, CO 80013

Does anyone have plans to throw in 1998 and catching in 1997? Here is how you can do it. Time moves from east to west. You can position yourself in a state or country on the eastern side of a time zone change. After the eastern time zone has changed to midnight 1998, you can throw and then step back into the western time zone and make your catch! You amy need to throw with extra layover so that your boomerang lands behind you. I hope the winds are with you. Let BN know if you do it successfully. You have a whole hour to try and complete this difficult throw!

It is with great sadness that Michael Girvin has announced the permanent closing of Gel Boomerangs, due to his chronic back problems and the potential major surgery that lies ahead. All of Gel's remaining stock of boomerangs will be sold directly through Gel Boomerangs until everything is gone. Furthermore, the phone number, (510) 658-2469, is now the only contact number for Gel Boomerangs. The fax line and 800 number have been disconnected. Michael is one of the top few innovators of American competition boomerang equipment. Collectors and competitors would be wise to purchase as many of Michael's boomerangs as possible before they are all gone. The value of each is certain to go up sharply in the near future. Write Michael for a catalog today:

Gel Boomerangs

2124 Kittredge Street #61

Berkeley, CA 94704

Another sad note for American boomerangers: Brad Penkala of Eye of the Storm Boomerangs has decided to pull his internet site off of the WWW due to a lack of sales. However, Brad's beautiful lap joint booms did well in the auction. For those who do not own one of Brad's lap joint booms, you are truly missing out on a very fine quality boomerang, both in construction and flight. You can call Brad at 805-692-4987 or write to:

Brad Penkala

4090 La Barbara Drive

Santa Barbara, CA 93110

John Weigel is holding a workshop at the San Diego Navy base between Xmas & New Years for all the guys stuck in the barracks during the holidays. John will donate the blanks (made out of 1/4", 5 ply euro-birch). Abo Steve has even offered to help. This is a great way to entertain Service Men during the holidays.

Ed Caldwell of Plant*Speak has entered into an agreement with John Flynn to provide a free Aussie boomerang to anyone who purchases Kelly Sagert's book, `Bout Boomerangs, America's Silent Sport at a cost of not less than 20% below the retail price. USBA members are also entitled to a 30% discount.

You can also purchase `Bout Boomerangs, America's Silent Sport. for only $10/copy (+shipping) if you order at least 5 copies before 1 January 1998. Both John Flynn and Gary Broadbent have taken advantage of this special offer. They provide copies of the book to school libraries as part of the presentation fee when they do boomerang demonstrations at local schools.

Plant*Speak will be providing an update of sports boomeranging news items and updates in a "freebie" package that accompanies book orders. Ed encourages boomerangers to send him information for possible inclusion.

Contact Plant*Speak at:

Ed Caldwell

PLANT*Speak Publications

34100 Center Ridge Road

North Ridgeville, OH 44039

Darryl Patton is the new editor of Wilderness Way, an excellent magazine that contains articles about primitive technology and survival skills. Darryl is interested in reviewing articles about primitive boomerang and throwstick construction technologies. Do any of the readers make booms or throwsticks with stone tools? You can contact Darryl at (205) 523-5300 (evenings); email at: dpatton@peop.tdsnet.com or by writing to:

Darryl Patton

Wilderness Way Magazine

P. O. Box 8481

Gadsden, AL 35902

Kendall Davis found an advertisement in the Tiger Direct catalog for a software product called "Photo>Graphics" where the ">" character is a boomerang. The graphics application costs $80.

AUSTRALIA

Rosemary Thomson recently witnessed one of Bruce Carter's popular school demonstrations. She relates the following:

"On a beautiful summer evening, a big crowd watched as Bruce Carter and his two sons, Craig and Trent threw their boomerangs in an exhibition that had everyone gasping. The headmaster of the Cowes Primary School on Phillip Island, Victoria told me that the crowd was between 450 to 500. Bruce demonstrated with a variety of boomerangs. 10 year old Craig and 8 year old Trent were able to thrill their peers with their ability to throw AND catch - Oohs and Aahs and lots of applause. Watch out for these under 17 champs at the World Championships in St. Louis next year ! By the end of the evening, the youngsters (not only boys but the young girls too) had mastered their plastic lightweight three armed boomerangs and had a eye to their future in boomerang throwing when Bruce brought out Doctor Death and the night boomerangs !

My impressions were that Bruce had encouraged and promoted the sport in a positive manner. The entourage create an impression with the brightly painted Boomerang Bus and I was very pleased to have coincidentally been at the same country town on the same night and heard about the demo that the Carter family was doing at the local school."

BULGARIA

The Third National Bulgarian Boomerang Championships was held on 9 November in almost ideal weather conditions. Eight members of the Bulgarian Boomerang Club (ranging in age from 12 to 40 years) met at their traditional throwing field in the South Park in Sofia. This included Stephen Howard of Santa Barbara, California who currently works in Sofia. Stephen has been throwing since 1970 and has about 200 boomerangs in his collection. There were five events: Endurance, Fast Catch, Accuracy, Trick Catch and MTA100. The top 3 throwers included:

1. Georgi Dimantchev

1. Marin Karavelov

3. Alexander Genov

CANADA

John Cryderman is constructing a 1.5 metre X 1 metre wooden plaque, labeled with the name/state/province/country of 63 supporters who purchased a Cryderman Catalogue. The amount of $1.00 from each catalogue sale was donated to benefit the 1998 World Cup. The plaque will be raffled at the 1998 Championships. A Herb Smith Sussex Hook will be mounted at the top of the plaque with lettering inscribed: THE 1998 WORLD BOOMERANG CHAMPIONSHIP SUPPORTERS'.

For those who purchased the Cryderman catalogue and are puzzled about the lack of pricing information - a price sheet was completed in mid-November. The listing is currently being held up by a Canadian postal strike. Until the strike is settled, you need to call (519)-354-3984 or email: crydshow@kent.net for more info.

Eric Promislow announced that there are two vacancies on the Canadian team for the 1998 World Cup. If you have a connection with Canada, such as "Were you born or lived there?", then there may be a spot on the Canadian team for you. Please contact Eric (email: aj064@freenet.carleton.ca) or write Stéphane Marguerite as soon as possible:

Stéphane Marguerite

4031 St-André

Montréal (QC) H2L 3W2

Canada

FRANCE

A Long Distance Competition was held on 25 October 1997 in Troyes. The top 5 throwers were:

1. Lorenz Gubler 132.2m (Swiss)

2. Ingo Frantz 131.8m (Germany)

3. Manuel Schütz 124.2m (Swiss)

4. Michel Dufayard 120.0m (Fra.)

5. Tibor Horvath 118.1m (Swiss)

Yves Caze announces the names of the throwers on the 3 French Teams. They are as follows:

Team 1 : Julien KERJAN, Benoit VINCENT, Eugene CINAL, Yves CAZE, Christophe DAUTRICHE, Jerome ROYO.

Team 2 : Didier BONIN, Franck DOUETIL, Jean luc VILLANI, Yann GIRAULT, Pascal GAGNIERE, Stephane GIGON.

Team 3 : Loofy BOITEUX, Sebastien GUIHEUX, Laurent CRASSA, Christian HECKMAN, Michel DUFAYARD, Philippe PICGIRARD.

GERMANY

The DBC Info has a new editorial staff that includes: Axel Heckner, Michael Siems, Thomas Scartowicz, Dietmar Reinig, Günter Möller and Oliver Thienhaus. The DBC is soliciting other clubs to participate in a newsletter exchange program. Each club should contact Dietmar Reinig who manages the newsletter distribution program for more details. Dietmar's contact information is below:

Dietmar Reinig

Hohlweg 7

64686 Lautertal

Germany

Tel.: + 49 (6254) 1593

Fax: +49 (6254) 842

email: rediboom@rediboom.com

After the exchange is established, newsletters should be sent to:

Günter Möller

TAPIR Sport-Bumerangs

Wilhelm-Busch-Strasse 28

41541 Dormagen

Germany

Tel./Fax: +49 (2133) 40523

Guenter_Moeller@T-Online.De

With 3 German teams planned for the 1998 World Cup in St. Louis, the DBC has issued a list of 20 throwers who are committed to participate on the 3 German teams. The last 2 names are alternates and will move up to fill in vacancies. The teams will not be composed of throwers in sequential order by rank. Instead, all three teams will be optimized to take advantage of individual thrower strengths to insure that Germany remains a potent force in the upcoming World Cup. This strategy gave Germany a victory in New Zealand, 1996.

German (3 Team + 2) List

Rank Name of Thrower

1 Harald Steck

2 Fridolin Frost

3 Oliver Thienhaus

4 Axel Heckner

5 Gerrit Lemkau

6 Guenter Moeller

7 Oliver Rau

8 Juergen Rode

9 Michael Siems

11 Torsten Fredrich

12 Thomas Szartowicz

13 Georg Bauerschmidt

14 Alexander Opri

16 Heinz-Willi Dammers

18 Dennis Bittner

21 Torsten Gruendel

22 Paul Gajski

23 Lothar Haase

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

25 Hans-Georg Hoffmann

37 Michael Blanquett

NEW ZEALAND

Congratulations to Earl Tutty who had a [non-competition] MTA throw and catch of 2 minutes and 22.71 seconds using an Axel Heckner Quirl MTA . It was caught 110 meters from where Earl threw it.

Earl is in the process of putting together a proposal for a boomerang event to take place on New Years, 2000. New Zealand is the first major country to see the light of the new day in the new Millennium. Some lucky thrower may be the first person in the world to throw a boomerang in the 20th century & catch it in the 21st century? Earl plans to organize an International South Island NZ boomerang tour around or about the same time. For more information about this grand event, write to:

Earl Tutty

17 Truscotts Rd.

Heathcote Valley

Christchurch 2

New Zealand

SWITZERLAND

On October 19, a tournament, organized by Rene Vonlanthen was held in the town of Dietikon. There were 16 (all Swiss) throwers. The overall winners were: (1) Thomas Stehrenberger (Accuracy: 48 P., Endurance 66 P.); (2) Manuel Schuetz (TrickCatch 84 P.); (3) Juerg Schedler (Aussie Round 79 P.). The 66 points in Endurance was a new Swiss record!

Also, congratulations to Lorenz Gubler who set a Swiss Long Distance record at 132.20m in Troyes.

Lorenz Gubler and Tibor Horvath are working on a (English) publication about Long Distance boomeranging. They will take the material from their web page and extend it even further. There will be lots of plans, technical info, troubleshooting, etc. The publication will be complete on 15 June 1998. If you have any long distance material (pictures/plans/articles, etc.) that may be suitable for this publication, Tibor would like to hear from you. They would also like to include a list of all throwers who have thrown for more than 100 metres in an official competition. Please send your name, distance, date and competition event information to:

Tibor Horvath

Rebhalderstraße 12

8173 Neerach

Switzerland

WBA

Twenty teams have signed up for the 1998 World Cup: Australia I, Australia II, Brazil, Canada, England, France I, France II, France III, Germany I, Germany II, Germany III, Holland, Italy, Japan, Scandinavia, Switzerland I, Switzerland II, USA I, USA II, and USA III. A deposit of $1,000/team was due on 1 December, according to the instructions on the web page: http://users.aol.com/tbrang2/World_Cup98.html All team organizers should communicate with Tom Fitzgerald. Tom plans to have email shortly. Until then, you can call Tom at (314) 839-1604 or write to:

Tom Fitzgerald

1159 Holly River Dr.

Florissant, MO 63031

WWW

Chicago Bob has posted a web page with the 1998 rankings for all throwers who competed in USBA sanctioned tournaments : http://www.htc.net/~chibob/97ratings.html

Don Sagert has posted The Something Catchy Homepage with various boomerangs, boomerang jewelry, helmets, and Kelly's book plus more. There is a special priceon the boomerang jewelry for Xmas only. Visit: http://members.aol.com/smthgctchy/catchy.htm

Richard Pollock-Nelson has posted his boomerang web page with information specifically tailored to Rocky Mountain throwing events: http://members.aol.com/pollocknel/index.htm

Chicago Bob has posted the 1997 USBA National Ratings at: http://www.htc.net/~chibob/97ratings.html

MOTHERS AGAINST BOOMERANGS!!! is a new web page created by Dallan Reese to support throwers at the University of Texas at Austin: http://www.utexas.edu/students/mother/

Dallan Reese has also posted some photographs of the Egyptian boomerangs and throwsticks that a friend took on a visit to Egypt: http://www.utexas.edu/students/mother/pics.htm

Ben Tesch has posted a small page with his WBA logo design and a link to WBA web page. Ben won the logo design contest last year: http://www.waste.org/~irq5/design99/wba.html

Whether you want a single box or a dozen, you can get great wholesale discounts for tri-Fly, pro-Fly and Air Dancers by SafeSport at: http://users.aol.com/tbrang1/SafeSport.html

The Cleveland Boomerang School has a new web page with information about the groups activities and products. If you go to any CBS throws, make sure you bring a bottle of Valium: http://www.clevelandboomerangschl.com/

Etienne Sourd has posted a web page with photos of the 1996 World Cup in New Zealand. The page is in French, but the photos can be read in every language: http://www.dsuper.net/~etsourd/world_boo.html

Laurent Froment has a boomerang page with links to lots of boomerang plans at: http://services.worldnet.net/booman/myboos.htm

Olivier Duffez has changed the URL for his web page, which has lots of boomerang plans: http://www.mygale.org/07/duffez

Heikki Niskanen has posted a Second Hand Boomerang Shop web page where you can buy and sell one of a kind items at: http://www.uku.fi/~hniskane/bs.html

Heikki Niskanen also has a web page with information about the 1998 Arctic Sun Throw which will be held concurrently with the International Prehistoric Weapons Games in Kilpisjärvi, Finland on 19-21 June 1998: http://www.uku.fi/~hniskane/bmm.html

Martins Ierags from Latvia has a new boom page. You can find great traditional booms at super low pricing. This site has photographs of pre-historic Latvian boomerangs and throwsticks: http://www.open.lv/home/aivars/

Edward Cadman of The British Boomerang Society has posted a web page for the BBS with great information on everything from boomerangs to throwsticks. Visit: http://www.rangsoc.demon.co.uk/bbs.htm

Ulf Valentin of Denmark has been working on a Java based flight simulator for the WWW. He is getting pretty close to completing his project. The most recent update allows you to make a simple design of a two wing boomerang and see a graphical representation of the boomerang while the different design values are changed. This includes the length of the two wings and angle between them, the density of the material, a lift coefficient, etc.

You can see the center of gravity, the approximate width, height and weight of your boomerang design. You can adjust the wind speed and direction, change the throw angle, tilt/layover, inclination, velocity, etc. You can then put your boomerang in flight and see how it performs when it is thrown. The simulator is a little slow, but it does work well, considering you need to use it on the WWW. If you want to try it out yourself, select "new projects" at: http://www.image.dk/~valentin

IN CLOSING

The Fall 1997 Auction is history. A summary of the top auction bids is listed on page 7. A collage of all the boomerangs in this year's auction is shown on the cover. There will be a special Spring Auction to benefit 1998 World Cup Teams. To view the Auction Web Page, set your web browser to: http://users.aol.com/tbrang2/auction.html

I was asked by one of the subscribers to give the readers a breakdown on where subscribers are located. I will do this for BN #44 only.

Overseas: Total - 65

France - 13

Australia - 9

Germany - 8

Canada - 8

Japan - 5

Switzerland - 3

United Kingdom - 3

Belgium - 2

Finland - 2

Holland - 2

Bulgaria - 1

Colombia - 1

Italy - 1

New Zealand - 1

Philippines - 1

Scotland - 1

Singapore - 1

Spain - 1

Sweden - 1

Turkey - 1

USA - 168

California - 29

Michigan - 13

Ohio - 11

Washington - 11

Illinois - 9

Pennsylvania - 9

New York - 7

Oregon - 7

Texas - 7

Arizona - 6

Florida - 6

All Others - 53

SUBSCRIPTIONS

This publication is produced monthly. Every issue is packed with 8 pages containing all the information you need to know to keep current with the ever changing world of boomeranging. The distribution of BN currently stands at 161 USA and 65 overseas subscribers. Eight issues of "Boomerang News" costs only $10 in the USA; $12 in Canada and $20 overseas. You can subscribe by sending payment (make check or M.O. out to Ted Bailey) with your name, address & phone number to:

Ted E. Bailey

P. O. Box 6076

Ann Arbor, MI 48106

email: tbailey@ic.net

http://ic.net/~tbailey/Boomerang.html

FALL '97 BOOMERANG AUCTION FINAL BIDS

The table below summarizes the final results for the Fall 1997 Boomerang Auction. All winning bids include conditional bidding adjustments. There were several bid ties. In all cases, the earliest bid won. There were 75 bidders and 40 lucky winners. The average winning bid was $58. However, the median winning bid was only $36. An impressive $1,873 was generated to benefit 1998 World Cup teams. The amount of $1,189 will benefit the Scandinavian Team. There were 25 boomerangs with bids exceeding $100. Bids on the premium throwsticks were between $180 and $300. The Janetzki boomerangs took top bid honors at $451 apiece. The Herb Smith boomerang bids varied from $105 to $291 with the Paxolin long distance models going for 2-3 times that of the wooden art models. The Al Gerhards long distance hook sold for $321. The Cuartas hook and Cryderman Raptor both went for $161. The special edition Romblad MTAs had winning bids between $181 and $222.

No Bid Manufacturer Item

74 $451 Janetzki Bros. The Admiral

75 $451 Janetzki Bros. Bandicoot

70 $321 Al Gerhards S/L Distance Hook

106 $300 Aboriginal Throwstick

107 $300 Aboriginal Throwstick

20 $291 Herb Smith Paxolin Marathon

177 $222 Jonas Romblad Romblad MTA

175 $220 Jonas Romblad Romblad MTA

176 $210 Jonas Romblad Romblad MTA

71 $199 Herb Smith Paxolin Duocurve

109 $188 Aboriginal Throwstick

174 $181 Jonas Romblad Romblad MTA

108 $180 Aboriginal Throwstick

6 $161 Oscar Cuartas Lapped Hook

21 $161 J. Cryderman S/L Raptor

190 $131 Bob Foresi S/L Throwstick

72 $122 Herb Smith Hook

73 $105 Herb Smith Traditional

165 $102 Siegfried Stiller Wolfe Art

167 $102 Siegfried Stiller Eagle Art

168 $102 Fred Malmberg Lap Joint "V"

169 $102 Fred Malmberg Lap Joint "V"

17 $102 Ted Bailey Lapped "V"

146 $100 John Flynn Nat. Elbow Hook

166 $93 Siegfried Stiller Indian Art

114 $87 J. Cryderman Throwstick

98 $85 Brad Penkala Lapped V Attack

19 $81 Gerh. Bertling S/L VW-Kaefer

15 $80 Ted Bailey Lapped "V"

102 $78 Neil Kalmanson Hammerhead I

100 $75 Neil Kalmanson X

101 $75 Neil Kalmanson Unicorn

76 $72 Carl Naylor Large Hook

16 $70 Ted Bailey Lapped "V"

77 $67 Jack Byham Traditional

81 $66 Bunny Read Traditional

184 $65 Bunny Read Wyche Hook

55 $65 G. Dimantchev Vector MTA

103 $64 Neil Kalmanson Hammerhead II

56 $63 G. Dimantchev Vector MTA

94 $63 Unknown Bent Elbow Hook

85 $62 Lorin Hawes Silky Spinner

61 $60 G. Dimantchev Advantage

80 $60 Bunny Read WycheProof Hook

128 $60 John Cryderman Flat Top Hook

145 $60 Herm Peeters Maïdo L/D Hook

11 $58 Leni Barker Lapped Omega

8 $58 Leni Barker S/L Omega

63 $57 G. Dimantchev Rotor Tri-blader

43 $54 George Gray Distance Hook

68 $52 Ben Ruhe Book

1 $51 Dave Hendricks Lapped V

65 $51 G. Dimantchev Masterpiece M

173 $50 Jackie Byham Traditional

10 $49 Leni Barker S/L Omega

97 $49 Brad Penkala Lapped V

53 $48 "Sponge" Alberg Thing tri-blader

171 $48 Kendall Davis Tomahawk

12 $48 Leni Barker Lapped V

2 $48 Dave Hendricks Lapped V

91 $47 Feng McCloud

62 $47 G. Dimantchev Artistic Triblader

52 $47 "Sponge" Alberg Lil' Mountain

141 $46 T. W. Smith Scythe II

96 $46 Brad Penkala Lapped V

58 $46 G. Dimantchev Micro Omega

59 $46 G. Dimantchev Uli's MTA

60 $46 G. Dimantchev Bailey Style MTA

64 $46 G. Dimantchev Magic V/V

66 $46 G. Dimantchev Paff II

26 $46 G. Dimantchev Omega

23 $45 Herm Peeters Distance Hook

9 $45 Leni Barker S/L Omega

18 $45 Erwin Brojan Natural Elbow

111 $45 Ben Ruhe Book

47 $44 George Gray Gray Big "U"

50 $44 Aboriginal Natural Elbow

187 $42 Steve Conaway Aboriginal Hook 2

183 $42 Bunny Read Traditional

78 $42 Brian Thomas Hook

93 $42 Steve Conaway Ninja Hook

99 $42 Neil Kalmanson Mini KR

179 $42 Dave Hendricks Lap Joint

83 $42 Steve Glover Signature boom

13 $41 Leni Barker Lapped "A" Frame

3 $41 Dave Hendricks Lapped V

49 $41 George Gray Throwstick

135 $40 T. W. Smith Spiro Gyro

136 $40 T. W. Smith Astrick

137 $40 T. W. Smith Whisper

138 $40 T. W. Smith Paradox II

156 $40 Dan Neelands Lapped Omega

7 $39 Leni Barker S/L Omega

170 $39 Max Hoeben Lap Joint

41 $38 George Gray G. Hook

14 $37 Leni Barker Lapped "V"

180 $37 Harri Pietilä Phenolic Triblader

181 $37 Harri Pietilä Phenolic Triblader

163 $36 John Cryderman Throwstick

57 $36 G. Dimantchev Magic Keyhole

67 $36 G. Dimantchev Paff II

95 $36 Brad Penkala Lapped V

157 $35 Dan Neelands S/L Paint Sticks

39 $35 George Gray Hook

25 $34 Doug DuFresne S/L Oregon Hat

182 $34 Harri Pietilä Phenolic Triblader

147 $33 Michael Girvin Tri-Blader F/C

151 $33 Michael Girvin Aussie Sunshine

150 $33 Michael Girvin Sunset 60

149 $33 Michael Girvin Weighted Sunset

89 $32 Michael Girvin Bat Omega

69 $32 Aboriginal Toy Set

90 $31 Michael Girvin Madonna

82 $31 Tony Butz V-omega

162 $31 Misc. Posters

104 $31 Willi Urban Comeback Sport

186 $31 Doug DuFresne Chinook Omega

185 $30 Doug DuFresne S/L Omega

24 $30 Doug DuFresne S/L Outback II

48 $30 George Gray Throwstick

122 $30 J. Cryderman Natural Elbow

148 $29 Michael Girvin Bellen Dancer

129 $28 J. Cryderman Flat Top Hook

125 $27 J. Cryderman Spyder

172 $27 Kendall Davis Klingon Triblader

42 $27 George Gray G. Hook

38 $26 George Gray Lumpy-rang

116 $26 J. Cryderman Traditional

84 $26 Lorin Hawes Super Looper

87 $26 Sam Blight Seagull

51 $26 Sponge Alberg Tailhook

28 $26 Tom Risher S/L Traditional

86 $26 Sam Blight Hummingbird

159 $26 DC Comics Comic Book

160 $26 DC Comics Comic Book

161 $26 DC Comics Comic Book

46 $26 George Gray Traditional

152 $26 Michael Girvin Bellen

153 $26 Rich Surace "V" boom

154 $26 Rich Surace Omega

112 $26 Ruhe + Darnell Book

36 $25 George Gray Lumpy-rang

27 $25 Tom Risher Omega

117 $25 J. Cryderman Traditional

105 $25 Willi Urban Comeback Sport

155 $25 Mike Storm V Omega

139 $25 T. W. Smith Tee

140 $25 T. W. Smith Godel's Proof II

35 $23 George Gray Tri-blader

126 $23 J. Cryderman Flat Top Hook

37 $23 George Gray Lumpy-rang

121 $23 J. Cryderman Natural Elbow

4 $23 Dave Hendricks Lapped Manta

54 $23 Leziro Silvera Natural Elbow

32 $23 Tom Risher Greyford "V"

115 $22 Bruce Boomerangs Traditional

79 $22 Billy Knight Top Hat Omega

92 $22 Jacques Thomas MK-1

189 $22 George Gray Small "U"

144 $21 H. L. Mayhew Lapped Ruler

164 $21 John Derden Lapped V Traditional

33 $21 George Gray Open Traditional

34 $21 George Gray Large Tri-blader

40 $21 George Gray Lefty Hook

120 $21 John Cryderman Natural Elbow

31 $21 Tom Risher Odd "U"

127 $21 John Cryderman Flat Top Hook

44 $20 George Gray V100

45 $20 George Gray Traditional

118 $20 John Cryderman Traditional

188 $16 Falcon Boomerangs X-4

178 $16 Dave Hendricks Lap Joint

158 $16 Fine Woodworking Magazine

5 $16 Dave Hendricks Lapped Manta

110 $16 Misc. Magazines

29 $16 Tom Risher Traditional

30 $16 Tom Risher V100

88 $15 Sam Blight Hummingbird

119 $15 Dan Jones Natural Elbow

123 $15 John Cryderman L/D Lapped Elbow

124 $15 John Cryderman Heavy "V"

130 $15 Axel Heckner Steiger MTA

131 $15 Axel Heckner Fuzzy

132 $15 Axel Heckner Spirale

133 $15 Axel Heckner Big Hook I

134 $15 Axel Heckner Schlangen hook

143 $14 H. L. Mayhew Lapped Ruler

113 $8 Bernard Mason Book

142 $6 Made in Taiwan Junk Traditional

SPRING '98 BOOMERANG AUCTION

Another boomerang auction will be held in the Spring, 1998. The primary purpose of this auction will be to raise money for the teams who will compete in the 1998 World Cup which will be held near St. Louis in July 1998. The conditions are as follows:

The total number of auction boomerangs will be limited to 100. Any individual can submit up to 10 boomerangs with a maximum of 5 boomerangs by the same manufacturer. Boomerangs to benefit a 1998 World Cup team will have priority in auction selection. All boomerangs must be high performance competition boomerangs or of a collectable nature: fine woodworking, fine art, historical, Aboriginal, etc. Out of print literature and unusual paraphernalia is also acceptable. All Spring 1998 auction boomerang submittals must be approved by Ted Bailey in advance.

Auction bidding rules will be similar to what was used in the Fall 1997 auction with conditional bidding and a winning bid limit of 20% higher than the next highest bid. There will be an auction fee of 20% of the proceeds for boomerangs that do not benefit a World Cup team.

Spring 1998 Boomerang Auction Deadlines

1: Photographs or detailed descriptions of proposed auction boomerangs must be received by Ted Bailey before Christmas Day (25 December 1997).

2: Selection of 100 limit auction boomerangs to be made by Ted Bailey on New Years Day (1/1/98).

3: Selected auction boomerangs must be received by 31 January 1998.

4: Auction Bid Sheets will be mailed out after 28 February 1998.

5: Final Auction Bid Sheets must be returned before 15 April 1998.

6: Notification of Winning Bids on 1 May 1998.

The Boomerang World Ranking List (WRL) - by Oliver Thienhaus

First a I would like to thank all the national controllers and people who have helped me to create the World Ranking List (WRL). Also I would like to make some comments about Ted´s articleon the WRL in the last issue of BN. This WRL is UNOFFICIAL! It doesn't claim (or ever did) to be the only official WRL, it doesn't claim to be perfect. It is mainly my (and all the people who helped me) point of view as to how to compare the throwers on the globe. The WRL is a preliminary and experimental Ranking List. There are several reasons as to why I have helped create this list:

1) I have fun doing the list

2) I want to push the discussion about international rules (i.e.: Trickcatch)

3) We should have a World Ranking List and someone had to make the first step

In January 1997 Guenter Moeller and I had the idea of a global Ranking List, something like a World Ranking List. We thought about a way to compare throwers from all over the world.

We started with a completely different system, which rated the scores with points depending on the weather conditions. 5 different Rating Levels for the weather conditions should be set right after an event has been finished. Then your score was to be transformed into points out of a special list I made, one list for each Rating Level. I was talking about this system with a lot of people all over the world and at the end, everybody said, that this system was too complicated. Then Didier Bonin (F) had the basic idea for the current rating system. After a lot of comments again, I started to work on the World Ranking List with the system like it is now.

Why should we have a system?

Throwers from different continents normally do not meet each other at tournament, so it is not clever, to take the placings for the comparison. We have to take the results. If somebody has another opinion, PLEASE let me know! Again: This is just a try and I'd really like to hear a lot of discussion about this!

OK, from each thrower I take the three best results in each event out of the last 12 months (so the WRL will be updated monthly) and add them. This score is your score in my list and it will be compared with the other scores from the other throwers.

So I get 6 lists in the 6 standard events, the sum of the placings in each list is your Overall-Score in the WRL.

Big problem at the moment: The Americans do not use the Trickcatch 100 rules, like was used in New Zealand 1996. So they don't get any points in one of the six lists! I know, that this might disappoint some Americans, but I think the Trickcatch 100 system, which is currently used in every single country outside the US, is the better one. Why is Eric not on the TOP in the MTA-WRL? He is! On the day, Ted downloaded the WRL, the Portland tournament had not been integrated yet. Now Eric is on the TOP in the MTA-WRL and 5th Overall! Chet only had 3 tournaments, Rob Croll didn't have good results (maybe good placings). If you have any suggestion to change to rating system or anything else, please contact me! (email: oliver.thienhaus@hamburg.netsurf.de)

Oliver Thienhaus

Gut Stellmoor

22926 Ahrensburg

Germany

Boomerang News Calendar of Events

North America

31 Dec.. 1997 New Years Eve Throw Rich Pollock-Nelson 303-368-5933 2530 So. Ouray Way; Aurora, CO 80013

16 May 1998 Toss Across America Betsylew Miale-Gix 425-485-1672 3351 236th St. S.W.; Brier, WA 98036-8421

26 Jul-2 Aug '98 World Cup Championships Tom Fitzgerald 314-839-1604 1159 Holly River Dr.; Florissant, MO 63031

12/13 Sept. '98 2nd Outer Banks Comp. John Koehler 757-437-1185 210 60th St.; Virginia Beach, VA 23451

Overseas

1 Feb 1998 NSW State Titles. Brian M. Thomas (02) 9369 0675 131 Birrell St; Waverley NSW 2024; Australia

1 Feb 1998 Victorian Seamist Champs Bruce Carter (3) 93 00 23 74 21 Fran St.; Glenroy Melb. 3046; Victoria; Australia

1 March '98 Central Coast Champs Brian M. Thomas (02) 9369 0675 131 Birrell St; Waverley NSW 2024; Australia

29 March '98 Eastern Suburbs Champs Brian M. Thomas (02) 9369 0675 131 Birrell St; Waverley NSW 2024; Australia

2/3 May 1998 Aussie National Comps. Brian M. Thomas (02) 9369 0675 131 Birrell St; Waverley NSW 2024; Australia

9/10 May 1998 North Germany Comp Jürgen Küster +49 (5741) 12414 Linkestraße 3; 32312 Lübbecke; Germany

30/31 May 1998 Torneo Nazionale Roma B Maurizio Saba +31 (6) 653 8053 Via del trullo 122; 00148 Roma; Italy

30 M/1 Jun '98 22.nd Amstelveen Comp Erik Leferink +31 (70) 329 7857 Remmersteinstraat 157; NL-2532 AZ Den Haag; Holland

7/8 June 1998 Travemünde Beach Cup Eckhard Mawick +49 (451) 70 51 81 Wakenitzmauer 64; D-23552 Lübeck; Germany

19/21 June '98 1998 AMSBC Heikki Niskanen +358 17 2633211 Tasavallankatu 10 a 1, 70620 KUOPI; Finland

27/28 June '98 5.th Kiel Week B. Cup Eckhard Mawick +49 (451) 70 51 81 Wakenitzmauer 64; D-23552 Lübeck; Germany

11/12 July 1998 1st Aalen Competition Peter Dürr +49 (7963) 1311 Eichenstraße 33; 73486 Adelmannsfelden; Germany

14/15 Aug 1998 6th Bielefelder B. Meet Lothar Haase 49 (5221) 85 50 70 Kattenschling 24; 32049 Herford; Germany

XX Sept. 1998 7th Berlin Championships Gerhard Bertling +49 (30) 215 3008 Potsdamer Str. 150; 10783 Berlin; Germany

Aug/Sep 1998 Blacktown Championships Peter Lewry +61 (2) 96 22 29 27 ???; Australia

24/25 July '99 Boomerang Cup Eckhard Mawick +49 (451) 70 51 81 Wakenitzmauer 64; D-23552 Lübeck; Germany

December '99 Int'l Millenium Throw Earl Tutty +64 3 384 5405 17 Truscotts Rd.; Heathcote Valley; Christchurch 2; NZ

2000 World Cup Championships Rob Croll (03) 9887-5085 5 Tyson Ct.; Wantirna South; Victoria 3152; Australia