NEWS THAT LEAVES A MARK.
Axe Marks The Spot
Samuel Lim Zhi Yao
3rd February 2022
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SAMUEL LIM reviews Axe Factor’s facilities that provide customers with a modern-day Viking axe throwing experience.
Be it a date idea, relieving pent up stress, or the urge to be your version of Thor, axe throwing is an experience out of the ordinary. Choose your weapon of destruction, ranging from small, ninja-like metal ice pickaxe to a giant lumberjack hatchet. Then, imagine your boss or your ex as your target and hurl your axe down the straight lane at a bullseye.
Located at The Grandstand, Axe Factor is Singapore’s one and only axe throwing facility. The place is a 15-minute walk from Sixth Avenue MRT station, but it is recommended to travel by car as the place is quite inaccessible on foot.
To ensure the safety of members, all guests are briefed by Axe Factor’s resident ‘Axe-perts’ 15 minutes before their axe throwing session. The safety briefing includes the dos and don’ts when stepping into the throwing lanes, as well as the different techniques of throwing the axes.
Ryan Yeo, 21, a student at Singapore Management University who visited Axe Factor in December 2021, says, “[The ‘Axe-perts’] showed me the standard two-handed throw and once I was more comfortable with holding the axe, they taught me flashier throws like the reverse grip and hip throw.”
It is recommended to start with two-handed throws. “After getting used to throwing the two-handed throw, you can move on to throwing with a single hand,” says Muhammad Noor Izwan Bin Zaharuddin, 20, an intern at Axe Factor.
However, with just three staff members present when I visited, there seemed to be a lack of staff to ensure the safety of all customers at all times. They had to juggle between attending to customers at the entrance, selling drinks and conducting safety briefings.
Mr Yeo also feels that the axe throwing experience at Axe Factor poses some safety risks despite the safety measures put in place.
“Even though we were briefed to stand behind the marking line [when throwing the axe], I feel that the safety regulations were not very enforced,” he says. Combined with the thrill and fatigue from throwing axes, it is possible for one to forget the rules after a while.
“There were a few times where I almost threw my axe when my friend was removing his [axe] from the target,” says Mr Yeo.
Axe Factor does have one single throwing lane, so it is possible to opt for that option instead of the double throwing lanes to eliminate the risk of hitting someone with your axe.
Mr Zaharuddin demonstrates the difference between a hip throw (left), where the initial position of the axe starts at the hip, and a reverse grip throw (right), where the blade of the axe faces the thrower. Photo: Samuel Lim.
Axe factor’s layout allows natural light to flood into the throwing lanes, ensuring that the targets are always well lit. Photo: Samuel Lim.
Mr Zaharuddin says that he is allowed to throw axes during his working hours to destress.
“The main idea brought by one of the bosses is ‘Axe decompression’, which is basically people releasing their stress or venting their anger through axe throwing,” says Mr Zaharuddin.
Dr Geraldine Tan, the principal psychologist at The Therapy Room, says that relieving stress through axe throwing is much like punching a punching bag.
“If I punch the punching bag, I need to exert force and let it out onto something else,” says Dr Tan. She says that the physical exertion of force can translate to letting go of one’s pent-up emotions.
“I need to exert a certain amount of force to release [the axe], so that [exertion of force] emulates the releasing of tension,” says Dr Tan.
When asked whether he felt bored of axe throwing after a while, Mr Yeo disagreed.
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“It’s weirdly therapeutic,” says Mr Yeo. “You can switch off your mind during the one-hour session and just throw the axe over and over again.”
“I can see myself coming back again. The staff here are very friendly and I like the music and the atmosphere,” says Mr Yeo, “but the place is quite out of the way, so I’ll probably only come once in a while.”
A one-hour throwing session at Axe Factor costs up to $30 per person, but the price per person decreases as the group size increases, up to a limit of eight. I recommend around four to five people, so you can tag out if you need a break. It helps to wear something comfortable and covered shoes are required. Mr Zaharuddin says that Axe Factor has “full houses on Saturdays and Sundays”, so it is better to go during weekdays to avoid the crowd.
