Total Axe Throwing women’s league is a massive success

CLINTON TOWNSHIP — Every Wednesday night, a women’s league gets together and competes at Total Axe Throwing in Clinton Township. The league is not only an important outlet. It has turned into a large and growing community.

In August of 2022, Andrea Bubel got the women’s league off the ground. The goal was to allow women to feel comfortable in the ax-throwing environment.

“I wanted a space where I could just throw with my girlfriends,” Bubel said. “I just wanted a safe space for women to be together and have fun and encourage each other.”

The league has been a huge hit. Women from all over are coming to join the league and experience all that this community has to offer.

“One season we dropped down to eight people. Every season since it just grows and grows,” Bubel explained. “The friendship and comradery we’ve built inside that building is the reason we all come back every week and every season.”

Now the league has ballooned up to around fifty participants. The women’s age range is from mid 20s to early 70s and even includes some mother-daughter duos.

“My daughter is the one that got me in the league,” Pamela Pscheidl said. “I’m retired. It’s something I look forward to.”

The communal experience doesn’t mean the league isn’t competitive, however. The league has a wide range of talent levels and is a great way to learn a unique skill while competing against yourself and others.

“Your stance and the positioning of your hands and your arms all matter. And when you start wanting to improve then you notice the good (throwers),” Pscheidl said. “It gives you some competitive feel.”

The league is also unique in its way of scoring. You aren’t necessarily focusing on what the woman you’re throwing against is doing, but rather just trying to do better than the scores you’ve been putting up.

“The way our league is set up is it’s based on average rather than wins and losses,” Bubel explained. “So you’re really just playing against yourself. Trying to beat your own average.”

Whether you’re one of the better throwers in the league or not, everyone takes value from Wednesday nights. So why has ax throwing become so popular with women in the area? It’s the perfect stress reliever.

“I have a high intensity job during the day,” Bubel explained. “It’s such a good stress reliever. I don’t know why it’s addicting, but it is. You feel powerful.”

It truly has become that for everyone: an empowering experience for all of the women involved.

“It’s very empowering. There’s no negativism,” Pscheidl said. “It’s an extremely diverse, eclectic group of women.”

The reason why the league continues to grow so quickly is because it has genuinely turned into a family. The support system that has been created goes beyond just the ax throwing.

“I broke my leg a year ago and I was having to throw from a wheelchair. All the girls were so nice,” Bubel said. “Anytime I have anything going on they’re the first girls to show up. It’s just a good group of girls.”

This group has evolved into far more than just a league. The impact that these women have had on the community is inspiring and their reach goes far beyond their building.

“(The league) means everything to me. This is one of my biggest accomplishments,” Bubel said. “Just having a safe space for us, and that it’s fun. I’m just really proud of it.”

Total Axe Throwing is located at 44159 N. Groesbeck Highway, in Clinton Township. For information about available leagues, including the Wednesday Women’s League, go to totalaxe.com.