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A brief tour
The game of darts reportedly originated in England during the Middle Ages, as a derivative of archery, with paticipants hand throwing arrows and small spears.
DARTBOARDS
Targets were round slices of logs and it is thought the growth rings and cracks (formed when the wood dried) later became the basis of the wire formation or ‘spider’ as we know it today. Upturned barrels were also used.
Over time, logs were specifically cut from softwoods and soaked in water to prolong their use. With the advent of social establishments, craftsmen supplemented their income by producing more decorative and unique boards to sell to these taverns and pubs. Naturely the projectiles became smaller to suit the indoor playing environment.
Boards are now made from sisal fibre, compacted in biscuits and glued to a backing panel. They were never made from pig bristle or any other animal hair as is the well known myth but other materials have been used though.
DESIGN OF THE DARTBOARD
The numbering system used on modern day boards has been attributed to one of these carpenters, Brian Gamblin from Lancashire, who came up with the sequence in 1896. This design has not been altered for over a century because it is considered as close to perfect randomness as is possible. The main attribute of this sequence is that the four largest numbers are flanked by some of the smallest numbers thus punishing any throwing inaccuracy. A perceived imbalance is that the left side of the board contains more larger numbers than the right.
As there is allegedly 2,432,902,008,176,640,00 possible sequences for twenty numbers (who’s checking?) we should probably give Brian the credit he deserves!
DARTS AS A SPORT
The early part of the twentieth century gave rise to the pastime becoming more recognised as a sport and subsequently the National Darts Association was formed in London in 1924. The sport has maintained high exposure in its country of origin and the popularity has spread to numerous countries throughout the world with over sixty now having at least one registered darts association.
Top exponents of the game now compete for sizeable prizemoney and tournaments in Great Britain command prime television viewing timeslots.
It's definitely not the worst way to earn a living!
EQUIPMENT
As mentioned above, originally dartboards were made of wood, elm being the most used. Timber provided that 'tonk' sound when the dart hits the playing surface. In 1923, an industrial chemist by the name of Ted Leggat, manufactured a board using modelling clay, or plasticine. It didn't take off because that familiar sound was no longer made. But wooden boards were a problem, having to be soaked in water all the time so in 1931, publican Frank Dabbs approached Leggat with an idea for using short pieces of bound and laced rope to make up the playing surface.
This ultimately lead to the use of sisal (to the present day) with the highest quality sought from East Africa where one of the worlds leading dartboard manufacturers has relocated their headquarters from England. Cheaper boards are still made of paper coil and cork.
Darts have evolved from wood with turkey feathers through to today's tungsten darts with synthetic flights. Brass is the material commonly used for middle tier quality but there is still a multitude of choice available in flight composition and shape, shaft length, grip style and overall weight of the dart.
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