Axe-throwing: The new trend in group activities

TAMPA (FOX 13) - In a small office space on Memorial Highway in Tampa, the sounds of axes hitting wooden targets are unmistakable. This weekend, Axe Throwing Tampa will open its doors to the general public.

Owner Kristi Collins got the idea while on a vacation up north.

"I was born in Canada, but raised here in Florida. On a trip back to Canada, my family and I got an opportunity to seek out some interactive entertainment, and this is what we ended up doing, throwing axes," she said. 

The sport is as simple as its name.

Players throw axes, the same ones designed to chop down trees, at giant wooden boards that look like huge dart boards. Collins and her staff held a beta test for friends on Wednesday, with the grand opening set for this Friday.

"It gives us an opportunity to test out our processes," Collins said.

While the sport sounds common-sense simple, staff members will spend 10 minutes guiding the groups before the axes go flying.

"When you walk through the door, we're going to pair you up with a coach who's going to teach you how to hold the axe, how to throw the axe, and after 90 minutes, we trust that you'll be hitting the bulls-eye and having a good time," Collins said.

The cost is $35 per player for those 90 minutes.

The space has two ranges, with two targets each, and each target can handle up to six people. We asked the beta-test players what they thought, one common theme comes out -- stress reliever. On top of that, they also mention the camaraderie.

"It's pretty cool to see that big of an item traveling that fast into a piece of wood and hitting on target," Kace Groff said.