SKT (Shuriken, Knife & Tomahawk Throwing)

It’s been my week off from the dojo for the Easter holidays and as usual I haven’t really stopped working. However it’s given me the chance to properly launch SKT (Shuriken, Knife & Tomahawk) which is our throwing organisation that will be teaching Seal Martial Arts Shurikenjutsu.

I closed Shinobi Shurikenjutsu last year because I had a lot going on in my personal life and the organisation needed a complete overhaul including a rebrand as it was a bit too Ninja based. I wanted SKT to be more accessible to throwers from all styles not just Ninjutsu so rebranding was key. This isn’t a new venture for me, the ranges have been operating under a number of names for years, it started off initially as the Mushin Shurkenjutsu Renshu Kai which frankly was too much of a mouthful to say, then I changed it to Shnobi Shurikenjutsu which is when i originally wrote the first book about Shurikenjutsu, Then I closed Shinobi Shurikenjutsu in late 2022 due to bereavements in my family which meant I had to focus purely on keeping the Seal Martial Arts Dojo operating.

So what’s changed now that we are SKT?

SKT is more than just a knife throwing club. We are an association, martial arts system, weapons shop, clothing shop. blade smithing service and throwing club!

We want to provide a comprehensive service for beginners and experienced throwers making that path to becoming a Shuriken, Knife & Tomahawk throwing instructor as easy as possible.

We have a diverse range of techniques taken from traditional Togakure Ryu Shurikenjutsu and western sports based knife and axe throwing. Our predominant technique is no spin throwing in Shurikenjutsu but we also teach rotation throwing and half spin throwing.

We no longer run Ningu that was closed in late 2022 as well which means we will no longer be producing the Ningu Arrows or Ningu Spinners. Instead we have a diverse range of traditional and modern Bo Shuriken coming for SKT. We will not be making or selling Hira Shuriken (Ninja Stars) as they are illegal in the UK and don’t have a place on the ranges. It should be said though that Hira Shuriken are good for learning the basic mechanical aspects of throwing and for developing accuracy, after all an angel axe is just an oversized Hira Shuriken.

There is a membership fee for joining SKT which is £20 but for this you receive:

• Access to our ranges
• The ability to register for our competitions
• The ability to rank in our system
• A copy of Seal Martial Arts Shurikenjutsu
• Access to necessary documentation (risk assessments, waivers, etc.)
• Access to our blade smithing service
• Access to purchase Bo Shuriken (18+)
• Discounts on club clothing and merchandise.
• Advice on running your own throwing club (Instructors Only)
• Access to our design service (Instructors Only)
• A listing on our website as one of our approved clubs (Instructors Only)
• Access to daily discounts and promotional offers in our SKT Facebook Group.

We think that’s a lot of support for just £20! There is a monthly charge of £29.99 a month for one lesson a week should you become a student at our ranges in Rugby, Warwickshire. Memberships are charged annually each year around the 1st of January. If your are a student of the Seal Martial Arts Dojo on the unlimited lessons package then SKT lessons are included as part of your standard lessons. 

SKT is not a political organisation we are inclusive and do not exclude anyone based on their age, gender, sex, religious beliefs, mental health or any other contributing factor. We are dealing with sharp Bo Shuriken, Throwing Knives and Tomahawks so you must be at least 14 years old with the supervision of an adult to practice. We also do not tolerate aggression or abuse of staff on the ranges as again we are handling dangerous weapons. All instructors reserve the right to refuse tuition should they believe that your conduct on the ranges is likely to be dangerous. We do not tolerate bullying of students either so please keep your negative opinions to yourself.

After the student passes their Novice Thrower rank they are permitted to bring their own equipment onto SKT ranges. It must be either inspected and approved by your SKT instructor before use or a pre-approved brand such as Cold Steel or United Cutlery. The key thing is that the equipment is made out of a high carbon steel and isn’t likely to break upon impact with the target. For Bo Shuriken they must be at least 6” in length and made out of tempered steel, Throwing knives must be at least 10.5” in length (Preferably 12”) and made out of 1055+ carbon steel, Tomahawks must be Cold Steel Norse Hawks or something from the Cold Steel range. We don’t allow spike hawks on the ranges and would always advise Norse Hawks to new throwers. We don’t really throw angel axes on the ranges mainly because I prefer Smith & Wesson Hawkeye Throwing Axes. Never throw rubber handled knives or tomahawks on the ranges as they will bounce back at you!

On the ranges we will provide log round or end grain targets for the students but should you wish to practice at home then it’s a good idea to get your own target. Most knife and axe throwers have purpose built ply walls concreted into the ground to mount their log rounds onto. This is because it provides a backstop should you miss the target making it much safer. Personally I prefer to mount boards on the top and sides of my target as well, This is because it stops Shuriken, Knives and Tomahawks from bouncing off the target and flying off, they just hit the boards and bounce down to the ground in front of the target. You could argue that having the outer edges on the target prevents you from throwing the Shuriken at certain angles at a distance but in your garden this is the safest and best option.   

We will also run a Shurikenjutsu, Knife and Tomahawk throwing competition annually. This is something that I have wanted to get off of the ground for a while and hopefully this summer we will be able to launch the first SKT competition. We have a brilliant venue lined up for our ranges and the competition would most likely be held in July/August. 

Throwers would compete in 3 categories:

• Bo Shuriken
• 12” Throwing Knives
• Tomahawks

Throwers from each category would compete in 3 rounds and the highest overall scoring thrower will progress onto the next stage of the competition. Throwers will compete in pairs so for example you could have 8 throwers all competing in pairs but each pair must be overseen by an adjudicator. The highest overall scoring thrower from each pair in the 3 rounds is the winner and then the 4 winners from the 8 participants will compete against each other until there are only 2 throwers left in the competition. The competition isn’t scored on your overall points throughout the competition but on your overall points in each 3 round set. We will use the 5 zones scoring system for simplicity with the overall target area being 2” at the centre, 6” at the first ring, 10” at the second ring, 14” at the third ring and 18” at the final ring.

Each of the 3 rounds during the competition will be at different distances of 3 metres, 5 metres and 7 metres. If your Shuriken, Knife or Tomahawk doesn’t stick in the target then it doesn’t count and is a 0. If it sticks on the line between two scoring zones then we will consider the point where the main mass of the tip of the knife or Shuriken to be the scoring area. 

Conventionally with Tomahawks the scoring zones are bigger at 4” at the centre, 12” at the first ring, 20” at the second ring, 28” at the third ring and 36” at the final ring. However most of the time unless it’s a specific axe throwing range people will just throw Tomahawks into 3 standard log round targets or into the same log round which puts the Tomahawks at risk of hitting each other. This is because most axe throwing ranges don’t use log rounds but end grain targets or wooden boards so they have more surface area to make their targets on. For our competitions we will most likely use 3 separate log rounds to the Shuriken and knife specifications. Should the Tomahawk stick on the line between two scoring zones then we will consider the to centre of the Tomahawk blade to be the scoring area.

You can use your own equipment during the competitions but they must conform to our competition standards such as Shuriken must be 6” long, Throwing knives must be 12” long and unmodified (No drilling holes to reduce weight) and you must use Cold Steel Norse Hawks or other 17” - 22” long Tomahawks such as Rinaldi. We don’t allow unbranded or unsafe (display) Tomahawks on the ranges. 

We will provide standard issue equipment for participants if necessary but we expect most throwers will be experienced enough to own their own equipment and be able to practice at home or at their local club.

Entry to the competition will be done via online registration most likely on the Seal Martial Arts website for a small fee. This will allow members to participate in the competition and be in with the chance to:

• Become the SKT UK Shuriken Throwing Champion.
• Become the SKT UK Knife Throwing Champion
• Become the SKT UK Tomahawk Throwing Champion
• Become the SKT UK Speed Throwing Champion
• Win prizes for winning each category.
• Win a trophy for each category.

We will not be offering cash prizes as we feel throwing is about having fun and participating in the throwing community and shouldn’t be about money. 

You can throw using any recognised technique such as rotation throwing, half spin, no spin, etc. We won’t have specific categories separating each throwing technique as it’s largely irrelevant, what matters is getting the Shuriken, Knives or Tomahawks to stick in the target. 

We will also do a speed throwing competition in which the fastest most accurate throwers will compete in 3 rounds at 3 metres distance. Throwers will compete in pairs and on command they must grab and throw the knife accurately into the target. Throwers can position the knives anywhere they wish on their body for easy access but they cannot rest their hand on the handle of the knife before throwing, They can hold the sheath with the left hand. Throwers must throw within a 4 second window or they will be disqualified for that round. We will film each round to determine who is the fastest thrower but accuracy is key, If your fast but only stick the knife in the outer ring of the target that won’t score the same as if your slightly slower but hit the bullseye. You get 2 additional points for being the fastest thrower in that round, this would mean that if your the quickest and hit the red scoring a 7 then the 2 additional points will be added bringing it to a 9 (Bullseye). The maximum you could score in a round would be 11 by hitting the gold and being the fastest thrower.

I think that’s just about everything with regards to us running the SKT throwing competitions.

We want SKT to be a useful association that helps members develop a passion for the art of Shuriken, Knife and Tomahawk throwing so if you have any questions please don’t hesitate to get in contact or join our SKT Facebook group.

We look forward to seeing you on the ranges!

SKT and all the logos, images and merchandise are copyright of Jamie Seal founder of the Seal Martial Arts Dojo. Using the SKT or Seal Martial Arts logo to produce clothing and or merchandise is not permitted in any way. Instructors or students caught using the logo to produce clothing, patches, equipment or merchandise face expulsion from SKT and possible legal action. All logos and associated information are copyright of Jamie Seal founder of the Seal Martial Arts Dojo. Seal Martial Arts is trading as SKT.