DARTS-Chaos

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Chaos is about those obstacles we encounter that adversely affect how we play the dart arts. Like the adrenal stress-conditioned effects there is no one single way to combat those effects in every situation and case. What I mean is this, no matter the situation variances within that situation experienced multiple times tends to trigger the adrenal stress in a condition that still causes chaos.

The more chaos the less you will be able to combat the effects or at least control them down to a state that allows your darts to fly true consistently and with target-rich results. 

In situations, contests and tournaments, that are more chaotic the less you are going to be able to train and practice to combat and control those chaotic effects. One of the most chaotic contests you can encounter is the, “Blind-draw Doubles,” where the environment and experiences change at every leg of that journey. Different partners and the fluidity of game order, i.e., 301, 501, and Cricket in any order whomever wins the toss or diddle chooses. 

Only over time and experience can one hope to control all those variances and changes to a point where their darts hold true to their perfect darts and perfect game. If you are a beginner, i.e., one who is practicing and playing from one month to two years, then and unless you have no choice it may be best to avoid such random blind-draw doubles games. 

DARTS-Nine/Six Dart Club

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Highlights in the dart arts at not long ago time were hitting T80 or T71 or Hat Trick (three darts in the double bull) but those feats are common now in the high end tournaments such as Europe’s PDC. Now, the two most difficult highlights are the Six Dart and Nine Dart feats when performed put dart’ists into the exclusive club named the same. 

Nine dart club: Playing single-in/double-out 501.

Six dart club: Playing double-in/double-out 301. 

The Nine dart game: T80; T80; Trip-20, Trip-19, Dbl-12.

The Six dart game: T80; Trip-19, Trip-20, Dbl-2

Of course there are other combinations in both types of games and dart’ists tend to pick the one they prefer, especially as to the final out because if they miss the last dart they always want to leave a single dart out in case their opponent fails to get out. 

In the local venue’s hitting above 100 in points is considered a highlight. Hitting a T80 or T71 is also a local highlight warranting a club like membership because at most local levels hitting those highlights are still a huge challenge for dart’ists. 

Add in the American game of Cricket where hitting an open number with all three darts and one of the three being a tripe gives you a highlight called, “C-5.” C-5, 6, 7, 8 & 9,” are the type of highlights for that game. 

The Art of Self-Talk

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It's a mind game with a few sprinkles of the physical that make up the disciplines of the dart arts.

Mind-set, mind-state, attitude, visual-imagery and your own 'Self-Talk'.

We humans tend to take certain traits for granted and push them into the subconscious. Most of the time this is a good thing but to achieve mastery in the dart arts and control the mind you must pull out the subconscious and hold it under the light to analyze and synthesize it into something more beneficial to you dart abilities.

Self-talk is as it appears on the surface, the way you talk to yourself. A good example is when your darts fail to hit the target and you mumble to yourself, "I will never get this, I should just quit!" Catch yourself when you start with some negative self-talk and rephrase it to, "Ok, I know I can do this and if I focus a bit more, breathe and relax the next set of throws WILL improve!"

You see, our minds control, create and construct our entire lives for the construct of our minds is truly, "A Matrix," that builds the very reality, belief system, that leads our bodies on the right, positive and beneficial path.

If the mind tells itself a negative then the negative will manifest into reality in our word, deeds and 'actions' where in the dart arts actions are tossing and hitting the intended target and mastering the dart arts.

Self-motivate through self-talk while using visual-imagery (visualization) to find your true darts and reach expert, and even mastery, of the dart arts!

Just that One Throw

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As beginners we want to find our perfect game, a perfect throw that will be target-rich, consistent and perfect as humans can achieve. Herein lies my answer to this statement, look to the bulls eye.

Yea, the bull should be a beginners first and only practice target until they find and encode their perfect throw (or at least gain a modicum of consistency using the perfect throw). I choose this because to go directly to the triple twenty is the hardest throw and target to master while aiming at the  lower numbers is not focused enough. 

The bulls eye being round and literally symbolic and realistically the shape of a target makes it ideal. It is centered, small and a good solid minds-eye target that balances out the entire board so when you start to go for other targets the adjustments will be minimal at best. 

Note: this assumes you have already encoded your perfect throw movement by using the no-dart aim, cocking, rhythmic forward thrust/throw, dart release and follow through so your finger points to the intended target. 

Note II: Hey, when you use this and begin your darts are going to be horrible. You might say to yourself, this does’t work because I can’t hit anything. Realize this, the conscious mental work of any discipline means your body will not cooperate nor will your mind because you HAVE to THINK too much. The goal here is to think and let your mind create, develop and encode a instinctual like encoding that takes the throw process out of the human mind and pushes it down into the lizard mind for a natural, true, consistent and target rich throw. With patience, consistent practice and training there will come a time, unexpectedly, when suddenly you will be hitting your targets with more accuracy and consistency and without direct intervention of your thinking mind.l

Focus on the bull:

• Focus on the aim.
• Focus on the body and arm position at the aim and during the throw.
• Focus on those other areas with your peripheral maintaining your focus on the target of the bull.
• Focus on a state of positive relaxation in the mind-body-mind then feel that relaxed state all the way from the feet at the oche line up to the tips of your fingers holding your dart. 
• Focus in a relaxed cocking, flow and rhythm of the launch and finally to the release and follow through. 
• Focus on consistant grouping no matter where they hit.
• Focus on consistent grouping moving closer to the bulls eye. 

What we are looking for is focus, stance at the oche line, body posture and structure, use of the hip girdle, use of the shoulder girdle, and an arm position and movement until the final release and follow through of the dart throw. 

It will be discussed again and again throughout this book that there are many, many, many things one must bring together as a whole, holistic, unconscious instinctual process to consistently throw perfect target-rich darts to master the discipline of the dart arts. 

One of the many reasons I call this the dart arts is because the process one shall follow to achieve expert/master status is an art form expressed through the physical manifestation of the entire body-mind-body spirit of the dart game.

It is not just a game but a discipline that takes as much effort, focus and ability as any other discipline from the martial arts for self-defense, to the sport I liken and compare the dart arts too in golf and in other mainstream sports such as football, basketball and golf. 

Take your time, take it just one throw at a time and make sure your focus is on perfecting your dart throw and leave the winning and losing focus to … itself for a perfect throw will lead to winning and without any conscious thoughts of distractions can enter your mind let alone distract you from your throw.