Urban Open Ladyblades + Urban Madness

Get ready — Ladyblades and Urban Madness are back at Urban Axes Durham, January 16–18! Join us for a weekend full of cheers, beers and new friends as we celebrate the incredible women of axe throwing. Come hit some bullseyes in the Bull City and see who takes home the crown.....er...necklace.  

Our tournament weekend will kick off with a Ladyblades only Marathon on Friday morning, followed by Skills in the evening.  Saturday will feature TWO Ladyblades tournaments:  We will kick off the day with an Urban Rules SWISS tournament, followed by a PREMIER rules double elimination tournament.  The Double Elimination tournament will be a Major Tournament and the winner will receive a bid to IATC Round 2. 

On Sunday Morning, we are happy to host another IATF Major Tournament, Urban Madness!  Urban Madness is a Swiss Tournament featuring Urban Rules.  The winner of this tournament will also receive a bid to IATC Round 2!  After Urban Madness, we will wrap up the weekend with a Big Axe Tournament. 

Ladyblades events will be women*'s only tournaments and Urban Madness will be open to everyone. 

Important urban Rules change:    

We are making one adjustment to Urban Rules for this weekend only as a test: you WILL be allowed to switch axes if you so choose, similar to regular IATF play.  This rule will be for both the Ladyblades tournament AND Urban Madness.  

ladyblades discounts:

Early sign-up discounts are available for those Ladyblades registering for more than one tournament.  ONE discount code per thrower!   

Check back here for updates and follow our Facebook event for more announcements!

* Ladyblades is an inclusive definition and we welcome cis/trans women, genderqueer women and non-binary individuals who identify as a woman in a way that is significant to them.

Urban Axes events are run on the values of Inclusivity, Equality, Respect, Diversity and Fair Play. All participants are expected to conduct themselves in accordance with our League Values.

announcementS

Tickets for the the Ladyblades Marathon, the Ladyblades Tournament and Urban Madness Tournament are on sale as of November 18th at 6pm EST.  The remaining weekend events will go on sale in December. 

 

Friday: Marathon + Skills

Ladyblades ABC Marathon League

January 16th, Daytime

We are bringing back the Ladyblades Marathon League!   Like last year, we will run this as a Standard Rules marathon with Mandatory Clutches in each 5-throw round! We call these ABC Marathons at Urban Axes Durham, with "ABC" standing for "Always Be Clutching!" 

Each player will throw 20 Standard Rules matches followed by a double-elimination playoff.  $20 from each registration will be contributed to the prize pool.  

Friday Night Skills

January 16th, Evening - INFO COMING SOON!  

Saturday: Urban Open Ladyblades

January 17th, Daytime

LADYBLADES URBAN RULES SWISS TOURAMENT:  

The Ladyblades Urban Rules Swiss tournament utilizes the Swiss + Single-Elimination format Urban Axes has developed and our Urban Rules scoring. Each competitor is guaranteed to throw 5 matches before any elimination occurs, and each successive match will be played against a thrower with the same or a similar win/loss record (2-0, 1-1, etc.), ensuring matches become more balanced with each successive round. The tournament will be played under Urban Rules, our scoring system which utilizes the “no-bleed” bullseyes and Premier Clutches of the Premier ruleset while adding intermediate scoring values of 4 & 2 and points for touch Clutch. Urban Rules have been updated to award 6 points for a touch Clutch and 7 points for a Premier Clutch, and you can find the fully updated ruleset here. As an exception to normal Urban Rules, YOU WILL BE ALLOWED TO USE TWO AXES DURING THIS TOURNAMENT.  

We will consider dividing this field into an over/under if we get enough sign-ups.  

LADYBLADEs PREMIER RULES DOUBLE ELIMINATION TOURAMENT:  

The Ladyblades Premier Double-Elimination tournament will begin with best 3-of-5 round matches and will progress to best 4-of-7 round matches before A bracket finals. Big Axe tiebreakers may occur at the end of each tied 5-throw round, and both hatchet and Big Axe will be played under full Premier rules (no-bleed bullseye, 5 pt touch Clutch, 7 pt Premier Clutch) throughout the tournament. The tournament will be played from start to finish on Saturday, and throwers will progress through the A and B brackets until they have taken two losses or are crowned champion. This event is an IATF Major, meaning the winner will secure a spot in Round 2 of the 2026 International Axe Throwing Championship.  

Sunday: Urban Madness + Big Axe

Urban Madness

January 18th, Daytime 

The Urban Madness Swiss tournament utilizes the Swiss + Single-Elimination format Urban Axes has developed and our Urban Rules scoring. Each competitor is guaranteed to throw 5 matches before any elimination occurs, and each successive match will be played against a thrower with the same or a similar win/loss record (2-0, 1-1, etc.), ensuring matches become more balanced with each successive round. The tournament will be played under Urban Rules, our scoring system which utilizes the “no-bleed” bullseyes and Premier Clutches of the Premier ruleset while adding intermediate scoring values of 4 & 2 and points for touch Clutch. Urban Rules have been updated to award 6 points for a touch Clutch and 7 points for a Premier Clutch, and you can find the fully updated ruleset here. As an exception to normal Urban Rules, YOU WILL BE ALLOWED TO USE TWO AXES DURING THIS TOURNAMENT.  

Big Axe Tournament

January 18th, Afternoon - INFO COMING SOON

after party

January 18th, EVENING - INFO COMING SOON

Weekend Schedule