WWU to make a big showing on the global boomerang stage

A boomerang is a curved throwing stick with two or more wings that’s designed to return to the thrower. For enthusiasts, the return is what keeps them coming back.

“There’s something about watching this thing make a magical turn. A beautiful arc that seems to defy what sticks are supposed to do,” said Ed Love, professor of Marketing and chair of the Department of Finance and Marketing. Love has been throwing boomerangs for decades.

This summer, Love, undergraduate Forrest Morse of Auburn, Alabama, and 2024 marketing alum Gavin Bohling of Portland, Oregon, will represent the U.S. as half of the yet-unnamed “Team Two” for Team USA at the 2026 World Boomerang Championships in Indonesia, facing off against top competitors from around the world.

Morse picked up a boomerang for the first time about a year and a half ago at Love’s boomerang-throwing session during Western’s Honors Prologue right before fall quarter 2024. Morse is now a sophomore in the Honors College, majoring in energy science and technology through Western’s Institute for Energy Studies.

“Ed taught us how to throw boomerangs, and a couple of friends and I had such a blast that we formed the WWU Boomerang Club,” said Morse, the club president.

Similarly, Bohling’s introduction to boomerangs can be traced back to a day when he and fellow student Julia Greene, a 2023 marketing alum, noticed the bag of boomerangs that Love had brought along to their marketing analytics class.

“We kept pressuring him to throw with the entire class, and we ended up out on Comm Lawn. We started throwing and even making boomerangs with Ed from there,” he said. “Next thing we know, he asks us, ‘Would you two like to participate in the 2024 World Boomerang Championships in Colorado this summer?’ We knew what we had to do, so we went!”

Love first picked up boomerangs in high school, threw competitively in college, and brings experience and enthusiasm for the sport that is athletic and challenging, yet accessible and fun. He practices with the WWU club most weeks.

He owns hundreds of boomerangs, many of which he’s made himself. He also teaches students how to craft their own.

The physics of the boomerang are pretty straightforward. Whether a boomerang has two, three or four wings, or more, it doesn’t seem to matter. What’s key is that it’s flat on one side and shaped with airfoils on the other, similar to the wing of an airplane. The airfoil moves air in a way so that, when thrown correctly, the boomerang draws a wide arc and always returns to the thrower.

Boomerangs are commonly made from wood, plastic or foam, and they can range from plain to intricately painted. One simple method uses dense Baltic birch plywood, cut with a jigsaw and with airfoils shaped on a belt sander.

“Different boomerangs will perform in different ways, and each one has a different personality,” Love said. “Eventually, especially when you start to make them yourself, you form these really good relationships with certain boomerangs, and it’s frustrating because every boomerang will eventually break or get lost, or you’ll give it away or something.”

It’s never boring, he said, and there’s always room to grow.

“Things don’t always go your way, and so you just gotta keep working through it,” Love said. “It’s valuable to get deep into something that’s not your work. I think I’m lucky that I happen to be good enough that I get these kinds of opportunities.”

Bohling likes to stay active and finds boomerang throwing a great match.

“I understand the concepts and a little bit of the physics behind the ’rang, but mostly I enjoy the community, the throwing, and the competition,” Bohling said.

Morse agrees and gives the community a lot of credit for getting him to this point.

“It’s a very welcoming community. Even at competitive events, everyone is just helping teach you, especially for me, since I’m one of the newer people,” he said.

Maybe that’s just boomerangs doing what boomerangs do: returning what the thrower puts out there. Mentees become mentors and so on.“I don’t think I think about it too philosophically, but I think the idea of having an action that you do that always results in it coming back to you is very nice,” Morse said. “It’s like, the better your throw is, the easier the catch is. And you really do set yourself up for success or set yourself up for failure, depending on how you start off.”

Morse competed in the United States Boomerang Association national championships last fall, placing 13th, and finished seventh at the Team USA trials in March.

“Having all the club time to throw has definitely paid off for improving my boomerang skills,” Morse said. “I feel like that’s a life lesson, that just consistently showing up leads to eventual improvement.”

Love sees a lot of potential in Morse and is excited to see him grow in the sport.

“What Forrest has brought to the boomerang club here at Western, and the work he’s put in to become a great thrower, is remarkable. He’s gotten to know some of the best players in the country, and this summer he’s going to get to know the best throwers in the world,” Love said. “He’s already in the top 50 throwers in the country, but I think he’s going to be one of the best in the world.”

Initially planning to coach the developmental team, Love earned his spot on Team USA after a surprise result at the team trials in Arlington in March.

“I went to the team trials not thinking I was competing for a spot, so the fact that I got a spot was sort of mind-blowing,” Love said. “The competition is, in my mind, primarily an excuse to bring everyone together, but now that I’m actually on Team Two for Team USA, I need to focus on being technically great.”

The World Boomerang Championships features team and individual events that focus on accuracy, speed, distance, and catching skills.

Morse says he is excited for the competition and for the unexpected joy boomerangs have given him.

“Coming to college here, I didn’t even know there was such a thing going on in the world. Being able to get into it, find such a great community, and also excel,” he said, “I’m just really, really happy and thankful for the opportunity to be on Team USA. I’m very, very excited.”

He welcomes new throwers to club meetings with a trio of tips.

“Just stick with it, keep it vertical and get some snap. It takes a little bit to be able to get your first catch, but once you do, it’s very rewarding,” Morse said. “Showing up for something you enjoy and having fun makes such a difference. Like, I just want to be out there throwing!”

Jennifer Nerad covers Western's College of Business and Economics and College of the Environment for the Office of University Communications. Have a great story idea? Reach out to her at neradj@wwu.edu.