Boomerang: Mirage
Make: Colorado Boomerangs
The stretch of beach where Manny and I throw sometimes does not seem large enough. "How could this be?" one might wonder. After all, in some of our videos, it seems as if the sand goes on and on without an obstacle in sight. Well, on some occasions, I might be led to that sentiment by the loss of an errant boomerang to the briny depths. On other days, especially at the height of summer, it might be because vacationers have decided that the best, most quiet place to lie down and soak some rays is within range of my longer range, heavy-hitting boomerangs. On days like that, such as I had on a warm holiday weekend a few months back, a low-flying, shorter-range boomerang like the Mirage by Colorado Boomerangs can keep alive the hope that many happy returns can be had even when boxed into a smaller space.*
Overview & Physical Characteristics
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| From phnxhawk's Boomerang Collection |
The Mirage, a sports 'rang from Colorado, has a planform resembling that of a hockey stick or an asymmetric Vee-type shape. In fact, when I first saw it, that hockey stick shape led me to mistake it for an MTA type of boomerang, as I had seen some similar-looking boomerangs with the more question-mark type of details at B Aggressive. Instead, the Mirage is a more sedate, beginner-intermediate level sport boomerang with a range up to about 35 yards. Carved from plywood, mine weighs in at 57 g, between my Rainier (53 g) and Eagle (62 g); so, it feels light in the hand.
Throwing & Flight
The Mirage is a delight to throw, especially on a day with just a light breeze blowing. With such a breeze and a fairly normal throw, I find the boomerang will consistently produce low, round flights. I have not had Manny spot the range for me, but I would say that it is comparable to the Rainier, which goes out to about 35 yards.
With a light breeze, I will typically throw the Mirage with a small amount of layover--10 or so degrees, perhaps--and at eye level. A "medium" strength throw, combined with a healthy amount of spin, complete the picture. With stronger winds, such as I had in the video above, I do find myself having to throw higher to keep the boomerang under control. Other than that, I have found it to be fairly ordinary to throw. To keep the flights level, I do have to be more mindful of the layover and release height, but it still tends to return even when I am a little more relaxed with regards to maintaining a level and vertical release.
The flights tend to be fairly level and round, with the boomerang returning to the hand without "putting on the brakes." This can make catches somewhat intimidating at first, since the spinning, returning boomerang takes on the appearance of an axe thrown at one's head. With the strength of my typical throw, that return speed is still manageable, providing ample opportunity to sandwich the boomerang between my hands for the catch.
I have found that I have been able to throw the Mirage comfortably in winds ranging between a calm to a light wind (say, 5 to 7 mph). Somewhere in the middle is the "sweet spot" in which I love to set up one low throw after another. When the winds are on the stronger side, I usually need to aim higher on the release to help keep the flights reasonably level and the return speed and height manageable. Those flights are still a lot of fun, but just aren't the flights that won my affection.
Summary
When I first decided to pick up the Mirage, I was lured by the promise of consistent, low and round flights. I was not disappointed. I did not find it to be especially difficult to learn to throw, and honing my technique to reliably obtain low and level flights was straightforward. I would not recommend it as an introductory boomerang to a first-time thrower, but it would make for a fun addition to the boomerang bag for novices with some experience throwing other 'rangs. The range is also short enough to keep it on my short list when I am trying to throw boomerangs in small parks. So, if low and round flights are your fancy, you may want to consider picking up the Mirage should you ever stumble across one for sale--at a reasonable price, of course!
"Putting my spin on boomerangs..."
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