Well, maybe not exactly near death, but pretty close.  It all started on a windy night, with a full moon shining through the dark clouds...

I finally brought it to life.  There he lay before me, long, deadly, dangerous.  The biggest sling I'd ever used, fully five feet long when loaded, able, (I hoped) to sling baseball-sized rocks hundreds of yards with ease.

Darkness fell, and I had time for only a few test throws before it was time to turn in.

The next day, my friend Andrew came to my house, and full of the foolishness of youth, I dragged him out to the back yard for a demonstration.

Little did I know how I would regret my decicion.

I began by hurriedly explaining the AWESOME POWER of the sling, while carelessly loading my weapon with a small stone.  I whirled, using njwimanitou's overhand technique...


and sent the rock flying BACKWARDS, into the wooden fence behind me.  

Unfazed, I proceded to load another rock, more carefully, and threw as hard as I could.

The firing range was about four hundred yards long, but only one to one hundred and fifty wide.  With horror I watched at the stone, about the size of a duck egg, flew up, up, and to the right.

Directly in its path lay our neighbors house, which was completely surrounded by 6-8 cars with VERY breakable windshields, numerous VERY breakable windows, and a few unsuspecting humans with VERY vulnerable heads.  I cringed as the rock became a speck and dissapeared, somewhere above the house that sat, waiting, one hundred fifty yards away.

I cringed, squinted, waited with dread for the tinkling sound of breaking glass, the crash of a stone breaking through a roof, the shout of anger, and...

there was silence.  No one screamed in agony, no car alarm blared, there was just... silence.  Somehow, someway, my rock had landed in the tiny square of empty lawn on the other side of the house, where there were no windows, no people, no breakables.

My friend chuckled, unaware of the near catastrophe he had just witnessed.  I gathered my slings and walked, trembling and gasping, back into my house.  My creation was soon destroyed, and with it the threat to our civilization.

A seagull had a very near death experience this weekend! Inches, bare inches!
Justin

I have been at the beach, slinging as hard as I can, and I have been about a foot from hitting a boat a few times.  A wooden fishing boat - the stone would probably severely crack one of the timbers, at least.

One pound rock onto the motor way? Car travelling at 60? Combined speed? How about DRIVER'S HEAD TURNED TO PULP- LIKE A WATERMELON DROPPED ON A HOT SIDEWALK- CAR SWERVES OFF INTO ONCOMING TRAFFIC- 12 CAR PILE UP. NATION WIDE POLICE SEARCH- ALL FORMS OF STRING BANNED!!

Paranoid yet?

Justin

Sorry, I realize you probably wet yourself when the rock went over the road...glad you can look back on it as a good lesson.
Cheers

LOL, I know i shouldn't be laughing, but it's actually very funny.

Great stories. I'm glad no one got hurt, so am able to laugh

-Unsapien

Quote:

I once was slinging against a brick wall with wood planks over the windows, so I was safe. Then three things happened.  
1st: I was slinging my tennis ball and tried to catch the ball after it bounced off the wall.   oooooowwwwwww, that was some serious brushburn

2nd: After losing my bouncy tennisball in the bushes       , I used those hard nut things, which i found out are called monkey brains, to give my overhead style it's first try. I released a little too late and it flew, fast and hard far to the left, smashing into the tin house siding barely inches from her backdoor window. WWWHHHHEEEEEWWWWW

3rd, but not last funny story I have: I tried last that day, a small rock, slightly larger than an acorn. I underhand whirled it and released. A wonderful Flight, followed by a SMACK!!!! I looked at the second story plywood boarded window and there it was. A crack going down the center of the wood, top to bottom. And there, lodged firmly in the middle, was my rock.   . To this day, that rock remains, reminding me.

All this happened in the space of an hour on the first day out with the sling I got from Chris. needless to say I dont use rocks anymore, Use overhead style, or try and catch my ammo anymore.