Chard uses darts as an outlet for his competitive nature, exercise

By Ron Petersen

Playing darts is a sociable activity that helps retain handeye coordination and encourages communication amongst players, which helps older people stay active.

Dart players need to have the ability to stand up straight, throw darts, and walk back-and-forth from the board to the line for hours at a time.

For a game that takes a little bit of skill and effort, playing darts is a great way to develop, challenge, and display your skills.

“It gives me a purpose — darts forces you to stand up and move, which is great during the winter, especially when you can’t go outside,” Omaha dart player, Alan Chard said. “More people over the age of 60 should try it out. I wish more senior centers would put dart boards in their centers.”

Alan Chard, 68, who got introduced to darts nearly 45 years ago, has been playing competitively since 2001.

“They used to play people in person, but now we can play online. It’s great,” Chard said.

Chard plays in leagues during the week and a few national tournaments each year. But he has the ability to play against people online in his basement thanks to the technology of GranBoard.

The GranBoard allows dart players to play darts online. The soft-tip dartboard with next generation multiplayer capability is compatible with Android and IOS.

The GranBoard keeps track of the users play and uses AI to match players up with one another from around the world.

“I can talk to people around the world, and I talk to guys from England all the time,” Chard said. “I had a friend come over and he thought it was all about hitting the bullseye. It’s more than just throwing a dart at a board.”

Other than playing on his dart board every day, Chard will play in leagues during the week at local bars including at Stoli’s Lounge, and then tournaments on the weekends.

“I play almost every day because I am pretty competitive,” Chard said. “It’s like golf — every game is different, but you’ve got to earn it. You can be hot one game and cold the next.”

This last December, Chard competed in the Tournament of Champions National December Dart tournament at Sean O’Casey’s, in a 16-team triple elimination national tournament.

Chard won his first two matches, but then lost his third match of the tournament. He went on to win three more matches, but then lost in the losers bracket final.

Chard won three more matches to get to the championship, and then won six matches in the championship to be crowned the bracket 18 champion.

“I played really well — I made a change to tweak my motion prior to the tournament. I pulled my elbow in, did a straight follow through and boom I was hitting everything,” Chard said. “It was a battle, but it was really fun. I do not like to lose, and I was mad at myself because I know I should do better.”

Despite playing darts in his 60s, Chard said he can play darts up to five hours in a day, averaging about 400 darts thrown in a day.

“I’ve thrown 472 in one day and I still could have stood there and kept going,” he said. “People my age can play — it doesn’t matter if you are short, tall, young or old. It’s all mental.”

Don Kuehn who is a 63-year-old dart player in Omaha, also encourages older adults to give the game of darts a try.

“It’s all about comradery — the Omaha dart community is huge,” Don Kuehn said. “People in the dart community here treat each other like family.”

Kuehn, who also plays in regular leagues and tournaments around town, said playing darts does get a little tiring at times but he forgets about the minimal stress he is putting on his body when he is having fun with his friends.

“If you are on your feet all day, you do get a little sore, but it’s fun because it is all about being with the people you know,” Kuehn said.

While darts can help people improve concentration, confidence, handeye coordination, and for some, it can be incredibly relaxing. All you need for the game is a dart board, some darts, and an opponent.

“My advice for people is that this activity will get you out of your chair and it keeps you moving,” Chard said. “Even if it is taking a few steps backand-forth to get darts out of the dart board, plus, it keeps your mind moving.”