American Axes to host Rocky Mountain Open in Arvada, Colorado

American Axes will turn its new Arvada venue into the Rocky Mountain Open from Aug. 7-9, using 7270B W 88th Ave as a three-day WATL stop built around hatchet, big axe and duals. The event gives the Denver-area market another sanctioned local tournament and gives American Axes a chance to establish Arvada, just north of Denver and within reach of Westminster and the Front Range, as more than a one-off stop.

The weekend is laid out like a full competition cycle. Friday will begin at noon with registration and practice, then move into a 1 p.m. hatchet marathon. Saturday’s hatchet tournament is scheduled for 10 a.m., with duals marathon action later in the day. Sunday opens with big axe competition in the morning and closes with a duals tournament in the afternoon, followed by an evening after-party with food and soft drinks.

American Axes says throwers entered in at least two events will receive two hours of free practice before the weekend action, a small edge that could matter in a format built on repetition and timing. The venue says its setup includes 12 to 14 targets and six or seven lanes in total, and it is pairing the bracket play with practice lanes, cash tournaments and marathon events that are meant to serve as warmups for the main disciplines.

WATL lists the Rocky Mountain Open on its 2026 tournament calendar as a local event at the same Arvada address, with hatchet, big axe and duals all eligible for Circuit Points if participation minimums are met. The league says all sanctioned tiers require a WATL or WKTL certified head judge, and that a head judge may cover multiple disciplines as long as the judge is not competing in that discipline. WATL, which says it has more than 300 affiliated venues across 20 countries, has built the circuit around those local stops.

American Axes has used the Rocky Mountain Open format before. The venue hosted a WATL local tournament at its Edgewater location from July 18-20, 2025, and that weekend also combined matches with practice, marathons and cash tournaments. Bringing the event to Arvada extends that brand into a new facility and gives the Rocky Mountain Open a clearer place on the Denver-area axe-throwing calendar.