You know, two things really confuse me: doing my taxes and watching a game of cricket.

When I was back on campus at the University of Maryland, I can remember stumbling across a field where a cricket club was playing a match.  I sat for a while and watched the action.  It was very interesting, but I was baffled by the rules.  One of the club members approached me and I asked him if he could explain the game to me.

“Sure,” he said, and started by telling me how cricket was the sport that eventually created baseball.  The description went on for about another twenty minutes.  I thanked him for his time and wandered off, even more confused than before.

One thing I am not the least bit confused about, though, is the care it requires to build a cricket bat.  This vital piece of equipment, I have learned, takes a tremendous amount of care and craftsmanship to ensure it has the right amount of flexibility.

Let’s take a look at the show How It’s Made to see just what traditional woodworking techniques go into making one.