discs

Poll 28: Buying discs

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We’re going to discuss buying discs for this week’s poll.

But, as per normal, we’ll get to that later on.

After all, we have some interesting things to discuss in regard to last week’s poll. Courses played … how many have you all done?

I had built myself up on this one to be shocked with the answers, but in the end it appears it was quite tame.

We had 113 people tally a vote in this poll. The top spot, which garnered 37 votes (33 percent) was the 10-24 range. That was followed by 1-9 (20 votes/18 percent) and a tie between 25-49 and 100-249, which each drew 17 votes (15 percent). Taking fifth was 50-99 (15 votes/13 percent), followed by 500 or more (four votes/four percent) and 250-499 (three votes/two percent).

I actually expected more votes toward the bigger amounts, but it doesn’t surprise me that reaching the big numbers — 250 or more — only accounted for seven votes.

That’s a lot of disc golf courses, after all.

Let’s see what some of the readers had to say.

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Peace Corps volunteer works to grow disc golf in Kyrgyz Republic

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By Luther Flagstad — For Rattling Chains

Picking my way across the field of cow pies and broken vodka bottles, I waved and said, “Salymatsyngarby” to a few students on their way to class. I stepped up to the first “tee” and tested the wind.

I would have to be careful today – an old man was tending his sheep in the fairway.

I am an American disc golfer and Peace Corps volunteer living in Kyrgyzstan. It’s a country I had never heard of before this experience. Kyrgyzstan is a small, former Soviet Union country in Central Asia. It boarders China and some other countries of which you might not know.

When I got the assignment in the mail five months ago, my first thought was to ask if there were any disc golf courses.

Surprise.

A local looking sharp in his shiny suit prepares to throw.

There weren’t. But since I couldn’t imagine a world without disc golf, I packed a few discs and t-shirts anyway.

After a month of getting settled into my permanent site in Karakol City, I headed out to the park across the street from my work. It was mid-day and students were walking through the park on their way to lunch. I snapped a few across the field and one of my discs landed on a sidewalk. A young student wearing a shiny black suit picked it up and tossed it back.

“Nice throw!” I said in Kyrgyz, the local language.I explained that it was disc golf and they should try and throw it from where they were to the object — a telephone pole. I spit out the rues in broken Kyrgz. A few other kids joined and we threw discs around for a little while.

“Keremet! Awesome throw!”

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Poll 27: Your personal course directory

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Psst… some good news (at least for me) — I finally got out to play a round of disc golf this weekend.

To be fair, it was but a nine-hole course. But it was disc golf nonetheless. And, it was on a course I had never played, which brings my total to 19 courses played. That’s quite a small amount from other people, I know. But it’s slowly growing!

It got me thinking to many of these courses I’ve played and the things I liked and disliked about them. But in the end, it was always an experiences and a course added.

From object courses to well-maintained ones, I’ve had the chance to play on some fun and cool course. And I look forward to the many more I’ll add in the coming years.

Before we get to this week’s poll question, however, let’s check back to last week’s and see the results and what some people thought.

Turns out people can spend some money playing this sport.

While it’s true that the sport, overall, is cheap (one needs but a disc and a place to play), it can become quite expensive when you factor in more equipment, travel and fees associated with tournaments and leagues.

But, in the end, it appears that many of our readers can keep it on the cheaper end. Of the 202 people who placed a vote, 47 percent (94 votes) said they spend between $100-$499 per year.

The prices went up after that. In second was $500-$999 (19 percent/39 votes), followed by $1,000-$2,000 (15 percent/30 votes). Ten percent (20 votes) of the people chose less than $100, and nine percent (19 votes) said more than $2,000.

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Six months with Rattling Chains — what’s next?

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By P.J. Harmer — Rattling Chains staff

So the answer has to be given … did we rattle the chains?

As readers will remember, we came out of the gate quickly when we started six months ago. We were super pumped and the possibilities were endless. The ideas that were being thrown around were plenty.

When we initially started this blog, we said we’d revisit it in six months. At that point, we’d decide if we wanted to continue or shut it down. As someone who has been a writer for most of my professional life, I didn’t want to let the blog go to hell. If we weren’t doing well, we’d shut up shop and move along.

But it wouldn’t come without a fight, that’s for sure.

Over the course of the first half year, we’ve had some ups and downs. We started quick, we slowed up, things looked bleak and we’ve kind of bounced back.

We also got lucky to get some quality contributors right off the bat in Jack Trageser and Steve Hill. Since then, we’ve added Andre Fredrick and Jenny Cook. We also have a few people who have submitted things to us here and there, giving us some great things.

What I’ve really liked about this blog is all those different voices. From men to women, we’ve tried to give what we can.

This three-day schedule on a weekly basis hasn’t been the best for visits, however. And that’s understandable. After all, if there are fewer stories, people won’t come back every day.

That meant is was decision time. We’re at that six-month point. So what to do?

Do we continue?

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Poll 26: Is disc golf really a cheap sport? Spending habits on notice!

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Is disc golf really a cheap sport?

We know that most courses are free. And once you have a couple of discs you should be good to go, right?

I mean, how much more could this game take in regard to spending money?

That’s what we’re here to find out. I’ve talked to so many people recently about the money spent on this game. Equipment. Tournament fees. Travel expenses. Leagues.

It all adds up if you are highly into the game.

We’ll get back to all that in a moment, though. First, I’d like to re-visit last week’s poll to see what people thought about a little football.

Turns out not many people change their disc golf routine because of football season.

Of the 87 people who cast votes this week, 63 percent (55 votes) said no. The other 37 percent (32 votes) said yes.

Personally, I don’t plan anything around football. If I’m home, I’ll flip it on. But if there’s something else I wanted or planned to do, including disc golf, I’ll catch the score/highlights and everything else later on.

Let’s see what some readers had to say.

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Playing at night can be a fun way to change your game up

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Glow discs, like these, are one way to play night golf. Having LED lights on the disc is another.

By Andre Fredrick — Rattling Chains staff

One of my fondest disc golf memories has to be visiting Minnesota and playing my first round of night golf.

It was a defining moment that changed my feelings about the sport. If you haven’t tried it, you should. If you have, you still might find this guide helpful on your next nocturnal outing.

Night golfing can be a frustrating experience for those who are under-prepared.

Preparing for a throw during a night-golf outing. (photo by Michael Owskey).

I realized this after losing a friend’s glow disc and spending 45 fruitless minutes searching for it before calling it a night. I never found the disc. A sour experience can easily turn even the most enthusiastic of us off of night golf.

When done right, playing at night can be one of your most memorable disc golf experiences, so let’s get you prepared.

First, you need a course that allows for night play.

For example, my local course closes at dusk and enforcement is pretty heavy. As much as I have been tempted to sneak out and try to play a round after hours, trespassing is never a good idea. So don’t do it. Check with city or state offices to see if public courses are open after dark to make sure you’re allowed to be out there. If your local course is privately owned, check with management to see if it’s something they support.

Now that you’ve avoided a trespassing charge, remember safety. This list is by no means definitive, but the following items are good to have.

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Poll 25: What’s football season do to your game?

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Hut, hut, hike!

It’s that time of year. Football, football, football! College football on Saturdays and the NFL on Sunday.

Parties, cookouts (while it’s warm enough), tailgating and whatever else you might do with football season.

But does it take a toll on your game?

We’ll get back to that shortly. First, let’s check out last week’s poll.

Basically, I was trying to find out how much some people have spent on discs, whether it be collecting or whatever. However, we had some crazy choices and I think I probably merged the possibility of three polls into one.

So the odds are we’ll probably revisit these polls down the line and split them up.

Of the 425 people who cast a vote (or two) in this poll, 51 percent (216 votes) overwhelmingly said they only buy discs they play with. That says something to me right there — plastic was made for throwin’.

In regard to how much people have already paid for a disc, 23 percent (96 votes) said they had paid more than $25 for a disc. That was followed by more than $50 for a disc (10 percent/43 votes); more than $100 (4 percent/18 votes) and more than $250 for a disc (2 percent/8 votes).

On the other side, 28 voters noted they’d pay more than $25 for a disc. Following that was willing to pay more than $50 and $100, which were tied with seven votes each.

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Poll 24: How much is too much for a disc?

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OK, there’s been a lot of things I’ve read about collectible discs.

I know of several people who have spent many dollars on discs to add to their collections. And I shake my head in wonder over this. But, we’ll get to that in a moment.

For now, let’s peek back to last week’s poll. We were curious how long of a break you had taken from disc golf. It could be for any reason, but since becoming a disc golfer, what kind of breaks have you taken?

We had 103 voters in this poll and the winning selection was two weeks, which scored 29 votes (28 percent). Second place went to a year or longer with 19 votes (19 percent). One month tied with 2-3 months for the next spot (17 votes/17 percent), followed by 4-5 months (11 votes/11 percent) and 6-11 months (10 votes/nine percent).

It seems people, too, had different reasons for their breaks. Let’s see what some of the readers had to say.

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Parting with plastic brings different results and feelings

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By Jenny Cook — For Rattling Chains

A disc’s life starts off in a manufacturing plant somewhere in America, and for the ones that end up in our disc golf bag, each has a story as to how it got there.

Was it purchased at a local disc golf store, won at a tournament, given to you by a friend, or found on a disc golf course? Over time, some of these lucky discs become our go-to discs — our absolute favorites to throw.

So if that disc you simply can’t live without ends up in a murky pond, how long would you spend searching for it? The majority of the disc golf population probably wouldn’t hesitate to grab a rake and start scraping bottom, searching until the sun went down — or came up. I’ve even seen lost-disc flyers
posted at courses with “reward if found” written in big, bold letters.

Facebook and the social forums on dgcourseview.com also allow us to reach out to the locals with pleas, like, “I lost my disc on hole No. 4, in
the rough somewhere. Keep your eyes open for my Valkyrie please! Call if found. Reward!”

We love the plastic that’s in our bag and would do almost anything for it.

There can be risks involved in fighting to get our loved ones back. My husband once found himself in the position of raking the bottom of a pond in search of his putter — his favorite putter.

As he crossed a slick fallen-down log acting as a bridge, he slipped and landed on a branch — X-rays later that night showed he had two broken ribs and a punctured lung. Two weeks later, including three chest tubes and a
thoracotomy, he was released from the hospital. A full recovery has been made since then and up until this last July, his putter stayed in that unforgettable stench of a murky pond in Joliet, Illinois.

The blue Champion Rhyno was recently found among hundreds of other discs and, after a phone call, it made its way back into his hands. His favorite Rhyno now hangs on the wall. Two years later, the story is now complete because of that phone call.

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Book Excerpt: Why golf is great, and why in the 21st century disc golf is better

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By Jack Trageser — Rattling Chains staff

It is my firm belief that the sport of disc golf — which already has enjoyed strong, steady growth for more than two decades — will experience an explosion in popularity when two things happen:

  1. The general public is properly educated about the true nature and accessibility of disc golf, and all the nuances that make it so much more like traditional golf than most people assume to be the case (the variety of discs and throws, the effects of wind and terrain, etc.).
  2. Disc golf reaches a ‘tipping point’ in terms of popular opinion, triggered by either a critical mass of popular culture/media recognition or a handful of random watershed moments. For instance, if a super-famous person suddenly lists disc golf as their favorite activity, or a TV show, website, or publication with millions of fans features it prominently.

Now, it is altogether possible that a famous person will stumble across disc golf at any time, fall in love with the sport, and by sharing his or her passion for the sport do more to promote it in one day than all other players combined have done up to that point. But unless there is some exhaustive source of correct, detailed, and compelling information available that explains the many different reasons why people that have played it love it so much, chances of that watershed moment resulting in anything but a temporary fad are minimal.

Those seeking the truth about the sport will find nothing substantial — or worse, the misinformation and oversimplifications that currently exist. My goal is to fill that void and have answers to the inevitable questions ready and waiting in a book, for the day the dam breaks.

I’m writing a book that aims to make the two events numbered above much likelier to occur, as well as making the inevitable explosion of disc golf a mere launching point for something with staying power. The book will include chapters that discuss the history, finer points, unique grassroots growth, and formats of the sport, among others. But the unifying theme is a very specific sales pitch for disc golf, and it’s established in the first chapter and repeated throughout:

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