This edition of What’s in your bag comes from Josh Rogers, who calls Dacey Fields Disc Golf Course in Franklin, Mass., his home course.

Rogers, of Bellingham, Mass., said he gets better each time he plays the par-62 course, a tightly wooded and low-option one. The tees are all natural as the course is still young.

As for his bag, he uses a Bass Pro Shops Extreme Qualifier 360 Angler backpack. It’s not fully converted, but it holds a lot of items with minimal impact on his shoulders.

The bag carries 14 discs. These include:

• Latitude Test Material 2 Bolt (168 grams)
• (4) Innova Beats in three plastics (randing from 162 in DX to 164 in champion and 168 in star)

The contents in the bag of Josh Rogers.

• Latitude 64 Trident (170)
• (2) Latitude 64 Opto Rivers (172)
• Vibram Obex (174)
• Discraft Buzzz X (175)
• Discraft Buzzz Z (177)
• Latitude 64 Pure Eze Line (172)
• Latitude 64 Zero Soft (172)

Also in the bag:

• PDGA Rule Book/Competition Manual
• 2013 inBounds Flight Guide
• 2012 Marshall Street Flight Guide
• Scorecards for the Pyramids Course at Marshall Street
• Marshall Street Mini
• Two Towels
• One multi-knife
• Two golf balls
• One blue, one black pen
• Permanent marker
• Innova Pencil from my first tournament
• Coin purse
• Rain jacket
• Umbrella

Want to submit your bag and contents? Here’s what we need: A couple of photos of your bag and discs. Put together a list of everything you carry in the bag — from food to discs to anything else. Then maybe give a paragraph or two about your bag and if there’s anything you do between casual and tournament rounds etc. Finally, don’t forget your name, location and home course! Cell phone photos are fine, but please try and make it as high quality as possible. Grainy shots might not be able to be used. E-mail all of these things to pj@rattlingchains.com with the subject “What’s in my bag.”

(Editor’s note: We are bringing back the “What’s in your bag?” feature to Rattling Chains. It will run once a month or so. If you would like to submit what’s in your bag, please check the details at the end of this post)

This edition of “What’s in your bag?” comes from Kris “Professor” Mickelson, who lives and manages a disc golf club in El Granada, Calif.

He’s played disc golf since 2010, and competed in the open division since 2010. Mickelson participates in the San Francisco Disc Golf Club weekly, which is held rain or shine each Sunday.

He also co-wrote a feature-length film script based on disc golf and is the owner of Half Moon Bay Disc Golf.

Besides disc golf, he also coaches little league baseball.

As for the contents of his bag, there’s a bit of uniformity. See, he notes, that he’s been there when trying to find a yellow disc for 10 minutes, just to realize it’s in his bag and he should have been looking for a blue disc.

Yikes.

So, Mickelson eliminated that by having all of his plastic custom stamped with a shield on them. He’s used the same person since 2005.

Take a peek at his discs:

Kris Mickelson’s discs.

From the bottom center (Blizzard Blue) and going clockwise:

• 159g Blizzard Katana
• 175g Boss (Signed by Gregg Barsby)
• 175g Spider
• 175g Wraith (understable 2009 Star — just beginning to get sweet)
• 175g Wraith (New and overstable — into a gail!)
• 175g Leopard
• 178g San Marino ROC
• 175g Avair (signed by Gerard Butler of 300- King Loenidas)
• 169g Champion Omega
• 150g Star Omega
• 165g Beast
• (Yellow Center Disc) 159 Champion Gummy KC 11-time (For pre-tournament catch/stretch out only)
• 2- 36oz. Blue Nalgene Bottles with the Half Moon Bay Disc Golf Club Logo on them.

Want to submit your bag and contents? Here’s what we need: A couple of photos of your bag and discs. Put together a list of everything you carry in the bag — from food to discs to anything else. Then maybe give a paragraph or two about your bag and if there’s anything you do between casual and tournament rounds etc. Finally, don’t forget your name, location and home course! Cell phone photos are fine, but please try and make it as high quality as possible. Grainy shots might not be able to be used. E-mail all of these things to pj@rattlingchains.com with the subject “What’s in my bag.”

Brian Buller's bag.

This week’s “What’s in your bag?” feature comes from Brian Buller, who calls Enterprise Community Park in Redding, Calif., his home course.

And on a round, Buller doesn’t just carry his discs. He’ll make sure of a cheap cigar or two and he’ll never be seen without his Star Boss, the disc which got him his first ace — a forehand skip around a tree.

Let’s check out the rest of Brian’s bag.

• ESP Nuke (signed by Gregg Barsby)
• Star Boss
• Champion Boss
• Blizzard Champion Boss
• Champion Wraith
• Champion Beast
• Champion Tee Bird
• CryZtal Z Buzzz
• Star Roc
• KC Pro Roc
• Super Soft Warlock
• Super Stupid Soft Warlock
• Super Stupid Soft Wizard

The discs Brian Buller carries.

Want to submit your bag and contents? Here’s what we need: A couple of photos of your bag and discs. Put together a list of everything you carry in the bag — from food to discs to anything else. Then maybe give a paragraph or two about your bag and if there’s anything you do between casual and tournament rounds etc. Finally, don’t forget your name, location and home course! Cell phone photos are fine, but please try and make it as high quality as possible. Grainy shots might not be able to be used. E-mail all of these things to pj [at] rattlingchains.com with the subject “What’s in my bag.”

Kelly's bag carries a lot of things!

This week’s “What’s in your bag?” feature comes from Kelly Littlefield, who calls three courses in Colorado “home field.”

But it’s not the courses that Kelly calls home that makes the bag unique. Nope. It’s that Kelly names every disc. Not only are the discs named, they are after race horses! In fact, it’s a superstition.

The drivers

It can be funny, however. Kelly says someone may call after finding a lost disc and might say “Is Van Gogh there?”

Kelly calls Optimist Park (Fort Morgan, Colo.); YMCA of the Rockies (Estes Park, Colo.) and Badlands (Federal Heights, Colo.) as home courses.

Good stuff, Kelly. And thanks for sharing what’s in your Fade Fly or Die bag!

Discs:

• Innova Pro Valkyrie 174g – Chocolate Candy II (Me like some Valkyrie!)

• 

  Midranges

• Innova Pro Valkyrie 168g – Chocolate Candy III
• Innova Pro Valkyrie 150g – Ghostzapper
• Innova Champion Valkyrie 171g – Dust Commander
• Innova R-Pro Wahoo 169g – Bumble bee (Best swimmer in my bag!)
• Innova Pro Beast 167g – Bee Bee Bee
• Innova Pro Vulcan 167g – Van Gogh )My newest addition and instant favorite!)
• Innova Pro Destroyer 172g – Dobber
• Innova Star Spider 175g – Real Quiet
• Innova Star Skeeter 175g – Winning Colors
• MVP Proton Ion 175g – Dotted Battle Cow
• Vibram Soft Summit 174g – Blue Man
• The rest of the stable for another day!

What else?

• Two aluminum Tampa Buccaneers water bottles
• My cell phone with Avery Jenkins wallpaper
• One pack of Eclipse spearmint gum
• One large Shamwow towel and one small Shamwow towel
• One 18 Rabbit Nibblin Apricot granola bar (It’s a wifey thing, don’t ask!)
• Four Trails Best Beef and Cheese sticks (Reason for the flossers)
• Bag of Bigs Zesty Ranch Sunflower Seeds (The best seeds, period!)
• Golden retriever, sharpie and pencil
• Kleenex, sun screen, ibuprofen, Napoleon Dynamite vanilla lip balm and Hot Spot hand warmers
• Usually three pounds of change (I scrounged up enough change to buy a disc once!
• Official Rules of Disc Golf & Competition Manual

Want to submit your bag and contents? Here’s what we need: A couple of photos of your bag and discs. Put together a list of everything you carry in the bag — from food to discs to anything else. Then maybe give a paragraph or two about your bag and if there’s anything you do between casual and tournament rounds etc. Finally, don’t forget your name, location and home course! Cell phone photos are fine, but please try and make it as high quality as possible. Grainy shots might not be able to be used. E-mail all of these things to pj [at] rattlingchains.com with the subject “What’s in my bag.”

Kevin Morrow's bag, filled with his orange discs!

This week’s What’s in your bag? feature shows us the contents of Kevin Morrow, who keeps his discs easy to find with them all being orange.

Morrow, of Fredericksburg,Va., calls Loriella DGC his home course.

Now let’s take a peek at his bag contents (in Kevin’s words) …

I began playing in 1986. Around 2002, I stopped playing and began playing again in 2010. So much had changed in those few years.

First, I ended up cracking all my old DX plastic and needed to replace my discs. Then I went online and discovered all the disc golf sites and e-stores selling everything you could ever want.

It’s not like the old days when you had to wait for the local pro to show up so you could buy your plastic out of his trunk. They still do that but now you go online and the latest plastic can be at your door the next day. So, I had to learn discs all over again and the different plastics. I have bought just about every mold and tried it out to see how it fit my throw.

My bag:

It is a little different than most. I got the idea from a member a DGCourseReview who found this backpack on Cabela’s website. It looked like a great option and I always wanted to find a backpack style that didn’t cost an arm and a leg.

Kevin's bag and discs.

My bag is a Cabela’s XPG Pro Series angle tackle backpack. It lists for 69.99 but I was able to get it for the online sale price of 49.99, with free shipping.

I had to make a few modifications. I built a half-inch PVC frame to keep the bottom compartment that held the tackle boxes rigid. With the frame, I can carry about 19 discs. Without the frame, even more can be stored. I only carry 14 discs.

The top compartment has plenty of room for my extra stuff. I also drop an orange or some kind of snack, too. The top flat pocket, behind the sunglasses case, makes a great putter pocket that can carry two putters, but it can’t be zipped up with discs inside. So I put the putters in the top compartment when I’m traveling. I like personalizing my stuff. Most of the patches were given to me by friends and family.

Continue reading →

Aaron Cronk's bag -- A Fade Crunch

This week’s What’s in your bag? feature shows us the contents of Aaron Cronk, who starts with his banana-colored Fade Crunch and builds from there.

Cronk, of Lutz, Fla., calls USF Riverfront (Tampa) his home course.

Now let’s take a peek at his bag contents…

He’s been playing for about a year. Discs 1-11 are drivers, 12 and 13 are mid-ranges, and 14 and 15 are my putters.

1. Innova Katana (Star): This is my top distance driver. I get more distance and more speed out of this than my other discs. This has also become my favorite roller disc for big distance.

2. Innova Wraith (Echo Star): Great for distance and skip shots. The wraith was the second driver I ever owned.

3. DKG Tempest (Cu plastic): All DKG discs float in water. When I started using this disc, I was landing closer to the basket than I had before. These discs beat in pretty good and this has become one of my most flippy distance drivers

4. Innova Wahoo (R-Pro): Floats in water. This is an older disc that has been beaten in pretty good. It flips over real easy so if I throw it flat, it’ll go right. This is also one of my roller discs.

All that plastic...

5. Innova Archon (Champion): This disc flies straight for me. If I put some anhyzer on it, it will fade back and land flat.

6. Innova Sidewinder (DX): This disc is beaten in to the point where if it’s thrown flat, it’ll fly to the right with little fade at the end. This is another one of my roller discs. When I want to throw a roller with less distance than my Katana, I’ll use this.

7. Innova Roadrunner (Champion): This is relatively new to my bag. I got it from the Tour del Sol Triple Crown Series at Pine Oaks in Ocala, Florida. I’ve used it for straight shots so far. Roadrunners are supposed to be great roller discs, but I still need to test it out.

8. Innova Viking (Champion): The viking was the first disc I ever owned so it holds a special place in my bag. Needless to say, this is also one of my top discs. The Viking holds a great line with a nice fade at the end. It’s a slower driver so I use it when I need less distance.

9. Innova Viking (DX): This is another disc that is beaten in. When I need more high speed turn than my champion Viking, I’ll throw this flat and it will turn right for me.

10. Innova FL (Pro): This a Pro Plastic Firebird with less fade at the end. I like to use this mainly for tomahawk throws to get out of trouble.

11. Innova TL (Champion): Basically a TeeBird with less fade at the end. This feels better in my hand than a TeeBird, and I use it for straight shots.

12. MVP Axis (Proton): This is my straight flying mid-range. It’s similar to a Buzzz SS but seems to get a bit more glide on it. This is also good for turnover shots.

13. Discraft Zone (Pro D): I use this for an over-stable mid-range. It’s great in the wind. I like the Zone for short skip shots and flex shots.

14. Gateway Wizard (Super Stupid Soft): This is my back up putter if my putts are a bit off. I also use this for windier conditions. I like my putters to be on the heavier side and this is 175g.

15. Gateway Voodoo (Super Stupid Soft): This is my main putter. Out of all the putters I’ve tried, this feels the most comfortable. This weighs 174g.

Also in the bag…

1. Birdie Bag: Everyone should get one of these. Florida gets pretty humid and muggy so when my hands get sweaty, I bust this out.

2-3. Fruit snacks and peanut butter sandwich crackers: If I’m going to play more than one round, I like to throw snacks in my bag.

4. Water bottle: I always carry water with me no matter how short of a time I’m going to play

Other goodies...

5. Gateway Dual Stash Mini: This is my main mini. It’s great to keep extra cash in it for handicap or to pay the occasional squid.

6. Innova Mini: This is my back up mini that I hope to never use (don’t want to lose that cash). It’s great to have in case a friend needs to borrow a mini though.

7. Sharpie Mini Marker: Fits in my bag better than a normal sized marker. You never know when you’ll buy a new disc or get that ace.

8. Pencil: just a standard golf pencil. I also carry a mechanical pencil as a backup.

9. Nail File: Sometimes I forget to cut my nails before I play. I used to carry clippers, but I would cut my nails too short and end up bleeding. If anyone had this happen to them, get a nail file.

10. Marshall Street Reusable Scorecard: Even though I use my cell phone and Easy ScoreCard Pro to record my rounds, this is a great backup. The cards are erasable so they’re great for handicap rounds. Also these are waterproof so they can handle bad weather.

That’s what’s in Aaron Cronk’s bag.

What’s in yours?

Want to submit your bag and contents? Here’s what we need: A couple of photos of your bag and discs. Put together a list of everything you carry in the bag — from food to discs to anything else. Then maybe give a paragraph or two about your bag and if there’s anything you do between casual and tournament rounds etc. Finally, don’t forget your name, location and home course! Cell phone photos are fine, but please try and make it as high quality as possible. Grainy shots might not be able to be used. E-mail all of these things to pj [at] rattlingchains.com with the subject “What’s in my bag.”