Resist

I am fighting the temptation to waste my hard earned money on strange droid toys.

Epiphany on Hole 6

Flowed down Highway 1 to the CSUMB courses today. Shot +7 on the Oakes Course (par 4). Pretty raw round but good fun anyhow.

Lost my Dragon on hole six and spent much time looking for it…eventually came across it after 30 or so minutes.

Dubro and I are thinking about what’s missing in the disc golf universe. Trying to come up with that million dollar, retirement provoking idea that settles all matters of financial need now into the future.

So it hit me at six. Wouldn’t it be nice if it was easier to find your lost discs?

I imagine a circular, homing device no heavier than 3 grams and no larger than the diameter of a thimble. With a sticky adhesive you apply it to the underside of any disc. By simply pressing on it you activate a beacon signal…a buzz…or a beep…something not too annoying but effective in leading you to a lost disc. A similar system could include a flashing light. Brilliant!

Or….how bout an even thinner, lighter, stinkier idea.

What about sticky patches…..kind of like a scratch and sniff you don’t need to scratch…..and even smellier. You apply it to the underside of a disc. As you search for your discs with your eyes you also utilize your sense of smell as it guides you to your lost treasure. Maybe.

Obviously these tools are marketed primarily to the new/amateur/novice player but it could also draw any player who fears losing a prized disc.

I thought of a couple other genius ideas but I’ve probably already said too much. Someone is gonna take these ideas and make it theirs. Make millions. Retire. Enjoy life in more satisfying ways.

Yeah right! Dubro….you’re the only cat that reads my mess.

Later on I wound up losing the Dragon again, and this time for good….I spaced on it after an approach shot or something. Couldn’t find it anywhere….sacrificed it to the disc gods. Ended my round right then and there and called it quits for a day.

Still scratching my head wondering where the fuck it went.

Postscript: Traveled back for another around the next day. Ended +1 (four par). Felt better and more confident about the course and layout. Carried a -4 through Hole 15 but those vicious headwinds off the mighty pacific waters got the better of me thereafter. Still couldn't find the Dragon anywhere.

Course Review: Mercey Hot Springs

Spent a couple of days camping at Mercey Hot Springs. This beautiful and quiet oasis can be found in Firebaugh, CA.

Don’t bother going there though because it sucks and you will hate it….so just stay away. Seriously…..don’t even think about going.

Recently someone decided to establish a 9-hole disc golf course. I was eager to check it out and write a review…so here it is.


The course itself is strung along the rolling peaks and valleys of the Panoche hills. The elevation shifts from 300’ to 1300 ft. I would say the average length of each hole is somewhere between 300’ to 450 ft. I called each hole a par three despite lengths that might warrant par four status. More on this in a moment.

When I initially checked out the course I wasn’t expecting much. Mercey’s web site noted that the course is sill in development and currently utilizes 5-gallon buckets and a couple of posts as targets. The tee/hole placements however are well thought out and documented on a map. I used the topo map to scout the course and was able to find all the tee’s and most of the targets although two buckets were missing. All of the tee pads are natural and undefined.

During my stay I gathered up some supplies and worked on the course a little and made some notable improvements:



-Found planter buckets for the missing holes
-Placed posts in each of the buckets and anchored each bucket down with rocks
-Trudged a trail through the grasses between each tee and target (hopefully the tees are a little easier to find).

My simple improvements made the course playable so I shot a round.

Wind plays a factor on each hole and because the wind can shift from game to game the course difficulty rating is hard to gauge. If the wind is flowing from the southeast, most holes will be a par-3 without question. In fact in during these optimal conditions you will drive like a champion and should throw harder and further than you ever have before (great ego boost for anyone working on their drives).

If the wind is blowing in from the northwest…forget about it! In these conditions most of the holes should probably be played par-4 because you will be fighting the whole time.

You will really have to think out your wind strategy.

What doesn’t come into play on this course are obstacles. Holes 1 and 4 are the only ones with real obstructions (bushes) and not one tree is to be found on these hills. For me this was a refreshing break as my home course (DeLa) is heavily wooded.

Taking trees out of the equation is interesting. You are liberated to throw without worry. This will definitely shift your game.

On holes 2,3,5,6 you shoot from peaks, across canyons, to targets on opposite peaks. In fact on hole 5 you will have to shoot over two canyons! Misjudging the winds or distances between peaks might mean an approach shot that requires you to throw from the floors of these grassy canyons with an upward pitch.

Discs can easily be lost in these thick grasses in the spring but I’m sure conditions will change during the hotter months (summer temps max 110 degrees).

Hole 4 is interesting because the target isn’t visible from the tee pad. It is obstructed by a series of bushes. I crushed a killer birdie, (aren’t I mean?) and scored my highlight of the round (and it’s the highlights that leave me wanting more).

On holes 6 and 7 you stay atop one ridge. The views are spectacular! Do yourself a favor and stay up on the ridge. An errant shot will have you shooting from the sides of this hilltop and shooting from the sides will certainly be trouble.



Hole 8 seems to be the signature hole on this course. It’s reminisant of Hole 27 at DeLaveaga but without the patches of trees to contend with. I think the drop is somewhere between 800’-1000 feet and the target is probably 350’-400ft away from the tee (close to that jumble of white boxes). A barbed wire fence is the only obstruction between. Be careful moving through the fence.

Hole 9 is anti-climactic. I finished my round +6 which sounds about right considering my learning curve.

Potential exists for course expansion (as always). A landing strip, two beat up old houses and a scary grove of trees where a family of ravens and a barn owl live make up the land between hole 9 and the campsite. I see 3-6 holes that would make sense.

If you play this course let me know what you think. I hope to help the staff fashion some homemade baskets to replace the posts….if they want that sort of help. Of course it would be even better if they invest in some Mach 4’s or 5’s but that’s $1500 before cement.

Oh….and did I mention to just stay away from this place. Pretend I didn’t even mention it. And what ever you do, don’t take a relaxing soak in the 105 degree mineral water baths.

see more:
http://www.merceyhotsprings.com/

my discgolftopia

I recently had a conversation with the Dubro’s on the topic of disc golf entrapaneurship. I’m convinced there is an angle or exists angles of untapped potential in terms of creating a useful something the disc golfer needs or wants and would be willing to pay for. The personal interest would be finding financial wealth while creating something very fun, useful, and ecologically friendly for the disc golfer.

A week passed until I came to a good, yet highly impractical idea….an idea that fits the criteria listed above and isn’t being replicated anywhere else.

The idea is to have is to have a team of investors purchase a significant parcel of acreage where a 99-hole course (with regulation baskets) and a campground could be developed.

Why 99-holes? It’s unprecedented. There is a course in England that includes 99 targets but to my knowledge this is the closest challenge of this magnitude.

With 99-holes it would be conceivable that a player could attempt to complete the course in one day but in all likelihood he or she would want to take their time weaving through the reservation. To better accommodate the disc golfer, mini-camping villages would be developed at strategic holes….maybe holes 33 and 66 for example. At these camping villages disc golfers would find, tents, a latrine, possibly running water, a camp kitchen and fire pit and ??? I’m inspired by the Rainbow kitchen model and also boy scout kitchens.

There could also be a central camping spot (presumably at holes 1 and 99) that includes amenities such as a store, pool, hot tub, cabins, tenting sites and parking and whatever else.

With 99-holes it would be possible to hold tournaments of epic scope and proportion. Professional and amateur disc golfers from around the world would naturally be instantly attracted and curious about, “the world’s largest course…that also happens to be a kick-ass camping resort”.

Tournament possibilities are unlimited. Here’s a few I came up with:
Team-marathons (teams of negotiated size….2…..3…..6……..12 etc.)
Solo-marathon (all 99 yourself)
Last Disc Golfer Standing (endurance event…..golf till you drop)
Speed Event (How quickly can you complete the course.)

Disc-a-thons also have fundraising benefit potential for non-profit groups and charities.

It’s my discgolftopia!