A new course in NW Tennessee: Union City

We have received permission to install a (long term/temporary) disc golf course at Graham Park in Union City, TN. This did not come easy. Many people have contacted the city about installing a course in the past few years, and this fact definitely worked in our favor in this go round. Also the fact that we (Jim Yates, Johnny Razo, and I) set up and took down the course we are proposing every week for the entire Summer for an impromptu disc golf league. Because we kept at it and were not going away, we scored. I think that also we are installing a course at no cost to the city, so they are a little more willing.

We designed the course by throwing. Safety was our number 1 concern. We also tried to keep the holes at beginner friendly distances, but with interesting, more advanced lines. We are not making our dream course, we are making a safe and fun course.

We are making tone poles. WIll Trimble is the mad scientist behind our tone poles and they are awesome! Our cost is less than $15/ target. We will have natural tee pads with laminated signage. We will install the front nine for ~$100! Being long-term/ temporary there will be no concrete, poles will be set directly into the ground. Our install day is Thursday for the front 8. I will keep you updated.

 

A leaner?

A night time spike hyzer approach shot from about 60′ out ended up about as close as you can get, the ol’ leaner…

Course Maintenance with Consequences

Course maintenance can be many things: mowing, pruning, sweeping tee pads, re-hanging signs, etc. When you begin work that will change the signature hole of your course, you need to approach the issues with respect.

Railroad ties installed, ready for mulch!

The issue is that the area around the #3 basket is eroding. The basket is on a steep slope that has gotten steeper over time as material has left the upper slope. In addition to the erosion issues, soil compaction has made the slope have to characteristics: 1) any disc that hits the slope has a strong tendency to roll for ridiculously long, downhill distances, & 2) when wet, footing on the compacted clay is extremely poor/ dangerous.

The fix is wood chip mulch. It will provide some traction, alleviate soil compaction, and help slow water flow, which helps fight erosion. The problem is getting the mulch to stay on the slope. The solution was to put two lines of railroad ties into the slope to provide a barrier to wood chip movement. The goal was to create barriers that will help hold the slope, provide a safe surface for play, and still keep the death putt for which hole #3 is famous.

Time will tell if we hit the mark. Because the hole was eroding/ degrading rapidly, It was unlikely to retain its current character. The slight change in slope and big change in footing  from the wood chips and ties will make this hole easier. It is hoped that the basic character of the hole is maintained and a par remains difficult to obtain

The coolest disc golf event…

I recently visited the good folks at Gateway Disc Sports up in St. Louis to obtain discs for

This is the crew for the 2014 Harrison Road Red Tee Challenge!!!

the 2014 summer Nights Glow Series. While in their shop we started talking about disc golf for kids and long story short, I left with a ton of sweet lightweight plastic. On 28 June 2014 we put on our first Young Men’s Red Tee Invitational. The kids were jazzed! Dads and Moms were not allowed to throw but allowed to caddy for the 18 holes.

The kids were surprised at the distances they were throwing their

The Gateway Magic putters were the bomb!

drivers – it is amazing what appropriate weight discs can mean to a thrower. They were all using Gateway magic putters and the gallery was enjoying their excellent results.

I did not have a kid in this tournament, but I knew all the kids in the event through the Martin DIsc Golf Club. The invitational format was chosen to allow us to limit variability in our first foray into

Even though the competition was fierce, the competitors all got along and the parents backed off and let them get along!

children’s disc golf. After the event, I can’t think of a thing I would change – everything went super smooth.

We will put on a bigger event next year. Our keys to success were:1) at least one adult on course with each child to help find discs, carry water, etc,. 2) one round of 18 holes (MAX) – it is better to have the kids wanting more instead of burnt out, 3) keep score and track winners but put the $$’s into player packs, 4) keep it positive and fun!

Yet another awesome drive is ripped down the fairway!

Our success was confirmed when one of our golfers got home and told his Mom: “I just played the best round of disc golf in my life! It wasn’t my best score,  but it was the most fun!”

Even in paradise, there are issues

In Cape Girardeau, MO there is a park called North County Park. This park has

Tee pad and sign for the #3 hole.

playgrounds, a nature center, picnic areas, lakes, and a disc golf course. The course is still a work in progress, but it shows promise. The course has awesome bright orange, DGA mach V baskets that far exceed expectations and some of the most incredible tee pads and signage I have ever seen.

We were pushed for time and decided to play the “front 9” which

This is a tee sign! The trees, tee, basket locations are depicted accurately and the sign is pleasing to view.

consists of holes 1-4 and 14-18. When we got to hole 14 a group of three were finishing 13 and we waited for them to finish and let them play through so we wouldn’t impede their game. As they approached the tee box one of the three said: “You’re not playing the whole course”. I jokingly responded: “That’s OK isn’t it? I mean, we aren’t in violation of any city ordinances are we?” Instead of engaging a sense of humor, this guy responded: “You don’t have to be a dick.” Rather than point out that we were letting them play through instead of making them wait for us or starting a fight over who was the biggest dick, we just waited and they threw their drives and went away. As they threw their drives each of them exited the tee box from the front knocking a retaining wall brick free of the the tee pad, the last of them stopped and placed the brick back where it was, but he didn’t take the basic care of pushing the dirt and rock back so the brick would rest firmly on brick rather than precariously on an uneven surface. So we made the repair and continued on with our game.

Cumulative disrespect caused this tee box failure.

This course is normally immaculate – the park staff keep it super clean. We were on the course at the end of the 4th of July weekend and there was obvious disc golfer trash on the course: beer cans on the tee boxes and the like. It is too bad that even a course like this doesn’t get respect. When we got to the #14 basket it was dented. As over built as these DGA mach V’s are, that took some doing – but it may not have been disc golfers. The disrespect shown to the #18 tee box was really sad and the result of several disc golfers not caring about how they exited the tee box. It is too bad.

 

This doesn’t make it any easier…

Hole #3 is a classic, difficult hole at Harrison Road – even if you are throwing well. Was out playing a couple weeks ago and noticed evidence of a badly shanked second (?) shot. Even when you throw well this hole is hard, but this…

The ongoing battle for tee pad supremacy

Regis looks like he is laying down and will not disrupt my throw, but by the time I was in my x-step, Regis was on a corner of the tee pad!

Regis, the dog, really likes to tag along when I play disc golf. I only take him when I expect to have the course to be relatively uncrowded and there will be cooler temperatures. Including Regis on a round of disc golf means I will be playing with a certain mellow mindset – Regis likes to get in front of me just as I release my disc and this will destroy my composure and often booger up my release. This game of Regis’s is played to the extreme on the tee pads: Regis thinks tee pads are a nice place for dogs and I think they are for throwing discs from – these two uses are not compatible. Sometimes I will gently move Regis from the tee pad three or four times before I can throw, often he will come back on the tee pad during the throw: he just doesn’t get it. I have gently and consistently removed Regis from a tee pad 100’s of times and have never encouraged or even tolerated him on a tee pad, but this behavior persists. I think he enjoys it.

As a responsible pet owner, I keep Regis on a leash. Not everyone enjoys your dog running up to them and a leash is the polite way to ensure you do not disturb others.

One simply must practice…

Recent heavy rains meant playing outside was a little damp, but I found a place to practice for a bit…

Oh, that’s why!

Meat-eating Butterfly at Harrison Road Disc Golf Course

Sunday, 22 June 2014, I saw an adult harvester butterfly near the #6 basket while playing a steamy afternoon round of disc golf. This butterfly does the egg, caterpillar, pupa, adult life cycle, but with a twist: instead of plants the caterpillar eats living flesh!

I escaped this encounter with my life because: 1) the adults do not have chewing mouthparts and therefore can’t eat meat (unless it is liquid), 2) I am not a woolly aphid – the prey of the caterpillar, and 3) I am about the size of a small planet when compared to this butterfly. Still, you can never be too careful. The photo above was taken at a safe distance. This sighting also provided county occurrence documentation for the Butterflies and Moths of North America project, which would also benefit from receiving the butterfly photos you take while playing disc golf or other activities.

Another cool thing about this butterfly is by eating woolly aphids it is protecting a plant, the downside is the most likely plant hosting woolly aphids at the Harrison Road course is Smilax, or as it is better known: that evil thorny vine that makes throwing from the low woods so miserable. This butterfly may be the protector of our Smilax, or more likely, just a cool bit a biodiversity making our Harrison Road course just a little more special.