(2014)
Everything has changed.

A year ago my wife and I were scrambling to get out of Edmonds, WA. My home disc golf course was Terrace Creek in Mountlake Terrace and I was working toward 400-foot drives.

Plans to start my own small business were in the beginning stages of consuming my time as well...

(2015) "Time goes by."

(2016) "More time goes by."

(2017) "Even more time goes by."

...
...

(2020) Hi everyone. It's been a while.

I'm drinking a Bindle Punk IPA from Wet Coast Brewery out of Gig Harbor, Wa. It's actually my second one. It's 10:32pm on Wednesday, April 1.

The world might be ending. I'll explain later, but you probably know what I'm talking about already.

Looking back at this blog brings back great memories. It's one of those things where I wish I would have kept going. It could have been a fantastic historical reference. For me at least.

Things have happened though. Not bad things, but enough change to pull my attention away. Just the sound of me rapidly typing is bringing back memories. I haven't heard that sound for while.

I haven't written for a long time and it's a shame.

I may get emotional.

A JomezPro video from 2016 is playing in the background. I'm listening to Ian Anderson and Jonathan Gomez commentate on a DGWT round at La Mirada DGC.

Anyways... the world might be ending.

Covid-19 or the Corona Virus has the entire country on lock down. We're not supposed to leave the house or go to work if it's not essential. Parks are closed. Schools are closed. Bars are closed. Restaurants are closed.

Disc golf courses are closed.

It's the shittiest life event I've ever experienced. I'm more pissed off than scared. My family and I seem safe, but there is information in the world that suggests this is something that the country could have jumped on way sooner.

Now we are on lock down and waiting. Luckily my wife is still working, but I had to close the business I worked so hard on. It's the business that pulled me away from disc golf.

Gig Harbor Gondola LLC.

The business is another story and this is a disc golf blog. I should be back soon, because reviving this blog seems like a good idea at the moment. I have a lot to write about.

To be continued...

Highs and Lows... and Chili

Tournaments, man. Tournaments.

I love them even when I'm hating them.

This year's Steili with Chili tournament at Fort Steilacoom DGC was packed full with great people, somewhat decent weather and, for yours truly, a wide range of mental stages.

Here's what I learned.

When I head out to throw I'm usually alone. Since I'm alone I'm able to practice without throwing an entire round.

My routine usually involves stretching, putting, throwing in a field and then playing two or three different holes over and over.

The one aspect of disc golf I don't practice is the very situation I kept finding myself in during round one. I'm talking about the art of the scramble.

This tournament helped me realize that I'm horribly lacking creativity in my game. During practice I need to purposefully place myself in the thickest of shit and gracefully find my way out.

Mental Stage One: Happiness

Steilacoom, WA. is about an hour and a half away from me. In the past I've forced myself out of a warm bed and on to a dark road at an awful time in the freezing morning. The commute there isn't too bad, but the drive home is taxing.

I've had to call my wife before and have her talk to me so I didn't fall asleep on the road while making my way home through Seattle.

This year my lovely wife bought my entry fee and a hotel room for my birthday. We were going to stretch this experience out over two days.

We left Friday morning on December 5th and drove straight to the three-course complex. The plan was to play as much of the NW course as our three-year-old would allow and then practice a couple of holes on the SE course.

Surprisingly we were able to play most of the NW spread, even in the rain, before the baby girl's legs tired out. I think she loved the walk. It's such a beautiful scene.

I went on to practice the SE holes one and four a couple of times while the ladies kept warm and dry in the car. I would have played more, but I was getting hungry and I didn't want them to die of boredom.

My main goal on SE was to choose the right disc for hole four.

Imagine standing on a tee on top of a hill. Not a magnificent, top-of-the-world style hill, but more of a severe beer belly sized hill. There's an enormous mando tree straight ahead with a thousand fingers out-stretched and eagerly waiting to swat down any close attempt at passing on the left side. The basket is out in the boonies off to the right around 700 feet.

For a right-handed backhand player with a weak-sauce sidearm, this drive forces me to throw a high anny around the tree. Here's the tricky part though – I had to make sure my drive didn't flex back at the end.

Considering the basket was in the long position I would need a clear run-up space for my second drive. If my first shot flexed back I would be stuck in chest-high bush.

The Legacy Mongoose I have is more flipper than the dolphin. That thing turns hard and dives. It's a great roller and when launched high on an anny line it has no real glide, but I was OK with that as long as it landed in the open. After practicing a couple of times with that disc I knew it was the right choice for the tournament, or so I thought.

We left the complex in good spirits. I felt like I was ready to compete against the courses and I was also ready to fill my belly with something stacked with bacon.

Since our hotel was in Tacoma we searched for a hamburger joint near by.

Friesenburgers, man. Friesenburgers.

Holy double cheeseburger... with a fried egg!

You walk in to a small room and there's just a couple of folks behind the counter. There are plenty of items to choose from on the menu, but my eyes were immediately pulled toward the word "Friesenburger." It's two buns separated by two 1/4 pound beef patties, double the cheddar, a sizzling egg and a couple of thick, professional slices of bacon.

I can't wait to go back.

After lunch we made our way to our hotel, checked in and went for a peaceful walk to The Museum of Glass. For dinner we found a local pizza joint, Puget Sound Pizza, and discovered that something was up with Tacoma.

The pizza was crazy delicious. I think there was rosemary in the crust, or something. While we were waiting for our order I walked up the street and filled my Boundary Bay growler with Cigar Box IPA from Tacoma Brewing Co.

By the end of the night we were wondering if we should move to Tacoma. Out of four different places we visited, every one of them set a new standard for us to compare similar companies to.

Mental Stage two: Panic

This year's temperature of 40 something was more tolerable than last year's 20 something. I was dropped off early enough to get plenty of warm-up time in. My putting felt good, I three'd a couple of par fours and I stretched, but I felt a little foggy in the mind, like I wasn't fully awake yet, or hungover from bitchin' food and beer from the night before.

We were down one man when my card was ready to tee off. I worried about it a little, but figured there was nothing I could do. We were staring down hole one on the NW course and I was first to tee off.

You know those drives you want to immediately do over? Yep, I clipped a tree right off the tee and thought to myself, "Here we go."

I tried shaking off whatever it was holding me back, but by the time I started shooting well we were on hole 17.

The round was a complete nightmare. I couldn't catch a break. I found myself in the high rough among trees and bushes all round. I probably threw more sidearms, which I usually use to get out of trouble, than I have ever thrown before.

I just couldn't believe it.

I think par was 56. I finished with a 72. It is now, unofficially, the worst rated round (810) of my life. I spent the entire break between rounds wondering how I was going to get out of this disaster.

After eating my warm bowl of chili I started to putt again. I was furious and determined to redeem the day.

Mental Stage Three: Calmly Aggressive

During the break I thought I figured out what my deal was. In practice the day before and early that morning I was taking a second to visualize my line and then clearing my mind and going for it.

During my first round I continually tried to recreate and force similar shots from practice, but I was powering down like my drives were touch shots all of a sudden. I slowed down and became hesitant. I was trying to throw the perfect lines.

Since I failed miserably, I went in to the second round on the SE course with my old plan of attacking the course. I started off with a bunch of pars. I even got the par on hole four after watching my Mongoose flex back. I never thought I would see that happen, but it did and I was lucky enough to land in a semi-open area with just enough room for a small run up.

Hole six really change the day. It's an elevated hyzer shot through a gap in the trees and down to a basket roughly 270 feet away. I took my Legacy Ghost out of my bag, visualized my line, forgot about everything and threw. My horrible shaving cream dye swirled rapidly as I watched the disc pierce the gap and start diving toward the basket.

That Ghost must have hit every chain on the basket considering the sound of the ching, but it wasn't enough to stick.

Damn. There went my first tournament ace.

I found out later that nobody had aced all day and I could have walked with the ace pot. Oh well. I got the bird and moved on. While standing on the next tee I forgot all about it and just played.

I ended up shooting a 56. I believe par was 58. I had just shot the best, unofficial round (963) of my life.

It wasn't enough to push me anywhere near the cash, but it was enough to ease my mind.

I felt like I accomplished something and learned a lot about myself as a disc golfer.

Who shoots the worst sanctioned round and best sanctioned round of their lives in the same tournament?

I do.

I hope that's the last time.

After the first round I had the worst score in advanced. My second round was beat by only three other advanced players. They were all tied at 54. One other advanced player tied my 56. There were 26 of us.

What a pure mind beating. I was happy to be there though. The event was ran very well by Mark from Disc Golf Armory and he was helped out by a bunch of others. There were three pairs of Keens raffled off along with discs, we all received a voucher for $15 to use toward anything in the Armory and the chili was yummy.

I can't wait to play it again next year.

Aging With The Game

Aging is a hell of a thing.

I celebrated 38 years on November 3rd, and although I whole heartedly don't believe 38 is old, I still can't get away from the feeling that the number doesn't reflect what I feel on the inside. That's what everybody says though, right?

My wish for the day consisted of my family and I going out to throw for a bit before the heavy clouds tired and lost the ability to hold back the water.

We stopped by a local disc golf vendor before our brief session on the Terrace Creek course. I picked up a new Legacy Clutch. I've been curious about the Gravity blend of plastic, so that's what I chose.

As we practiced, I got to thinking about how I'm only two years away from being eligible to play in the Masters division.

What does that mean? Only that I'm almost 40.

If this was a time before the 2002 PDGA rule book change then I could have been playing in the Masters division ever since my 35th birthday.

I believe all divisions like Masters, Grand Masters, Senior Grandmasters, Legendary Senseis and, finally, Walkers are referred to as "age protected." I smile thinking about Masters being age protected, because I know there are a lot of 40-something-year olds that don't need protection.

Playing Masters will in no way be a step down in competition. In fact, I may just stay in Advanced unless I feel like I can compete when that time comes.

As our sport grows in popularity we hear talk about athleticism raising the bar of competition. I know I'm working to become more fit and healthy as I near my forties. I can just imagine what others are doing. In fact, I don't have to imagine. We can all see what others are doing. A simple glimpse into the world of #discgolf on Instagram or Twitter and we can find thousands of posts by people equally obsessed with bettering themselves to better their play.

John E. McCray showed the world this year that just because you're in your forties doesn't mean you can't compete with the best of them. Also, I heard Scott Stokley will be back on tour next year. Will he prove that forty-something-year olds can't be counted out of the Open division on a national stage as well?

I believe the only difference between a 20-year-old and a fit 40-year-old on the disc golf course is time available to practice.

Shoot, it's not all about availability even. It's really about desire. How much time do we want to practice as we get older? So many more things become important as we age, especially if we have a family.

I can't compete every weekend. You know why?

I have to take my daughter camping, or to the beach. My wife and I like to travel, so which do you think I'll pick between a local C tier and a flight to Long Beach, Ca.? Or Venice, Italy?

What will happen with Avery Jenkins when his child is born? You think he'll keep touring the world all year long?

Aging with disc golf, man, it's a trip. Disc golf will be something that will always play an important part in my life, but it will never be more important than a lot of other things. However, it will always be fun to watch the sport and the players grow.

Can you imagine what Nikko Locastro or Paul McBeth will be like when they're 40? I hope I'm around to see those days.

I'll keep practicing and bettering myself mentally and physically. I'll keep competing when I can and I'll enter my forties with a ton of enthusiasm. Hopefully I'll be able to hold my own against the "old dudes" when I get there.

Now, what will I be saying when I'm two years away from 50?

Hmm...

Video: Robin HIll DGC

The Switch Up

I created 400 Bound to document my driving progress. The site immediately morphed into a more general disc golf focused personal outlet.

Then I had an idea while going through old boxes of crap. Do any of you remember zines? You know, the little homemade booklets full of art, poems, rants and raves published by young adults and personally distributed to coffee houses all over town?

I wanted to take an old printer on the verge of an E-waste heap and force it to puke out a disc golf zine for as long as it could. I thought it would be fun for the locals and a great way to bridge our disc golf world with those who know nothing of the sport.

The first issue was almost complete. I had a full interview with a local pro, Jason Carr, and a full interview with the owner of a new pay-to-play course in Monroe, WA.

I'm not a page designer, but I messed with it a little bit during my short-lived journalism career. I had a lot of fun putting this together.

Then something came along and diverted my attention away from this time-consuming, non-money making journey. I'm on a new path unrelated to disc golf, but if I can succeed I will be able to help my local disc golf scene as a business owner willing to help sponsor events.

So, until everything works out I'm back to blogging occasionally. I plan to get some of the information out that I acquired for the printed version of Disc Golf Beat and I still plan on documenting my drive progress, but I will also continue to write about anything and everything I find interesting in the disc golf world.

Here's to a new start.

Battle Benny Two

For one brief moment I broke free from the familiar mind voodoo I experience during tournament play. Then things went back to normal, but with that little bit of confidence came enough of a lesson that I may be making a run out of the intermediate field and in to the advanced this year. Hopefully.

Battle Benny II was a fundraiser event for the annual Battle of Seattle tournament held in June. This tournament was the first event played on the newly designed SeaTac DGC. The course is now home to 27 awesome fairways and quite a few brand new Mach X baskets.

I was blown away when I saw the result from all the hard work put in. This place is even better now in my opinion. SeaTac was already a beast of a course, but now it's a beast with a baby.

The event layout was simple – play one round of 27 and call it a day. I was happy when I realized my card was starting on one, but I had no idea that nearly five hours later I would be even happier putting out on 27 to end the brutality.

My confidence level remained at an all-time high up until hole 16. I was playing safe, making pars and taking birdies when I had the chance. Everything was working just like casual play, but I'm not sure if it was the rain, the cold, my hungry stomach or the speed of play that got to me. Maybe it was a little bit of everything.

I was sitting at even with 11 more holes left when I placed a drive in to the shit of 16. That's where I boarded the bogie train and rode it to the end of the line. I couldn't stop the horror.

My world came crashing down around me. Nothing was making sense anymore. I had no grip, no aim. My discs were falling like the heavy droplets of water responsible for the chill in my bones.

Finally the massacre of a good round was over. We were one of the last groups to arrive back at tournament central. People were already leaving. Our card tallied up the scores and handed them over.

I ended up with a 101. Par for the course was set at 86. First place in my division was a 93.

It wasn't my time to win, but I feel my time is coming. This year perhaps. The lesson I took away from this tournament was something I had heard, or read before. If you want to play well in tournaments then you have to play tournaments.

We'll see.

Thanks for reading.

Video: Silver Lake DGC

Here's a foggy look at Silver Lake DGC. This is a small nine-hole course in Everett, Wa.

When Birdies Feel Like Aces

Yeah, right.

No shot feels quite like an ace, but carding these recent birdies I'm about to detail for you felt like a decent accomplishment.

My home course is Terrace Creek in Mountlake Terrace, WA. It's a damn rascal of a spread. This thing invites you over, drags your ass through the mud and makes you walk home.

I'm kind of serious about the walking home bit. Starting with hole eight this design has you walking in one direction – away from your car. When you're finished with 18 you have either a delightful hike back through the course while replaying great throws in your mind or you have a miserable stomp through the cold, wet woods wishing you were home with a bourbon in one hand and a cheeseburger in the other.

I've discussed hole one here before. It's a challenging shot up a sloping fairway with OB road on the left and a mess of trees on the right just before the basket. This hole is deceiving in that the distance is only 300 feet or so, but the gradual uphill climb makes it play longer.

I've seen people throw big RHBH anhyzers out over the road, rollers up the right side that eventually fight the blades of grass and ride the ridge on the left staying in bounds and straight shots up the middle. I put a pink dot to show where the basket is in the photo below. Can you see it?

I've been hurling drivers up the middle for a while now, but I've always failed to reach a gimme-putt position. Every drive that felt good and powerful has either found road or branches.

Not this time.

On this particular day I timed a sturdy right-foot plant and a tight last-second grip off the tee pad. The white Legacy Cannon boogied out of my hand on a slight hyzer heading toward the sidewalk. Then I watched that disc stand up and start bending right toward the edge of the tree line.

At first I thought the trees were going to swallow another feel-good drive, but the disc had enough speed to get past the dense green mess. The natural fade back was brief since the fairway slopes uphill the whole way. When my drive came to rest I knew I was sitting pretty for an easy putt for bird.

I made the chains sing. The accomplishment of carding a bird on this hole for the first time felt really good, but it was also proof that my driving power had increased. My practice is paying off.

The other hole on this course that's been messing with me is hole 15. I've been close to shooting the bird on this bastard a few times, but I've always missed the putt. On this particular day I was playing the round with my friend Don. I wasn't having a great day or anything, so I was surprised when I watched my disc weave down the fairway and land near the big, mossy tree near the basket.

The slideshow below will walk you down the fairway.

I'm not sure exactly how far this hole is, but dgcoursereview.com has it measured out to 402 feet. I brought out a 300ft tape measure and, as straight as I could, I measured out the 300ft mark, then measured to the basket using the same line. I wasn't in perfect line with the basket, but the distance was around 392ft, so the DGCR measurement is probably close.

My drive landed about 10 to 12 feet short. It was the farthest point I've ever reached. To top off the day I actually made my putt.

I love crossing holes off my birdie list:

Here's to a progress-filled 2014.

Thanks for reading.

A brand new year. Part one.

I was born sometime in the afternoon on Nov. 3, 1976 in Oklahoma. Ed Headrick established DGA that year. "Silly Love Songs" by Wings held top spot on the Billboard chart and President Jimmy Carter had just squeaked out a win against incumbent President Gerald Ford. Sometime in the afternoon on Nov. 3, 2013 I drove a blue Buzzz off of tee one at Lucky Mud DGC in Skamokawa, WA. Something silly is probably topping the Billboard chart and President Obama is freaking people out with healthcare change.

Long Beach, WA. was my choice when my wife asked where I wanted to go for my birthday. We both lived in Long Beach, CA. for a long time and I thought it would be fun to check out the other LBC. Just like every other trip we take I look up where the disc golf courses are in the area.

On this trip there were two: Lucky Mud and Lower Columbia DGC in Astoria, OR.

Rain slapped the ground with the anger of an adolescent bully during our drive down toward the Columbia River. I was worried our day out on the course would come to an end before we even started, but as we pulled off the highway and up the small country road toward Lucky Mud the only worry on my mind was the possibility of getting lost.

Then we all saw this:

The stormy sky was on break. The winds were gaining strength and the road was sketchy, but nothing seemed to matter after I saw the damn swastika. Now I was wondering where the delusional bald dudes were hiding and were they going to greet us somewhere deep in the woods.

Lucky Mud is actually a bed and breakfast sitting on a bunch of acres, so I was optimistic that we would be safe since the hateful symbol was spray painted on a neighboring property.  My mind was put at ease with the gentle smile of the Inn's owner. Jessica welcomed us to her property and gave us a brief run down of the course.

The wind whipped up something special for us all as she was finishing. Jessica pointed in the direction of tee one and playfully said, "Good luck."

We looked at the sky, then we looked at each other. It was time to play.

Changes Made to Northwest University DGC

The small nine-hole course at Northwest University in Kirkland, WA had its layout modified recently.

Major changes came to holes eight and nine and minor changes were made to holes one, two, five and seven.

The original placements of eight and nine apparently caused some issues for faculty and students. The tee pad of eight was in close proximity of a building and both eight and nine's fairway were situated too close to parking lots.

I'm a little bummed out about the changes only because the original hole eight as I knew it was designated a par four – a short par four, which means I could, with a great drive, have a chance at an eagle. I never pulled it off though.

So here's the run down. Hole one plays pretty much the same, but the basket has been moved further to the right away from the volleyball court.

The basket used to stand closer to the tree on the left in the picture above. You can see the small divot left in the grass where the position was.

Tee two's pad has moved to the right a bit.

The sign tells you so.

The new tee position is kind of a fun position to throw from. I like trying to anhyzer shots around trees and this hole is perfect for that now.

Hole three was left untouched.

Even though this course isn't very difficult I love coming here with my wife and daughter because it's never crowded and I feel safe letting my daughter roam around and explore each fairway as we play them. That's her in the pink in the photo above.

Hole four remained the same as well.

Hole five has been reversed. Now the basket is right next to the old tee pad and the new tee pad is off of a sidewalk behind the old basket position. 

It had started raining on us at this point. I discovered that the sidewalk becomes extremely slippery. We chose to tee off from the grass.

Unfortunately hole six is the same. I say that because I've never felt comfortable using the tee area. The dirt is extremely uneven and the sign feels like it's in the way.

Tee seven was moved back just a little bit. The adjustment didn't change the hole too much. It's still a messed up tunnel shot straight into the ground. Each time I've played this course I've been wanting to throw a roller out through the gap, but I never remember to bag my roller though.

This time I remembered.

The decision panned out. I ended up pin high.

But I missed the putt.

Hole eight now plays behind seven. You can see the tee sign up near the sidewalk in the picture above.

The basket is tucked in the trees up and to the right.

Tee nine is another uncomfortable shot. I felt crowded and there's a small gap in the trees to hit. I got the bird though, so I can't complain too much.

So there you have it. Thanks for stopping by.

PDGA Rating Update

PDGA ratings. Some people like them, some people don't.

I don't mind them, because I believe they add another challenge to the sport. Ratings can add healthy pressure to a sanctioned event – motivating players to make solid decisions and to throw well. Although they may not accurately reflect a person's skill they are fun to try and raise.

The Treejectory Am Classic bumped my rating up a whole three points. You can't see it, but I'm raising my roof right now... or is it raising the roof? Anyways, my hands are in the air and I'm waving them like I just don't care. I think the lady looking at me from outside my dining room window does though.

Well, if she knew that I'm now an 889 rated player she would understand. 

So... this means absolutely nothing to you, but means I'm slowly moving back up toward the 900 mark to me.

Back in 2010 I started my membership with a 901 rating, but haven't been able to move beyond that yet.

I've been dropping and climbing in small increments like I'm stuck riding a kid's roller coaster. Good thing I have beer.

That tournament at Seatac DGC really punished me by dropping my rating 15 points. Now I'm slowly making the climb. Hopefully I can continue this trend for a while.

Disc Golf Days #1: The Crack at Juel

Dedicating posts to certain days out on the course is something I've wanted to try here for awhile, but I didn't want to bore people with Intermediate-level, throw-by-throw analysis crap. I didn't want to use the space to review courses either, because that has the potential to be its own interesting topic.

It wasn't until I heard a loud CRACK over my head that I realized what these posts should be about.

Disc Golf Days will focus on the strange and interesting things that happen while I'm out throwing plastic.

Working nights has its benefits. I'm able to sleep in for as long as my child will allow and I'm able to dedicate most of my day to fun activities like visiting parks, playing guitar, cooking food and of course throwing frisbees.

Once in a while I will leave for work early enough to allow some practice time out on the disc golf course at Juel Park in Redmond, WA. On Monday, May 13 I decided to throw because Mother Nature was whipping up something fierce. I love practicing in strong winds since I don't often get the chance to.

On the way to the park I was listening to the news on the radio. Apparently thunder was booming over Seattle and lighting strikes were putting on a show, but all I saw were large patches of dark clouds peppering the sunny blue sky.

A gentle breeze swept through the wide open park as I arrived. I was the only golfer there. As I stood on the tee pad of one and stretched I noticed the gentle breeze slowly transitioning, giving way to a more angry gust.

The sky darkened. I knew it was time to throw when my towel leaped from my bag.

Wind practice had begun.

On tee three I drove two discs. This hole would be a straight 300' shot if it wasn't for the trees lining the right side of the fairway at about 250'. Some of the looming branches reach out like giant hands blocking the straight path to the basket.

I usually try to hyzer flip something and have it fade to the right just beyond the green mess. My first shot was with a Discraft Stalker. It flipped up and headed in the direction I wanted. I thought I was going to card my first ace in Washington, but it dropped short and parked next to the pole.

My second shot was with a Lat. 64 Bolt that I've been wanting to try out. It's another under-stable disc and I figured I'd give it a rip before I moved on. That thing came out fast and flipped immediately. Instead of flipping over and going around the branches it headed straight for them. I watched it fight through and then ricochet off the thick trunk of a tree.

I tapped in my putt from the first throw and began the search for the Bolt. Deep in this wooded area grows a massive amount of greenery. Losing a disc in here is easy, especially when you lose sight of it in flight.

I was lifting the arms of a bright green fern when I heard a loud crack over my head. I dashed out of the woods hearing branches collapse under the weight of a heavy trunk. I thought for sure a mammoth tree was coming down on top of me.

When I hit the open field running I looked back to see if I could see the tree falling. I couldn't spot it.

So I stopped and searched the long line of trees. Only the tree tops where swaying in the wind. Everything seemed somewhat peaceful again. I have no idea where that tree fell, but I was glad it wasn't near me.

My heart slowed to a regular pace and I went back into the woods to find my disc. I was on the brink of giving up when I spotted it. As I bent down to grab it a loud explosion-type sound reverberated through the woods. I freaked out and ran for the open field again. This sound didn't come from the trees though. Something off in the distance blew up. I scanned the skyline for smoke. I couldn't see anything.

A few minutes went by and then I heard the faint wails of sirens from emergency vehicles. I decided I had enough wind practice and headed for the car. Things were getting too weird.

I searched the news later that evening in the hopes of finding an explanation to the sound I heard. I failed to find anything.

I guess it will remain a mystery.

Exploring the World of Disc Dyeing

Dyeing a disc is something I've been interested in trying for awhile. After reading a bunch of different dyeing threads on DGCR and watching a few videos I decided to finally do it.

I knew going in that RIT had changed its formula a while back and the new stuff wasn't supposed to work as well, but I found some liquid RIT at the closest store to my place so I just bought it to test it myself.

It didn't work.

After reading about this shaving cream dye technique I decided to try it, because it seemed so easy. After my first attempt failed I hopped online and ordered some iDye Poly, since that's the stuff everyone uses now.

I was extremely pleased with myself while washing off the shaving cream. My yellow Flex Avenger SS looks so cool now.

Dyeing is a lot of fun. I'll keep doing it and post the results.

If you've never tried this and are interested here's what I did:

1. I sprayed enough cheap shaving cream to fill a plate evenly into a big bowl.

2. I added a little water to make it creamy then mixed it by hand.

3. I filled the plate and smoothed out top to make it easy to put design on.

4. I mixed cold dye with a little bit of shaving cream in a small bowl.

5. I used an eye dropper to suck up dye mixture and then put lines of dye all over shaving cream bed.

6. I used an old art tool (you can use anything you want) to swirl the dye into a design I was happy with.

7. I placed disc carefully onto bed and didn't push down. I just gently set it on top and then put the plate somewhere nobody could mess with it.

8. After 24 hours I washed the disc and then stood amazed that it worked.

That's it. If you've never taken a stamp off of a disc just use some acetone. Not the nail polish stuff though.

AFT Update

The Treejectory AM Classic tournament was a damn good time and I'm glad I participated. I got to see a lot of people I haven't seen in a while, I got to meet new people, I got to throw a Seattle Rainmakers ultimate disc made by Innova and I got to play two tough rounds of golf in sporadic windy conditions.

I'm refusing to litter this post with excuses about my poor performance, so I won't go into detail about what could have, or should have, been. I just knew it was going to be business as usual when I watched my first drive of the day sail in a direction I haven't seen in a long time.

I thought to myself, "Here we go," while standing one over par on the second tee with muddy shoes. The fact is my first round was comical. I shot a 66 and sat in last place after the round.

While eating pizza during the break I thought about the comment left by Ryan in the last post. He gave me some great advice.

1. don't put too much pressure on yourself, disc golf is meant to be fun, keep that mindset...
2. don't look at those problem holes as problems, it will only bring in the negativity...look at those holes as a challenge to better your game, in a positive mindset...ahead of time, visualize your perfect drive...
3. whatever time you devote to practice putting, devote the same amount of time 'meditating' on putting...practice in your head making every, single 25-footer, watching in your mind's eye as they crash the chains every time...trust me, this works!
4. block out all the other players, if you can. play your game. don't let another player get in your head.

By the time the second round started I was in a positive mood and ready to have fun. I ended up shooting a 59. Even though it wasn't one of my better scores on that course I was extremely happy to shoot seven strokes better than my first round.

I still ended up near the bottom after all the scores came in, but I didn't care too much. If I would have played my normal division I would have tied for second place, which would have been fun because I could have participated in a playoff for the trophy. 

Going in to this I wanted to learn something. I found out that consistency is the only thing keeping me from competing in the Advanced division. I have the distance. I just hit more trees. I can scramble, but I can't sink as many putts. I'll be working on my putting a lot more in the coming months. I've been so obsessed with gaining distance I've weakened other shots in my bag.

So, next time I'll be back among the Intermediate folks, but I'll make sure it's not for too much longer.

In the last post I mentioned four problem areas I was worried about. Here they are:

1. The OB on fairway one.

2. The trees off the tee on three.

3. The low ceiling and narrow hallway tee shot on 11.

4. The possibility of a lost disc on fairway 18.

Here's what happened.

I kept my Surge SS in bounds on one during the first round, but hurled it OB during the second round. There was a slight tail wind and I didn't think about what the wind would do to my shot.

On the first round I smacked an early tree off of the tee on three. I made it through during the second round

I had low straight drives both rounds on 11, but I missed the putt to card a 4 in the first round.

I was relieved to hear there would be spotters on the fairway of 18. I threw a strong drive and landed close to the fairway during the first round, but sailed off into some trees during the second. Never lost a disc though.

Just in case you're interested here's a link to the scores:

Scores.

Another Freaking Tournament (AFT)

I registered into another freaking tournament.

The first Treejectory Classic tournament at the Terrace Creek disc golf course is slated for April 27. I'm excited and honestly a bit frightened, but I've been practicing as much as I can on the course and I feel the fear slowly subsiding.

Terrace Creek is technically my home course and I've played really well there in the past, so I decided to really torture myself and sign up in the Advanced division.

I've thrown among intermediates in all the tournaments I've played. I never learn anything. If I'm not going to place near the top of the pack then I better look for a way to get a lesson. Signing up as an advanced player should help with that.

I haven't posted about my distance progress lately, because I'm tired of guessing and Google mapping lengths of throws. I'm saving up for a laser range finder and when I acquire that I will post accurate distances.

I will say I know progress has been made.

Although with this progress a small issue with consistency and accuracy has plagued my regular play. I've discovered "timing" when driving off the tee and when my timing is off I can create advanced personal fairways if you know what I mean. Trees lose bark and squirrels scream for mommy.

This random inconsistency will have the back of my mind pulsing on every tee pad, but there are a few course features I will be worried about too. Here's a list:

1. The OB on fairway one.

2. The trees off the tee on three.

3. The low ceiling and narrow hallway tee shot on 11.

4. The possibility of a lost disc on fairway 18.

The tee shot off of tee one gives me nightmares. The distance to the basket is only 300 ft. or so, but it's slightly uphill the whole way. I've been told it plays more like 350' to 375'. That's not the problem though.

The problem is the busy road that hugs the left side of the fairway and the trees to the right near the basket. This situation creates a small gap to pierce in order to land in the circle.   

I'm a right hand/back hand thrower with a forearm only good for escaping tight spaces. I only have two options right now. I can either hyzer flip something without hitting the trees to the right, or fail to hyzer flip something and watch the disc hit a car.

Since starting this blog I've created a mental list of additional goals and one of them is to card a birdie on this dang hole.

Now tee three is like throwing a hail Mary. From the pad a disc golfer has to clear a ravine to reach the basket. It's not that far of a throw, but the trees in front of the tee pad mock you. They call you names. They stand only feet apart and dare you to clear the gap. If you fail you turn an easy bird into an exhausting bogey... or worse.

Throwing off of tee 11 hasn't been too much of a problem for me lately, but it's still a hole I think about. Your drive doesn't have a lot of room to play in the air.

Lastly, during casual rounds I've been in groups that took well over three minutes to search for a disc off the fairway of 18. Some of the time it's been my disc that we're looking for. This hole is a 500 ft. hallway shot with decent elevation. I've read roughly 70ft. Right handed throwers tend to fade out early and dive into a thicket of trees and blackberry bushes. If you turn one over to the right too much you lose site of the disc and end up in a jail of head-high reeds of some sort. Also, that area is flooded this time of year.

This tourney should be interesting. I have a few more days of practice coming up, so hopefully I can get myself ready for competitive play, or at the very least an enjoyable and informative couple of rounds of disc golf.

Wish me luck.

DGCR Achievements: Stat Addict

http://dgcoursereview.com

Disc Golf Course Review is an outstanding Web site for the flying plastic obsessed people of the world. The site has accumulated detailed information, including photos and reviews, of disc golf courses from all over the world. It also hosts a ridiculously packed forum full with topics that practically cover every aspect ever thought of regarding the sport – and then there are duplicate, triplicate and quadruplicate threads for many topics to lose yourself in. What comes after quadruplicate? Because there are those too.

There are thousands of people registered, there is a market place to buy related and non-related items, there are numbered bag (travel) tags and there is a feature that allows players to keep track of their scores. 

DGCR has pages of other features, but the one feature I wanted to highlight in this post is the achievement page.

To be more specific, the "stat addict" achievement.

These stats have multiple levels of achievement. The levels are bronze, silver, gold and diamond. When a player reaches each level they are awarded an icon on their DGCR profile page. 

When the bronze level of "Shutterbug" (100 photos uploaded) is reached then this icon will appear for profile visitors to see:

Here's silver for "Disc Collector" (150 discs in personal organizer):

Gold for "Aces" (10 aces):

Diamond for "Wordsmith" (250 written reviews):

I'm on a journey to 400 feet, but that doesn't mean I can't have smaller goals as well. I'm interested in collecting as many of these achievements as i can. In the nearly 5 years of disc golf play I have accumulated a silver in the Ace department, a bronze in Workout, a bronze in Disc Collector and a silver in Stat Addict.

After a few beers the other night I decided to play with math and figure out how long it would take me to reach the diamond level Stat Addict achievement. 

Here's what I came up with:

The goal: 50,000 holes

Current number of holes played: 6,125

Holes needed: 43,875

18 holes a round equals 2,437.5 rounds to reach goal

Realistic rounds in a week for me: 5

Rounds per year: 260 

9.375 years to accomplish goal

Nine years. Wow. That's a long time. My daughter will be 11. I will be 45. The year will be 2022.

I wonder if I can accomplish the achievement sooner. I wonder if I'll be throwing 400 ft. by then.

How long would it take you?