Activity: Disc Golf
Location: Cranbury Park, Norwalk, CT, USA
Discs: Valkyrie, Comet, R-Pro Aviar

My game has improved. My friend and I played three days in a row, ending in yesterday’s personal best.

Saturday +11

Sunday +9

Monday +4 on 18 holes!!! Woohoo. I held even until hole 12 and then things fell apart a bit, ending with four over par.

wkp.us - ...my personal blog

C = π x d

I’m making a disc golf basket. I decided to give it a go and set off to the depot with no idea what to make a 23″, 26″ and 27″ circle with. I ended up buying (2) 1/2″ x 10′ electrical conduit, (2) 1/8″ x 3/4″ X 48″ flat steel, some eye-bolts, s-hooks and chain. Let’s see what I can do with it. This is a non-welded version that I am making up as I go. The hardest part beginning this adventure was locating my conduit bender and remembering basic math.

My first step is to layout the pipe while it’s straight. Since the math says the 27″ circle will require 85″ I’m precutting it.

The 23″ circle will hold the chains. That’s a 72 1/4″ length of pipe, so I’ve marked every 6″ while the measuring is easy.

I’m going to go try bending some circles. Can I do it without creasing the conduit? I don’t know. Obviously I’ll update this post with photos later this weekend, assuming I get some time for this project.

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Update:

I spent about two hours making the top of the basket. I bent the conduit ok, then drilled 1/4″ holes around at the 6″ spacing, using a drill press. I cut two pieces of the flat stock steel and attached them to the rim. 1/8″ steel is pretty flexible so we’ll see how this works out.

Note: I felt like an idiot bending that pipe into a wheel. This part is better off acquired. A 23″ tire rim or something. Really no sense reinventing the wheel. I used a conduit bender, a drill press and an angle grinder, tools not everyone has.

I’m going back to buy a post and see if I can find a better metal ring than an old bicycle sprocket.

I’m already thinking that buying a real basket is the way to go, but I want one now so I’m going to see this project through.
So far so good, here are tonight’s pics.

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Update: 6/09 – Progress

The cheapest steel pole at Home Depot was 1 3/8″ top rail’ which is 10′ long and will yield two poles. Most of the regulation setups are 2″.

I attached the top assembly to the 1 3/8″ pipe with some 4″ angle brackets using 1/4″ machine bolts, washer and nuts.

Then attached S-hooks to the ring.

I couldn’t think of where to get a steel ring, so I went to Walmart and bought a cheap ($3.88) paper towel holder that was made out of welded steel rings. I carefully broke it apart, ending up with 2 nice rings for the chain ends. My local hardware store has a 3″ split ring in the key-making department for $1.99, which I learned later.

I cut the chain into lengths 18 links long and attached them around the top ring using s-hooks through each eyelet then to the lower suspended ring.
In the next picture you can see the conduit connector, eye-bolts, flat steel and angle brackets used to construct the top section.

Now it’s looking like something and it’s quite sturdy construction. Next I’ll make a base and a basket, just haven’t figured out how yet. With plenty of design possibilities in my head, there are no $$$ in my wallet. The chain was $30 so far and I don’t have enough leftover to make the inner chains, yet. It’s likely I’ll make the base and basket out of wood for now.

While reading specs at DiscGolfAssoc.com I noticed the price of the  Mach New II for only $257 it makes no sense to build one.

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No welding or steel bending equipment, Conduit for $1.97… to be continued.

Last Update: I finished the basket. I’m sure I could have come up with something better but without $1 more to spend, I used my inherit skill as a carpenter to make the basket out of wood. It took 30 minutes to cut, assemble and secure the cedar basket. It took 30 minutes to drill a 1 3/8″ hole in a log, which makes for a very sturdy base.

Any questions, feel free to comment!

I enjoyed looking over chaaaching.blogspot.com for ideas before I started, check it out if you’re thinking of making a disc golf basket. A Just Baskets Blog. Peace out.

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wkp.us - ...my personal blog

Activity: Disc Golf
Location: Cranbury Park, Norwalk, CT, USA
Discs: Discraft Buzz esp, R-Pro Aviar

I played 18 holes at The Cranbury Park Disc Golf Course in Connecticut twice this week with nearly the same score both times. Wednesday with a +8 and today’s +9. Thankfully, someone had picked up the litter we saw the first of this month.

I am beginning to understand the disks a little better. The driver ones you really have to throw hard… pretty much as hard as you can.

With all the trees and the likelihood of hitting them no matter which disc one throws, being able to throw the mid-range pretty well, I’ve done ok without the driver.

I am awful at putting and need lots of practice. I’d make a basket for my yard but so far I’ve had to keep this sport separate from my Labrador Retreiver. She makes it difficult for me to practice at home. She can deliver a bird unharmed but destroys frisbees in seconds. [soccer is out of the question]

Just wanted to log my scores since before playing alone in N.C. my scores at Cranbury were +19 and worse. Today’s game was +9 on #9. The ninth round of disc golf I’ve ever played.

wkp.us - ...my personal blog

Activity: Disc Golf
Location: Richmond Hill Course, Asheville, North Carolina, USA
Discs: Discraft Comet

Disc Golf is a great sport. The Richmond Hill Course will give your legs a workout and empty your water bottles before your through. Today I played the entire course.

I didn’t do as well today blowing my previous +2 on the front nine away with +7 today but I followed it up with mostly par through the back 9, resulting in a total of +8 not bad for my 7th game ever. (btw: my buddy and I had been shooting +19 or so in Cranbury)

There were quite a few people playing the course today, Mother’s Day 2009. I played through with a nice guy from Greenville before joining two locals for the last 11 holes. I didn’t hold them up too much and definitely enjoyed the camaraderie.

There are several really positive things I can say about this sport so far;
•    The people along any given course are really cool.
•    If you miss a drive, you still have a good chance at par.
•    Tee to basket is likely to be a rugged walk in the woods.
•    Each course seems to have a 420′ hole.
•    Throwing a disc perfectly through a bunch of trees is awesome.
•    No matter what, it’s all about being outside and having fun.

I enjoyed playing the Richmond Hill Disc Golf course while visiting Asheville. I met some nice people along the way. The course is challenging… or from my perspective, thrilling. I guess the only thing missing was something the four of us talked about while waiting for a party of 8 to clear the line: A disc golf concession stand staffed by hotties in bikinis.

Though a garbage can or two along the way would be helpful, I should note that this Asheville course was 99.9% litter free which contrasts dramatically with the disgusting state of Cranbury Park Disc Golf Course in Norwalk, CT.

Thanks for such a nice course and kind reception this visitor got while visiting North Carolina.

Look at this totally monumental shot, very much stuck in a tree. Disc Golf Art.

wkp.us - ...my personal blog

What would a guy from CT know about Richmond Hill in Asheville, N.C…?

Well, just a visitor to this self-claimed “most challenging and exciting course in the country” I played the front nine today. This my 6th game ever, I birdied hole 9 ending the front nine with +2…. and that only due to a miss at five feet from the basket on hole 4 and a tall tree on 5.

Here are some pics of the course which I’ll play again over the next week while in Asheville, North Carolina.

BTW: I thought about it before leaving and didn’t bring any discs. I found a store called DiamondBrand in Arden that sells Discraft and picked up a Comet, which I have never thrown before but read good things about. I’m hooked.

wkp.us - ...my personal blog