The sheer idiocy of playing in snow

[roggenb3]

Took this pic on my course today. 9 inches.

Calumet Lake course?

 

[BogeyNoMore]

Took this pic on my course today. 9 inches.
Last year we had 280" and over 300" the year before. At some point you stop playing because you will lose discs.
I hereby invite the ribbon and chalk people to come play a round in my area in January or February. :doh:
(in February, you won't even know this picnic table is here)

It takes a hearty soul to call the Keweenaw Peninsula home.

 

[disco40]

Count me in for loving DG when there's a light dusting or even an inch or two on the ground. Enjoyment factor decreases on a steep curve after that, though. My first birdie was a park job in freezing temps and some snow, so I have a fondness for it.

 

[pmay5]

It takes a hearty soul to call the Keweenaw Peninsula home.

Geez, probably not too many people that have to travel south to get to Highbridge Hills!!

 

[da Crippler]

Took this pic on my course today. 9 inches.
Last year we had 280" and over 300" the year before. At some point you stop playing because you will lose discs.
I hereby invite the ribbon and chalk people to come play a round in my area in January or February. :doh:
(in February, you won't even know this picnic table is here)

We're still snow free down in the banana belt (southern U.P.) but with snow on the ground for 5 months a year you find a way to play. The last 2 winters were horrible everywhere in the U.P. and I'm hoping for a mild winter this year away from the typical snow belt areas south of Lake Superior.:thmbup:

 

[BuzzzChief]

It takes a hearty soul to call the Keweenaw Peninsula home.

I just looked up their snowfall totals and it's mind blowing. I complain about winter in Chicago, and we get less than 1/10 of the snow in a normal year.

 

[ru4por]

I just looked up their snowfall totals and it's mind blowing. I complain about winter in Chicago, and we get less than 1/10 of the snow in a normal year.

Used to get UP there for an off road rally, once a year in the fall. Not much snow, but the chance to spend some time in God's country is a treat. Also went UP to Michigan Tech a few times for winter carnival. The snow on the ground can be mind blowing and presents such a different life, that it is hard to imagine living there, lol. A ton of fun.

 

[ray1970]

Yeah, that north east snow can be silly. And it seems to stick around for a while.

Luckily here in Colorado (at least along the front range) we rarely get more than a few inches at a time and most of it usually melts off in a couple of days.

 

[roggenb3]

Id rather have snow that sticks than to sit right around freezing all winter and always be dealing with wet slushy grossness.

 

[Tomphoolery]

I have a glow game on Friday and bought a Halloween Buzzz for the occasion. Minus the stamp, the whole disc is plain white. I took it out for a field test yesterday so I could get a feel for it before Friday. There was still some snow on the ground from last weekend, and it landed in a snowbank on hole 2. I spent at least 10 or 15 minutes looking for it, and when I found it, I put it away for the rest of the round, ha.

 

[ray1970]

I have a glow game on Friday and bought a Halloween Buzzz for the occasion. Minus the stamp, the whole disc is plain white. I took it out for a field test yesterday so I could get a feel for it before Friday. There was still some snow on the ground from last weekend, and it landed in a snowbank on hole 2. I spent at least 10 or 15 minutes looking for it, and when I found it, I put it away for the rest of the round, ha.

Yep. You won't find any white or glow discs in my bag. Well, I do have some color glow.

I was really enjoying an Iron Samurai MD3 and I wanted to keep throwing it year round so I dyed it.

FYI, it no longer glows. Doesn't really bother me because I don't play glow rounds anyways.

 

[Moose33]

I used to play in the snow in MN/WI/MI a lot when I traveled that area for work. Actually played a glow round in the snow with Martin Dewgartia that was my first snow round I think.

Beer in the pocket of my suit jacket as well lol.

It's all fun and games until it's mid shin, after that. You guys are braver than I am.

 

[Kegelexercise]

I'll pop into this thread again:

One thing I started doing last winter after some suggestions from fellow area disc golfers is using powdered marking chalk. You can get a bottle of it for $1 or $2 from local hardware stores, it comes in fluorescent colors like orange, green, etc, pour it into a plastic ziploc bag, and before you tee off, dip your disc in it and rub some chalk all over the disc. That was a godsend for me any time the snow cover got more than about a foot deep.

A few other things:

The sun helps immensely with cold weather tolerability. If you play at a brisk pace like I usually do, you can seriously work up a sweat even in well below freezing temps, provided the sun is out.

Please, please, please, PLEASE, do not tee off from unshoveled teepads. Either bring a shovel and clear them off, or tee off from the side or back. Using snow-covered tee pads just makes it exponentially more difficult to clear them off later.

If you're squeamish about losing discs following a fresh snowfall, I don't blame you, but usually following a few snow-free days, you'll have some players walk down some of the snow on fairways, and untouched snow start to develop a bit of an ice cover. This all reduces the risk of disc loss more than you'd think.

Enjoy yourself. Many courses have a serene beauty after a snowfall.

 

[roggenb3]

The biggest thing for me is whether it's wet. I will play all day in knee deep snow so long as it's cold enough that I stay dry. It's the slush that I can't stand.

I think the ideal winter golf temps are like 15-20, no wind, and sun. 20 degrees and sunny is a beautiful day, and still cold enough to be able to just knock the snow off your disc, and not get wet feet.

I've had rounds before in like sunny 10 degrees where by the end I only I have 1 thin long sleeve layer on top - it's hard work trudging through snow.

 

[dysmike]

This will sound weird. I miss playing in the snow. So, if you're complaining about it.. I'm jealous

 

[ray1970]

Another tip is to disc down. That's what I like to do. Thrown correctly a putter or mid is less likely to knife through the snow and bury itself. Anything with a sharp edge coming in at an angle is likely going to slice through and disappear.

 

[ray1970]

This will sound weird. I miss playing in the snow. So, if you're complaining about it.. I'm jealous

You're right. That does sound weird.

I suppose you miss shoveling it and driving in it too?

 

[dysmike]

You're right. That does sound weird.

I suppose you miss shoveling it and driving in it too?

Not just no, but hell no. I do miss cross-country skiing and snowshoeing though.

 

[ejvogie]

Another tip is to disc down. That's what I like to do. Thrown correctly a putter or mid is less likely to knife through the snow and bury itself. Anything with a sharp edge coming in at an angle is likely going to slice through and disappear.

This is the tricky part, because with all the layers and everything else affecting the throw and the flight, the tendency is to lose distance in the winter.

 

[aphilso1]

...It's all fun and games until it's mid shin, after that. You guys are braver than I am.

You meant mid-thigh, right?