A few years ago, our family walked around a vacant field with random bushes and trees here and there and also with a little bridge that crossed over a dry stream into a lower field. This field branched out into a beautiful park called Bicentennial Park. These three areas had something in common. They had steel and chain baskets placed strategically around to equal 16 in all. The whole area made up one of the 5 disc golf parks in the Utah Valley area. At the time, we had frisbees and we did our best to find the tee pads where you start and throw to the basket. I think my frisbee finally made it into the basket in about 12 throws! That was four years ago and humiliating to think about since I now make it in 4 throws and sometimes even 3! Since then, my husband took it up as his pastime and I also took it up as a fun sport to do maybe 4 times a month. Greg wound up winning this last year as one of the division champions of the newly formed Wasatch Disc Golf Club. I have since played in one tournament with not as dramatic results, but happy I did it! We each have Revolution disc golf bags, an assortment of discs, which are definitely not of the frisbee variety! This is a great sport to take up for a "hecka" family fun or a way to meet up with other disc golf enthusiasts and get some great exercise.
To get started, the best way to do this right now is go out and have fun. You're sure to meet up with someone who will be willing to give you a pointer or two! Don't let more experienced players intimidate you with their distance and accuracy. Some experienced players with proper technique can easily throw 400+ feet! Throw an easy to control disc, such as the Discraft Elite Z-Glide and focus on accuracy. Distance will come with time and experience, so focus on putting your disc down in the middle of the fairway. Keep it simple and don't try advanced techniques until you have learned some basic form and control. Throw with 1-step rather than trying to attempt a run up. Try to keep the disc close to your chest and keep it flat as possible. Wait until you feel you are consistent and accurate before trying to add to your throw!
There are quite a few terms specific to disc golf. For instance, hyzer is the common term for releasing the disc with the outer edge at a lower angle than parallel to the ground, which usually causes the disc to curve left! Anhyzer means to release the disc with the outer edge at a higher angle than parallel to the ground, which usually causes the disc to curve right! And don't worry, I still have problems getting the two terms straight in my mind. The most important thing is to just get out there and start throwing!
Don't know where to find a disc golf course near you? Try this disc golf course locater! If you know about one in your area, you can review it and get points for free stuff at Disc Golf Station!
My husband and I have noticed for several years that a local park in the area has a couple of trees that get loaded with apricots every summer. They fall to the ground and get stepped on, making a squishy mess underneath the branches. This year we decided to help the situation.
Early one morning this week, we snuck over went to this park with a ladder, a tarp, a bucket, a rake and our dog. We spread the tarp under the branches of the tree and Greg started shaking and hitting them with the rake. As they fell I gathered them up and put them in the bucket. We did this for about an hour. Afterwards, we played frisbee with our border collie, Evee! It was an all-around good time.
The work began the next day. The apricots were washed, pitted but not peeled (hey, more fiber that way), boiled with pectin and sugar, put in jars, lidded and put in the bath. Since neither of us are canning experts, we under-estimated the amount of apricots that we needed in order to make 12 jars of jam. We ended up with 8 jars of jam and some left-over apricots to give to some friends. I even made a batch of freezer spread with a recipe I got over at Tight Wad In Utah. I actually like the spread better because there is less sugar. But for those cold winter mornings, there will be nothing better than hot, buttered toast with a glaze of homemade apricot jam! I'm glad that hubs likes to do this kind of thing with me. It makes it more enjoyable!
Today
I visited my sister and her two adorable little boys. We had some fun in the sun and since Harrison's 4th birthday will be this next Monday, I thought this Wii Game would be fun to give him. It was a big sacrifice, because I would sure like to play each and every one of these fun games. It's the Wii Winter Fun Edition with 30 excellent games. These games are all based on the Olympics. Harrison watched the Olympics with his family and he knows all about it! I actually won this game over at Suburb Sanity, an excellent secondary blog for Debbie, who has another awesome blog by the same name about her crazy, fun life as a Mom of 4 kids and marriage of almost 20 years to her husband. It really is an incredible blog. Stop by if you get a chance!
Hey, I've got an idea. I can play the game over at Harrison's place and he can show his Aunt Helena all the cool stuff he can do with it. And when I get a Wii I will already have some games I actually know how to play!
And here's a bonus for you! Harrison's little brother, Carter, who is so darn cute I want to grab him and just squeeze him! He calls his big brother, Hehwisee! He needs to do everything that Harrison does, so he'll probably be right there, helping Harrison play his new game!
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