Friday, March 21, 2014

Awaiting Spring...and other thoughts

Hello disc golf fans! It has been much too long since I have graced this blog with a post. As I look out the window here in Minnesota, I am feeling sick to my stomach to see yet another snow storm roll on though. Should be more by the time this post goes to print. Last week the weather was warmer and many of the large mountains of snow began slowly melting away leaving the beautiful brown grass to show.

I have been licking my chops waiting for the first time I can toss some plastic.  So many thoughts and ideas have been going through my head this winter about goals, discs, courses, league night, tournaments, and just watching the plastic fly through the air.  My next few Friday posts will center around my goals for the upcoming disc golf season. Historically, I write a long post about what I want to accomplish in the new season...this time I plan on writing a series of posts breaking down into single mini posts on various aspects of my game that I wish to address.

Until next Week

MRK out...

Wednesday, March 19, 2014

Squish the Bug

This is the time of the year when I think about how horrible I am at disc golf; it is also the time that I think about getting a bit better.  With the weather hampering any productive rounds, our only solace is to watch others do what we love.  In spending too much time watching disc golf youtube movies, I am usually able to pick up one or two things I notice one more more of the pros doing that I think can be useful to my game.

This year my focus is something I've known I've needed to work on for awhile, the pivot.  Since becoming a RHBH thrower, I have recognized the importance of a good pivot in transferring energy.  And muscle memory being what it is, I naturally reverted to the technique of a baseball swing.  As I was instructed as a wee lad, one should step and "squish the bug," rotating on the ball of my foot.

So that's what I've been doing.  But I've noticed a significant problem with it.  The torque created on my knee is creating structural problems at my tender old age.  This became problematic enough for me to start using a knee brace for the rest of the year following an unfortunate experience at the Des Moines Challenge.  I needed to find a way to take pressure off the knee as I throw.

I've also noticed that none of the pros pivot on the balls of their feet.  As they pivot, they plant perpendicular to where they throw (similar to me), but they will then shift weight to the heel to pivot before shifting their weight forward again for the finish.

So that's what I'm hoping to do this spring.  If I change any one technique this year, it will be the pivot.  I'm not entirely certain this will completely alleviate the knee problems, but it sure can't stay the way it is now.  Let us hope that my knee will stay healthy enough to avoid the brace as much as possible.  It is SUPER annoying!

~Diggs

P.S. Sorry for the late article.  At least it isn't well written!

Tuesday, March 11, 2014

Geographical Goals for 2014

I realized the other week that I had yet to fully update the course map page.  In doing so, I noticed that the Cold Lampin' Crew has now tallied 79 courses across 15 states.  I was very impressed!  Well done, gents!

But I was not terribly satisfied.  Maybe a case of OCD is creeping in, but 79 courses looks to me like a crooked number.  Let's straighten it out a bit.  Hear and accept!  The goal for the 2014 disc golf season is for our cohort to top 100 courses!  That means that between the lot of us, we will need to add a total of 21 courses, or nearly a 25% increase in our current number.  A daunting task to be sure.  But here's where things get possible...

The King has already spoken to me of a number of new courses he has already put on his docket to play.  Between that and any new courses he may play at tourneys this year, I imagine he could easily add 6-7 himself.  In addition, with my new digs in a relatively unexplored area of the country, I think I could easily find 10 new courses around here to hit up at least once.  Two in particular catch my eye, and others around seem promising.  Let's call that 17 total.  If we can find just four more courses, we're there.

Let's do it, gentlemen!  Join the quest to 100 courses!

Tuesday, March 04, 2014

Rocky Montage

The weather forecast has indicated to me that the optimism of my previous post is more a statement on our mutually held desires than it is an accurate representation of reality.  Winter yet remains.  It will not always, but it is still in the coming.  We may here note that manifesting desire in the physical plane is not as simple as one might wish.

The professionals have already put in some work.  It is worth perusing if you have the time.  But in lieu of personal accounts of flying polymers by which I may regale you, I think I will instead touch on an issue which I think is too little addressed in this sport of ours.  Physical preparation.

My fat ass has sat around for far too long.  There was a time when I kept it mildly toned with the help of Tony Horton's P90X, but the copy was not mine and moving one thousand miles away from that copy has made it difficult to continue.  I started Insanity the other day, and we will see how that works out.  So far I have only been reminded that while I do have many shapes, I am not IN any of them.  Hopefully I can get to some semblance of fitness without sacrificing knee stability.

The point of all this is not to bring up my own personal workout routine, but to finally ask the question, what is the most effective way one may prepare one's body for disc golf?

Would it be similar to a ball golfer's routine?  Perhaps a baseball player's?  Should I run?  Work core?  Lift free weights?  If so, what lifts will best prepare me?  I am in the northeast now.  Should I take up rowing?

I'm not sure what the answer is, but this has long been a question of mine.  Please let me know your thoughts.

~Diggs