Based upon a request from my son, I am providing his latest update as he has shipped off to the National Boy Scout Jamboree in Virginia last evening, with his Disc Golf notes in his possession! As was alluded to in his earlier update, the baskets have been installed and the Tee signs have been constructed and installed. Many thanks to Carl Emerson of Emerson Sign Works for his assistance and his outstanding efforts on these signs. They are indeed first class! Thanks to Mike D for notifying us about Carl as well.
He instructed me to proceed through his 3 ring project binder going a tab at a time and develop this update based upon this criteria. Please bear with me as I attempt to decipher a 16 year olds cryptic notes that I'm sure make sense to him. In his Public Relations tab, he has listed the articles that have appeared in the newspapers such as the Valley Breeze, the Woonsocket Call, and most recently, (July 15) the Providence Journal. All three papers were front page articles complete with color pictures! The Woonsocket Call has already done a follow-up set of pictures that appeared on the front page of their Sunday paper in June the day after initial installation. He is currently working with a billboard company to place an ad on route 146. The graphics he wants to submit will read "If you build it, they will play" (Field of Dreams theme) and have a 3D picture of a Disc catcher Pro with the NEFA.com website address. Does he need permission from this site to do this? I do not know if he has already asked this or not. He continues to stay in touch with the media regarding his opening ceremony which he is planning to be around the time school re-opens so as to allow him to present to the school the EDGE program that instructs the teachers how to teach the sport to the students. As most of you might already know, the North Smithfield school has agreed to incorporate this sport into their Physical Education curriculum for the upcoming year. His next tab is opening day and he will be inviting all of the sponsors, Town Dignitaries, media (Print and Television), Mike D and hopefully others associated with this sport for your support. He is talking to Ryan Baker of Innova regarding material and product for Opening Day and I know he is looking to talk to Mike D who has offered his experience to help him with this opening day. Billy is trying to schedule a date and time that will not conflict with soccer games, football games and Disc Golf tournaments! He is also arranging a Boy Scout Troop challenge with the Rhode Island troops and hopes to start a youth league at some point. His last tab is final preparations for the course and at the top of the list is the development of a course overview board. He has forwarded a blueprint of the entire course to Carl Emerson and we have spoken to Mike D in regard to a structure similar to the unit displayed at Normandy Farms. Apparently, Mike knows the individual that constructed the structure and Billy loved the display and workmanship. Mike has offered to contact the individual and see what he could do. There are many more notes but I can't determine what the heck he is saying so I will leave it to him to update you next writing. As a side note, we just returned from Smugglers Notch resort in Vermont where they have just installed an 18 hole Disc Golf course with the Innova Discatcher baskets. Billy is continuing to spread the word on the sport and doing his best to educate almost everyone he comes in contact with. Now if only he could learn to throw the darn things!! He will have to query Mike D for this!! Should you have any thoughts, opinions, or questions, please do not hesitate to contact us. This ends the novel.
North Smithfield Update
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Dave Mourad
- I live here
- Posts: 2824
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- Location: Wickham Park, Manchester CT
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Any further developments on opening day and the billboard along route 146? I might be heading there later this week, possibly along with Mike Mattioli and Carl Ristow who are sojourning at West Thompson Lake this enitre week. I commend you guys for the vision and courage to think big! I wouldn't think it would be a problem to include the NEFA.com addy as well - approval for that would be swift...
A Par-34 would mean that 7 of the 9 holes are Par-4...WOW!
A Par-34 would mean that 7 of the 9 holes are Par-4...WOW!
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Mike Dussault
- I live here
- Posts: 4609
- Joined: Sat Feb 26, 2005 9:07 pm
I played the course twice around, partially injured. Shot 27, 28 and I only played average.
Hole Nine is in need of immediate adjustment, as the fairway is in line with an exit door for the school, and the tee is backed up against a tree. I am sure that Billy will fix this as he has put in alot of work to get this course in the ground. I have not heard anything on the opening day tourney although I expected to by now, I had offered to help if there was sufficient notice.
Good luck on finishing the project. If anyone is good at construction and wanted to volunteer some time to build a kiosk, I am sure the Hargreaves would be grateful.
Hole Nine is in need of immediate adjustment, as the fairway is in line with an exit door for the school, and the tee is backed up against a tree. I am sure that Billy will fix this as he has put in alot of work to get this course in the ground. I have not heard anything on the opening day tourney although I expected to by now, I had offered to help if there was sufficient notice.
Good luck on finishing the project. If anyone is good at construction and wanted to volunteer some time to build a kiosk, I am sure the Hargreaves would be grateful.
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Matt Brier
- discussion lifer
- Posts: 244
- Joined: Sat Feb 26, 2005 6:36 pm
- Nickname: matty
I shot I think 32 and 33 the 2 rounds Mike and I played. Par 34 is much too high. I would say there are 7 par 3's, a borderline par 4, and a definite par 4, possibly par 5.
Hole 1 - you tee off from behind the 1st base dugout and throw an anhyzer maybe 200 feet or so. The basket is on top of a small hill and is an easy 3. There is supposedly out-of-bounds, as marked on the tee sign, but, like all the out-of-the bounds, there is nothing marking what is or isnt OB. Also, this hole, like many others, are blind tee shots so you might want to make sure there are not people walking by, which there were when we played.
Hole 2 - short slightly uphill throw....there are a bunch of trees surrounding the basket. I birdied it, it is an easy 3. A neat little hole.
Hole 3 - plays in the woods and needs some serious grooming but has potential. There is a fairway but is not very wide and not very fair. This hole needs some trees knocked down and some branches cut. The hole is out in the field. A semi-tough par 3 just because it isnt really fair yet.
Hole 4 - open, long hole that plays on top of the hill. pretty cool hole, the big arms will get an easy 3, I took a 4 both rounds.
Hole 5 - a short downhill straight/slight anhyzer throw. there is OB but it is not marked.
Hole 6 - the hole is designed to throw anhyzer around for an approach shot where you need to get around the shed. I 3'd it both rounds playing the conventional way. Mikey threw a huge sky hyzer that cuts across the woods directly to the hole. He birdied twice.
Hole 7 - this is the longest hole on the course...it plays across the field. Nothing too complicated, just long. There is OB marked on the tee sign but its not designated. It doesnt really make sense to make anything OB on this hole as it is long enough as is.
Hole 8 - another short hole, the basket is located among a bunch of trees, it is an easy 3, definitely deucable.
Hole 9 - as Mike stated, this hole has some serious design flaws. The tee is backed up among a couple of trees and you cant do a straight run up. You have to come from the side or just throw it with no runup. Making matters even worse, your drive goes directly by the side of the school building and there is an entrance that is blind to the tee shots. So, you could have some kids walk out of the building, turn the corner, and have a disc coming right at them. The tee needs to be moved to the left, as does the basket. Another easy 3.
Overall, a fun course for beginners, but it needs alot more work (grooming, OBs marked, 9th tee moved).
Hole 1 - you tee off from behind the 1st base dugout and throw an anhyzer maybe 200 feet or so. The basket is on top of a small hill and is an easy 3. There is supposedly out-of-bounds, as marked on the tee sign, but, like all the out-of-the bounds, there is nothing marking what is or isnt OB. Also, this hole, like many others, are blind tee shots so you might want to make sure there are not people walking by, which there were when we played.
Hole 2 - short slightly uphill throw....there are a bunch of trees surrounding the basket. I birdied it, it is an easy 3. A neat little hole.
Hole 3 - plays in the woods and needs some serious grooming but has potential. There is a fairway but is not very wide and not very fair. This hole needs some trees knocked down and some branches cut. The hole is out in the field. A semi-tough par 3 just because it isnt really fair yet.
Hole 4 - open, long hole that plays on top of the hill. pretty cool hole, the big arms will get an easy 3, I took a 4 both rounds.
Hole 5 - a short downhill straight/slight anhyzer throw. there is OB but it is not marked.
Hole 6 - the hole is designed to throw anhyzer around for an approach shot where you need to get around the shed. I 3'd it both rounds playing the conventional way. Mikey threw a huge sky hyzer that cuts across the woods directly to the hole. He birdied twice.
Hole 7 - this is the longest hole on the course...it plays across the field. Nothing too complicated, just long. There is OB marked on the tee sign but its not designated. It doesnt really make sense to make anything OB on this hole as it is long enough as is.
Hole 8 - another short hole, the basket is located among a bunch of trees, it is an easy 3, definitely deucable.
Hole 9 - as Mike stated, this hole has some serious design flaws. The tee is backed up among a couple of trees and you cant do a straight run up. You have to come from the side or just throw it with no runup. Making matters even worse, your drive goes directly by the side of the school building and there is an entrance that is blind to the tee shots. So, you could have some kids walk out of the building, turn the corner, and have a disc coming right at them. The tee needs to be moved to the left, as does the basket. Another easy 3.
Overall, a fun course for beginners, but it needs alot more work (grooming, OBs marked, 9th tee moved).
Greetings All and thank you for posting your replies to the update. I, again, have to substitute for my son as he is currently down at camp Yawgoog with his troop. We actually biked from North Smithfield to Yawgoog (about 50 miles) this past Sunday and I am sure he is still recovering!
Dave, the billboard is still planned and is predicated upon availability...meaning if no one steps up to pay the $10,000 fee then the company will donate it to us for the design and material cost. The company is supposed to contact Billy within the next two weeks to let him know. He is attempting to schedule The Opening Day event to be mid-September, either the 18th or 19th. This becomes sticky because of the dignitaries and sponsors availability. Many prefer to schedule for the Saturday while many others prefer the Sunday. My initial plan was the Saturday but Billy reminded me that Mike D told him that Saturday is normally tournament day for you guys and that apparently, there is a tournament in New Hampshire that weekend. His preference is for Sunday and I believe that will be the day. It will be verified upon his arrival home this coming Sunday.
Mike, sorry to hear you are injured and hope there is a quick recovery. I'm sure Billy will indeed address the hole 9 tee as he has been querying some of the players he comes across, but all of the players that he has come across are all new to the game and they are enjoying it and looking forward to the classes that will be held during their gym class this year. So your observations are important as they are from the experienced player side of the ledger versus the new people. Billy has been attempting to contact you through the personal message on this website and the normal email regarding the opening day. He just thought you were on vacation or were tied up given that school will be starting up shortly (sorry for the reminder!!) I left a message on your cell phone and home phone and am confident we will talk later.
Matt, Thank you for your in-depth review of the course as I know it took some time to assemble this data and verbalize on this site. This feedback is invaluable as it can only help Billy in improving the course prior to the openiing. I can address some of the items you have noted and will need Billy to address the rest. Here goes:
Par 34 was developed via a walk-through exercise of Mike, Billy and I during the initial design phase of the course. At that time, Billy had drawings, distances, and basket placements. As we walked the conceptual course, Mike offered his opinion on what the appropriate pars might be in a 3-4, 4-5 estimate based upon the distances and degree of difficulty for a normal player. Billy utilized the higher range on these estimates under the observation that most players playing this course were going to be new players based upon it being the only course in the direct area so their scores would tend to be higher. Given the new players would use the scorecard as a means to measure their performance, he thought if he used the low side of Mikes estimated scale (par 27) it may be demotivating to the new player. Mikes sense was that the experienced player tends to measure themselves against their past performance and not so much against the par as indicated on the course, as it is an inexact science. We were also considering mandatory flight paths on some of the holes but Mike was quick to point out that he was not a fan of this concept as it tends to limit the creativity of the good players. In respect of Mikes opinion Billy squashed the "mando" concept. As you can tell, this walkthrough was quite an education for us!!!
Hole 3 Matt, it is interesting to note that this was going to be his favorite hole in that the original design had the Tee and the hole in their current locations, but the suggested route was to be similar to a 3 sided rectangle that would approach the football field and then run alongside for the entire length of the field and then back up to the basket..roughly 850 feet! Mike correctly pointed out that the hole would probably be closed during football games and practices..most of the fall season and that would not be a good idea, so we cleared a path in the woods instead. The limitation we had on this hole is the Boy Scout code of not cutting down trees..preserve the environment. We could however trim some more of the brush without losing the rustic appeal even though I wouldn't mind clearing it out as that is where most of my shots go.
Hole 9 Tee duly noted and will be addressed. Any suggestions as to how far to the left we should shift the Tee? The original design that we had during the walkthrough had the basket about 30-40 feet to the left as Mike also made the observation of striking the path walkers if it was further to the right. He actually thought we should move it more left than what we had it. However the school department stated that the siblings of the baseball and soccer players would treat the baskets like jungle Jims if they were close to the fields and suggested we move it as far away as possible. We did move it and they came back and told us to move it further even though we mentioned the paved path on the back of the school.
I Thank the three of you for your input and encouragement as it really does mean alot to a 16 year old that wants to do a good job.. and his Dad. As I stated to a Mr. Dave Mourad in a posting earlier this year the support and encouragement we receive from this site has been great. As Dave aptly stated back then.."Bill - In all, perhaps the best thing about disc golf have been the people associated with it"
This is far better than the cynical thrashing Billy received from the PDGA.com site when he was looking for help during the very initial phases of his project two years ago, and was overwhelmingly told to leave the building of courses to the experts and go find another project. Not exactly the best approach to grow your sport, (I think Jason S has had dealings with these type of people too, right Jason ?). I hope this helps out and I leave Billy to answer the other items, or clarify my writings. Once again, thank you for your input and we will keep you all posted on the opening day event.
Dave, the billboard is still planned and is predicated upon availability...meaning if no one steps up to pay the $10,000 fee then the company will donate it to us for the design and material cost. The company is supposed to contact Billy within the next two weeks to let him know. He is attempting to schedule The Opening Day event to be mid-September, either the 18th or 19th. This becomes sticky because of the dignitaries and sponsors availability. Many prefer to schedule for the Saturday while many others prefer the Sunday. My initial plan was the Saturday but Billy reminded me that Mike D told him that Saturday is normally tournament day for you guys and that apparently, there is a tournament in New Hampshire that weekend. His preference is for Sunday and I believe that will be the day. It will be verified upon his arrival home this coming Sunday.
Mike, sorry to hear you are injured and hope there is a quick recovery. I'm sure Billy will indeed address the hole 9 tee as he has been querying some of the players he comes across, but all of the players that he has come across are all new to the game and they are enjoying it and looking forward to the classes that will be held during their gym class this year. So your observations are important as they are from the experienced player side of the ledger versus the new people. Billy has been attempting to contact you through the personal message on this website and the normal email regarding the opening day. He just thought you were on vacation or were tied up given that school will be starting up shortly (sorry for the reminder!!) I left a message on your cell phone and home phone and am confident we will talk later.
Matt, Thank you for your in-depth review of the course as I know it took some time to assemble this data and verbalize on this site. This feedback is invaluable as it can only help Billy in improving the course prior to the openiing. I can address some of the items you have noted and will need Billy to address the rest. Here goes:
Par 34 was developed via a walk-through exercise of Mike, Billy and I during the initial design phase of the course. At that time, Billy had drawings, distances, and basket placements. As we walked the conceptual course, Mike offered his opinion on what the appropriate pars might be in a 3-4, 4-5 estimate based upon the distances and degree of difficulty for a normal player. Billy utilized the higher range on these estimates under the observation that most players playing this course were going to be new players based upon it being the only course in the direct area so their scores would tend to be higher. Given the new players would use the scorecard as a means to measure their performance, he thought if he used the low side of Mikes estimated scale (par 27) it may be demotivating to the new player. Mikes sense was that the experienced player tends to measure themselves against their past performance and not so much against the par as indicated on the course, as it is an inexact science. We were also considering mandatory flight paths on some of the holes but Mike was quick to point out that he was not a fan of this concept as it tends to limit the creativity of the good players. In respect of Mikes opinion Billy squashed the "mando" concept. As you can tell, this walkthrough was quite an education for us!!!
Hole 3 Matt, it is interesting to note that this was going to be his favorite hole in that the original design had the Tee and the hole in their current locations, but the suggested route was to be similar to a 3 sided rectangle that would approach the football field and then run alongside for the entire length of the field and then back up to the basket..roughly 850 feet! Mike correctly pointed out that the hole would probably be closed during football games and practices..most of the fall season and that would not be a good idea, so we cleared a path in the woods instead. The limitation we had on this hole is the Boy Scout code of not cutting down trees..preserve the environment. We could however trim some more of the brush without losing the rustic appeal even though I wouldn't mind clearing it out as that is where most of my shots go.
Hole 9 Tee duly noted and will be addressed. Any suggestions as to how far to the left we should shift the Tee? The original design that we had during the walkthrough had the basket about 30-40 feet to the left as Mike also made the observation of striking the path walkers if it was further to the right. He actually thought we should move it more left than what we had it. However the school department stated that the siblings of the baseball and soccer players would treat the baskets like jungle Jims if they were close to the fields and suggested we move it as far away as possible. We did move it and they came back and told us to move it further even though we mentioned the paved path on the back of the school.
I Thank the three of you for your input and encouragement as it really does mean alot to a 16 year old that wants to do a good job.. and his Dad. As I stated to a Mr. Dave Mourad in a posting earlier this year the support and encouragement we receive from this site has been great. As Dave aptly stated back then.."Bill - In all, perhaps the best thing about disc golf have been the people associated with it"
This is far better than the cynical thrashing Billy received from the PDGA.com site when he was looking for help during the very initial phases of his project two years ago, and was overwhelmingly told to leave the building of courses to the experts and go find another project. Not exactly the best approach to grow your sport, (I think Jason S has had dealings with these type of people too, right Jason ?). I hope this helps out and I leave Billy to answer the other items, or clarify my writings. Once again, thank you for your input and we will keep you all posted on the opening day event.
