How to find discs in the snow.

I live in Michigan, so in the winter time I have to deal with snowy weather. This sucks for several reasons, however, the worst being loosing a disc in the snow. Many times after the disc lands in the snow it is burried, even though you saw it land it still burrowed under the snow and all that is visible is a slight slash in the snow I have had disc go as far as five or six feet past the said little slash. To find this disc you generally have to drag your feet around until you "feel" something but many times I have stepped on the disc and with winter boots on felt nothing, even when you find it you still have to reach in there and grab it with your hands eventully drenching your gloves.

I have tried the ribbion techinque and found it less then worthwhile to even bother with. My soulution is I bought several large washers about half the size of a doughnut and with packing tape secured it on the top and center of the disc useing the flash cuttof as a guide for center. For about 20$ at home depot I bought a telescoping magnet stick with about a one foot  magnet drag that bad boy through the snow and you can feel it hook up with a click.

The stick fits easily in my bag it collapses down to about 16 inches and extends to about three foot so you don't even have to bend down. The washer does affect the flight of the disc, not nearly as much as the ribbon, mostly things drop faster but not that much as I bought the thinest lightest ones about two grams. Your hands stay much warmer and you don't have to walk in circles all day looking for a disc you watched land! hopefully this helps everyone out have fun and enjoy winter!

[David Ledford]

That is a great idea about the magnet. The ribbon idea also sounds OK. I have been unable to play due to deep snow 18"+ and have never heard of the ribbon trick. What are the details on the ribbon? Tape it on? How long of a ribbon?

[Wicked Dyes]

I would use about 3 feet of 1/8 inch wide ribbon or destroy an old cassett tape and use the stuff out of that. I used duct tape and taped it to the center underside of the disc.

[Boom Boom Dino]

5 foot by 1/4"  bright wrapping ribbon   .............. you really do need 5ft  ... to not bury ... doesn't effect flight too much and u neverr lose a disc

[Disc Golf Live]

Never would have seen this one without the ribbon.

[Boom Boom Dino]

good comment ..... but with a foot of snow on the ground you may not have ..... just a photo to let the folks gnu you don't have to lose them under the sea of white.

[Disc Golf Live]

Ribbons work well most of the time, but I've seen some problems with the method.  Don't use them myself, just try to find the marks in the snow.  Whatever works.  (The big magnet and washers taped to a disc example proves that almost anything goes...) 

 

From what I've seen on the course, the ribbon can be problematic any time a player is near shrubs and branches, so they're better in wide open areas.  That little bit of ribbon can stop a disc pretty fast.  And you've never seen a disc golfer as mad as the one who is trying to figure a way to get his disc down from where the ribbon tangled well up into a tree.  There it is, just hanging there, unreachable.  But I think the thing that put me off ribbons the most was when a fellow player had the ribbon somehow wrap around a finger tip just as he threw.  Pretty much blew up the end of that digit.  

 

Looking forward to more or less snow-free golf tomorrow.  Had a nice thaw here in SE MI over the past few days and it looks like I'll be able to throw some rollers for a change, at least until we get dumped on again.

 

Happy new year. 

[MACO]

Throw white disc.

[Ben Calhoun]

Don't hit a tree 10 ft.in front of you sidearm while falling, 3 hours after dark in the snow! That's how I lost my Ch Destroyer last night! The LED/Tape was easy to find, though.

[Mark Cuban]

Here is a funny ribbon story from an Ice Bowl in Athol MA.  It is down to the last hole with 9 $5 skins on the line and only 2 out of the 4 in the group are going for Biride and the push . The first player sinks his putt from 25 ft. for the bird and then the next player who is feet away marks his disc and picks it up to tap in with his driver but unbeknownst to him he is stepping on the ribbon ! Just as it is about to go in for the carry over the ribbon pulls tight and snaps his disc back and he loses the hole !

[Greg D'OHogne]

I just tried the ribbon idea two days ago in St. Louis, MO.  There was only 3 inches of snow on the ground at Jefferson Barracks DGC, so it really wasn't necessary.  I was more interested in seeing how it affected the disc flight and such.  It definitely does affect the disc flight a bit.  I would say somewhere in the range of 10-15%.  If there is 6" or more of fresh snow, I don't see this loss being a big deal.  I would much rather be able to see the bright ribbon sitting on top of the snow from 100 feet away than having to basically sleuth out the entry mark.  I didn't run into any problems with the disc getting caught up in trees at all.  As a matter of fact, I intentionally tried to get this to happen and I couldn't.  So, in my opinion, I would disregard this possible downside.  I'll have to see it happen before I believe that it can.  Once I got used to the ribbons, I decided that it is a GREAT idea!  You won't be crushing your longest drives ever, but heh, you won't be losing your cherished plastic.  I can't wait for a foot of snow to fall so Ican give it the real test.