Snow Tips

I have a tourney in a week and its going to be the first time that I've played a round of dg with snow on the ground. My guess is that where I'm playing at is going to have around 6inches of snow on the ground and I'm looking to get some tips to help out. I have the clothing covered I just need help with the actual game play (certain plastics, tricks to help find my disc, pretty much anything that you learned by experience from playing in these conditions). Any tips would be appreciated. Thank you in advance.

[Austin "two putts"]

I thought I had the clothing covered till I got on the course and I realized that I was way over dressed. Now I just wear wool socks, boots, jeans with long underwear and a hoodie. Bring a glove for your non throwing hand and hand warmers for in between throws. As far as discs go, I use discs that I have multiples of cause they do get lost from time to time. For finding discs you can tape a ribbon to the disc to help you find it but even that is not full proof. Best thing is to watch your disc very closely and hope that where it went in the snow has not been walked on so that you can see the entry point.

[Jeffery Nugent]

Lots of spotters, putting ribbon on your disc really affects the flight, also I believe in a sanctioned tourney ribbons are not allowed. (something about affecting the flight) Dunno the exact rule, but I'm reasonably certain. We just make sure everyone in the group is watching the throw, and hope for the best. I lost my favorite avengerss at our Ice Bowl a couple of weeks ago, went back a few days later and found it waaaay closer to the basket than we'd thought. I wish we'd have found it then, cost me 2 strokes on that hole.

[Gratefulbb]

1st.....put all of your white discs away, they won't help in the snow. Unless the tee-pads are in perfect shape, you will probably throw a little more with your arm instead of your hips and legs. A tip I got from a buddy this Winter was to use a plastic sled and throw your gear on it. Tie a string to it and pull the sled, it works great as a caddy in the Winter time and your back won't get fatiged. Usually you can throw multiple bags on it and everyone can take turns pulling it. Use a spotter!!! Layers, layers, layers.Have fun.

[Brandon Swanson]

Use a spotter.  Take turns fulfilling that role.  Have them run or walk up the fairway.  They can unbury discs and set them up on edge for easy location.  Then everyone else advances while the spotter goes back to throw and they spot for him.   Don't be lazy or you WILL lose at least one disc out of your group if the ground is already trampled. 

 

Obviously pay attention to everyone's throws more closely.

 

No white discs.  Neon yellow isn't really good either I've learned.  Dark discs are easier to find in winter.  I actually break the no white rule with a wizard that I throw off the tee.  I never have any issues finding the shorter throws. 

 

Don't do the ribbon thing.  I ripped mine off after two throws.  Spotters are the ONLY way to insure no lost discs. 

[Ghost]

Hand and toe warmers are your best friend.  One thing I did not see anyone else mention bring more towels and roll them up and put them in a zip-lock bag to keep them dry until you need them.  also dry your disc before you put them back in your bag because one disc with snow on it turns into 3-4 wet discs in your bag.  also when there is that much snow a run up is a difficult operation you are better off to stand and deliver.  everyone is correct on the spotters they will save you money, extra shots, and time.  Stretching is more important in the cold so make sure you are stretched and warmed up before the round begins.

[Rev. Bob Klingler]

I played an Ice Bowl last Saturday where the snow was roughly 8-12 inches deep. I put 2 feet of lightweight red ribbon on each disc with clear packing tape - applied when the disc was warm and dry. I checked with the TD before the round to get permission to use the ribbon. I had only one disc where the ribbon pulled off - and that was in my bag. It was a very technical course played entirely within the trees - no long, open shots - and I noticed no real effect on the flight of the disc (The ribbon hung down from the precise center of the disc, the edge of the tape right in the center of the small plastic dot you can find on almost all discs). Other people spent huge amounts of time searching for discs - groups backed up on the tee three and four deep. I never had trouble finding my discs and my playing partners swore they were getting ribbon the next time they played in snow.

Don't let people talk you out of it - try it for yourself. If you don't like it you can simply pull the tape loose and continue playing.

[Paul Novak]

if you use ribbon, use Electrical tape to apply it when the discs are warm.  It should hold the entire round unless you accidently pull it off.  I have actually used the same ribbons for multiple snow rounds with electrical tape.

[Charles Isaac]

Six inches! I would kill for 6". Right now the snow is up to the bottom of the baskets. We are getting another foot today.

[Mark Cuban]

Definitely use ribbons (they barely effect the flight of the disc) , use more understable discs and don't throw the disc that you can't afford to lose. Denim is not an insulating layer and will absorb the moisture of the snow. My buddy brings a hockey stick with him during the snow rounds to move the snow and look for discs! Saves the back and keeps the hands dry.

[Greg D'OHogne]

I will also give the ribbon trick the thumbs up.  Like Reverend said, apply the 3' - 4' ribbon so that it hangs EXACTLY from the middle of the disc.  I use clear packing tape applied to a clean, warm disc.  One of my tricks is to take the 1/4" RED ribbon and peel off a little of the thickness to make it more like 3/16".  I don't know if it helps for certain, but physics would dictate less drag.  1/8" works too, it just tends to be that much harder to spot.  Also, re-use your ribbon from snow round to snow round.  When you take them off, just stack up the pieces of tape to form a ponytail of sorts.  The ribbon tends to get broken in after a couple rounds and becomes much more "loose".  Once again, I don't know if this makes a difference for certain but physics would seem to dictate that it would decrease drag at least a little.  I played in an Ice Bowl tourney a couple weeks ago and finished very high (tied 4th) in the field of 75 people.  Everyone above me was a higher rated player or a super-local, so I think I finished about where I belonged.  IMO, with all of the conditions I stated above, I believe the disc is affected by about 5% at the most.  This means I lost about 15-20 ft on the drives.  Sure, this can make a stroke or 2 difference, but I spent 0 minutes looking for my discs in the 8-10 inches of snow.  The downside is that you still have to help everyone else look for their disc, so the time savings as a group might be minimal...but NO LOST DISCS!

[Joe Meldrum]

Thanks for all of the good ideas... I'll be using the ribbon and having a sled sounds like it would help out so I'm going to go out and try to find a cheap one b4 the tourney.

[Gratefulbb]

i loved the sled idea the first time my buddy brought one to the course. we even threw a shovel on the sled with us to help clear the tees, and since he was my partner for the round, we took turns pulling the sled and was amazed how useful it was. and my back wasn't tired from having my bag on my back the entire round as it was one of the longer courses around us.