A New course in Houston just about ready

[tarazarr]

Ok now that I have your attention.....
I've been reading the message board for the last few days and it seems like a great medium to promote the Houston disc golf scene, unfortunately (the majority of) what I've been reading amounts to little more than trivial squabbling and complaining....

So here's a chance to come together (with involvement, not rhetoric) as a group to do something very positive for the scene. It's no doubt agreed that Houston could use a few more, well thought out courses (like the private course at Oak Meadows, designed and built by players, for players.

Here's my proposal and yes I am willing to be positively involved in making this happen.

There is a church and YMCA next to each other on the West side of HWY 249, about 5 miles north of Beltway 8, that has very adeqaute property to host 18 holes (9 on each piece of property). If I meet with say, the youth pastor at the church and the director of the YMCA and get a signed agreement from each allowing the construction of the course, would there be 17 members (minimum) here willing to get positively involved?

This is what would be asked of you as a designing/building participant.
1. A meeting (on site) to roughly lay out the course, then
2. each participating member would take ownership of, be in charge of, and have complete control over designing and building (their) 1 hole along the roughly laid out course flow.
3. The participating member (having ownership of their hole), would either look for sponsorship from a local buisiness to pay for the PDGA approved basket and aquire it, or would be free to get very creative in the original design, building and sponsoring of a basket (PDGA premium, 24 chain, spec target of course) as long as it doesn't detract from the beauty of the property.
3. We could improve the houston Disc gold scene one new (player designed and built) course at a time. Creating exposure to thousands of new potential disc golfers everywhere we get a new course in by hosting tournaments there. By creating the goodwill, increasing the exposure to the sport and giving back to the sport you love and are so passionate about, those tournament pots would get bigger and bigger.

The scene gets better, if we make it better. Would you rather unite as brothers and sisters and do something positive, or would you rather waste this great resource (message board and "community") and reduce it to not much more then a place to vent over trivial things.

Peace
and hoping to see 17 positive people step up.

[Mr. Blue]

Great idea if you can get the permission to do it. I might add that you might want to talk to some of the more experienced designers/installers in the area for some layout and proposal advice, but if it can get done, then my business will sponsor one. Shoot, the location is not more than 10 minutes from my office. Cool idea!

[tarazarr]

Originally Posted by Mr. Blue

Great idea if you can get the permission to do it. I might add that you might want to talk to some of the more experienced designers/installers in the area for some layout and proposal advice, but if it can get done, then my business will sponsor one. Shoot, the location is not more than 10 minutes from my office. Cool idea!

This is my formal request for anyone to get involved. If there are experienced builders/designers who are willing to take ownership of one hole then their participation is welcomed and would be a big asset during the initial meeting when the rough overall course flow is put together and agreed upon, however each participant must design (their) hole. It is "your" hole to design and construct within the agreed rough layout, the buck stops with you on your holes basket and T-Box.

I will gladly and graciously accept your businesses sponsorship for the basket on my hole, that is unless you want to own a hole of your own, design and construct it yourself and sponsor it by your company. You get to pick the hole you own and designe by the order in which you sign up to participate. Anotherwords, since I'm the first to step up I get first pick of which hole I want to design once the rough course layout/flow is agreed upon and so on. If your serious, add your name to the list, When we have at least 9 members ready to be seriously involved, I'll deliver the signed approval to construct.

Remeber, no, non participant rhetoric allowed, if you want any input then you must participate and take ownership of at least one hole.

1. Tarazarr
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Thanks

[Mr. Blue]

Well, what will be the cost of a hole. Why split one if we can do two. What kinds of tee boxes do you want to use, baskets, where will you be ordering from. I have no problem doing an entire hole, lets just get a ballparked figure on cost per hole. It will be much easier for others to make that kind of a decision if they have a $ amount to base it off of.

[tarazarr]

Originally Posted by Mr. Blue

Well, what will be the cost of a hole. Why split one if we can do two. What kinds of tee boxes do you want to use, baskets, where will you be ordering from. I have no problem doing an entire hole, lets just get a ballparked figure on cost per hole. It will be much easier for others to make that kind of a decision if they have a $ amount to base it off of.

What will the cost of the hole be? That's up to you, It's going to be your hole, you'll take complete ownership of your hole, the only standard set here is your basket must meet the Standard PDGA "measurement" specs and it must be a 24 chain basket and if you decide to manufacture your basket with an original design, then it must not detract from the beauty of the property. If you choose to purchase one then you decide which basket you purchase, so if you go this route you might want to line up some sponsorship.

There is room here for creativity, the key is again, if you sign up for one, then your hole is your baby, the only thing the group decides/agrees upon is the general layout and flow of the course like hole #1 goes here in this area, so design the best hole you can imagine and keep the course flow in mind.
The earlier you commit to owning and constructing a hole, better spot you get in choosing which hole you get to build.

In the end we open up "our" course with an inaugural open tournament and when everyone steps up to hole #7 (for example) they are stepping up to " #7 Mr Blues Revenge" proudly sponsored by Home Depot, C&C metals, Allied concrete or whomever you can line up sponsorship from, it's your hole, designed by you, built by you, with no one to curse at but you when I take a double bogey on it ...be creative as you like, build as challenging a hole as you can with the terrain if you like, it's all you man.

Who's ready to make it happen?

[tarazarr]

This is how I would approach the building and construction of "my" hole just to give everyone an example of what I'm talking about here.

1. I WOULD NOT go buy a 380.00 dollar basket...I would stop into a local welding and fabrication shop and talk with the owner about getting them some permanent advertisment..How? simply hand them the readily available plans for a DIScatcher pro target and say if you'll donate the fabrication/building of a custom target to these specs, you can show off your Companies craftsmanship and abilities by doing some custom metal work on the top deck that says (for example) this basket donated and built by the fine craftsman of.....and then along the outside of the catching basket in big metal letters "C&C Metals of Tomball"...

The basket will be seen by many people each week and if you build me a target that will last for 15 years, then you get 15 years of advertisment for the cost of about 50.00 worth of steel.

2. I go to Home Depot and ask them if they would donate 150' feet of #2 chain and in return "Home Depot" will be placed on 3 T-Box signs as a hole sponsor - that would give me enough chain for my basket and I could help 2 others out by giving them chain for their baskets.

3. I go to Allied Concrete and say "I'm building a disc golf course over the next 2 months at this location, the T-Box forms are in place and ready for concrete. Every time you have a little concrete left over from a job pour, if you'll have your truck pull in and pour one of our T-boxes (about 1/2 a yard of concrete) we'll put "Proudly sponsored by ALLIED CONCRETE" on the T-Box marker plaque as a hole sponsor for every box you fill. Wow I just got my T-box filled and maybe your's as well for free, then you get all excited and try and help the person building the hole next yours by clearing some brush with them or something

See where I'm going? Use your imagination, stop waiting for someone to build you a great course, (since when was it "their" job anyways) I'm not getting any younger, neither are you, I'm not gonna sit here and piss and moan about why "They", "some one else", "Anyone", "The City" or any other entity out there isn't upkeeping/maintaining or building a course for me.

Lets build a great course together, over the next 2-3 months. And then we do another and another. Think about it, after 2 courses are built who's not gonna want to be in on designing and naming their hole at each new course, forever named after them. we can do it, we can create some great courses...we need 17 positively involved people. You could have the exclusive rights to owning every #7 Mr. Blues revenge hole on every course we build.


Or...everyone could just sit back and debate why the two missing chains from basket #3 at what-not park haven't been replaced by "Some one" and why the "scene" here sucks and the grass is always greener in K.C.

[DPdiscer]

Hi Tarazarr,

I love your spirit! Count Birdshot in for a hole. Please get the Church's phone number and YMCA's phone number after you get approval and post it here or email it to Birdshot's webmaster at www.houstonbirdshot.com. That way we can verify because I don't know who you are.

[tarazarr]

DPdiscer,
I will absolutely count you on board. Thank you. That's 2, (twice as many as we had yesterday!) I know there's more golfers out there ready to jump in and get involved. it gets better when we make it better!

When we get 9 golfers ready to get started. I'll set up the meeting to secure the approval and we can all meet at the site to lay it out, verify the approvals and get our game plan together. I think we should easily be able to find a total of 18 golfers willing to commit to building one hole, but if 9 is all we can get for the first course, we'll build a great 9 hole course and it will grow the next time around

My name is Scott hawkins from Tomball, thanks again and welcome on board.

1. Tarazarr
2. Birdshot
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[DPdiscer]

Hi Scott,

I emailed you earlier about your courses in Tomball. Were you able to get Andi Lehmann to committ? Your really need a professional designer to check out the design once we are finished. There are so many variables involved that amateurs may not design a good course that is safe and fun for all levels of players. Birdshot is thrilled when players get involved with Disc Golf. Contact somebody with HFDS and see if you can get them on board. That would be a big plus. I would love to meet you out at the site sometime just to get a peek at what we are working with. Let me know what is convenient for you. What is the closest course to your proposed site so that we can play after checking it out.

[tarazarr]

I absolutely understand what you are saying, I want those who want to have input to be physically involved, build a hole otherwise you end up with a bunch of people telling you how to do something, but not willing to do anything themselves.

I want to work with people who aren't afraid to commit to something, get involved, and see it through to completion. The Do'ers, not the whiners

Andi has returned my email and I look forward to discussing this and a few other projects I have in mind, and I have made a formal invitation right here in this thread for anyone and everyone to join up, take ownership of a hole and help increase the number of courses there are to play here in town. One course at a time we can make this city rock for "quality" disc golf. I hope she wants to get involved, the course would only benefit for sure.

We all know there are good courses here, but be honest, how many of them do you think are really quality courses...

I read a post here where someone from KC wanted to know where to play, some one responded, if your from KC you don't want to play here...Really? Then why are we not changing that? Your gonna grow cobwebs waiting for someone else to build you a great course....

Lets make it better, no one else is beating the doors down to build us new courses, so lets do it ourselves....What are you waiting for golfers? It ain't gonna happen, unless you make it happen