Father’s Day takes on special meaning at the disc golf course at Don Martzke Park next to Shawano Community High School.
For Eric Jansen and his 15-year-old son, Braylon, both of Kimberly, tossing discs at an area course has been a Father’s Day tradition since Braylon was 6.
“It’s a constant challenge,” the elder Jansen said of the sport as the father-son duo warmed up at a practice basket before Hole 1 of the 9-hole course. His parents are retired and live in Shawano, so it’s a natural that they would spend Father’s Day in the woods of this relatively new course.
Sean Miller, of Cloverleaf Lakes, an avid disc golfer and single-parent dad to two grade-schoolers, says he took up the sport just about the time he became a dad. Tossing a plastic disc was a way to get a breather from parenting responsibilities, if only for a few hours, he explained.
Now his children Zariah, 6, and Silas, 5, regularly accompany him to the course at Martzke Park, as well as other courses in Clintonville and New London.
The beauty of disc golf is that almost anyone can play. There are no clubs to be fitted for and to replace as kids grow bigger. That’s a good thing for the elder Jansen, as his son is almost as tall as him. Serious disc golfers carry backpacks or bags full of discs for drives, curve shots and putts, but a beginning player could get by with two or three discs.
“Frisbees were way different than they are today,” said Miller.
College students in the 1960s started Frisbee golf by tossing discs in garbage cans, and later evolved into a formal sport. Those larger “flying saucers” were bigger and more whippy than today’s smaller, more wind-resistant discs. Ironically, the Wham-O Corp., inventor of the Frisbee, is no longer a major player in disc golf. Brands like Innova and Discraft now dominate the sport, and pro tournament players play for huge jackpots.
Miller, who grew up in Shawano, was introduced to the sport seven years ago by his buddy Jeff “Gumby” Waymire of Clintonville. They played their first game together at Olen Park in Clintonville, one of two courses there. A few months later, Miller became a dad, adding more stress to his responsibilities. The fresh air, walking and repeated throwing of discs was just the exercise he needed at just the right time.
The COVID-19 pandemic devastated many businesses, but it fanned the flames on the popularity of disc golf.
“This sport has tripled in size since COVID,” he said.
That’s a good thing for Miller’s nephew, a former Shawano man who now runs an online disc golf company in Salem, Oregon.
David Miller’s Swift Discs is taking off like the bird it is named after. The 26-year-old entrepreneur was born and raised in Shawano, but had one simple reason for moving away in 2016.
“I could not handle how cold it was in Wisconsin,” he said.
It’s only snowed around Salem three times since he moved there.
He had never actually played disc golf in Shawano, partially because there were no courses at the time. He started playing with friends out there, then got hooked on some of the swirly designs and colors of the discs themselves. Soon he became more of a disc collector than a player.
“I was always looking for these amazing discs and figured I could get them for a wholesale price,” he said.
He placed his first wholesale order for $1,000 and Swift Discs was airborne. Although his personal collection has expanded to a modest 60 discs, he now has about 1,000 discs for sale at his growing business, which stresses speedy shipping.
David Miller said the sport is popular and growing because it is affordable. The only equipment needed is a few discs, and many courses don’t even charge a fee to play. The sport appeals to all ages, and as his uncle and others have proven, it’s definitely a family sport.
The biggest foes you are likely to face on the disc golf course are the sun, mosquitoes and ticks, because most challenging courses feature lots of woods. Shawano’s course is a bit swampy in spots, so don’t wear your new shoes.
The city spent about $10,000 on the course, including premium baskets and concrete pads, said Matt Hendricks, Shawano’s parks and recreation department director. He used his expertise when he worked in Marshall and oversaw construction of a tournament-level disc golf course (Bird’s Ruins 28-hole course) to help plan Shawano’s course, along with an expert designer. Planning began in 2018 for construction on 18 acres of woods (which also has a cross-country running trail and walking trail), and was completed in 2020.
Additional pruning of trees has been done, in part with the input of players, he said.
“It’s one more way to get out and walking,” Hendricks said.
Ross Bielema is a freelance writer from New London and owner of Wolf River Concealed Carry LLC. Readers can contact him at Ross@wolfriverccw.com.
BY THE NUMBERS
Most discs used for disc golf feature a series of four numbers that show the flight characteristics of that disc. In order, the numbers represent the speed, glide, turn and fade:
Speed: 1-14 (14 is fastest). Faster discs cut the wind but require more arm strength. Slower discs are generally more accurate, especially for beginners.
Glide: 1-7 (7 has the most glide). Glide is the ability of a disc to remain aloft. More glide is better for beginners; less glide is more accurate in strong winds.
Turn: +1 to -5. Turn is short for High Speed Turn, a disc’s tendency to turn over or bank to the right (for a right-handed player). A +1 disc is most resistant to turning over, while a -5 is most likely to turn over. More turn is easier for beginners; less turn is more accurate in the wind.
Fade: 0-5 (5 has the most hook at the end of the flight). Fade is short for Low Speed Fade, a disc’s tendency to hook left (for right-handers). A 0 fade disc finishes the straightest. High-fade discs are used for skip and spike shots.
Source: Innova Discs
A new spin on golf: Disc golf comes to Shawano
