A group of Oconto Falls High School students has launched a plan to bring a disc golf course to the community.
Last spring, 11 students in a sports marketing class, led by teacher Tracy Tate, researched and designed the entire project, from course layout to signs and costs. In May, the sports marketing class brought its proposal to Superintendent Dave Polashek and earned his approval. Since then, the OFHS Future Business Leaders of America has taken charge of the project.
“It was going to be a creative school project, but they got excited and took it on,” Tate said.
OFHS junior Liza Leja suggested the idea of the disc golf course after playing it for the first time a year ago. She and a friend came upon some locals playing the game in a small town in northern Wisconsin, and she was immediately hooked.
“We’re interested in making positive activities in the community and help promote a healthy lifestyle,” said Leja, FBLA treasurer.
Polashek suggested the group seek sponsorships from area businesses and also offered financial support from the district.
“We have decided that the disc golf course will be available for community use outside of regular school hours,” he said. “As a result, it can be subsidized through our Community Service Fund, similar to the subsidy for the operation of the fitness center.”
The community service fund can be used to fill in the gaps if community donations do not cover the entire cost, Polashek explained, and will reassure the group that it can move forward with the project.
Witt’s Piggly Wiggly and the Oconto Falls Lions Club have already registered as full sponsors. Other businesses have also contributed to the project.
The course will be developed along the perimeter of the high school and elementary school and will open in spring 2015. Students designed the course around the track and football field being developed in the area.
Disc golf is similar to regular golf, except players use a special plastic disc instead of clubs and balls. Players throw the discs at a disc pole hole. The disc pole hole has a pole standing upright with a basket suspended from the top by a number of chains circling the pole.
The game can be played by all ages.
While there are professional disc golf players who compete in tournaments in Sheboygan, Milwaukee and Madison, in this area, the game is just a fun pastime.
“You don’t have to be good at it,” said FBLA Promotions Chair Mikaela Thomson, a junior at OFHS. “It’s easy, and you can just walk.”
Each disc pole hole has a par number associated with it, just like golf. The par number is the optimum number of throws a player has from the tee-off to the disc pole basket. The OFHS students determined par by using a chart on the Professional Disc Golf Association website.
Players can purchase discs costing anywhere from $7 to $40, depending on the type of disc. Discs fall into three categories, long distance, midrange and putters.
Tee-off areas will consist of a cement pad, which will allow for easier grounds maintenance. Each disc pole hole will have a sponsor sign incorporating the distance and par for that hole.
The total cost of the nine-hole project is estimated at $6,255. In order to cut costs, FBLA students asked the Technical Education Department at the high school for help. As a result, tech ed students will construct the metal baskets for each disc pole hole, par signs and concrete tee-off pads, providing a savings of $2,400 and dropping the total estimated cost to $3,855.
According to OFHS tech ed teacher David Heisel, students will work with Fischer Concrete to pour the pads later this month.
Categories
