Trek the Ascent

Posted on November 11, 2011 by admin

So as I promised two blogs ago, I bought Vibram’s two fairway drivers a week ago and have played a total of four rounds. Thus far it hasn’t proved to be a good buy. I’ve talked to several people about the discs and everyone says something is missing… I have to agree. Perhaps its the feel of the rubber, or the fact it has the Vibram logo on the edge of the disc, or the strange flight characteristics on the bottom of the discs… I’m not sure but I’ll try to explain.

Let’s start with the Ascent. It’s rated as an over stable driver which I characterize more like stable. Thrown flat it will hold a line pretty easily with a predictable fade at the end. Not too much release at the end (skip) but I think that’s a good thing. I got it in a medium stiffness in a lightweight as I found that the heavier weights don’t fly as far (for me at least). It would stay in my bag except for the fact that it doesn’t seem to go as far. It just doesn’t have the same pop as an Eagle does (Innova). Needless to say it will remain till it either proves itself or it fails. It does hold a hyzer line better than any fairway driver I have though. It’s too early to call it.

Now for the Trek… this is a mixed bag. It’s a love hate thing. During my round at Pinto Lake yesterday it would act like it’s suppose too and then the next minute it would fail gloriously. It’s suppose to hyzer flip straight but sometimes it just doesn’t. I can’t put my finger on it yet. It’s definitely a under stable driver which I got in a lightweight for the same reason stated above. Medium stiffness but perhaps I need to go to the X-Link Firm so I can get the feel like I can really put some torque on it. Again it will remain in my bag because I need more time with it and I really want it to work out.

I enjoy the feel of the putters and overall like the Vibram brand. My hopes are to get sponsored by Vibram but that means playing well and more often. I’m playing with the idea of going pro next year and seeing if I can jump start my career in this sport and take the next step. I tend to thrive on competition so if I immerse myself in that high caliber arena my body and mind might elevate itself to perform better and be competitive. Actually, it more than just a thought…. The wheels are in motion to make this happen. Ready or not I’m entering the pro ranks sometime next year. Wish me luck.

I’ll try to get my hands on the new Vibram Sole (putter) and Ibex (midrange) as well as the stiffer fairway drivers. Next time I’ll talk about Pinto Lake… that was brutal.

Till next time, my dear Valk… try & find your way home

Mondo

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Reboot & DeLaveaga

Posted on October 27, 2011 by admin

So once again I restructured offaxisdiscgolf.com and got rid of the ratings system. I liked the idea but it was getting out of hand. When I started I neglected to think how many people I was going to have. Duh… every order is a new member so the list exploded and I was spending a couple of hours having to update everyone’s rating using the extremely slow PDGA website. I was beginning to dread it every time the ratings were updated so I knew it was time to give it up. I apologize to anyone that enjoyed looking at it but I will continue the army in the form of pictures so please remember to send them (if you want).

Also, the apparel website has gone through some pricing changes. Some things did get more expensive but some things actually dropped so take a look. www.offaxisdesign.com

With that said I can move onto the famous DeLaveaga DGC visit this past Tuesday. I went with a bud that knew the area well which came in handy. The course (as many of you know) plays through a oak/pine woodland with plenty of corridor shots with a handful of open bombs. It’s one of those courses that if you miss your mark and push out of the fairway… you will be punished. Generally (with any luck) you can save a three with a nice up shot but if it’s an early tree you hit… you pretty much have a four. Unless you’re a magician and you can pull rabbits out of your bag.

I finished with a +4 (correction made. Ron told me I forgot count the three birdies) over 28 holes. Honestly, for the exception of #13 (I-5 as they call it), the bogeys were all my fault. Just bad shots and missed putts. I missed three putts within the circle which shouldn’t have happened. With those made I would have shot 2 under (blows my mind). Lost concentration pretty much. I did have one DeLa roll away but I banged my putt any way. For my first time the course treated me very well. Miss throws somehow found a way through or I would get kicked over onto the fairway. Pure luck I say. My buddy (Ron) didn’t have such luck and I’ll leave it at that.

The course is beautiful and challenging. It will take your breathe away in both terms. I can’t wait to return and play her again. Being only 25 minutes away I really don’t have an excuse not to play it more often. For my next adventure I’ll visit Black Mouse and (once again) Pinto Lake. Pinto should be fun as I played it before Worlds when it was a jungle pretty much. Lets see if it got any harder (or should I say easier).

Till next time, snap, crackle, pop!

Mondo

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Foot Fault!

Posted on October 18, 2011 by admin

So I came about this discussion topic from viewing a disc golf video the other day (Icgm8 on You Tube is awesome. Check him out). It centers around one particular putt from Paul Ulibarri at the European Open. In the video it looks like he steps past the mark before releasing. The comments on the video reflect that mentioning that he is cheating.  The author confirmed by checking frame by frame that it was in fact a honest putt.

I hope we don’t have to start a instant video review at major tournaments. Can you imagine players carrying red flags and throwing them down when a foul occurs? It would be pretty funny. I’ve noticed the falling putt issue more prevalent lately at the past couple of tournaments I attended. But one thing that gets me is no one is man or woman enough to call it. I’ve seen it called once on video at Nikko Locastro and he nearly cried. He was like “How dare you! I’m a professional!” then why are you cheating? You can clearly see it on the video. Perhaps it was a honest mistake but why the sour attitude? You’re a professional.

I guess I wish people would stop taking it so darn personal when they get caught committing  a penalty. Where has human integrity gone? During the Gold Pan Open someone on my card was shaving strokes and when confronted he got offended. Dude! You cheated and you get mad at me! I counted the throws and he still didn’t confess. I even brought it up to the TD and she was hesitate to confront him. If you cheat and you get caught, you should pay. End of story…. well he didn’t.

Sometimes dishonestly works I guess. Not that I’ll be taking that road anytime soon. Karma will find you. I least I kicked his ass during the tourney.

Well till next time, cheaters never prosper…. except when they cry I guess

Mondo

 

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33rd Gold Pan Open & Vibram Putters

Posted on October 5, 2011 by admin

So it’s been a month since my last post and very little has changed. Wife loves her work and I am still looking for mine. Opportunities are far and few between but I remain optimistic that something will come. But enough of that lets get to disc golf.

So as I promised lets start with the 33rd Gold Pan Open. I placed 4th in the intermediate division which I am truly amazed. I thought I played pretty poorly but looking back I always finished on top of the group. Rocklin DGC (which I am very familiar with) played fairly with only a few holes in the long positions. I lost a lot of birdie changes with dumb drives and a overall lack of commitment to the shot. It was all in my head that morning.

Auburn was fun and frustrating to say the least. We had a local playing with us and he was an OK guide except on a few holes which screwed the rest of the group. I suppose I could have walked the hole prior to shooting and seen the hidden creek but he didn’t mention it so… yeah. My putting was the culprit here as simple 15 footers were just blown. Confidence I just didn’t have that afternoon.

Shady Oaks on Sunday was a different story. I ended up having the second hottest round (so I’m told in my division) which elevated me from 9th place to 4th. Everything was working well except for a few costly up shots that I wish I could have back. I ended up cashing in $81 to the club store (Final 9 Sports) which bought me a mini basket! I accumulated 32 minis thus far so fun I am definitely having. I also played with a new/old friend (Justin W.) which was very enjoyable to say the least.

Overall the tourney was excellent and ran very smoothly. There was some delay after the final round but I understood since we all had tee times to start. I also appreciated that they handed out all the awarded and did the raffle at the very end. Thank you very much for the great experience and I look forward to doing it again next year.

Now for the Vibram putters. I am officially a Vibram believer. The Ridge has improved my putting tremendously. I have a medium firm & and floppy one. I find the floppy’s superior tackiness is just what I was looking for. The firmer one works well when I’m outside the circle and need to jam it in there. It has also allowed me to develop a push putt which I find to be more accurate and safer if I miss. The Ridge is a stable putter so I can still crank it off the tee and know it will hold the line. There is virtually no skip with this putter so I find myself always running at it which I like. It has made me a more confident, aggressive putter. I know they’re costly but I would definitely give them a try if you can or if you see me just ask to try them out.

Well that’s enough for now. I’ll try to get me hands on the Vibram fairway drivers next.

Till next time, always wear a helmet especially after a rain (some people will get this)

Mondo

 

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Time to move on… again

Posted on September 4, 2011 by admin

So here is the update that I promised a few days ago. If you’ve talked to me or seen my Facebook lately you already know that we are moving to Campbell, Ca. If you didn’t… you do now. My lovely wife was offered a job in Los Gatos as a landscape designer which we are truly blessed to have. She beat out stiff competition and I’m proud of her. New location, new job, new beginning.

How does this relate to disc golf? Well our business will move once again, which isn’t a big deal, but most importantly I’ll get the chance to become apart of the Silicon Valley Disc Golf Club as well as be 20 minutes from the epicenter that is Santa Cruz and the World Famous DeLaveaga Disc Golf Course! I haven’t had the pleasure of playing it yet but I’ve seen countless videos and I truly can’t wait for it to kick my butt on the first go around (I know better than to say I’m going to beat the course on the first time).

Living there will also give me access to central & upper California tournaments. I can toss with the SLOThrowers, jam with the Jellies, play at home in silicon valley,  and throw in Sac Town. I can’t say enough how excited I am. Now if I can only find a job for myself (that isn’t retail or a marketing) life would truly be awesome.

Well that’s enough for now. Next time I’ll discuss how I did in the 33 Gold Pan Open and my personal amateur opinion of the Vibram putters.

Till next time, it’s all about location, location, location… & putt

Mondo

 

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Disc Golf Videos

Posted on July 25, 2011 by admin

So lets get back to what I used to do when I started this little project and talk about disc golf. Today I’m going to discuss some of the video channels that I like to watch on YouTube. There are hundreds of disc golf videos out there and most of them don’t last but a few seconds. I like to watch longer videos that show off longer segments of play rather than some random ass ace run. I’ll start with the least favorite and go up from there.

The first channel is DiscmasterTV. I’m gonna put it to you straight… it’s very cheesy and sometimes hard to watch. It centers around the Santa Cruz disc golf scene and showcases Val & Avery Jenkins and Nate Doss (hence the ‘master’ part). The cheese comes from the host who tries to make it funny but fails (not funny to me at least). If you can get past the cheese they provide some healthy, beginner friendly commentary by the pros. As well as displaying some of the great disc golf courses in their area.

Next on the list would have to be DiscGolfMonthlyTV. The main host for the videos is Carl Cubbedge (the guy with a million short aces). They seem to rotate the color commentators from video to video. You can definitely see the time put into the broadcast which is one of the main reasons I watch. Hence the name ‘monthly’, it’s only one video per month but I see why. I couldn’t expect them to crunch out videos like this every month. The show centers on the lead card as they play the final round so you can expect to see some good golf. They tend to focus on smaller tournaments which doesn’t bring out the big headliners but it’s still good. The program does tend to move along slowly but if you got time to kill I recommend watching.

Clashdvdseries is next and very fun to watch. Billy Crump is the man in front and he has very good commentary during play. He has a very Sportcenter-esque style with quirky one liners but yet is knowledgeable about the sport. The play is solid showcasing the sports top talent and often attending high caliber tournaments. They often post a couple of times a week which is the most by any other channel I could find. If I had one bad thing to say is that they are out to promote their DVDs so they don’t show everything. I don’t blame them because their out to make a buck; it’s a company after all. Other than that, a awesome channel that every disc golf enthusiast should be watching.

Lastly, it has to be Icgm8 for the most impressive, high definition videos. The videos focus on major & minor tournaments in the European circuit. There isn’t any commentary but the quality is impressive. The editing is superb showing hole layout, scoring, and competitors names throughout every shot. We get to see the great talent overseas like Ville Pippo and Jesper Lundmak. If we could mix his video quality with Billy Crump’s commentary it would be awesome! You really can’t go wrong with this channel. Usually follows the lead card throughout the entire final round. Every shot is shown other than tap ins or if someone is shooting badly (which is actually very kind of him. It’s painful to see someone struggle). A definite must see for any disc golf player!

Till next time, stop posting ace videos… it’s getting old

Mondo

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The Move & Sacramento Golf

Posted on July 19, 2011 by admin

So here we go again, finally. Yeah my posts are getting farther and farther apart but I think they’ll become more frequent since we made the move to the Sacramento area. Everything is in its place spatially but were missing one important thing: jobs. We thought we would have a better chance up here but the job market is the same as the desert. I do have several leads, thank God, but all I can do is cross my fingers and pray for a call. Let’s hope sooner than later.

But enough of that let’s talk about disc golf. I’m going to start doing what I initially did in the very beginning and talk about certain aspects or topics in disc golf & give my two cents. Saying that, let’s talk about the Sacramento disc golf scene.

I only got the chance to play when we were visiting my in-laws and I got the sense that the crowds weren’t very friendly or open to new comers. At other places that I’ve played in, people would be open to showing me around or even asking me to join up with them. Sac town seems to guard their courses. I used to get a very stand-offish attitude from people, especially at Shady Oaks Disc Golf Course in Orangevale, CA.

Somehow that’s changed though. I played in my first weekly this past Saturday and it was very different than before. I wouldn’t call it an embrace but perhaps a welcome or ‘hi there’. They didn’t open up too much but I felt comfortable playing. Considering I’m going to be here for the long haul, I hope that I can become a regular in this scene. I really can’t wait to play my first tournament because I know it’s going to be different from SoCal. I do like the fact that there are so many courses up here and I can’t wait to go up to Tahoe.

Some last things. I updated the disc golf website with the new ratings. Not really any movement between players but we did get some new recruits: Jason Lau, Josh Pickard, & Allen Pinner. I’ll update the calender tomorrow. Next time I’ll be speaking about disc golf videos and which YouTube subscriptions you should know about.

Till next time, let’s hope jobs find all of us who are searching for them

Mondo

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Sky High Showdown & Some Rather Big News

Posted on June 11, 2011 by admin

I’m gonna start with the tourney and leave the big news to the end. So the Sky High Showdown in Wrightwood, Ca was definitely fun but only because of the people I met & played with. The conditions were tough with howling winds and bitter cold in the mornings. I was literally hurting my hand every time I threw a disc (it was that cold). The course itself is challenging with drop offs around every corner & plenty of trees to get in your way. If your in the area I definitely recommend it. Watch out for hole 11… it’s a fun one.

The first round (27 holes) played long and considering I was at 7000 feet, it made disc selection important. I kick myself for not emptying my bag and using all of my wife’s 150 gram discs (I would have killed!). Ohh well… to bad, so sad. I ended with a +2 the first round. The second round was easier due to some of the holes being shortened but the wind made up for that. It didn’t let up all day. I ended even, so +2 overall which put me in 7th place. I’m pretty sure my rating will go down below 530. Maybe then I can drop down & win a tourney! (haha)

Overall, the tourney was a lot of fun and I will definitely like to redeem myself next year… if I’m around…. now for the big news. My wife and I have decided to move to Sacramento come the end of this month. We have been contemplating this for some time now and we are ready to follow through on it. The business will continue but only with a new address. There are more opportunities there for Rachelle & I to find work in our chosen careers (landscape architecture & architecture, respectively). We are also making the move to be closer to Rachelle’s family & friends.

To my family & friends, I say thank you for all your support and love. I will keep in touch and let you know how I’m doing. You can always find me on Facebook or on this site if you need to contact me. If you find yourself in the area, please call me or drop me a message and we’ll meet up. I can show you some of the local courses. I will be returning at some point to visit and I’ll make sure to post here when that will be. Again, thanks for everyone for making this valley my home and I will never forget this place.

Till next time, home is where your rump rests (and hopefully there’s a basket near by)

Mondo

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King of the Mountain

Posted on May 26, 2011 by admin

So time to give everyone my synopsis of the King of the Mountain Tournament presented by us, Off Axis Disc Golf. Considering that this was our tourney, you might think that I would say it was awesome and be bias, but if you speak to anyone that knows me, I am very critical about how I want things done especially when it comes to my own projects. So be assured that this is my honest opinion. With that said let’s begin…

First, I have to tell you about the tournament director & his family. His name is Manny Duran, along with his wife Pat, son Nick (Off Axis Team Member), and daughter Desiree, they are some of the nicest, most down to Earth people you will ever meet. They were the perfect host for this tourney and opened their home to me and my friend. They made me want to move up there. The courses were in great condition (considering it snowed a few days earlier). Everything was in order, promises were kept, and satisfaction was reached by all. I can truly say this was the most well ran tournament I have ever attended. This will definitely be my benchmark for any future events.

Manny… I tip my hat to you sir. Thank you from the bottom of my heart & I hope we can continue to put on this amazing tourney next year! I can’t thank you enough for giving our little disc golf company a chance to sponsor your event. It was a great experience having everyone come up and express their gratitude for the customized dri-fit polos, microfiber towels, and visors we provided.

As far as the actual disc golf play, I pretty much laid an egg the second round which put me out of the mix. The last round I played decently but there were plenty of missed shots and forgotten moments. I did have a near ace on the lake shot but Chuck Norris just didn’t want to stay put (Chuck Norris is my beat up Firebird), and a couple of AMAZING roller shots that can’t be believed unless you were there (one involved going on to the street, banking of a truck’s tire as it sped by, and finally jumping the curb onto the fairway).

Overall, everyone seemed to enjoy themselves throughout the weekend. Like I said above, I hope we are in a position to do this again next year. Again, I would like to thank the Duran family for putting on an amazing event, and to all the players selling our event out!

Till next time, be aggressive… but just make sure you can make your par putt if you blow by

Mondo

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Change is inevitable, growth is intentional

Posted on May 7, 2011 by admin

So again with the updates. Rachelle is adding a lot of new items to every facet of the website. If you haven’t noticed, we are now on the main page of the PDGA website as a sponsor. Our link is always present (well most of the time) and hopefully this will generate the exposure we need to really be apart of the disc golf scene. Are daily hits have already tripled so hopefully the sales will begin to come in. Check out the website to see all the new stuff.

I would like to welcome the newest member to Team Off Axis, Nicholas Duran from Pinetop, Arizona! (cheering) He is another youngster who is a world champion(!) and holds multiple long distance records. This guys is going to be a beast when he grows up (not that he isn’t already). We will be playing together for the first time at King of the Mountain along side our (young) veteran Triston Covington. Their probably going to make me look like a fool but perhaps I can get my game together to hang with them. Looking forward to throwing with them come the end of May.

As far as the project goes (which I have many) it’s on hold (along with the rest of them) due to a possible career opportunity. I’ll still be heavily involved in the disc golf scene but it might relocate me farther north. I don’t want to divulge much information because nothing is for sure but it does involve me using the skills I required in college. It does pain me to think that I would be leaving my family, long time friends, & the disc golf community but when an opportunity knocks… I always answer. I lay it in the hands of the Big Guy upstairs…

Last, if anyone is open tonight & in need of something to do in the desert, there will be a disc golf tournament at La Quinta Park across from the high school (corner of Adams & Westward Ho). The event will be put on by the City of La Quinta and my friends from Helix Disc Golf. Yours Truly is the master mind behind the course layout which will hopefully will be a little different from last time. It all depends if we have some spotters that can help us out. Come out & join us at this FREE event with PRIZES. Who says you can’t get something for nothing… you gotta win though first. Also don’t forget Sunday night at Hovley for the weekly at 7pm.

Till next time, play like no one is watching

Mondo

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