Course Construction Log

February

2/2/05
We had a meeting with Jeff Stubblefield today to talk about the possibility of installing a course. He was very receptive to the idea, and had some ideas on combining the course with some walking trails. We volunteered to help as much as needed with the trails as well as constructing the course. There will be a Park Board meeting tonight. We'll have to wait and see what they say.

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2/4/05
In the morning we found out that the Park Board had approved the building of the course. We jumped right on things and picked up some survey flags from Jeff to start laying out the course. We got as far as hole number 5 when we had to quit on account of darkness. There was also an article in the paper about it today!

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2/5/05
We layed out survey flags for holes 6-12, and hoe 18. Again, darkness forced us to delay the rest.

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2/12/05
We finished laying out the surveying flags marking all the tee and hole positions today. Got a little wet towards the end, but we were determined to finish so we would be ready for a walk through on Monday. The rainy cold weather had prevented us from doing any work for quite a few days. We also got the entire course measured.

Having the measurements, Jon made a few minor changes to the map and created the first version of this website. He then went ahead and put the course on the PDGA Course Directory.

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2/14/05
Did a walk through of the course layout today with Jeff. He seemed to like it. He only had one minor change - the tees on hole 8 needed to be moved over a few feet, but nothing that would reduce the length or difficulty of the hole. He especially liked the way there is a natural area along the route of the course for walking trails. We also discussed extending the walking trails beyond the course, and the possibility of additional holes if we held a tournament.

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2/17/05
We actually broke ground for the first time today by starting construction of the first tee. Actually, Jerry did all the work, Jon just got there in time to test out some new discs he. We discovered that we need to make the tees bigger than we had thought. After Jerry left, Jon tested some alternate tee locations for holes 3 and 5. Hole 3 has always been one of our favorite shots, dating from back in our target course days, but the new angle is really tempting. Also, that opens up a better tee area for hole 5. We'll see.

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2/18/05
Jon, Jerry, and Brad finished setting up the first tee today. Still needs to be dug out a bit and have wood chips added, but those won't be added till Tuesday by the park. We then played the first few holes and tested the new tee locations Jon had been scouting out. Everyone agreed they were a good idea. Map hasn't been changed yet, but they are close enough to find.

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2/19/05
Why won't the rain go away when we have time to work? Jerry and Jon were working on tees off and on all day. It also rained off and on all day. The rain prevented any digging, but the landscaping timbers were all layed out to construct holes 2-5. We would probably get more work done if we left our disc bags at home!

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2/20/05
We finished putting in the landscaping timbers for holes 2 and 3 today. It feels like we have the system down now. Not really looking forward to hole 4 because of the slope it is on. We saw several people in the park today, some of them playing with frisbees. Maybe they will play when we finish.

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2/21/05
Finished digging in the timbers for hole 4. Also layed out the timbers for holes 6, 7, 8, and 12. Decided to skip the wooded area until a bridge is in or save it for last, which ever comes first. We also decided to move some tees today. Moved the Red tee to where the Blue tee was on hole 7 and moved the blue tee back quite a bit to behind the shelter house. We also moved the Red tee for hole 12 up the hill a little more beside the new holw 7 Blue tee. The course is getting more difficult every day!

2/22/05
Holes 1 and 2 are now leveled and ready for the park to add wood chips. This turned out to be more difficult than we had hoped. We better hurry while the ground is still a little damp. Jerry also finished cutting the wood down to size and getting a final layout for the hole 5 tee. We finished by getting measurements on the small bridge that needs to be repaired on hole 11.

Jeff stopped by for a few minutes while we were working. He seemed pleased with our progress. He confirmed that the baskets are ordered and should be here Thursday or Friday. Once here, we will probably abandon our tee making until the baskets are installed. He said he will have the chips delivered to holes 1 and 2 tomorrow.

Always looking to improve the course and trails, we looked at a new area today. It is the wooded area to the right of hole 2 down to the tracks. At one time, this was going to be turned into some kind of garden, but those plans will apparently never happen. I'm not sure how much of the land the park owns, I'll have to check with Jeff. It looks like a great place for the walking trail to leave the course for a bit and enter the woods. It also happens to look like a great place to add 3 or 4 holes should we have a large tournament.

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2/23/05
Only got half of tee 5 done today. Spent some time making the map more accurate on holes 1-5. Also walked the woods more in the area by hole 2. It looks like a great place for an addition to the trail. Also met 3 kids out on the course and gave them some quick lessons. I think they liked it.

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2/24/05
Still didn't quite finish the tee for hole 5. Running into lots of roots. Jerry worked on repairing the small bridge at hole 11. That also turned out to be a bigger job than expected. More good news, Jeff told us that a supply of crushed asphalt is available for us if we would rather use it than wood chips. I checked out the pile and it looks like it will pack down fairly well. The baskets haven't arrived yet, maybe tomorrow.

2/25/05
Still no baskets, maybe Monday. Jerry and Brad finished repairing the small bridge on hole 11. We really need to figure out what to do about the large bridge. A couple of guys from Warrensburg came and played a portion of the course with Jerry today. He said they liked it and found it quite challenging.