Yay me. Mikey's gone but I'm back. The entire universe, especially this discussion page, is in equilibrium.

I have three really important pieces of advice for everybody.

LIFE-CHANGING PIECE OF ADVICE 1 OF 3

Putt close to your body. That's it.

If that's already unbelievably obviously true, skip right to 2 of 3. Otherwise go make a sandwich, cause this part is kinda long and kinda boring.

Maybe a lot of you at some point in your life have had putting problems. The last couple of years, when I get nervous, putting from inside 10 feet is embarrassingly awkward and bad.

Twenty feet? Like four miles over a crocodile moat. Thirty feet and beyond? A hideous heiser flail of every speed and height except the right speed and height, and only randomly close enough. Close enough being inside four feet, otherwise the disc has to actually leave your hand before it lands in the basket.

Sometimes putting makes you want to crawl back into your mother's womb.

So I recently started giving disc golf lessons for real. A big strong guy comes and, straddle-putting, can't reach the basket from 15 feet away. The lesson, after a little sun salutation to stretch, begins with putting so he's nervous, and he looks really nervous.

I say something and he gets better with this and that tweak, mainly because he's relaxing, but I don't get it.

The very next day I'm teaching this teenager how to play DDC and he can't throw the little DDC frisbee into the huge 13x13 meter court 17 meters away to save his life. I tell him a bunch of stuff and his DDC throw becomes almost bearable, with tendencies toward very bad.

And I talk and talk and, amazingly -- and this all happened just about a month ago -- I still don't get it.

Then I finally get it the NEXT day, just because it was so vexing. I was watching the bad DDC kid and yelled from the sidelines, abruptly, "Snap the disc two inches from your body!" Worked like magic.

What this really means, more precisely, is begin your back swing close to your body, and pop it.

So, the short version is throw the disc close to your body when you putt, and don't stick your butt out, crouch down, and have psychotic thoughts, cause if you act on them you'll be banned by the same goofballs and gooberheads that run this illustrious organization.

You know what, though? I kinda like the PDGA again. Disclosed its finances finally. If Steve Timm gets in that'll help immensely. The sound of a female Southern accent on the phone is reassuring. Okay a little mesmerizing.

I keep hearing that the PDGA is trying to find a mission statement. Me too. Years ago I wrote a mission statement for the PDGA and sent it to Steve Dodge, and he forwarded it. I'd like a copy if anyone still has one. It was way better than the current PDGA dual-document, bulleted-list piece of absolute poo that's an outline but NOT a mission statement. I want my mission statement back.

And putt close to your body.

LIFE-CHANGING PIECE OF ADVICE 2 OF 3

Wear barefoot shoes. I got a pair, the FiveFinger Spring from Vibram. The idea is to wear shoes that feel like you're barefoot. Here they are: http://vibramfivefingers.com/

I'm into my fourth week. The first phase, you feel like your feet are sneaking away and lifting litttle toe dumbbells all night when you're sleeping. Your big toes feel like they did 300 pushups in a day on a bet; you're souls feel like they've been on a keegling seminar. Then, finally, your feet rise again like sentient beings, sort of like Lazarus out of the shoe with the heel-to-toe flat soul of a foot cast grave. We don't walk like we did as youngins or Cro-Magnon Man. We've been messing with our gait, our posture, the very nature of the way we walk.

Now, after four weeks, I play disc golf in them, walk over all terrain in them. I've learned not to put my full weight down on any part of my foot when negotiating outdoor terrain. Each leading footstep is a little bit feeling around first before stepping down, the better not to put full weight on a sharp rock.

It indeed seems like a better way of walking.

Does Marshall Street sell the Vibram Five-Fingers? We wish. Vibram can't even come close to meeting demand.

So, in summary, ground your gait, ground your life, ground your game. Wear barefoot shoes.

LIFE-CHANGING PIECE OF ADVICE 3 OF 3

If you smoke tobacco, go to a tobacconist. Cigarettes are so expensive. Plus cigarette companies seem evil.

They ought to change the laws and let the cigarette manufacturers grow and sell weed, too, and tax the hell of it, in liquor & erb stores across the country. That would leave some government resources to focus on more plausibly winnable battles.

Anyway, a pack of butts can cost over five bucks, and costs three bucks a pack if you buy cartons on the Internet. If you buy a machine at the tobacconist�s for $50, after that, with everything, you can smoke a pack o butts with a filter and the same shape as a �regular� cigarette and everything, for about a buck. Plus Vinny said they taste better. He went and got the whole shebang, and now saves money for better things rolling his own. It�s a fun process to watch, the building of cigarettes.

It�s not a great habit, though, is it? Last time I smoked a butt must have been six or seven years ago, at Barre Falls. The mosquitoes were vicious, but the butt was horrible.

Still, tobacco has a way of sneaking its way in, outside mainstream America, I mean.

Plus tobacconist tobacco by the bag is more pure, without the additives and chemicals�supposedly. One of the Pyramids tee sign advertisers runs The Owl Shop, a tobacco shop in Worcester, MA. Bunch a locals patronize that store and espouse the natural � and much less expensive � roll your own tobacco trend.

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I�d almost have a 4th life changer but someone said if I wrote about dips and pull-ups again he�d punch me right in the face. Course, that was before I could do 15 dips and 12 pull-ups, with my new special fitness plan that�ll just have to go completely unmentioned.

Have you gotten your renewal goodies yet? I renewed almost 2 months ago and haven't seen anything yet. I'm thinking it takes a long time to seal it up and float them across the Mississippi to the mail carriers on this side of the Big Divide. :(

Hey, Jason, here's Number 4: Don't lie about other people.

There is hope. Jason is current.
North and South speaking and getting along.

Let there be life on the bored.
OK, I will settle for a little honesty.
What FEMALE southern accent are you talkin' bout?

Grow the sport baby.
steve timm

Clearly he's referring to Addie, who has a wonderful voice.

Coming from Jason, honesty would be very cool. Coming out about past lies would be even better.

Terry that's a scary picture of you. Your son was here, played here at Pyramids.

I also don't know which of my many lies you're referring to.

Sort of seems like a personal attack just minutes after my own welcoming back post. Does this mean you don't like me and are my enemy? How should I respond?

Should we give each other haircuts? Your son played here. Did he know it was MY course? He must be quite a young man.

I'm all about peace and brotherhood from this point on Mr. Terry Calhoun, even if I don't feel it every second.

Your out-of-context, nursing-old-wounds attack on my character leave me cold. You use strong words like "lies," but don't back them up with evidence.

I can only remember one lie, to not verbally abuse a certain PDGA official, that I made directly to you and then broke. It was a doomed-to-failure promise I made, and once you were out of office and I had the right number of beers.

I screwed up. People that know me well will tell you with a straight face that I try not to be as big an [censored] as I used to be.

But yes I chased you away from nefa.com with some brutal verbal assaults. I'm sure you're still sore. That's okay. We grow as people. To ease your squinting between the lines, I do not like you Terry. I have my reasons. If I spelled them out I would first be put on probation for three months, then banned for three, then Mikeyland.

I think, however, it is not libelous to say you do not like someone.
You probably already figured out I'd never report anyone to a moderator who said something I didn't like.

You know what, Terry, I'd almost say let's call it a truce. Your boy didn't shun my course, and you HAVE done wonders in your very unusual, strange, vehement, histrionic way for disc golf.

But please, change your picture. You all groomed and gray with your original teeth and a tie and coat...it's scary.

By the picture I'd put you at 15 lbs. overweight, EXACTLY how much I'M overweight.

New picture please. Or keep the stoopid picture but give me a sign of reconciliation. You wouldn't know it but I'm ready.

I do want to hear about my other lies, first. We don't have to be buddy buds right off. Lay it out there Terry. I WILL call it feedback.

It was Addie. If I call an organization and get good customer service AND and it's a woman with a Southern accent, and she tells you exactly what you called for. That's good stuff. This isn't supposed to sound so weird. These are the nuances that keep people coming back.

You know what it is, though? Friendly people. Makes a world of difference. TERRY I hate Jason CALHOUN wouldn't know about welcoming an old member back. I'm thinking he's not that friendly a guy...NOT A PERSONAL ATTACK...just a little paranoid fantasy talking out loud sort of feeling.

I think Terry doesn't like me. I don't like him either. But I can't believe he doesn't like ME!

My wonderful wife Kelley read aloud a list of obnoxious things people do in coversation, like interrupting and contradicting incessantly. Once the raw data was collected I came out biggest dooshbag ever. So I see where you're coming from Terry, and I STILL don't like you.

I just realized this is why I call Innova East so much. It's always the same. They say about 11 words, including the greeting and then the "I'll see if he's available."

It doesn't matter and no one should ever admit this, but some voices leave you stunned in deep ways you can only deny. Pleasant speaking voices are everything. Marshall Street has pleasant speaking voices -- says so right on our home page -- but we don't have pleasant speaking voices like that.

We need pleasant speaking voices like that. Remember you heard that here.

Literally "talking" about a set up:
http://www.switched.com/2008/06/11/scientists-figure-out-formula-for-the-perfect-speaking-voice/

And welcome back. I sense the shift in your "posting" voice.

Don't think you're off the hook with me yet Chuck. You're going down. Soon as we figure out whether down is up, or maybe up, or maybe down is down but we doubt it. Down is definitely up, so you're going down.

You're going down and we define "down" later. How's that for scary? As scary as Terry's teeth? With the tie and coat. If he means that ironically that's hilarious. Like you, I'm thinking he might have not meant the irony I'm imagining.

People are so funny. Not as funny as Terry, but pretty funny.

Welcome back to the dark side. Is this the first baby step toward "Stepford Southwick"?

this just made the board ten times more interesting IMMEDIATELY. Jason, we've spoke on the phone more than once via the most wonderful online store ever. I think you're a swell dood from the little interaction we've had. keep writing, im reading. :)

Don't think you're off the hook with me yet Chuck. You're going down. Soon as we figure out whether down is up, or maybe up, or maybe down is down but we doubt it. Down is definitely up, so you're going down.

You're going down and we define "down" later. How's that for scary? As scary as Terry's teeth? With the tie and coat. If he means that ironically that's hilarious. Like you, I'm thinking he might have not meant the irony I'm imagining.

People are so funny. Not as funny as Terry, but pretty funny.



I don't know, it depends on your goals for coming back? On the other hand, I'd have to say having one of the most vibrant TDs in the country here is a good thing. That said, here's my post for the year.

One of the reasons Jason went away was due to his feeling the PDGA was trying to force a set of standards on his event that he felt weren't necessary. In this I agree.

For those who might suspect that I support everything the PDGA does, un-categorically, get your knickers on.

I have long thought that the structure of the NT is wrong. The concept that the PDGA should standardize our top events seems misplaced to me. What makes our best events the best is their uniqueness, often driven by the vision or fervor of the TD in charge. That we should try and force such events into a mold ignores the basic nature of most disc-golfers, that of wanting to be different. After all, if we wanted to be main stream, we'd be out with our clubs and little white balls drinkin' martinis.

For those who did not know him, one of Texas' disc golf legends was one Father Dave. Dave had vision and due to his efforts, there are numerous unique and well attended disc golf events in this state. PYMWYMI, the Moffit Show and others were started after his badgering of TDs to take on unique and interesting formats. These events are popular and loved.

I would like to propose that the PDGA change it's approach to the NT structure. Instead of setting a list of standards for what an NT should be, I'd like to propose that there is only one measure for NT status, attendance. How would this work? If you think about it logically, only the best most loved events have high turnout. Those events must be well run! I add that exclamation mark because a well run event determines every other key characteristic: payout, fun, uniqueness, organization, timing, and mini-events, everything else that makes an event unique is dependent on a well run event. Any event that is not well run will quickly lose it's attendance because all of those factors will be impacted; and such events would quickly fall out of the NT category. One thing that could be considered is that the PDGA includes other factors than attendance in granting this recognition, but I would not recommend that. Attendance tells it all and is a direct reflection of every other important measurement.

What does this do for the PDGA? Rather than the PDGA being an enforcer, it's role switches to that of supporter. If something is big enough to be an NT, then the PDGA's role becomes that of, "hey, you've got a great event, how can we help you make it better? Can we provide support in these ways (list follows)." Most of all, it saves the PDGA time, cost, and the effort of sorting through events and forcing their TD's and organizers into the painful role of meeting a number of standards and proving it. They, the TDs, can focus on what's important, running a great event. To be fair, I should point out that in my limited experience the PDGA, once accepting an event as NT, currently does give great support so that the event can meet it's NT obligations.

What's more, I would suggest that the PDGA recognize any event, including those like Jason's and Southern Nationals that meet the NT criteria. Obviously we would not be able support them with member's dues, but instead, we would laud them for their accomplishments and contributions to the sport. They would be recognized as being "NT worthy" or of NT quality. In this way we could begin to build a bridge to those events, and help to build the sport as a whole. In this way, the PDGA becomes a uniter, and leader with vision.

Well, there you have it, welcome back Jason, some day when my kids are old enough that I can travel I am coming out to play your event, or at least be a volunteer spotter.

welcome back Jason! finally sanity takes a bid tone. its great to have you back. keep up the great work.

Hey Everybody,

The jokes on you! He's still nuts... I think he has some kind of ulterior agenda...

Ahh, this was the missing piece... all is well. Pyramids 19 is next weekend; this must be a harbinger of good times... good times indeed.

Me thinks I'll organize a single elimination two man Guts contest after the tourney... (with Mike Dussault as my partner).

I will saw the Jasons in half...

Tell me more about the shoes please. I check out the website and it does look interesting.

those are cool! i'll stick with my Chacos, but they also use a Vibram brand sole, so i am still a certified PDGA supporter by wearing them!

I ordered a couple of pairs yesterday. Hope they will have a little more grip than they look like they will.

Well, since I started this thread I really should respond to everyone.

JoshC, thank you very much. I'll write as much as time permits.

Chuck, thank you as well. I also sense a shift in my posting voice, but I'm moody.

Vegan Ray, no Stepford Southwick here. I keep my frisbee efforts local. I don't fully understand what needs to be done nationally and internationally. I'm torn into little pieces about what would be the best directions for the PDGA.

Lyle, no one has ever referred to me as a vibrant TD, so thank you. My motive for joining the PDGA was to vote for Steve Timm and Pat Brenner. Plus I like the disclosure of the PDGA's finances, even if it does represent something of an internal coup. Plus my wife is the one who really runs the tournaments; I hang out by the keg.

Daniel, no guts this weekend. I'm leaning toward another distance competition, then DDC till we drop -- now that the DDC lights finally work.

Steve Timm and Pat Brenner, always a pleasure to hear from either or both of you fine gentlemen. Hope you both get elected, so you can continue to move the PDGA in a more transparent, more inclusive direction.

Mothrows, the shoes? I can't speak for the whole line of Vibram FiveFingers. I got the FiveFinger Springs. Let's see:

It's hard at first, to get your toes into the little toe fingers, especially the pinky toe.

If it's cold, you're cold cause you're feet are cold. They offer the same insulation as bare feet.

When they get wet, they stay wet, and your feet stay wet.

You have to stretch, cause your calves and lower back get stif from walking differently.

What else can I tell you. These are the drawbacks. The big advantage, though, is that your feet get stronger and you start to feel like Kwai Chang Caine.

Thanks for the additional info.