Howdy,

Unless we can rally a massive amount of support for the TEMPORARY disc golf course in Golden Gate Park, it will be pulled at the end of the trial period in March of 2005. "How can this be" you ask? "I see hundreds of golfers out there every week, there is no way they would pull that course!" you say? "We are doing everything right in terms of maintaining the course, keeping it clean, and working to minimize erosion and impact. The course is getting tons of play!"

I would agree with you, except:

--> To date over 25,000 rounds of golf have been played on the GGP Course, yet only 400 people have signed postcards or sent letters to the Parks Department.
--> The Parks department has received a number of phone calls and letters from people complaining about negative experiences with disc golfers.

--> A very small number of vandals and hooligans have given us a bad reputation with the parks department through vandalism of the course, destruction of fauna, blatant drug usage and verbal abuse of gardeners.

As most of you know, politics in San Francisco are extremely complicated and, in most cases, it is much easier to defeat something (like a permanent disc golf course) than to build something. With risk-averse decision makers, there is a real danger that a vocal few could get this course pulled. We cannot allow that to happen. We have to OVERWHELM the parks department with postcards and e-mails. And, when the time comes, we will need to pack the hearing with disc golf supporters (more on that later). Right now we are not doing a good job of educating new golfers, or getting people to send letters on our behalf.

This is where you come in. Our goal is to have over 2,000 postcards signed by the end of the year: we believe this will be a good start in keeping the course permanent. We have the postcards printed out, ready to be filled out, and we will HAND DELIVER them to the Parks Department.

WE NEED YOU TO HELP BY GETTING PEOPLE TO SIGN THEM! We need people to volunteer to be at the course after work during the week, and on weekends to get people to sign postcards ON THE SPOT. For every 25 new signatures of San Francisco residents that you get, the club will give you your choice of disc from our selection (including candy).

We need to start this IMMEDIATELY! Ross is printing out postcards today, and will have them available for distribution by Thursday. We can capitalize on this good weather, and get hundreds of signatures in the next few weeks alone. Sign up to get signatures now, the following slots are available:

Mondays: 5pm - 7pm
(Sept. 27, Oct. 4, 11th, 18th, 25th)

Tuesday: 5pm - 7pm
(Sept. 28th, Oct. 5th, 12th, 19th, 26th)

Wednesday: 5pm - 7pm
(Sept. 29th, Oct. 6th, 13th, 20th, 27th)

Thursday: 5pm - 7pm
(Sept. 23rd & 30th, Oct. 7th, 14th, 21st, 28th)

Friday: 5pm - 7pm
(Sept. 24th, Oct. 1st, 8th, 15th, 22nd, 29th)

Saturday: 10am - 12pm
(Sept. 25th, Oct. 2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd, 30th)

Saturday: 12pm - 2pm
(Sept. 25th, Oct. 2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd, 30th)

Saturday: 2pm - 4pm
(Sept. 25th, Oct. 2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd, 30th)

Sunday: 10am - 12pm
(Sept. 26th, Oct. 3rd, 10th, 17th, 24th, 31st)

Sunday: 12pm - 2pm
(Sept. 26th, Oct. 3rd, 10th, 17th, 24th, 31st)

Sunday: 2pm - 4pm
(Sept. 26th, Oct. 3rd, 10th, 17th, 24th, 31st)

Two hours of your time will make the difference between playing disc golf in Golden Gate Park, or having to drive to Berkeley (nothing personal, EBDGC) every time you want to play. Please e-mail me NOW to sign up, so we can get
you postcards.

Thanks,

Greg - Q -
SFDGC President
mailto:[email protected]
(415)509-3437

P.S. We also have an online letter that can be sent:
web page

The parks & rec dept link can be found on the city government web site. I suggest everyone keep up the correspondence while staying very positive with your input.

I wrote the City Board of Directors, Parks & Rec, and the reporter that wrote the newspaper article the following:.

I read your article with great interest because I travel for business from Houston to San Francisco at least four times each year and I plan my recreational time around the availability of the Golden Gate Park disc golf course. Before the Golden Gate Park was established I played at Berkeley's Aquatic Park which has it's own attraction but is not as convenient for a visitor to SF. I believe I speak for the average disc golfing tourist when I say that Golden Gate Park is one of draws of the city. It is amazing to me that the Bay Area is such a desert where disc golf is concerned but that is another issue.

I believe you will find that serious disc golfers and the Parks Department personnel have the exact same goals - protecting and preserving the natural environment. Serious disc golfers are fiercely protective of the environment because it greatly enhances the quality of the experience. One of the main attractions of disc golf is the ability to get outside and enjoy the quiet beauty of the park. Secondarily, the obstacles (trees, waterways, difficult terrain) make the course more challenging. Disc golfers believe that the loss of even one tree branch diminishes the course in the same way that it could on a ball-golf course.

There are a number of solutions that have already been incorporated in hundreds of parks across the US and internationally to protect the beauty of the parks and the quality of the disc golf courses. The Houston Flying Disc Society (HFDS) works closely with the Harris County Parks and Recreation Department to successfully resolve many of the same issues in Houston that you face in Golden Gate Park. Disc golfers share these dilemmas and solutions on internet discussion boards and I know from the boards that the San Francisco Disc Golf club is eager to do the same.

See the club page for

San Francisco Disc Golf Club


for more details.