The Sugarbush Resort in Warren, Vermont now has two disc golf courses designed.

Steve Brinster and I finished tweaking the Base Course on Friday. The Peak Course design was tentatively finalized yesterday. However, we anticipate a few minor changes to the Peak Course.

My design theory has always been that a good course might never be finalized. It evolves over time because the designer has an almost insatiable desire to keep making his/her course more exciting/challenging/fair etc.

The Sugarbush Resort is a project that is very exciting, but also very challenging. One thing Steve and I constantly had to keep in mind is that we were designing 2 courses that have to appeal to many different disc golfers with wide varities of skill (or no skill) levels. During our walk-thru Friday evening there was some feedback that the Base Course seemed kind of short. It needs to be short in terms of where short tees and daily pin positions are located, for the sake of resort guests that perhaps have never played a round of disc golf in their life. The long tees offer different challenges and more length. However, short layouts need not imply that a course isn't fun or isn't challenging or doesn't offer crazy variety. Steve and I believe we have come up with a great mix of holes from both the short and long tees.

Another thing to keep in mind is that for tourneys we have alternate sleeves in mind that will allow us to combine 2 holes into one and add some Par 4's and 5's. So make sure as word spreads about the Sugarbush Base Course that you remember that your tourney experience will be very different from daily play. And of course you'll need to keep in mind that if you truly want a memorable disc golf experience unlike any you've ever had, then the Peak Course is for you.

Here is what Steve Brinster posted this morning on the Skylands site:

"Sugarbush is going to be sick! The Peak Course will be the most extreme course that I have ever seen. The course is going to measure about 9000+ ft but "it plays" much shorter. Its a totally different kind of disc golf. There is trouble everywhere and the person that stays out of trouble will score the best. This course is not going to be about who gets the most birdies but who avoids the big numbers. I can't wait to hear some feed back and stories about how someone 2'd a hole or how they took an 8. Hole 15 mighty gaw is a good example of a hole at sugarbush. Whether you took a 2 or a 10 this will be one of the most memorable courses that you will ever play!"

I second that opinion. Throw away any notions or thoughts about what the length of a hole means. Here is a perfect example: We have a 300-foot hole that plays more like 420 feet, and an 800-foot hole that plays more like 450 feet. So those 2 holes play almost the same distance as each other and yet they are actually 500 feet different in length.

Once again Steve and I had some unique design challenges as we worked on the Peak Course. Given the extreme nature of Sugarbush's Lincoln Peak it was difficult to make holes really really long in actual distance without bringing into play extremely steep downhill terrain. However, I seriously doubt if anyone will complain about the lack of length or steep holes. Those are relative terms. We also needed to design a Peak Course that wouldn't be ridiculously cruel to a beginner. This course dishes out punishment equally to players of all skill levels. The better you are the longer your discs fly, which isn't always good on a downhill windy course. Steve threw one shot that might still be in flight this morning. Star practicing your downhill throws. This is Disc Golf on an unparalleled level.

One really cool aspect of the Peak Course is that you'll be able to bring your mountain bikes up the SuperBravo Express Chairlift with you and play the Peak Course on your bike!

Oh, and I forgot one minor detail:

SCENERY TO MAKE YOU DROOL....UNCONTROLLABLY....FOR HOURS...

Spectacular views. Rushing mountain streams. Wildlife. And at peak leaf-changing season, like during the week of the Sugarbush Open NT / B-Tier event, the colors will be unreal.

The Base Course and Peak Course are scheduled to open on June 30th. I'd strongly suggest that anyone considering playing in the Sugarbush Open in September either come play in the opening one-day tourney on July 29th or come up another weekend and stay at Sugarbush for a few days and check out these 2 courses.

Stay tuned for more details as we continue with this project. Special kudos to Laura Worthen and Matt from Sugarbush who were with us all 4 days of the design process this weekend. They will be spearheading the installation and are extremely psyched about Disc Golf coming to their resort. They can use any volunteer help you can lend, by the way. Special thanks also to Jen Padham for filming the design process, and to Lesli Demark for tempering the sick design thoughts that seemed to infest the cruel minds of the 2 designers (Brinster and Doyle).

Dan Doyle
PDGA #310
Warwick, NY and honorary Sugarbush, VT

WOOHOO!!!!!!!!!!

The Sugarbush Resort now has 36 installed baskets!!

The Base Course and the Peak Course are now completed and awaiting the official Opening Day on June 30th. The Peak Course will be a disc golf experience unlike any other.

Our first official event will be a one-day non-sanctioned event on Saturday June 29th the day after the Vermont States.

Don't miss out on a spectacular disc golf experience.

dan doyle

From: http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070720/LIVING/707200326/1004


<font size=5>Discovering disc golf</font>

By Maggie Hibma
Free Press Staff Writer

July 20, 2007
WARREN -- If you are looking for something to put on your summer to-do list, add this: Sugarbush. There might not be any snow, but with its true Vermont colors and relaxing atmosphere, the mountain in the Mad River Valley is a great place to spend a summer day.

Especially if you like Frisbee golf.

Regular golf isn't my thing (but apparently is it for a lot of other people at Sugarbush -- the golf course is busy). I can't think of anything worse than trying to hit a teeny ball into what seems to be an even smaller hole in the ground 18 times over. But I went up to Sugarbush recently, in 110-degree weather, with an open mind, ready to try disc golf.

J.J. Toland, communications director of Sugarbush Resort, met me at the bottom of the Lincoln Peak Village. As we walked, he in his mountain boots, I in my flip-flops, we talked about Sugarbush's new additions to the resort.

"Our goal is to make Sugarbush a true four-season resort," Toland said. "With the new Lincoln Peak Village, which opened in December, we are hoping to bring the resort into the 21st century."

Apparently, disc golf is the wave of the future. With two courses and two tournaments on the agenda, Sugarbush is becoming the disc golf destination. Honestly.

For those unfamiliar with Frisbee, or "disc" golf, as I was, it varies only slightly from regular golf. The course is equipped with 18 holes, two sets of starting tees (one for professionals, one for newbies) and different types of discs for each kind of throw. Discs come in different weights, just like golf clubs. Some are designed for distance, others for accuracy, and some are designed to lean to the right or the left -- hook or slice.

Just like golf, you can go way over the suggested number of attempts. I did. Par on most of Sugarbush's holes is between three and five throws, but I definitely had more bogeys than birdies. The resort offers two courses: The first one is called the Peak Course and players play downhill after a ride up on the Super Bravo lift. The one Toland and I played on is called the Base Course, which doesn't always keep you at the base -- the course winds around the mountain, sometimes uphill.

As we began to walk the course, I was struck by how interesting the mountain was. I had never been to Sugarbush without snow, and I had forgotten how the different shades of green filled out the terrain against the blue sky. Sometimes, living in Vermont all your life lets you take for granted what there is to see. As we began the first hole, Toland explained why the Base Course was positioned so close to the Village.

"Sugarbush is really a family place. We designed these courses with kids in mind. So, if the kids are getting rambunctious, mom and dad can sit by the pool and relax while the kids tire themselves out playing Frisbee golf."

And tired they will be. The Base Course is by no means a leisurely walk. The "holes" -- standing baskets with chains hanging down -- are positioned in trees, around the corner and sometimes even out of sight.

However, all skill levels can play. I had never played before and, after getting the hang of it, had some pretty good shots. Toland claimed he had never played before, but if we had been keeping score, there is no question that he would easily eclipsed my less-than-perfect score.

Next time, I'll wear sturdier shoes, bring some bug spray and bottles of water. I will also bring along 10 other friends, some of whom I know I can beat.

As Toland and I walked down the mountain after playing, I realized that this is what I had been looking for this summer -- something to do with my time that wasn't sitting on the couch watching MTV reruns. It might have been hot, and I might need to refine my throwing skills, but Frisbee golf reminded me that Vermont, after all these years, still has a lot to offer.

Contact Maggie Hibma at 660-1860.

Want to play?

Sugarbush's two disc golf courses are open all week for players of all ages and abilities. "Greens" fees for the Base Course are $5 (adults) and for the Peak Course they are $15. For more information, call 583-6300.

Tourney time


The inaugural Disc Golf tournament on the Sugarbush Resort's new Base and Peak courses will be held July 29. This non-sanctioned event will be played with baskets in the tournament setup that will be used for the 2007 Sugarbush Open National Tour/B-Tier event to be held in September. One round will be played on the Base Course, another on the Peak Course.

Entry fees range from $20 to $50, depending on ability, and the field is limited to 104 players.

For more information see www.sugarbush.com (http://www.sugarbush.com)