All right! It is finally all official and gonna happen. I have just finished registering an Ice Bowl for January 24th in Chester Arkansas. It is going to be on a PRIVATE, object golf course. Since it is going to be on a private course everyone can relax and have a really good time!! All of the money raised will go towards the Alma Community Outreach center which gives food and other help to local families. I am in the process of getting a flyer together for this event and am really hoping to see alot of disc golfers come out and support this worthy charity, and this first time Ice Bowl!

I will be working on the course this weekend and alot over our christmas break to get all 18 holes ready to go. I may even tuck in an extra nine on the bottom along the creek. If anyone wants to come down sometime and help with the cleaning give me a few days notice and I'll get some food and beverages together to keep you warm and energetic!!! I will probably even plan an "official" work day sometime in Early January.

Ice Bowl Flyer (http://williewilliams.myphotoalbum.com/view_photo.php?set_albumName=album01&id=ice_bowl_0 9)

We are having a "work" and practice day this Sunday if anyone is in the area. Hope to see a few Tulsa guys make it down. It is a private course so it should be a FUN time. :)

Directions: (sorry should have done this before)

Easy drive from the Fort or Fayetteville, about 30 minutes either way.
From the Fort: Go I-40 to the I540 North Exit towards Fayetteville (#12). Take 540 north to the Chester exit (#34). Take a right on Hwy 282. Go through town, as you see the two-story, green "Variety" store take a left over the railroad tracks. Take an IMMEDIATE right on West Front Avenue. Go 3/4 of a mile to the first driveway on the right and go up the hill.

From Fayetteville, same directions except you are going south on I540, take exit #34 at Chester, go right into town, take a left after the green store, an IMMEDIATE right onto West Front Avenue, go to the first driveway on the right.

It is only 3 miles off the interstate so no too far out. I'll have some food on for lunch and hope to see some folks out for a "work" day.

OK, I have been looking around for possible locations for folks to stay in the area. Unfortunately there are no Holiday Inns in the Chester area !! :)
But I did come across some places close by and of course Alma is not but a 15 minute drive and has some hotels.

Now fist off I will offer my own travel trailer up for a place to crash. It will sleep 6 really comfortably, with a queen, two "doubles" and two bunks. But could sleep at least 8 without anyone on the floor if you don't mind being close. It will be heated and have water.

Secondly, I have plenty of room on the place for you really hardcore guys (or girls) that might want to camp. I have a few really nice spots right by the waterfall, and another that has a beautiful view. Or you can climb back in the woods for some real privacy!!!

Now on places that are real rental places. There is a place call Stonewinds Retreat that rents out Yurts (really look like cabins but that is what they call them). They are willing to knock off 10% if you tell them you are with the Ice Bowl, so their rates would be:
Deluxe Yurt Cabin wt Hot Tub $148.50/night plus 9% tax.
Vacation Cabin (no hot tub) $115.00/night plus 9% tax

and website is: www.stonewindretreat.com/stonewind_yurt_cabins.html (http://www.stonewindretreat.com/stonewind_yurt_cabins.html)

I would love for someone to stay here and try to talk them into putting a course on their property, as it looks beautiful. They also offer massages and etc on site, so if that is your thing.........

The next place I have been checking with is the Chester House Inn, that is right in Chester. It is a Bed and Breakfast style place right on main street. It is supposedly "haunted" and has been featured on TV a few times. I am dealing for a better rate as we speak, but even at regular rates they are just $65 - $75 per night (double occupancy) and that includes breakfast. here's their link:
http://www.chesterhousebb.com/

And there is one other set of cabins, that I thought would be worth checking into for a big group: They are called Deer Hollow Ranch and Cabins. They have a large cabin that sleep up to ten, has a hot tub, and rents for $125 for 4 people and $10 each additional. So 10 people would be $185, which would come out to $18.50 each. Really reasonable for a place with a hot tub!!
Website is:
http://www.deerhollowranchandcabins.com/cabins.asp

If you are looking for somewhere to stay, here are some ideas. Being in Chester you could make a weekend of disc golf as you are only 30 - 45 minutes away from several courses (Alma, Ben Geren, Tilles, Northshore, JB Hunt)

http://www.keepandshare.com/userpics/e/v/a/n/mckee/2008-12/241004-chester_hi_res_flyer-2777330.jpg

Got a chance to talk to the lady with the Chester Inn BB and she said that her standard rate is $75, but she would reduce it to $65 for any disc golfers. That is double occupancy, and she has rooms with a queen bed, and rooms with a queen and a twin. If you put 3 to a room it would be $10 more. Most important things about this place is for your stay you get a full country breakfast cooked for you each morning, and it s only 1 1/2 miles from the course.
Here's their link and the lady said to call her cell # for reservations:
http://www.chesterhousebb.com/

OK the beers are cold and the stew is hot!! The workday has begun. Anyone can show up between light and dark today that wants to help out or just play the course. I know of 5 who will be out around 10, and have 2 more possible. We could have a pretty good mini going this afternoon in Chester!!
But you better come early if you expect to get any of the beer, I don't expect it will last until dark!!! ;)

The LONG range forecast is showing a high of 47 and no precip on the day of the Chester Ice Bowl. Shoot, at that temp. we could almost go for a swim in the creek!! Hope to see a lot of you guys out there. Should be a really good time.
If you are in the area, or want to be, this weekend (or Monday) and want to try out the course just give me a call or drop a note on here. I should be around all weekend doing prep work, so I'd be glad to show off the course.

See you at the Frozen Barrels!!!
AlmaWillie
479-369-4016

who is planning on making this trip this weekend? I need a ride and everyone going that way from Tulsa HAS to pass my house on the way out of town /msgboard/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

I would but I have an NT meeting on Saturday.

Hey Duff, hope you find a way out, surely some of you guys are gonna make it down. The barrels are freshly painted and the donations are rolling in. Here's some examples:
Had a very successful day out looking for donations. I got 3 CASES of canned goods for sure, and another possible 4 or 5 from the local cannery. Got a donation for the food for lunch, and of drinks. Got several ring of fire prizes, including what has got to be some of the coolest coozies I have ever seen, they are NASCAR and hold a 6 pack!!! (we may have to hold a ring of fire before the second round :) )
We will also have a nice CTP prize donated by a local player, and a $1 per throw throw off for two items:
A Mini Basket donated by a local player
A Gaming Chair donated by a local furniture store
Still have lots of feelers out looking for more merchandise. Plan on much more the day of the tourney!! Get ready because this will be a "Can't Miss" event!!
See you in Chester!!

is there instructions to travelers to find this ordeal?

Definitely,
You can Mapquest, or GoogleMap Chester and then follow the signs, as there will be signs from the I540 exit to the house. I am only 3 miles off the interstate. Here are Directions from Tulsa:
Take the Muskogee Turnpike South until you get to I40, go East on I40 towards Fort Smith, stay on I40 through Fort Smith and Van Buren until the I540 North exit (#12 right before Alma). Go North on I540 towards Fayetteville until you reach exit 34 (Chester). Take a right as you get off the exit onto Hwy 282, go through town (don't blink), turn left over the railroad tracks (just past the two-story green building) and take an IMMEDIATE right on West Front Avenue. Go tot he first driveway on the right and go up the hill.

Mapquest shows center of Tulsa to center of Chester as a 2 hour 14 minute drive, but I am 30 minutes from Fort Smith and don't think Ft. Smith to Tulsa is 1hr 45min! :(

I also still have a nice travel trailer up for boarding for the weekend if anyone wants to make a stay of it and maybe hit some other courses on the way home Sunday. I'll hook up water (as long as it won't freeze) and electric to it. Or about 4 or 5 posts back is information on other lodging deals in the area.

Brad...this might be a good tourny for you. Since you can't hit a basket maybe you can hit a three foot wide barrell :eek: and I'm sure there's a broad side of a barn there for ya to:D

ive tried to hit the side of a barn only to miss.

Due to the already exceptional success of the fundraising and can gathering, including a nice cash donation to help with the cost of all of the lunch, we have decided to make the lunch a part of our "Player's Pack", in other words it will be FREE!!! :)
(You can still donate your $5 if you want or use it to buy yourself some throws to try and win a mini basket or a gaming chair!)
I also recieved $64 dollars worth of Taco Bell coupons (thanks TreeShark), so the first 37 registered players will get a coupon worth $2 off at Taco Bell!!
So your entry of $15 gets you a free lunch, $2 off at Taco Bell, and two of the most fun rounds you have ever played!! Not to mention the Ring of Fire and CTP's!!
You better get here, this may be THE event of the year!!!

The weather is looking a bit colder than what was last expected (highs now around 42) but the event is getting constantly hotter. I have had more donations of merchandise for Ring of Fire and got 10 Free Whooper Value Meal Coupons in the mail today from BK (gotta be worth close to $60)!! Also had WalGreens tell me they would chip some stuff in to make the event more of a success!! This should be an excellent event. Players and charity are going to come out of it in good shape!!!

Bad news is: I am going to be sick from work tomorrow, so if anyone wants to preview the course just give a call and I can probably "force" myself out to show it off!! :)

See you Saturday!!!!!

I can not say "THANK YOU" enough to the awesome group of golfers who showed up today!! While the player numbers were not as high as I was hoping for, the donations and amount of fun was WAY more than I could have dreamed!! The folks who came out today showed what Disc Golf is all about, and that was evidenced by the impression left on my "non-discgolfer" father-in-law. He said he had never been around a more friendly and helpful group of people.

Now for the numbers that matter.... Donations:
We came away from the day with 255 lbs of food and $475 earned for the Outreach Center!!! And what makes that truly amazing is that was with 17 players!!!! You figure that up and it equates to 15 lbs of food and $27.94 per player!!!! That is absolutely amazing!!! Again THANK YOU to all who came out!!! You Tulsa boys and girls know how to have a good time!!!

Here's the rundown of the Chester Ice Bowl:
Donations: $475 and 255lbs of food

Division
Player Rd.1 Rd.2 Total Prize

Women
Teresa Duff 63 60 123 Trophy +$30cash and Merch.
Stacey Whitley 60 64 124 $20 cash+merch.
Carolyn McCarty 85 85 170 $15 cash+merch.


Pro Men

Heath Whitley 52 53 105 Trophy and $35 cash+merch
DUFF 56 53 109 $25 cash+merch.
Willie Williams 58 52 110
Evan McKee 55 58 113


Am. Men

Roger Knight 46 51 97 Trophy and $60 cash+merch.
Terry Blanton 49 51 100 $30 cash+merch.
Matt Scott 53 48 101 $20 cash+merch
James Perry 53 51 104 $12 cash+merch.
Chris Winders 58 59 117
Gregg Fritchey 61 59 120
SnakeSkin 58 62 120
Chris Belin 68 65 133
Sam Bowman 70 999 999

We had so many amazing numbers from this tournament besides the donation amounts, that I am not sure where to start! Probably the most amazing was the fact that almost 1/3 of the field had ACES (5 of 17 players)!!! aces in one tourney, and they came on 4 different holes! We actually had 3 of 4 players on one card get aces in the second round (the other player aced in round one)!!
Aces were:
Teresa Duff Hole 12 249 ft Blind shot
Roger Knight Hole 2 138 ft Blind shot
James Perry Hole 3 152ft Double Mando
Matt Scott Hole 3 152 ft Double Mando
Terry Blanton Hole 10 231 ft

Another amazing fact from this tournament was that Evan McKee won BOTH the mini-disc CTP contest for Mini-Basket AND the regular CTP throw-off for a gaming chair!! Way to show consistency with any size disc Evan!!!

Again, as you can see, this was an amazing tournament!! Thanks to all the great donations for the tourney and charity, not only did we raise $475 for the charity, we were also able to pay out over $247 in cash and merchandise, when the players had put in only $127.50 available for payout (17 * 15 = $255 and half to charity 255/2 =127.50) And that does not include the merchandise given away for CTP's, Ring of Fire or throw-offs. The generosity of the Alma community and the disc golf community never ceases to amaze me!!

I absolutely can not wait to do this again next year!!! Expect it, and plan for it now, Frozen Barrels 2 Chester Arkansas 2010!!!

WOW...another ace Teresa!?!? Way to go girl! Those ace statistics are quite remarkable! 5 out of 17 players with an ace. 3 out of 4 players on the same card in one round with an ace, and the other player aced in the first round. Impressive!