The Future of DISContinuum

[jim]

Next Friday, our little club celebrates its one-year anniversary!  Yeah!  We've come a long way and have an ambitious season ahead. I KNOW we can have a lot of fun through leagues, events, participation, and planning. So many people have helped keep my lazy butt in gear and have contributed time, sweat, and cash to the club. It makes me realize just how much this little endeavor of mine has grown;  it is already bigger then I am.  And this is not just about me.  This club is about the FUN for EVERYONE . . . . .

I really want members and future members to think about where they see the club one year from now. Three years. I do not want this club to lose focus and disappear.  We have too much energy and enthusiasm to let so many future opportunities slip by.  And I cannot do it all myself - or even most of it.  It is OUR club;  not MY club.

Therefore, I propose we create a format/foundation to grow with. I want ALL of us to make decisions - on everything from rules or sponsors  or money.  Right now, I am Prez and Paul Christensen is the Treasurer. There were no votes; it started with Paul and myself saying "let's just do this".  This won't work well for long.  I am not a good dictator.  And I do not think anyone wants one guy to make/enforce all his rules and ideas alone. I want this club to be fair to everyone.  So I am writing a club constitution. And I will be proposing that we have more club positions:

Prez

Treasurer

Webmaster(s)

Operations Committee (3 positions)

I will outline responsibilites and goals for each of these club officer positions.  I will ask people to nominate themselves for whatever position they want, then the club will vote.  After we have the elections, the first thing I want to do is have the Ops Committee go over the constitution and make amendments. I want them to write down club rules/guidelines. All I ask is that I retain position as Prez through the end of this year so that I can maintain our current momentum.

I will get all this stuff in writing and available to you A.S.A.P.  We have some really extra-ordinary people (and some unbelievable chances for growth) and I want your efforts to steer us in the right direction.  I hope this structure can be in place by June.

Next meeting tentatively set for Thursday, Feb. 21st, 6:30pm.  Please give me feedback!!!

PS/FYI -- The issue that started all this is divisional placement. Who moves up to Advanced/Pro and when and why.  I can't answer or judge these myself;  a standard or formula must be set to gauge when a player needs to move up or down.  I do not feel comfortable forcing someone to play in a certain level. And I would not want to be forced myself.  We also need a strong organizational base for future dealings with the PDGA, WPD, and sponsors.

And really - give me feedback!  THANKS!!!

[jim]

OK.  You've all heard me talk about solidifying the club with a constitution and voting for officers.  Please don't freak.  Nothing will change, except for things running smoother in the future.

After speaking to several TDs and club officers from around the country, I see clearly how these implementations are necessary to avoid future failure.  Loosely-knit orgs like ours can - and have - disappeared because of something like a $75 insurance rider.  We've got a great club being built here with a lot of strong, willing individuals to make it better each year.  So . . . .

I want you to think of how you want to be involved with DISContinuum.  How do you want to contribute?

PLEASE LET ME KNOW IF YOU WANT TO BE NOMINATED FOR A POSITION ON THE OPERATIONS COMMITTEE.

Again, I want to keep the position of prez for one more year.  And I want Paul C to be Treasurer for another year, because of his financial genius (yes, he really is a certified genius).  Mirth has jumped up to grab the second Webmaster position, and I think he's doing a great job. So the only positions we need to fill are the 3 Ops Committee slots.

If you oppose this structure through 2002, let me know.  If you have any ideas or suggestions, or complaints, please let me know.

We will move forward with nominations, etc., at the next meeting (Feb 26th at Potesta's at 6:30).  We will vote at our March 24th Club meeting.

Sorry about the rambling.  If you have any questions, please ask.  THIS IS YOUR CLUB - please help steer it!

Thanks!  -Jim

[jim]

For everyone's reading pleasure,

http://www.disclife.com/pdga_divisions_baggin.shtml

is a link which offers guidelines for deciding on your divisional placement.  At the bottom of this page are 2 links, one for Ams and one for Pros, which you should read as well.

These are informational guielines only, and were written a few years ago.

I propose we have a member Divisional Qualification Day once a year, using distance, accuracy, and a variety of shots to determine divisional ranking.  Again, I would be hesitant to force anyone to change divisions.  So perhaps this might be an objective way to gauge our abilities without singling people out and havng all sorts of stupid turmoil.  A system like this would help to avoid gray-area problems and keep the focus on fun instead of only winning.

Feedback please!!!

[jim]

The only problem in dealing with Best Shot leagues is that it is not an accurate representation of one player's ability since it is the team's scores that are recorded.  The Safari Series, the Widdershins, and the Blast will be a good way to track individual scores over the year.

As far as handicaps go, I think our system (for Best Shot) works OK:

Pros=0

Advanced=1

Ams=2

Novices=3

Juniors=4

Whatta you think?

[CEValkyrie]

Jim,

     Very good points!! You are doing a great job! I like the idea of voting for different positions. I do think you need some help though. I nominate mirth for the web stuff. This message board is sweet. Maybe he could help you out as well on the web page. You seem swamped. I think this year will be a big foundation for the years to come. If we can keep growing & this years events are successful, I see the club growing & organizing some great yearly events. This may lead us to some $$$ to get a top notch course in the area. Maybe get a pro tourney down the road. That is what I would like to see in the future.

[CEValkyrie]

This is why I play Am. According to the chart I would classify myself as an AmII. My putting sucks & I don't throw 300 to 400 feet. I am more than willing to move up if needed but I plan on playing Am in tournaments this summer.

[CEValkyrie]

another source for player classification

http://pdga.com/player_class.php

[CEValkyrie]

I think the site Jim posted & the one I listed above are great criteria to go by. The intermediate described my game perfectly. According to the one Jim posted I would be an AmII. They both were basically the same info. I haven't seen any problems in leagues yet. It is hard to determine but I think everyone knows their game the best. The 3 individual tournaments will be a good way to see how each member is playing. We'll have to wait & see.

[CEValkyrie]

by the way. my birth certificate states my last name Almonte. i was born on 12/14/1989. I will be playing in the junior division.

[jason]

I think the best way to come up with correct divisions for people would be some kind of handicap system.  Each division could be defined as being a certain scoring average.  We could somehow take average scores from league events and place individuals in divisions based on their average.  This way people would move up as they show improvement in their overall game by simply scoring lower on the course.

[jason]

I think the handicap system works fine.  I just think we need a pre-determined set of rules as to who goes into what category.  While your idea of an individual qualifying day could work; I don't know if it would be a true assessment of one's skill.  As you know a lot of us can have either very good days or simply have an off day throwing (like I did on Sunday).  This is why I think a system of average scores could work.  We would have to trust people to record scores to come up with an average.  I think we have a good group to work with and hopefully would not have to worry about anybody sandbagging it.  After all, we're all out there for the fun of it anyway.

[Mangler]

Reading Board Threads and I got to this so...

...Ideas for Support Capital ? Ideas made to accumulate $
in Club Coffers annually.

Strategic planning and Partnerships/Innovative Items and The Power of Ebay

Private/Public Head-Quarters...

The Club can grow as large as it wants to. Regional-National...

I can lend some support on Funding Issues.

Its reach can be large.

[CEValkyrie]

Any support is positve help. We have grown this year & capital is getting better. Big $ sponsorships is what we need to start hosting big events.  

[Mangler]

Has anyone here figured out what it would take to produce a product line of 1 or  5 to twelve different model discs ?  Lake County Connections exhist for manufacturing and distribution. Design Work cant be that much green 1500 Max.
Mold making from China cheaper, raw matereal cheap. Sell 5000 Discs at $7 or $8.
5000 nets you $20,000.00 easy Then on to #2 and so on..

Also Why hasnt any one come up with a better Post hole (basket) Design This seems like a non relavent point but think of the upside. Replacing all worn posthole,s worldwide with newer designs will make the bank account swell. Replacing Traditional Steel Baskets and Chains with contemporary design and flexibility can put any disc org on the map.