smarkquart
* Ace Member *
I get what you are saying, but for me I feel like the xcal has a more predictable flight path. Im no pro by any means, but if i throw the river 3 times, it will land in 3 way diff spots. Its not so much a straight shot bc it will always fade to the left for my rhbh, but i know where I want it to fade so it works for my most of the time. If I do have trees or a narrow hole im trying to fit my shot thru, I will use the champ teebird. I have a boss too, but I havent masted that disc yet. I guess bc I started with a dx teerex, I am just used to big fade at the last part of the flight.
Having a disc that fades is far more reliable than depending on a disc that is neutral. Too many factors like elevation and wind can make a neutral disc very unreliable. It is always best to go with what you can depend on.
I was just commenting that two years ago I was under the assumption that a person can get the most distance if they throw straight from point A to point B. The problem is that most discs are not designed to fly straight from start to finish. So discs like the Boss when thrown with tremendous power and snap can accomplish this, but I was finding that I was practically throwing my arm off. This is when OAT creeps in, as my body tries to eek out even more power but trying to keep the body in as natural of a body motion as possible. I have since worked on my form where I place more emphasis on the full body, taking some of the stress off my arm and its joints, and releasing on more line-shaping angles where I can use the discs properties to gain distance and reliability as much as I use my power. This means more flexing lines, sweeping hyzers, and hyzer flips. Obviously this is not the only way to throw.
When I go for placement, more often than not I reach for something with a solid fade, that added assurance that it will always finish left makes it easier to trust it (Gold Line Striker or Star Wraith). Yet there is some merit in practicing neutral discs like the River and TeeBird, at least on the wooded courses we have around here.
One of the courses out here, Elm Creek, is notorious for having tremendous cross-winds. Nothing beats a good Boss or XCaliber to fight that wind and always finish left like you intended.