Cold Weather Discs

[Zeke I]

Do discs travel less in cold weather,and can a a DX plastic crack or break in very cold weather? I'm going to try and play this winter and would like some info, so.....

 

[Fly Stevo Dynamite]

Yeah, you can break disc in cold weather. I'd keep with Champion or Star plastic with Innova:thmbup: and Z, FLX or ESP plastic with Discraft:thmbup:. Use BRIGHT COLORS if you want to find them again. Although if it hits a deep drift, it might be till spring when you get your disc back.

Cheers!

 

[Zeke I]

Thanks fly stevo good to know I have just dx plastic right now

 

[simpletwist]

FLX is the bomb when its cold and wet. We play all winter long and the snow gets pretty deep here. We have only lost 1 disc in 3 winters of playing and that disc was found the next day and returned. At least a 2nd set of eyes watching helps a lot. BRIGHT colors are the rule of the day. Z and Champion plastics seem a little more slippery than X, ESP, Pro & Star. And like I said FLX is very grippy.

Winter discin' rocks!

 

[psudgc17]

I don't know if a certain type of plastic is more susceptable to breaking, but you can definitely feel that the plastics perform differently and feel differently in the cold. To me, Pro is the best in the cold followed by FLX. DX seems very brittle, Champion is far too slippery. Star and ESP aren't bad, but FLX and Pro seem to perform more consistently on my release. It's really more about grip than flightpath in the wintertime, I think.

 

[Zeke I]

oh ya a little further thought duh! Should I play in some type of glove? Like a golf glove or football glove????

 

[shirfan]

oh ya a little further thought duh! Should I play in some type of glove? Like a golf glove or football glove????

You could, (people have brought up Mechanix gloves) but the preferred method seems to be a bare throwing hand, kept pocketed with a handwarmer or two at all times you're not throwing. Wear a heavy glove on your off hand and use that one for picking up discs.

Also, in deep snow, ribbons are great. Do a search for winter discing. And lastly, it's a good idea to keep your discs out in the cold, as a warm disc will pick up lots of snow that then freezes into icy patches under the rim, causing unpredictable flight.

 

[psudgc17]

Well, technically you can. My friend who played in Florida the last few years is testing out some Franklin Baseball batting gloves with his shots. Not sure how I'd feel about that. Having said that, I do wear a pair of "mitten-gloves." Sounds oxymoronic, I know. They're the gloves that don't have the ends on them for fingers, but then have a mitten part that can be folded over to cover up your fingers. I think they're marketed as running gloves. They're clutch for when you want warmth with just a touch of grip from your fingers.

 

[captain jack]

Discs probably don't change in winter as much as they feel like they do, all my discs feel rock hard when it gets cold out, and more soft and gummy on a hot summer day.
I prefer the tackier feel, so , unlike the dude above that chills his discs, I usually toast mine under the heater duct in the car right before I play, makes them nice and soft and grippy.
I also think that its easier to throw gloveless, anything between my fingers and the disc, no matter how thin, affects the feel, and the throw for me.

When its really cold, I like a mitten with a heat pack in it for the throwing hand, its easy to slide your hand in and out quickly, stuffed in the kangaroo pocket on my hoodie. Between throws, when I walk, I look like Napoleon with one hand stuffed in my shirt, but that way my moneymaker stays nice and toasty.

I dont think discs glide much differently when its cold out, but frozen ground or ice does make for some wicked good skip shots.

 

[HeartlessCynic]

They're the gloves that don't have the ends on them for fingers, but then have a mitten part that can be folded over to cover up your fingers. I think they're marketed as running gloves. They're clutch for when you want warmth with just a touch of grip from your fingers.

They're shooter's mittens.

 

[woodstock]

Are discs more overstable when their cold?

 

[smarkquart]

I have never used the Shooter's Mittens but most other gloves do not work well. I had a pair of "Mechanic's Gloves" with really tacky texture, they did decent with grip but their protection against the cold was practically non-existent. Putting on and taking thick gloves is annoying and sometimes sweaty work (which is only going to interfere with grip). What I have used the last two winters is the hand muff you see football player's use. It snaps around the waist and I keep a rag and one of those chemical heating pads inside. While I still wear the big glove on my left hand, I can dry my right hand and keep it warm while I am not throwing, only exposing that hand when it is time to throw.

As for plastic. I have had good luck with Gold Line and Star. My disc of choice, however, is my FLX Surge. Most of my big drivers which require a sure grip usually lose about 60 feet in the winter, or about a 1/6 of their flight. I have very little drop off with the FLX Surge. With a sure grip and a clean release, my mids drop from a 310'+ max to about 260'+. I see no change in my putter's distance, however.

With winter approaching, and I may be starting it now, but you will probably see a debate about using nothing, using powder, or taping ribbons to the discs to help see it in the snow. It all comes down to personal prefernce. It is like playing over a water hazard; how daring are you? Use what you know, or use a crutch that may take something away from your potential?

As for colors, I really like Yellows and Oranges. Even under the snow they have a tendency to glow through it. Dark colors actually seem to work worse as all the junk under the snow like dead leaves and whatnot kind of look like what a dark disc would look like under the surface.

 

[smarkquart]

Are discs more overstable when their cold?

Yes, and it varies from disc to disc because it is a matter of how your disc handles and reacts to colder and denser air, but more often than not they seem tremendously more overstable because you are wearing more layers of clothing and restricting your motion. This likely means less snap and a not so clean technique. I also see more issues with OAT in players as they try to compensate for what their disc is doing and what they think their disc should do because it flew differently in warmer weather.

 

[wolito]

You could, (people have brought up Mechanix gloves) but the preferred method seems to be a bare throwing hand, kept pocketed with a handwarmer or two at all times you're not throwing. Wear a heavy glove on your off hand and use that one for picking up discs.

Also, in deep snow, ribbons are great. Do a search for winter discing. And lastly, it's a good idea to keep your discs out in the cold, as a warm disc will pick up lots of snow that then freezes into icy patches under the rim, causing unpredictable flight.

Exactly what I do. A few large hand warmers in the pocket and keep your bare hand there just until you throw your disc. I haven't had many problems with DX in cold weather, but I would suggest either star or FLX.

 

[DaBus85]

Bright plastic and another set of eyes always helps. For blind shots you should have a spotter. I found discs left outside or cold, the snow doesn't stick to them as much. More overstable?? See what smarkquart says and that seems to be right to me. For keeping your hands warm i had one of those handwarmers that goes around your waste like quarterbacks use when it's cold. I can't think of what they are called sorry and I don't want to look it up. I put some handwarmes on the inside also. And I don't have it around my waist i keep it strapped to my bag so it doesn't get in the way throwing. But it's not bad around the waist also. Sorry i know it's not a lot about the discs. Stable plastic always helps. It's predictable. Under armor or something like it is the best to wear under clothing. It keeps you warm and doesn't restrict movement as much as a jacket or something like that would. I hope this helps. Have fun playing in the cold and snow. It's fun!!

 

[Dthunderchicken]

and can a a DX plastic crack or break in very cold weather?

Older DX yeah it used to crack. Newer stuff not so much. (Or at least I haven't experienced it because of cold.)

As for snow play. 4-6' of red yard attached with duct tape to the bottom center of a disc doesn't affect the flight and helps a lot till the snow gets tamped down. (It looks kind neat flying too.) As for gloves, I just keep my hand in my bag as I walk from shot to shot.

 

[harr0140]

My putters change seasonally . . . spring and fall I use a DX Rhyno or a Pro Rhyno, summer I use a Champion Rhyno because of the gumminess, and winter I only use the Pro Rhyno (because of the grip).

 

[sthomas128]

First
The cold air is more dense and will make your discs more stable, You're wearing more cloths which restricts your movement/armspeed, and, you will lose some distance. Choose discs a step or 2 more understable than your normal stability.

Plastic wise
>>>BRIGHT COLORS...Fluorescent Oranges and Greens can shine right through quite a bit of snow.
FLX or R-Pro and Pro are the absolute best as far as grip goes IMO. The other plastics get so stiff and slick when they get cold. Many times I've seen the KC Pro, Wizards and other hard plastic putters cut right through the chains when they're cold. My R-Pro putters would stick right to the chains and not cut through.
I know a guy who plays with a golf glove on his throwing hand year round, that may be a option, not for me though. I just keep a hand warmer in a pocket for my throwing hand, and, a glove on the other hand for picking up discs

The snow can get pretty deep here. We had drifts a few feet deep last year in winter league (EVERYONE watches the other guys shot...). Last year I used a piece of brightly colored package ribbon, the 1/4" wide stuff (see pic) about 3 feet long taped to the bottom of the disc using some good tape like "gorilla Tape". The disc may bury in the snow, but, almost always the ribbon is sticking out so you can see it. The ribbon creates some drag that knocks off a little distance, but, to me that's a worthwhile trade-off to not be looking for discs all the time and/or losing a bunch of plastic. The colored Yarn sounds like a good idea too, may try that this year and see how it works.

Put your bag in the car the night before to let everything cool down. Otherwise for the first few holes the snow will melt, stick and freeze to every disc you throw, not good.

 

[simpletwist]

Gloves suck. At least the gloves I've tried do. I usually play without one except in the most bitter wind chills. I've never tried a football receivers glove though.

My wife swears by this:

Its doubly effective when you put a couple of these inside.

This winter I plan on getting one for myself. I like the idea of strapping it to my bag.

 

[gkeberhart]

I have found rubbing some carpenters chalk on the top of the disc will leave a blue streak in the snow...the only downside is you look like you wacked off a smurf when you are done