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[Vibram] Farewell Trak/Ascent?

Why do you think the Ascent/Trak are out-of-production?

  • Beginner-friendly but not as popular with experienced players who buy premium plastics

    Votes: 6 33.3%

  • Inconsistency between runs and re-tooling

    Votes: 14 77.8%
  • Total voters
    18
Actually had an ace with a Trak, but lost that particular disc in the pond. After that I never had much luck with it. The Ascent had a place in my bag for the longest time, but I've started to use my Gator for the same shots now.
Very excited about the prospect of a more stable fairway driver from Vibram. Now waiting for that Vibram version of the Gator.
 
Trak is great if you're feeling a little down on your game, and you need a good throw to make something good happen. Has a nice in-between stability and a great speed!
 
What is the source of this rumor?

The first time I heard of it, I was looking at Vibram discs during the BG Ams FlyMart. A woman, who was also looking at discs, told me I should buy all the Traks and Ascents I could get my hands on, they would soon be collector's items since they stopped making them.

What news source have I missed regarding all things Vibram?
 
Nice, my custom Ascent is gonna pay for my kids' college!
 
JamesM said:
What is the source of this rumor?

The first time I heard of it, I was looking at Vibram discs during the BG Ams FlyMart. A woman, who was also looking at discs, told me I should buy all the Traks and Ascents I could get my hands on, they would soon be collector's items since they stopped making them.

What news source have I missed regarding all things Vibram?
Click to expand...

Steve Dodge confirmed at the BG VBB that they are going OOP. It is no rumor. He told me to my face. The woman was probably one of two that were playing that VBB with us.
 
NOW, I'd like to try them... I like to throw terrible discs, it's part of my disc golf journey :p
 
I was looking into buying a trak. If the new ones are going to be better I may just wait since I try to carry as few discs as I can.

I would really REALLY like a fairway virson of the ibex from vibram.
 
Six Card Charlie said:
I was looking into buying a trak. If the new ones are going to be better I may just wait since I try to carry as few discs as I can.

I would really REALLY like a fairway virson of the ibex from vibram.
Click to expand...

I still think the Trak is the way to go for newer players. A speed 7 driver is going to give you maximum distance in most scenarios.

The other option would be the unLace for maximum distance, but it's going to be far less consistent than the Trak.

There are a ton of Traks floating around out there. The Trak is still very much in-stock at most Vibram retailers. Check online if your local shop doesn't have anymore.

The Vibram Disc Golf Recycling Group was created to sell cheap rubber (under $20). Get the Trak while it's still readily available.

Full disclosure: the closest thing to the Trak on the market would probably be the Innova TL, which stands for TeeBird-L or TeeBird Long. So if you can't find a Trak, you might look into a TL. Also, the Innova Eagle is pretty similar to the Vibram Ascent, if you couldn't find one, and you would like to try something with similar flight characteristics. Granted, neither of those are perfect matches for the Trak and the Ascent, but they're pretty similar, and many players are just as happy throwing the TL and Eagle, as anyone throwing the Trak and Ascent.

Great stuff! Throw some vibes though! ;)
 
Has Dodge stated why these are going OOP? Vibram ain't exactly over saturated with molds.
 
BrotherDave said:
Has Dodge stated why these are going OOP? Vibram ain't exactly over saturated with molds.
Click to expand...

Probably more than one reason why:

1) It's difficult to produce compression molds, so the emphasis is on getting the Notch/Arch out there. There is already a metric TON of Ascents/Traks out there. They're not going to be collector's items like the Trek, bumbleboot, or Four20s, because there are already so many out there. Not to mention the fact that the X-Link compound lasts so long, thus reducing the need to buy more of the same mold.

2) Trak/Ascent are big hits with newer players, but I think a lot of experienced players don't like them. As such, they are slow sellers, because experienced players are the ones reaching for premium plastics, not newer players (though birdie bashes put the Trak/Ascent in the hands of newer players).

3) More Ascents/Traks can always be produced later. Mr. Dodge has never ruled out the possibility of throwing them back into production, even for a limited time.

The list could go on...
 
Last edited:
BrotherDave said:
Has Dodge stated why these are going OOP? Vibram ain't exactly over saturated with molds.
Click to expand...

It's basically that the Notch, Arch and Valley will fill the voids with more consistent and easier to throw molds.

The different runs of the Ascent has drove all Vibram throwers insane trying to find that on disc that is more OS over the other run. They just aren't consistent.

With the new discs and different rubber you can cover the Ascent and Trak. Valley is icing on the cake.
 
bballr4567 said:
It's basically that the Notch, Arch and Valley will fill the voids with more consistent and easier to throw molds.

The different runs of the Ascent has drove all Vibram throwers insane trying to find that on disc that is more OS over the other run. They just aren't consistent.

With the new discs and different rubber you can cover the Ascent and Trak. Valley is icing on the cake.
Click to expand...

I hope for Vibram's sake that these new molds are more consistent because if they're not, their rep could take a hit. :\
 
TrustYourRubber said:
If the Notch/Arch as good as everyone is saying they are, very few people will miss the Ascent/Trak. Count me as one of them... :p
Click to expand...

Maybe, but everyone was loving the Ascent and Trak when they came out too. Then the Ascents broke in flippy and it sucked the romance out of the air for a lot of folks. If the Notch or whatever does the same thing it won't look too good IMO.

I'm not trying to be overly critical of Vibram, I'm just saying I don't think they have the leeway other companies do. Innova can put out an all-out turd of a disc and it doesn't matter b/c most forget it when they release another disc the next month. Vibram has a much smaller lineup and put out a new disc about as fast as pandas conceive. Especially after the 4twenty debacle (which I didn't give 2 flips about, for the record) I just hope Vibram hits on these new molds.
 
Vibram has become a "what ever" company to me - they just whacked 2 of my 3 favorite discs, gave me a promo tourney I have 0 interest in playing...dunno, don't really care.
 
BrotherDave said:
Maybe, but everyone was loving the Ascent and Trak when they came out too. Then the Ascents broke in flippy and it sucked the romance out of the air for a lot of folks. If the Notch or whatever does the same thing it won't look too good IMO.

I'm not trying to be overly critical of Vibram, I'm just saying I don't think they have the leeway other companies do. Innova can put out an all-out turd of a disc and it doesn't matter b/c most forget it when they release another disc the next month. Vibram has a much smaller lineup and put out a new disc about as fast as pandas conceive. Especially after the 4twenty debacle (which I didn't give 2 flips about, for the record) I just hope Vibram hits on these new molds.
Click to expand...

I don't think we will see these break in flippy at all except the Valley. Some people have really beat in their discs and they still are dang good. One guy posted a pic and it looked like it went through a buzz saw. He said he probably had about 500 throws on it in a wooded course not including field throws. But..... He also said it didn't change the Arch at all.

The Ascents just had too much high speed turn for an OS driver and that's what did it in.
 
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