Whether your disc suddenly gets hit by a strong gust of wind, your foot slides off the edge of a pad just as you are about to release, or a strong grip gets in the way of the perfect drive, you have probably experienced a missing disc golf disc. If one of these occurrences has sent you on a lengthy search for one of your discs, then you are certainly a disc golfer.
If you have stumbled across this article, then it is highly likely that you have experienced the dread of having to search long and hard to find a lost disc golf disc when something has gone wrong.
Anyone who plays disc golf will experience this on multiple occasions, but thankfully, there are ways to help you to find those lost discs or avoid the situation entirely.
In this article, we are going to tell you everything that you need to know about finding a lost disc golf disc, so you can avoid the countless hours that would otherwise be spent searching for them.
There are a few different techniques that you can use for this purpose, so you won’t have to keep replacing lost discs that you are struggling to find.
How To Prevent Losing A Disc
Of course, the occasional off throw is inevitable, but there are some things that you can do to help minimize your search time. The first thing that you should always do is to watch your disc.
Most people have been guilty of walking off the tee pad after a bad throw with their heads down, but this is one of the most common reasons why people lose a disc. There is no way to even begin to know where to look if you have no idea which direction the disc went in.
If you are someone that forgets to look, then it might be helpful to ask other members of your group to watch out for it too.
It can also help to not throw multiple discs, or to only throw a manageable amount and keep count of them. If you were to throw 10 discs, it is going to be a lot harder to remember where each of them landed. This just makes it more likely for you to lose a disc.
How To Search For Your Disc
Unfortunately, it is likely that there will be times when your disc just keeps on going straight into the brush where you don’t have a hope of watching it land. Something that can be really helpful to do in this situation is to find a landmark. Keep a mental note of which trees, branches, or bushes are near the flight path and estimate how close the disc passes by them.
You can use the landmarks to estimate the landing zone and get there on a straight line. Weaving in and out or curling can cause you to lose your bearings and get way off track in your search.
You can also try to listen for the landing. If you hear it hit branches, then it might be found in a pile of debris or twigs.
If you hear a solid thud, then this might suggest that the landing zone is in an opening. If you hear absolutely nothing at all, then it may have landed in areas with thick grass. These are all sounds that can help you to locate your lost disc more easily.
What To Do When You Are Searching For Your Disc
When you are searching for your disc, you should:
- Go to the estimated landing area straight away. The longer that you wait, the more likely that you are to forget important details.
- Circle outwards or divide the area into a grid. This will allow you to search the maximum amount of the area in a shorter amount of time. It can also help you to avoid searching the same area twice.
- Consider the angle of the disc, as this estimation can help you to predict what happened after the disc landed. If the angle was steep, then it may have rolled, or it could be stuck in this angle, making it difficult to see.
- Consider other obstacles that might have influenced the trajectory of the disc. Where would the disc be most likely to bounce if it had hit a tree? If it has landed on water, it is possible that it skipped over it or was dragged along with a strong current.
- Sweep tall brush that might be obscuring your view of the disc. Tall grass and weeds can provide the perfect hiding place for your disc. Try to use a stick or your legs to sweep the tall brush aside. Try not to trample on the grass, as it could bury your disc out of sight.
- Get on different levels. Getting down low will give you a better perspective to see below the brush. Getting up high will give you a different point of view that can also be beneficial.
- Don’t forget to look up. Discs can easily get stuck in trees even when you are not expecting it.
- Throw another disc. If you try to throw another disc with similar characteristics, you may be able to better estimate the distance of your lost disc. It will also help you to judge how things like the wind or other variables may have affected the flight path.
Summary
You are bound to lose your fair share of discs over time, but finding them is what is important in this situation. You never know, you might even stumble across other people’s lost discs in your search.
You can use all of the techniques that we have listed above to try and find your disc, and hopefully this will increase your chances of finding it.
However, sometimes these things just happen and you will have to come to terms with the fact that your disc is lost forever. Thankfully, they aren’t too costly to replace.
