My brain has been pretty mushy for a few days now, so rather than my standard pretentious, "intelligent" posts (when I go back and read my posts sometimes I feel like a real ass, I seem to be always talking about stuff like I know much of anything about anything. You bloggers out there probably know what I'm talking about.) I'm going to post on a new found hobby: disc golf.
For those of you who don't know what disc golf is: Imagine golf, but with a bag of frisbee-like discs rather than clubs and metal baskets rather than holes and you've pretty much got it.
I've never been one for weekend sports, but I've really fallen for disc golf. My father-in-law got me into it, and now I can't seem to stop playing. It is a great excuse to get outside, spend some time with loved ones (or by yourself), and just have a good time. Plus, unlike golf, disc golf is something that just about anyone can play (who doesn't know how to throw a frisbee?).
I know all of this isn't very interesting, so I'll end this part of the post with saying "If you haven't every played before you should try. It is a blast!"
Unfortunately, enjoying a sport doesn't make you good at it. That brings me to the earth's mightiest ball, the powerball. One of the reasons I'm not good at frisbee golf is that I have little-girl wrists. I realized this, so I was doing some research on strengthening my wrists and came across the powerball.
The powerball is a simple, yet amazing little device. It is basically a gyro in spherical casing. You use your hand to spin that gyro up to 15,000 rpm! When it gets up to that speed it creates around 40 lbs of centripetal force, therebye giving your hand, arm, and shoulder a great workout.
I got mine in a couple of days ago and if it wasn't for the fact that my arms fill up with battery acid after a few minutes with this devil sphere I wouldn't be able to put the thing down. That's part of the reason for its effectiveness. It is great fun to see how fast and how long you can spin it.
If this interests you at all I would suggest you check out their website (man, I should get marketing fees for this).
Posted by amduffy at January 26, 2005 05:00 PM | TrackBackHe said battery acid. LOL
The ball sounds like a lot of fun. You have made me really want to try it out. I might have to get one.
Posted by: gid at January 26, 2005 09:36 PMBy the way, what ball do you have. It looks like there are several different types? Did you get the one with the digital speed meter?
Posted by: gid at January 26, 2005 09:41 PMI thought this was going to some profound tie between frisbees and the lottery.
Posted by: dd at January 26, 2005 10:40 PMI bought the standard 250Hz ball (no lights). I didn't buy it with the speed meter b/c it added to the price considerably. I figured if I liked the thing that I could always add the speed meter in later, which I am definitely planning on doing. It would be cool to be able to see exactly how fast I'm going.
Posted by: aduff at January 27, 2005 12:50 PMI agree Aduff; disk golf is a good time. Graebner was telling me about that powerball. That’s pretty amazing. Does it work your shoulder at all? The reason that I am asking is because when I play disk golf, I can only use the hammer throw (over-the-head throw for those not down with the disk golf lingo) if I want to be somewhat accurate. If I throw a forehand or backhand, I usually get a mean hook or slice (can you use golf lingo for disk golf lingo?). After about 7 or 8 holes however, my right arm feels like its going to fall off. I guess that might be in the area of mechanics rather than strength.
Posted by: Paul at January 28, 2005 12:18 PMYeah, it does work your shoulder somewhat. It won't give you big Bruce Lee type shoulders, but it does put some stress on the joint and supporting muscles, which is helpful for stabilizing your throw.
I'm a big fan of the hammer myself (mostly b/c my cross-body and sidearm throws go about 5 feet). I've found that you can throw the hammer "from your back" rather than "from your shoulder" which generally gives you more distance with less chance of hurting yourself (your poor shoulder joint can only take so much). Next time you play try concentrating on using your back for power rather than your shoulder.
Posted by: aduff at January 28, 2005 04:31 PMmy brother has one of those things. i don't know if it is the true "poweball" one but that is probably overrated. it is amazing. i could never start it with my hand.
Posted by: benner at February 3, 2005 02:10 PM