New England Flying disc Association Blog

Remembering A True NEFA Legend: David Stidham

Sat, 30 Mar 2013 00:00:00 GMT

"May those of us that knew him never forget him and do what is needed in our community to keep his memory alive"

"Dave was a great friend to disc golfers and a great promoter of the sport in this area"

"RIP Dave. You helped myself and so many others get into the sport and did so much good for the disc community, and of course the people of Haiti. You will be greatly missed."

"intangible energy, positivity, and awesomeness"

"Dave was just a great person, a quality human being all the way."

"Dave did things his way which more often than not was what I considered to be the right way"

"We are a lucky group of people to have known Dave Stidham."

"one of the absolute best Lead-By-Example people in our disc golf world"

"Dave was a class act, a quiet, kind leader who showed that actions speak much louder than words"

"he made you feel remembered when you approached the TD table. RIP."

"Always calm, always caring, always doing for others here and so much for Haiti over the years. RIP Dave"

"he had a big heart and disc golf was a way for him to give back......and that's what it's all about.........Rest in Peace Dave"

These are but a handful of the sentiments expressed by the NEFA brotherhood over the passing of a true ambassador to the sport of disc golf and the world beyond it. David Stidham represented what we all aspire to be....kind, caring, selfless, charitable...in other words, all of the qualities that make one at peace with themselves and the world around them.

A retired Park Manager for the Army Corps of Engineers at Buffumville Lake in Charlton, MA, David was instrumental in establishing disc golf on federal Army Corps lands here in Massachusetts. Starting with a single object course at Buffumville, Dave's influence and tireless dedication to the sport, along with many other dedicated and selfless volunteers, resulted in the ultimate establishment of five disc golf courses on Army Corps dam sites (Buffumville, Hodges Village, Barre Falls, Tully Lake and West Thompson in CT)

In addition to family, friends and disc golf, one of David's major passions in life was raising awareness and funding for the Coastal Haiti Mission, a foster care program for homeless children in a section of northern Haiti. David dedicated a great deal of time and effort for this mission and the Ice Bowls he ran dedicated a portion of the registration fees to support this charitable endeavor. David's charity work is just one more reminder why we stand in awe and admiration of his accomplishments and the way he lived his life. Moreover, it is a reminder of how much he meant to so many and how dearly he will be missed. Our thoughts and prayers go out to David's family and friends. Rest in Peace David, you are a beautiful soul, a true NEFA legend and you will never, ever be forgotten.

If anyone is interested in donating funds and/or materials, labor, etc to a memorial stairway at Buffumville in David's honor, please follow the NEFA discussion forum thread here

I Only Have Ice For You

Thu, 6 Dec 2012 00:00:00 GMT

Time to bust out the yax trax, hand warmers and home made chili recipes because the Ice Bowl season is rapidly approaching. An annual right of passage into the winter disc golf season, ice bowls remind all of us that there's nothing that nature can throw down that will come between a man and his appointed rounds of disc golf. More importantly, its an opportunity to help those in need with donations of food, clothing and monetary assistance.

Here's the skinny on upcoming Ice Bowl events throughout NEFA land:

1-5-13: 12th Annual Flatrock Ice Skins

1-5-13: Mt Kisko Ice Bowl

1-5-12: Adirondack Ice Bowl, Cadyville DGC Plattsburgh, NY

1-12-13: Tully Lake Ice Damned III PDGA C-Tier

1-26-13: 3rd Annual Bellamy Park Ice Bowl. Dover, NH

1-26-12: Ice Bucket VII, Center Chains DGC, Waterbury VT.

2-2-13: Crane Hill Ice Bowl

2-9-13: 7th Annual J-Park Ice Bowl PDGA C-Tier

2-16-13: 18th Rhode Island Frostbite Classic- Ninigret Park, Charlestown RI

2-16-13: 15th Annual Warwick Ice Bowl

2-17-13: 12th Annual Buffumville Lake Ice Bowl Doubles

2-23-13: FDR Ice Bowl

3-2-13: Cranbury Park Ice Bowl

If you are hosting a charitable Ice Bowl event and would like to have it advertised here, send me the info (staraviar@yahoo.com) and I'll add it to the blog. Also, feel free to send me some pics/stories from Ice Bowl events, including how much $$ was raised for charities!!

Course Spotlight: Dacey Community Fields

Fri, 16 Nov 2012 00:00:00 GMT

For those disc golfers starving for a new course in the dg wasteland of the Route 495 southeast corridor, your ship has come in! Dacey Community Fields park in Franklin MA is officially open!

Hole 1: Dacey Community Park

While this par 62, 5,890 foot course is still being tweaked for tee pad work, fairway clearing and overall flow, it is quite playable in its current state. The course is entirely wooded and offers a challenging variety of flat, uphill and downhill layouts that will require a variety of shots from the bag. Placement shots are key on this course; however, there are also opportunities for long bombs, but accuracy is a constant throughout. Hole 1 (295 ft par 4) starts you off with a bang....a lefty hyzer or righty flick down a tight, flat dogleg right corridor, interrupted by a creek just beyond the midway point.

The course has good flow, with the exception of holes 17 and 18 where you must backtrack a bit; however, I've heard that's also being tweaked. Most impressive is the layout of the fairways. Course designers Jay Mello and Ryan Jette have done a masterful job in designing Dacey to be a very technical course with deceptively long fairways and challenging pin placements. The course is neatly tucked away behind the athletic fields of Dacey Community Fields and is a mere 20 minutes off route 495 at exit 17.

A mere 25 minutes from Borderland DGC, Dacey offers a nice challenging alternative and the course is only going to get better over time. A word of caution, the leaf litter hides many small cut stumps, so be mindful of your footing as you traverse the fairways. Also, for those holes where the basket is blind from the tee pad, it may be a good idea to have a spotter, especially during leaf fall season and winter snow. There are white arrows throughout the course to make finding the next hole relatively easy, just remember to look for them as there are cleared paths that lead to nowhere if you miss the arrows. The first hole is a bit challenging to find. When you pull into the parking lot, park on the left side and look for the practice basket in a raised grassy area between the left athletic field and the dog park on the right. Go left from the practice basket and look for a pathway that goes into the woods on your right at the corner of the athletic field. Follow the pathway and you will see a sign that says "next tee"..this will actually lead you to the first tee.(the sign may have changed since I was there)

Dacey is certainly a worthy and most welcome addition to the 495 corridor so take the time to check it out. You can follow the NEFA thread on Dacey here to check up on the latest developments, gatherings, happenings, improvements, etc. With Borderland getting more popular and crowded with each passing year , its certainly nice to have another choice in this area of MA..and what a great choice it is! To my knowledge, the current course record is at 59, held by John Tserpes, so come and give it your best...you won't be disappointed!

NEFA Fundraiser Disc Golf & Poker Tournament

Wed, 17 Oct 2012 00:00:00 GMT

I Want To Thank Some Sponsors (click on the links and check out the sites)

Redd's in Rozzie or "R'N'R"

Berkshire Brewing Company

Gardner Ale House

Charlton Woods

So we are going to try something new this year. And bringing back a old tradition that has been lost.
NEFA Fundraiser Disc Golf & Poker Tournament and Banquet
We wanted to finish this year off with a bang. So Charlton Woods has graciously let us use the Lodge for this event.
The Date is November 10th
It will be 1 round of disc followed by our NEFA Charity Poker Tourney, then followed by our hopefully Annual NEFA Banquet
All the info is on this flyer or on the NEFA forum site located here.
NEFA Fundraiser

Also we are trying to also include a Silent Auction for people to bid on. We will have some wicked sick items, Kid.
So lets make this year the best year and have an awesome turnout.

NEFA FINALS 2010

Mon, 8 Oct 2012 00:00:00 GMT

NEFA Finals 2012 in Rhode Island
370 Hillsdale Road
Richmond RI, 02892
Camping will be avaliable for $10 a night.

Practice play needs to be coordinated with Norm(SEVEN2SEVEN-641-124SIX). Please do not show up unannounced.

Ams Saturday October 13th
Pros Sunday October 14th

SUBJECT TO CHANGE
8-8:45 Reg
8:45 Mandatory Players Meeting
9-12:00 First round
12:00 Lunch
1-4:00 Second Round
5:00 Awards
Sunday's rounds will probably move faster than posted times.

PDGA C Tier- Endowment program
PDGA members will get rated rounds
Non-member fee will be waived.
AMs$20 (Vibram full color disc for players pack)
Rec $10 (Vibram full color disc for players pack)
Pros$40

PRE REG LINK---> NEFA FINALS 2012

Lunch
Norm will be grilling(not included). Bring cash.
or
you are on your own.

---Trophies---
Bobka originals. These will be available at the NEFA banquet as they will be personalized.

RIDGC has some CFR Discs, proceeds go to NEFA finals. Glow wraiths and Champion Road Runners.

Big Thanks to our hole sponsors...

RIDGC x4 holes
DisCap
Charlton Woods
Jack Bradley
TM Dyer
Bruce Gallagher