Q: Why do disc characteristic opinions differ so much?

A: I hope our answer is as astute as the question. There are several short answers: All manufacturers rate their own discs and they do it differently, independent flight guides are difficult to keep up to date, the speed and spin of the throw will affect discs differently, and throwing at different altitdudes affects flight characteristics as do different runs, plastics and weights.

Manufacturers Ratings: Innova rates its discs on four areas (speed, glide, turn, fade). Discraft rates its discs with a stability rating and a speed classification (mid-range, driver, extra-long driver). Gateway, Lightning, DGA, Millenium, Frisbee, Aerobie, and Ching will also use different rating methods. This makes it difficult to cross-analyze these discs, and independents (such as Marshall Street) have to put together the ratings and flight tests to create an accurate flight chart.

Updating Flight Guides: Keeping a flight guide up to date and correcting/adjusting discs on a flight guide is a time intensive task. When we published our first flight guide, several discs were not quite correct (Frisbee's Bank was way off!). The second version was better, and our current flight guide is our best yet. However, as new discs come out, new plastics are introduced, and old molds are tweaked, the flight guide needs to be updated and adjusted. Letting the guide fall out of date will cause it to become more incorrect and less useful.

Discs Behave Differently: Altidude affects flight (higher altitude makes discs more overstable). Throwing low, hard and flat vs. high, lofty, hyzered flights will cause discs to behave dramatically different. Using different runs, weights, and plastics can also affect flights. When testing discs, it is important to recognize that not all people throw the same (altitude, speed, spin, plastics ...) and that this will cause opinions to differ regarding speed and stability. Innova's four rating areas is the most accurate way to rate a disc (so far), but it is also the most difficult to understand.

Interpreting manufacturers' ratings differently, not updating flight guides often, and throwing differently when testing will cause independent flight guides to vary. As the manufacturing processes mature and become more consistent, and as the rating methods become more uniform (and they will), the flight guides will begin to look more and more alike. The tremendous growth of disc golf is creating a need for an accurate, easy to understand, up to date flight guide, and Marshall Street is commited to creating it.

Sincerely,

Torque Novitski, Marshall Street

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