Red vs. Yellow

Today's Match of the Day is Distance Drivers.

For reference, and because I'm always looking these up on this page:

http://discsunlimited.net/descriptions/innova_descriptions/innova_flight_ratings_info.html

Speed determines the ability to cut through the wind. High speed discs will generally fly farther.
Glide describes how well the disc floats. More glide means that it stays in the air longer.
High Speed Turn is how the disc does between release and when it starts losing power. The disc is spinning at high speed during this time. The rating, from -4 to +1, shows how likely it is to bank to the right somewhat, with -4 being most likely to.
Low Speed Fade is the part at the end of the flight when the disc is spinning slower. It ranges from 0 to 5. A Fade value of 0 should end its flight more or less straight, where a 5 Fade would hook sharply to the left at the end.


In my experience, I throw pretty much exclusively a RHBH (right-handed, back hand) throw, which is what you would typically see when someone throws a disc/Frisbee. Nearly all of my discs have a tendency to hook to the left. The Stingray (4 / 5 / -3 / 1) is the only one that flies mostly straight.

In one corner, we have an R-Pro Boss weighing in at 145 grams and a bright YELLOW.

Here are the stats for the Boss:

Speed: 13
Glide:   5
High Speed Turn: -1
Low Speed Fade: 3

It flies more or less like its stats suggest, except that I see more high speed turn to the left.

In the other corner, we have a DX Archangel, a little heftier 150 grams, in a nice solid RED. 

Here are its stats:




Speed: 8
Glide:   6
Turn:   -4
Fade:   1

Slower than the boss, but with more glide, the -4 turn should produce a very straight, or slight bank to the right, with very little fade to the left at the end. In practice, it throws almost exactly like the Boss, with a little less bank to the left at the beginning.

In today's outing, I alternated which disc I threw first. Most holes had 2 throws with the driver, then a finishing putt (Stingray filling in for the Dart)

Hole #1 (not related to the actual number on the pole) A "rocky" start for the Boss as it took a wild turn to the right at release. Almost lost it in the little pond (this is the first time I've even come close)

Rather than taking the penalty stroke, I threw from there and it landed closer to the pole than the 2nd shot from the Archangel, which took a more traditional straight path. Going to have to award this one to RED for better technical performance.

Hole #2 - Boss redeems itself by making a truly amazing long distance drive.  Win for YELLOW.

Hole #3 - This was pretty much a wash. On this hole, it's short, but it crosses right over the stream bed and there are multiple trees in the way. I threw all 3 discs, and all 3 managed to hit a tree. (Not all the same tree, at least.) The Boss didn't even make it over the stream bed.

Hole #4 - This one goes past the tennis court. Both discs did really well, but the Boss outperformed and allowed me to birdie this long-distance hole. Score another for YELLOW.

Hole #5 - The marshy one. A complete tie on the first throw, but the Boss again retaliated on the 2nd throw, making me wonder yet again if there's some sort of magnetic field in the marsh that pulls discs to it. Red didn't land in it, but it was close. YELLOW wins this hole.

Hole #6 - My favorite, wide-open hole. The Archangel had nice form and sailed well past the distance of the Boss. Second throw put it even closer, for a very short putt. RED.

Hole #7 - Red flew off to the left with poor distance (trying to get over the fence again, I guess) Surprisingly, though, it ended up closer to the hole. Another win for RED.

Hole #8 - Short hole before the parking lot. I thought the Boss was going to ace it, but it rolled to the curb. The Archangel did better than it usually does on this hole, but was quite a bit farther out. Easy putt for YELLOW's win.

Hole #9 - (Getting tired) This one goes over the parking lot to the opening tee. The Boss hit a tree along the way and fell short, with a 2nd shot ending up relatively close. Red's opening shot hooked way left and ended up in the street. The 2nd shot landed in a tree by the hole, but it was not deemed too high off the ground to count. At that location, RED wins the hole on a technicality.

After the votes have been tallied, the Judge declares a DRAW. We're going to need a rematch to determine the champion of these two.