 | | | The Collins and Chiapetta children of Lamorinda have fun on the disc golf course. Photo Sophie Braccini | | | | | | On a typical October Saturday afternoon the Moraga Commons Park is filled with people of all ages pursuing all kinds of activities. A young woman lays down her yoga mat and exercises in front of the band shell, while dogs and their owners are strolling the grounds, little kids run giggling on the lawn by the fountain, the two playgrounds are buzzing with attentive parents and their offspring, a group has organized a barbecue under the oaks by the parking lot, while some of its members are holding a bake sale on the sidewalk.
Tweens and teens push their energy into the skatepark, while young adults are playing basketball next to kids who think that the sand volleyball courts, unattended that day, are a giant sand box placed there for their own amusement.
A bit behind the skate park, a father is explaining to his two young boys how to play disc golf. From the pad of hole number 1 he points to the distant four-foot tall metal basket one can glimpse past oak trees. Hole 1 is the gateway to a whole new exploration of the park that takes players along a 9-hole well-designed course, up hills and behind trees and bushes, in areas of the park that are seldom used.
On that Saturday, the course was very busy with a mix of Lamorinda families with kids, and some more serious players coming to the Moraga disc golf course for its challenging configuration and beauty.
Disc golf is a fun sport with a very low entry cost, about $20 for a mid-range starter disc (don't say Frisbee; that's a larger disc for playing at the beach). There are not that many courses around, so Moraga's, a course that was donated to the town by the Women Society in 1982, attracts players from all over the East Bay. Parks and recreation authorities in town say they want to preserve the activity at the Commons, but Moraga does not own much public land and competing uses of the park are putting pressure on the disc golf course. At a recent parks and recreation commission meeting, the commissioners supported director Jay Ingram proposal to move some of the pads and holes, in opposition of the Moraga disc golf club, represented by Andrew Summers and Corey Kohler.
Kohler says that he comes to the Commons once or twice a week. He lives in Martinez and knows well the six courses that are available in the East Bay. He says that the Moraga club has between 75 and 100 active members. In the little cart he wheels around the course, there are about 20 different discs. Some are used to go fast and far, some turn more easily, some are heavier and steadier and are made for short distances once you get close to the basket. He shows the different ways of throwing the discs, with a wide shoulder movement, or backhanded and more from the elbow. As he plays with a friend who came with him, they stop to let other parties finish the holes.
Up and down, over dirt and along small paths, a first-time player can be surprised to discover the less manicured Commons and be suddenly taken aback by the beauty of the view reaching the top of a hill. Then players reach the pad for basket number 6. This is the longest hole of the course, but it is a par 3 like all the other ones. Kohler explains that in California all the holes are par 3, whatever their length. Basket 6 is set deep inside the part of the park that is called the Back 40, a flattish area to the left of the bridge that connects the park to the Lafayette Moraga trail.
It's back there that some trouble has been brewing for some time. There are talks of benches installed by the disc golfers that were vandalized by unknown entities; accusation from the town that golfers broke some trees; instances when town employees who were planting new trees were verbally abused by golfers and cameras installed by the town to make sure that no damage would ensue.
Hole 7 starts also in the Back 40 and Ingram says that even though he supports a 9-hole course in Moraga, future use of that space could lead to the redesign of the course. The threat led the golf club to circulate a petition asking to leave the course as is. Some parks and recreation commissioners did not like the fact that many of the people who signed it were not from Moraga. Dave Schnurr stated that the park was a Moraga property, while John Tomei added that no one group gets whatever they want, and that if the town has to adjust the course for the benefit for everyone, it has to be considered.
But oblivious to these tensions, families continue to use the course. Jeff Collins from Moraga and his two children and Miriam Chiapetta from Lafayette with her own two had joined forces on that Saturday afternoon to explore the course. The four children, age 7 to 11, were leading the way, with more or less success, but a lot of laughter while getting a good exercise. Behind them Chiapetta was trying her hand for the first time and found it interesting and challenging, while Collins, more experienced, just enjoyed the stimulating course and a pleasant family activity and workout.
"This is one of the great aspects of this sports," says Kohler, "it is for the whole family."
The Moraga disc golf club meets every Tuesday at the Commons and is happy to initiate beginners.
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Lamorinda Weekly, Moraga CA