Disc golf: Why a disc gets more understable in a headwind

If you didn’t know, now you do …

Into a headwind, discs fly more understable.

You could be launching an Opto Air Diamond. You could be tugging on a Lux Vapor Tilt. Or, the disc could be something in-between. It doesn’t matter: The end result will be the same …

More understability.

But why is this the case?

Headwinds trick discs.

In no wind whatsoever, when Eagle McMahon bombs a disc, it encounters resistance. It’s man-made resistance, but it’s resistance, nonetheless. He can throw hard – this makes sense.

In no wind whatsoever, when I “bomb” the exact same disc, it encounters LESS resistance. Similarly, said resistance is man-made. However, I can’t throw hard. Eagle’s elite-level arm speed requires him to throw more overstable discs to account for what he’s capable of. My woefully mortal arm speed requires I throw more understable discs to account for it.

Kapish?

Here’s how wind gets involved …

My pedestrian, uninspiring arm throwing into a headwind makes the disc think it’s being thrown harder than it’s actually being thrown. Again, this is a resistance thing. Only, unlike the above example with Eagle, it’s not my arm that’s providing said resistance – it’s the headwind.

For the average, amateur arm, a Star Destroyer will fly like a longer, more glidey Firebird. Into a 25-mph headwind, however, that same Star Destroyer produces a more Heimburg-esque flight …

Just WAY shorter.

Naturally, when you encounter a stiff headwind, disc up.

Or, in other words, opt for more beef than you normally would.

Ultra-windy rounds suck.

Use your newfound knowledge to your advantage.

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