History
The first time a frisbee ever flew it had not even been named
yet. The Frisbie Pie company based out of Bridgewater Connecticut, had
for a long time sold their pies to many colleges around New England.
The
students then discovered that if they flipped over the empty pie tins
and threw them, that they would fly. In 1820 Yale College claims that
their
students were the first to discover this remarkable trait of the pie
tins.
Frisbie goes Recreational
Walter Frederick Morrison and Warren Frascioni took the classic
frisbie pie tin to the next level. In 1948 the two partners based out
of Los Angles at the time, invented a more durable plastic version of
the pie plate that college students had grown so fond of. This new
version enabled the discs to fly further for longer with better
accuracy. Morrison produced the his first model which he appropriately
named the Pluto Platter after all of the recent claims to UFO sitings.
The design of the Pluto Platter became the basis for future disc
designs.
Wham-O
Morrison sold his design to Rich Nerr the owner of the new toy
company Wham-O. Nerr renamed the flying disc and called it the Frisbee
after the Frisbie pie tins from which the disc originated. Rich Nerr
marketed the toy as a new sport and the craze quickly caught on. In
1967 the sport of ultimate frisbee was born at a high school in
Maplewood New Jersey. This sport now played by millions each year is a
combination of soccer, football, and basketball. The Frisbee takes the
place of the ball in each situation.
The Origins of Disc Golf
Ed Headrick, founder and owner of the Disc Golf Association of
America invented the game of disc golf. The sport is now estimated to
be played by over 2 million people every year in the United States.
There are over three thousand established courses in the US. If you are
interested in building your own Disc golf course they are quite
inexpensive with the average cost of building of around ten thousand
dollars.
The Physics of Frolf
Kevin McCarthy Physic 211 Fall 2010
