The Yukon is getting its own disc-golf tournament, taking place July 1 to 7 in Whitehorse
The Yukon has been known for many sports over the years. Disc golf may not be the first one that comes to mind for a lot of people when they think of northern sports, but the Yukon’s disc-golf community is on the rise, thanks in part to the organization Yukon Disc and its courses that take advantage of the territory’s incredible landscapes. When founder Ryan Norquay discovered the sport, he was puzzled he hadn’t found it sooner and was immediately swept up in it. He started playing casually while mountain biking in Vancouver, and when he returned to Whitehorse, he rounded up some friends and sought to revive the Yukon’s disc-golf club.
“We learned that there was a club and it had been defunct for a number of years since the baskets went in at Mount Mac,” he explained. “It was set-up to administer the funds when they needed to move money from the City to build that course.”
Having a disc-golf festival like the upcoming Larger Than Life Disc Golf Festival has been a dream for Norquay since the first disc-golf tournament he ever participated in. He said that world-class disc golfers will be making their way to the Yukon for it and he’s excited to show the Yukon community the full realm of possibilities within the sport.
“It will be lots of great fun, great times and great people,” he said. “It’s a week of it.”
Norquay was 30 years old when he discovered disc golf and is intent on making sure nobody else goes that long without having the opportunity to try out the sport, as he wishes he had spent more of his early years playing.
“What I’ve come to realize is that to get this sport to the next level, it needs to be legitimized; and to legitimize it, you need money,” he said. “You need to be putting this as a standard community upgrade. It is very low-impact and low-cost compared to buildings and tennis courts and other facilities that really, by ratio, don’t come close to how many people can be rewarded at one time as on a disc-golf course.”
With Yukon Disc, Norquay has seen disc-golf courses put up around the territory in communities like Teslin, Dawson City, Carmacks and Watson Lake. He said he has irons in the fires for new courses around the territory and is always looking to expand, with his sights particularly set now on the tourism market.
Larger Than Life will take place at various venues across Whitehorse and surrounding areas from Judas Creek to the Pepsi Yukon Softball Centre. Multiple different activities and demonstrations will be offered throughout the week, which will cap off with an 18-hole tournament.
“We have potential for this in the Yukon,” said Norquay. “We host world-class stuff!”To see the full Larger Than Life schedule, as well as for information about registration and to learn more about Yukon Disc, visit yukondisc.com
