Disc Golf at Night – Glow and Lighting Products
The first time I tried playing a round of disc golf in the dark, I was hooked! It was so fun to watch the glowing discs fly through the air. And the overall feeling of playing at night made me appreciate and enjoy disc golf that much more.
As we head into the fall season, as of this writing, the days get shorter and it becomes more difficult to get in a full round of disc golf while it is still light out. It’s the perfect time to get ready for “glow season!”
Glow in the Dark Discs
There are many different molds that are available in glow plastic. If you were familiar with night rounds of disc golf, you might think that glow plastic was just a novelty. It is actually a great option for night rounds, but not the only option.
The advantage of getting glow plastic for your go-to discs is that you can play with them at night, and already be used to how it flies. If your regular discs aren’t made with glow plastic, you can still get them to glow.
One option for getting non-glow discs to light up at night is to attach LED lights. That adds a little weight to the disc, and also makes them non-PDGA legal. For casual glow rounds that is rarely an issue.
The lights can be taped to the top or bottom of the disc (or both) and provides a great alternative to glow plastic. They are fairly inexpensive and can be used for a few rounds. Especially if you turn them on and off as needed.
You also have the option of attaching glow tape to the disc. These products glow brightly and the glow lasts a while. That comes in handy when looking for discs that you threw several minutes ago.
What Disc Golf Brand GLOWS THE BEST?
Several big brands have reformulated their glow plastics and we now have some great options. Prior to these new glow plastics, Kastaplast and MVP were two of the best brands for bright, long-lasting glow. Now we also have Innova’s Proto Glow, Discrafts, Mega Glow, and Moonshine 2.0 (Trilogy brands) that have all leveled up their glow game. Lone Star Discs and Thought Space Athletics also have premium glow plastics.
What all of that means is that you can likely find your daily thrower in a good glow plastic. If you don’t like throwing glow plastic during the day, you could also have a glow set on hand for when you get the urge to huck at night. Or, use lights or glow tape on your day-discs, as mentioned above.
Disc Golf Accessories to Make Discs Visible in Dark
Make your discs glow, and stay glowing with a UV Flashlight
If you have glow discs, or if you choose to use glow tape, a crucial accessory is a UV flashlight. These amazing flashlights not only supercharge your glow disc/tape, but they are a bit easier on your eyes when you use them. The same thing holds if you need to use a light to see where you’re walking. Plus, if you’re looking for a glow disc that has lot its glow, you can look for it by shining a UV light in the area you think the disc might be. If it’s there, it will light up and start glowing.
If you want to charge your disc without seeing even UV lights, check out the Halo glow disc charger. This nifty little device sits in your bag between two glow discs. When you’re ready to throw, hit a button on the remote control and the Halo will charge your disc for a preset time, then shut off. They you simply remove the fully-charged disc from your bag and you are ready to throw. It’s easier on your eyes than flashlights.
How to Make Regular Discs Glow
I since discovered that a few little night round accessories that can get you playing disc golf after dark, even without a slew of discs in glowing plastic.
One of the quick ways to jump into the glow game is to pick up Glow Tape which are designed just for disc golf discs.
These are basic sticker rings that can be peeled off and stuck onto any disc to make it into a glowing disc. You can get enough sticker action out of a sheet to light up three, four, or even five discs, depending on how many sticker rings you decide to apply to each disc. They are light enough not to mess up the weight or flight tendencies of your disc. They also charge instantly with UV light and glow brightly for several minutes.
Now, if you have glowing discs, or if you have glow tape, you can charge them with traditional light, which takes a bit longer, plus lights up your fairway, or you can pick up a UV Flashlight which makes a LOT of difference in your ability to quickly charge and throw your disc.
Flat LED Disc Lights
These little LED lights are easily affixed to the bottom or top of your disc with packaging tape to light them up at night. The light works better on certain colors of discs, and best on plastics that are somewhat translucent. They are inexpensive and last quite a while. They are small enough that they don’t effect the flight of your disc. You’ll have to avoid water hazards because once your LED light hits the water, it will die.
Shop for Flat LED Disc Lights
I found some photos on Tumblr.com that appear to be time exposures with LED lights on discs. Leave it to awesome artists to find a beautiful way to highlight disc golf at night.
A couple tips:
- Although it is more fun to stay in the dark the whole round, there are many reasons why you might need some extra light. It’s good to have a regular flashlight on hand for those times. It’s also good to warn people you are going to turn on a light, so you don’t blind them.
- Glow sticks are a nice accessory for glow rounds. You can tape them to baskets to light up the target. You can attach them to your bag, so if you walk away from it, you can find it again. Also, if there are other people playing a glow round, you can see each other better as you move around. You can pick up some cheap glowsticks at dollar stores. Including glow bracelets and necklaces that can easily be attached to a bag.
- Park courses are the easiest to play, and not trip over roots, rocks, and gopher holes. Although, we’ve play glow rounds at wooded, hilly courses.
- You might want to check with local governments to see if it is legal to play on a particular course after dark. Many parks and courses close at dusk.
It really doesn’t take much to get ready for a night of disc golf under the stars. Get some glow discs, lights, or glow tape, an inexpensive UV flashlight, and you’re ready to go! The flight of a disc during the day is already a wonderful sight. The flight of a glow disc at night is MAGIC!
Let us know what you recommend for night rounds in the comments. We’d love to know!
