"Be a Good Human"

Music motivates at the most primal level.

You instinctually hum a tune in order to get pumped up in the morning, for fuel on the treadmill, to soundtrack your commute, or as the pre-game to a big night out. As much as he treasures his roles as a guitarist, composer, and producer, Cory Wong fashions himself “a hype man,” first and foremost. Living up to this classification, he slings a Stratocaster and hurls “dad jokes” from the stage with the same panache, poise, and power.

“For me, it’s all about the listener’s experience,” he explains. “I want them to have a visceral response like: ‘I feel better,’ ‘That was really fun,’ or ‘I got to escape for an hour.’ You’ll hear my voice through the guitar, but I’m just a hype man. To uplift audiences with instrumental music that has no singing or lyrics is a fun challenge. I’m trying to solve the riddle. If I can get one person to feel good this way, it’s a success.

Straight out of Minneapolis, Cory positioned himself as music’s answer to motivational speakers like Tony Robbins since emerging in 2011. Head-spinning rhythm guitar wizardry, technical ebullience, laugh-out-loud jokes, and radiance on stage established him as both a sought-after collaborator and celebrated solo artist alike. He lent his talents to television programs such as The Voice at the dawn of his career. After an impromptu meeting at the weekly jam hosted by Prince’s rhythm section (where the Purple One often either performed or watched), he crossed paths with Vulfpeck who welcomed him as a frequent collaborator and member of the band. Solidifying a fruitful partnership, the group named their most popular instrumental track “Cory Wong,” in tribute. Lighting up the stage in the band everywhere from Red Rocks Amphitheatre to Madison Square Garden, he remains a cornerstone of Vulfpeck’s storied gigs.

“I try to feature the guitar, but I don’t force myself into being the star of every song,” he says. “The instrument plays an appropriate role. It’s not all flash. I’m bringing rhythm to the forefront where it’s not so shreddy. I refer to it as ‘Covert chops.’ I’m doing things that are sneakily hard, but they lay in the cut. I allow the song to breathe and present myself as more of a composer rather than a guitar player.”

In the end, Cory transmits joy in its purest form through the guitar. “The guiding light is to impart a feeling of joy,” he leaves off. “I want people to experience instrumental music in a different way. This is hype. It’s more than just guitar.”

Sara has been an avid disc golfer since 2007 and started playing competitively in 2008. In 2010, she began running charity disc golf events for her local nonprofits and clinics to help more women play.

Sara worked for the Professional Disc Golf Association from 2011-2017 as the Memberships Manager then Special initiatives consultant. During her time with the PDGA, she helped revamp the PDGA Women's Committee and start the PDGA Women's Global Event in 2012 - the largest PDGA event for a single demographic within the sport of disc golf. In 2016, Sara assisted in landing disc golf on the National Day Calendar. As a result, there is now an official National Disc Golf Day every year.

Sara co-founded the nonprofit Throw Pink (2013) to get more women and girls playing disc golf while raising funds for women's health initiatives. She has assisted in running 10 PDGA World Championship events and numerous other disc golf events.

Sara has competed in 129 PDGA Sanctioned events with 44 wins on her resume, including an Amateur United States Women's Championship title.

Sara also serves on the PDGA Women's Committee, the World Flying Disc Federation's (WFDF) disc golf committee, and the Women in Sport Commission. She is passionate about the impact sports play on women's health, both physically and mentally, and has made it her life's mission to use her love for disc golf to make a difference in communities worldwide.

When she's not working on her nonprofit or full-time job with Innova Disc Golf as their East Coast Sponsorship and Event Coordinator, she enjoys playing disc golf, ultimate, hiking, and playing with her cats and dog.

Howdy guys and gals, my first disc golf experience was in 1995, My wife and I were living in Austin, TX after serving in the Navy. We saw some baskets at Zilker park and people were throwing frisbees into them. My first thought was OMG frisbee golf is a really legit thing now! I used to play urban golf back in the 1970's. After my first throw at a basket I was hooked and have never looked back. After 2 weeks of playing I knew I needed a pole hole, that's what baskets were called in the early days. The internet wasn't a thing so I found a tag on a basket with a phone number. I called the number and bought a basket, the coolest part of this basket search story is that the sales guy I ordered from, his name was Ed Hedrick. Didn't realize who he was until later on.

Fast forward to 1998, We moved to a little town in Canterbury NH, my wife is originally from here. We bought a little farm, I wasn't thinking about farming, I was instantly thinking I'll build a disc golf course out on the property. Disc golf was pretty much non-existent in NH and I wasn't going to let that go any longer, In my mind everyone should play or at least know what disc golf is. With disc golf comes really neat people.

In 2009 I started designing and building a course with my tractor and chainsaw. In 2011 I was ready to open the course to the public. We named it Top O' The Hill. My course is now ranked number one in NH and 28th in the US and 66th in the world according to Disc Golf Scene. That is such an honor for me; knowing I have been a part of growing the sport.

I am a co-founder of the Live Free and Drive Tour, which is a tour highlighting all the best courses in NH through a series of tournaments. We are in our seventh year of putting on this tour and it has grown in popularity so much since the beginning.

I am sponsored by Innova Champion Discs as an ambassador for their team. Prior to that I was on team Millennium for three years. I'm one of the original members of Upper Park and super stoked to be back representing the best disc golf bags ever created.

When Zoe Andyke became a touring professional disc golfer in 2012, she recognized the need disc golf education at every level. With Zoe's background in education as PE teacher, it was natural for her to start teaching disc golf in schools. She gained experience at every grade level to find the most effective methods for teaching disc golf.

​In 2017 she created Universal Play Disc Golf (Uplay) as 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Spreading the word, fundraising, and running disc golf events helped her to fund teaching programs in schools and educational organizations.

Today, Uplay’s programs have reached 10,000 + children ages 4-18 years old. We feel strongly about our mission to continue teaching this very affordable, lifelong sport that is playable by all ages, genders, and ability levels.

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