After my winter months in sunny California, I was ready to get back to my touring ways. First stop, La Vie En Rose, and all women’s tournament in Florida co-directed by 5x world champion Juliana Korver. Not only was I pumped for the first big tournament of the year, the course was set up on a campground, which means lots of time hang out with everyone!

I fly nonstop into Jacksonville around 11pm to get picked up by mom and Liz Shooner from Kentucky. They have been traveling around Florida (along with Lisa Warner and her 3 little dogs) for about a week at this point so I was greeted with big smiles, and lots of funny stories. We roll back to the campsite where they set up a makeshift spot in the back in primitive camping. Sarah Stanhope, her boyfriend Aaron and his dog, ironically named Sarah too, stayed up til around 3 catching up on life that night.

Liz and I sandwiching Lisa’s dog, Buzz

Up at what seemed the crack of dawn (Cali time), I wake up to Lisa yelling and Liz laughing in the other tent. Nothing was happening, just the usual between the two of them. We ended up packing up our little campsite and staking out a HUGE site just down the way. This spot was perfect to fit all the women campers we were expecting for the week. It was the perfect little village.Being the nerdy creative chicks we are we made signs and hung up balloons to motion all the women disc golfers to come join the party. Fortunately the balloons didn’t fly away and word was passed around, and before we knew it we had a great party campsite!

Me trying to play “Single Ladies” by Beyonce, the anthem of the weekend.

Most everyone came into town on Thursday night, so we planned the party. We created Mexican night- Margaritas and Burritos- and luckily enough the campground was having Karaoke night. How perfect? We were finishing up our feista and sitting around the campfire wondering if we should really hit up this Karaoke here at the campground. We figured we’d be the only ones there, but what the heck it’ll be a good time!

About 10 of us pile into the rent-a-van and head down the way to the Karaoke hall. As we walk behind the Cafe we realize its actually a Karaoke barn/auditorium FULL of locals. Lots of older westerned dressed people, and a handfull of younger kids. Of course we caused a scene the moment 10 ladies walked into a joint like this. We giggled to ourselves and found a big table in the back.

The people that kept going on stage were requesting to sing the slloowwwest and the most depressing country songs around. And it didn’t matter how awful the singer, couples would be romantically slow dancing below the stage. It was too funny. We sat through a good hour of singers, and meanwhile Liz is secretly signing us all up for songs. She counted out 10 pages of Elvis songs, if that doesn’t tell you something about this place. The evil grin on her face proved that she was picking the most embarrassing songs for us all. I’m not a shy girl so I didn’t mind and was excited for my turn to see what Liz had come up with.

We waited and waited, and soon people of our group started to drop like flies. I’m not sure if they just hated the music or where skipping out before they were called up to sing their karaoke song.. (I think a little bit of both!)

Finally Liz talks the waitress into getting the Karaoke guy to call my name. “Valarie, Youre Up!” he preaches over the microphone. The girls start whooping and yelling of course because the time has come. Mind you, I still don’t know what song I’m singing yet! I pass the mass tables and finally get up on stage, and ask the Elvis look-a-like Karaoke man what song I’m singing. “Like a Virgin by Madonna”, he says. I could have guessed! So anyways, I’m excited, so I start getting into the intro music and I’m dancin up there with the guy waiting for the words to pop up. Okay.. Here we go… I know its supposed to start and all I see is a block up on the screen. It was weird I thought, so I kept dancing waiting until the next chorus maybe it’ll start then, and… nothing. So I end up entertaining the crowd by dancing up on stage for the whole song. I’m jumpin around and breaking out moves these grey haired ladies have never seen. The Elvis man is gettin down with his cane, and I’m air slapping him for which I even got an encore to do it again by the front row of ladies. The song wound down, and an uproar of yelling began. Needless to say it was a great opener to the ladies weekend!

I’m just a blur cuz I was dancing so fast! haha

We continued the fun as I was then followed by Sarah and Aaron with a Johnny Cash song, and even Sara Nichols stood up there for her first Karaoke song EVER! You go girl!

“And it burns, burns, burns, that ring of fiiire!”

The weather didn’t hold out like we had hoped and it ended up raining that Friday night into Saturday morning. Even through the weather, we continued the party throughout the week, and even onto the course. I didn’t play the best rounds but I did play with some great ladies out there. This course definitely got me to focus on throwing my sidearms, and I will brag that I CTP-ed a hole against Sarah- Sidearm to Sidearm.. :o) I probably looked crazy out there throwing my sidearms in a tournament since it’s not my strong suite. But, I figured that I would eventually have to force myself to throw them under pressure, that is the only way I will get better. Kind of like putting in practice how it seems so simple, and then how the basket shrinks when your competiting and putting seems impossible some days. Although, I shanked a couple shots, I still worked on it because, I’ll be honest, it was the only way to the hole sometimes.. I beared through the weekend and tried my best, but I had to just face that this course wasn’t set up to my game. There were lots of placement shots, and many were an ackward length for my drive and accuracy.

Saturday was another great night. We all piled into Sarah and Aarons cabin and potlucked on a huge spaghetti dinner. After finishing it off we heade to the “tree house”. This was this sweet pad that Pam Reineke and Sandy Gast rented for the week. It was a raised cabin surrounded by palm trees that overlooked a huge field that would be filled with music lovers and concerts in the summer time. It was such a prime location and had space underneath with pinic tables and a fire pit. We were lucky enough that night to even get a fireworks show by some “crazy kids”. These huge morter shell fireworks were so close that made me feel like a little kid all over again because I was so impressed.

The Girls!

After the fireworks show ended and the park rangers came on prowl, we moved the party to the “players party” they had planned that night. Everyone must have been pooped out because we were the first and only ones there. A band was jamming out underneath the florescent lights and a fire and been stoked just outside. We danced out to the music, and the band decided to pick up and move closer to us, for our entertainment. We shouted out a couple of requested and ended up jumpin and dancing around the fire. One of the band members ran to the van and grabbed us instruments like maracas and noisemakers so we could play along. I’m sure we clashed and sounded horrible but it was a blast!

Campfire Times

We continued the party back to our campsite where we found the real players party at our campsite. The fire was stoked and somehow a bundle of glowsticks were being thrown about. I can’t even tell you how entertained we became when the camera came out and we all participated in “Shake Face” (see below). It’s a growing trend that will soon be taking over a disc golf party near you. The only directions are to let your face go limp as possible and shake and rattle your brain as fast as possible. The pictures you will capture in the midst of the shaking are PRICELESS!!! When we got creative with the glowsticks in the back the pictures were so amusing!

Left to Right, Top to Bottom: Gregg Hossfeld, Liz Carr, Liz Shooner, Me, Karolyn Garlock, Kate Papenthein, Angela Tschiggfrie, Matt Peckham, Heather Damron

At the end of Sunday’s round, They paired up the top 6 Pro and the top 6 Ams to play a elmination doubles round. Juliana, Liz and I had all tied for 5 so we had a playoff for the last spots in the doubles- Liz graciously let us win :oP I took the 5th spot which means I got paired with the 2nd place Am lady, Nicole Douglas. I’ll be the first to admit that she was carrying me around the first couple of holes, but I finally got to show my talents when we got out to some safari open holes. I’d say that this was the best hole I had all weekend, huge drive and big jump putt, nothing like I was doing all weekend, unfortunately.. Nicole and I had a blast, we were a pretty solid team and got pretty far until we were forced into a putt off with Liz Carr and Lori Merrimen. Liz and Lori ended up winning the playoff on the final hole, and won the secret prize of a couple of Juliana’s acclaimed quilts. So sweet!

Nicki and I

With all that said, I proclaim this tournament the best woman’s tournament I have ever been to! I don’t think I’ve had so much fun or laughed so hard with this mass amount of women before. It was a really great experience to spend all weekend and get to meet everyone as we camped the week. Thanks to Juliana, Denny Ritner, and all the staff for running such a great event! On behalf of the ladies– We really appreciate it! You’re hard work paid off- because we will be back!!

Big Props to Sarah!! She crushed the field with her wicked sidearm and great putting. Even though I always hope to win, I was happy that Sarah got this one under her belt, she deserves it. The best player wins- and this week Sarah prevailed through us all! But I’ll put up a fight to say who won the party!! ;o)