The forest adjacent Lake Trail Community Middle School has transformed into a play space for students and the community to benefit from a year-round outdoor recreation.
The school partnered with Comox Valley Disc Golf Club (CVDGC) to install a 12-hole disc golf course along the path that weaves through the forest off Lake Trail Road in the West Courtenay community.
The project was initiated by teachers Jeff Hoy and Tim Horner with the help of the school Parent Advisory Council.
“The woods behind Lake Trail Community Middle School double as a classroom for our students, providing an incredible resource for outdoor education,” said Horner. “This initiative not only provides an opportunity for year-round outdoor physical education, it creates a space for students to embrace stewardship of their immediate surroundings. We thank the Comox Valley Disc Golf Association and the greater community for their hard work and collaboration to bring this course to fruition.”
This disc golf course is part of a greater initiative to provide inclusive, alternate, outdoor and community-based physical education for the students. The course is part of a larger project installation that includes an outdoor circuit training course along the perimeter of the upper field adjacent the school. Both initiatives align with the need for accessible, low-cost recreation and provide a multi-use, flexible space for people of all ages and abilities.
While school is out for the summer, it is a perfect time for everyone in the community to try it out. It’s a sport that has taken everyone by surprise, according to Jim Cunningham, vice- admiral CVDGC.
The Lake Trail course becomes the fourth in the Comox Valley to be installed by CVDGC. Comox installed a course across from the recreation centre on Noel Avenue in 2009 and Cumberland installed one four years ago.
“It is great to see Courtenay with a new course for many people to participate a bit closer to home,” said Cunningham. “Our hope is that with an increase in the number of people using the space, the forest will be a safer place to be for everyone. This course provides an opportunity for students and the community alike to re-appropriate the woods for positive athletics and recreation. Disc golf used to be a game people would discover a bit later in life, but with schools making it part of their programming, the future is very bright indeed.”
Disc golf is played much like traditional golf, however, instead of hitting a ball into a hole, participants throw a smaller, softer, more streamlined disc into a metal gaged target. Few recreational activities offer as much benefit-to-cost ratio as disc golf. The cost is essentially free and only requires players to provide a disc to play.
For more information, visit the Comox Valley Disc Golf Club website at www.cvdiscgolf.com
