2021 Board of Director Nominees

Robert Blanchard

As a member of the board, I would like to bring about changes that allow the club to grow in a number of positive ways. We certainly have room to grow in size. To ensure that we can accommodate this growth, I would like to minimize the size and cost of our club tags. This should allow us to always have tags available for when newcomers decide they would like to join.

I would like to have more events that are exclusive to club members. For example, possibly making our random doubles on Sundays, club members only and starting a Saturday morning doubles that is open to everyone, so as not to step on the toes of those who enjoyed participating in doubles but are not quite committed to being part of the club. I would also like to get together a dependable 3-4 people who will always be able to participate. Myself would be included in this group and we would make sure that one of us is always there in order to ensure that the event is run properly, ace pot is on site, and possibly tags available to be purchased if someone there decides they would like to join. I also have ideas in mind to possibly spice up doubles and make them more interesting.

Peaks and Creeks is already a great club and we continue to grow each year. To continue growing though, in a positive manner I believe that some changes are needed. Our board, in my opinion, should be transparent and always have the club’s best interest in mind. Events, regardless of what they are, should be posted with time and date well in advance so those interested in participating have ample time to plan. Let’s be honest, turn out equates to strength, solidarity, and growth. All things that lead to success.

These are just a few of the thoughts that come to mind when I think about our club. I have always enjoyed being a part of the club and have been on and off for more than six years. I have not always been thoroughly involved with the inner workings of the club. My involvement has mostly been just slinging discs around and having a good time. When asked if I would accept a nomination, I was both surprised and honored. Turning it down was not an option because in order for change to occur, you sometimes have to be that change.

Daniel Eubank

My name is Daniel Eubank and I started playing disc golf in 2004.  I have a retail disc golf business now and have been running tournaments since 2007.  I was part of a small group that worked to get a local club started in 2010 which became Peaks & Creeks DGC.  I served on the board from 2010-2012 until I took a break from disc golf for medical reasons in late 2012 and into 2013.  From that point the club didn’t exist until 2017 when I led an effort to get the club going again.  We were successful and I served on the board again from 2017-2019.  I have been dedicated to growing the sport through the running of tournaments and weekly events and being a part of the local club.  As a board member I would continue the effort to grow the sport by helping keep the club going as strong as ever.

Gordon Merck

     My name is Gordon Merck, I have been playing disc golf recreationally for over a decade and playing tournaments for the past 5-6 years. I’ve been a part of P&C since 2015 and have been an active participant in various weekly and club events. 
     I have taken my love for the sport and linked it with my creative side in the last year and a half by starting RadDadDyes. Doing so has given me a new perspective on our sport. As the owner of RadDadDyes, this past season I oversaw an 8 week rotating point series. The Totally Rad FriDye Point Series was a success in its inaugural year with an average of 10 participants weekly at various courses in the Lynchburg, Bedford, and Appomattox area.
     As a teacher for Lynchburg City Schools, I would love to use my connections at the schools to bridge the gap between the club and community. As this is one avenue we can use to truly grow the sport and be connected with it. Getting the community involved and hosting events where club and community can both participate would be a wonderful way to educate about the sport while also building connections in the area. 

Steven Ritchey

When I first started playing disc golf, I remember bringing frisbees to Peaks View and then wonderinghow everyone else is throwing their “frisbees” so far. Later that day I went to play it again and bought afew drivers, because every beginner likes how the wide rim drivers look. Since then I have completelyfallen in love with the sport and I enjoy being out in nature with friends and watching how discs fly.Since 2016 I have helped install the B pins at Peaks, the course at Sandusky park, and I have been a partof several workdays at Elk Creek and other courses in the area.I would like to see more events for our club such as a match play format like ODCC/VTI. I would also liketo continue to push the relationship with other clubs and have more events to bring us together. Iwelcome the opportunity to serve the disc golf community once again by seeking re-election for thePeaks and Creeks board of directors.

Griffin Spencer

It is an honor to receive another nomination to this board of directors for 2021. I have been on the Board for 2 years and a member of the club for 4. 

During that time the club has gone from just over 30 members to 85. While coronavirus threw a wrench into the year that was 2020 for everyone, I truly believe this was going to be a transformative year for the club. I’d like to keep the momentum that had begun in early 2020 rolling thru 2021, where hopefully more can come to fruition than 2020 allowed. 

While I may not be the most avid tournament player, I want to see this club become the type that runs multiple large sanctioned events annually for the membership that attract players from hours around. My goal for 2021 is to maintain the weekly event schedule for the membership while increasing the number of sanctioned events that are open to members and other players throughout the region. 

While 2020 may not have turned out to be necessarily the year I had hoped for, I would like to point to some of the things that I have done for the club this year. I drafted the club constitution in its entirety. I have managed and increased the followership across all of our club social media pages (We’ve been shared by Paul McBeth and Jomez Pro on Instagram), I designed the club Tags, Discs and Hats and produced all of the clubs promotional materials for the year. These were all responsibilities of my role as secretary which I took on gladly. 

In addition to the duties tasked to me as secretary, I took it upon myself to be the first person at nearly every putting league night we had to ensure that the tent was set up and if it wasn’t set up then I would begin setting it up myself (with help from other members as they arrived). Approximately 60% of the club prizes for AMs (discs) that were given out over the course of this season were donated by me. I felt that after the Foundation Weekly League did not come to fruition the club was in need of an additional weekly event for the summer, so I contacted Gordon Merck and brought him into the fold to run the Rad Dad Dyes Summer Points series which ran for 2 months. When the fall seemed barron without events for the membership, I started sundown at the sandbox so members could have a free weekly event. 

With the news of Graeme and KP departing from the club board, I think my presence on the board in 2021 is a much needed for continuity of leadership. 

My goal is to grow the club, grow the sport and make being a member of the club valuable to the membership. I hope my efforts mentioned above over the past year have helped me earn a vote from you.  

Hunter Thomas

The 2020 season was my first time on the Board for the club and overall I would consider it a success, but there was a lot that I was unable to work with the club to accomplish as Covid cancelled many of the tournaments and weeklies we had planned. This year, I am hoping to bring more sanctioned events to the area and help train some club members as tournament directors so that we can have even more events and have staff prepared for the potential of an A-Tier, Am worlds, Pro Tour, or other big tournament to make it’s way to the area in the future. Another way that I look to continue aiding the club by being a board member is by continuing our relationship with the parks and rec departments. I have a great relationship with the Bedford parks department and am excited for ways that the club can continue to partner with them as disc golf in the area continues to grow and am working on building a stronger relationship with the Lynchburg parks and rec by providing the club access to Foudnation Disc Golf’s insurance and continue working on an ongoing relationship that allows the growth of the weeklies and club in the area. Regardless of whether I am on the Board or not for the 2021 season, I think that the club is on a great path and headed in the right direction to really make the Lynchburg area a main disc golf hub of the east coast!

Dylan Brendle

No Bio provided due to being away at military training.