Chain Bang- Sam Cooper Interview
Most of the interviews that I do are based around interviewing pros and local players within my area, for now at least. But, there is someone who I noticed posting on Instagram that I just had to interview and talk about. This person was Sam Cooper who runs the Imhereforthechainbang Instagram page and who is recently making his own company through that page. I had to talk to him and hear what stories he had to tell and his story in general. Enjoy!
A little bit about the man behind the Chain Bang before we dig into his company. Sam started his Disc Golf career when he was younger. He told me “I used to live across the street from a course in Rocklin, CA. I bought a Disc from a local gas station and would play every now and then.” I wish the gas stations in Washington sold discs, that would be the dream. So, he played when he could, but an unfortunate event happened. He told me “about 4 years ago I lost my job, so I had more time to play.” It is never good to lose a job, but he made the most of it and as he says, “I caught the Disc Golf bug.” From then on, he made the Instagram account and began to build a community around Disc Golf.
The Instagram account he made was built around the Disc Golf community. Regarding his new product, he told me “I figured I might as well put some product out there while trying to go pro.” He started to slowly build up his reputation and is now trying to build a brand more than just an account. He also told me that “I started doing tournaments 2 years ago.” Which is a huge step in wanting to go pro, tournaments are key. Once you get past that nerve of doing tournaments, you will go far.
We all have resolutions and goals for the upcoming year of 2018. Sam’s goals are looking strong and are awesome to see and I believe he can make it. For 2018, Sam wants to start off by “doing more tournaments and to build the company and get it to grow and be something bigger.” Which is what you want to here from a blossoming company owner. I enjoy seeing someone who is building from the ground up try and grow their brand to be something more than expected. With that, he told me “I want to start with apparel, but, apparel that is good and people will want to purchase.” The want to make something for the community is great. He just doesn’t want something easy, he wants the community to like it and want to be a part of it. To achieve these goals, it takes a lot of time and planning. He told me “I am trying to hit as many events in my area as possible and GBO is a goal. Just building tournaments and doing youth clinics.” So, not only is he wanting to build a better company and brand, he wants an improved community. I think that is a great way to go about it and makes sure that we all grow along with him. We will see what happens this year for all of us!
Taking a break from the talk about his company and brand, I had to share his favorite Disc and course. The discs he chose are well liked among most people within the Disc Golf world. He said that his favorite discs are “A destroyer as far as consistency goes, but my wizard is my go to throwing putter. I can forehand it and get it off the tee.” The wizard and Destroyer are great discs in their own right and it comes to no surprise that he likes them. His favorite course is a classic choice within Disc Golfers from California. He told me “my favorite course has got to go to De Laveaga, it is beautiful and challenging all in one.” I could not agree more, that course is something else and is that perfect combo of beautiful and deadly.
I have already mentioned how he wants to help grow the sport previously, but, he already does more than that. He told me “I have gotten 20-30 friends into the sport and I like to give new people discs and advice while on the course.” Those are so important to do in order to help grow the sport. You have to pick people up when they struggle and help them get better in a positive manner. He also told me “I answer questions on my Instagram and n the course for those who have them.” Giving advice is tough and answering questions could be tough. An easy piece of advice that he has for newer players is “throw putters, don’t go buy a destroyer. Start with easy throwing discs and just go do field work.” That advice is so critical, I wish I knew that when I first began my Disc Golf career.
Not everyone has an amazing and astounding answer when I ask them is there anything else for them to say. It is a weird question that puts people off and they do not usually know how to react. Sam, wanting a simple answer simply said, “I coach basketball, I am 26 years old and grew up in Northern California, but I was born in Oregon.”
I would like to thank Sam Cooper for letting me talk to him and ask him my questions as well as taking the time out of his day to answer these questions. He was a great guy to talk to and I wish the best for him going into 2018! If you would like to know more about Sam and his company, please go follow him @imhereforthechainbang and @chainbang_dg on Instagram! Look out for more coming soon!
Picture credit goes to Sam Cooper