UPA Newsletter: 1985 May

May 1985

Vol. 1, No. 1

Editor's Note

April Fools '8S a Repeat

by Steve Goodwin

by Eric Simon

Welcome to the first new issue of the UP A Newsletter. Aside from the obvious physical differences between this publication and previous UP A Newsletters, certain other changes will also be occurring in the future. After much deliberation, the Coordinating Committee of the UPA has decided that the emphasis of the body's communication tabloid should be on timeliness and useful information. Hence, the UP A Newsletter will be just that--a Newsletter. By streamlining the type of information that goes into this publication, we will be able to publish it more frequently. This means greater communication between the Regions, as well as the establishment of a forum for news and information that is both current and useful.

In order for this new format to work, players at all levels of the game must become invlolved in the information process.

Tournament directors must advertise their tournaments long in advance; Results from those tournaments must be sent to the Newsletter as quickly as possible; and Regional coordinators must submit articles and schedules in a timely manner. Perhaps most importantly, we must continue to encourage old and new players a~ike to join the UP A. Hopefully, we '11 be able to give you something to warrant your seven dollar investment.

In short, the Newsletter only works if you do --everyone wants to know "what-have-you-done-for-me-lately?" It's time to ask yourself that question before you start pointing the finger elsewhere. One of my main goals for this publication is to have complete regional representation in each issue. Since I only print the material, that means that you've got to write it (Regional Coordinators, take note and earn your keep!). I'm looking forward to having a full mailbox as often as possible.

Current plans call for five of these small news issues per year, with two picture issues (Spring and Fall) serving as seasonal compendiums. Remember, each issue can only be as up to date as you are. The disc is now in your end of the field. Thank you.

Kaboom and the Fisheads won the 1985 April Fools Fest, both successfully defending their 1984 April Fools' titles. Both final games were exciting- the Fisheads beat the Boneless Chickens (U. Va.) 11-10, and Kaboom beat the Void (U. Penn.), in a comefrom-behind victory, 16-14. The three day tournament hosted 34 teams (12 of them were womens' teams), and had representation from four of the five regions in both the open and womens divisons.

In years past, Friday was "qualifying day, "where teams would try to qualify for Saturdays rounds. This year, for the first time, the pools were set up in groups of six, and so every team played five games over Friday and Saturday. This made for a much more relaxed pace, and all the players seemed to have more time to enjoy themselves.

MENS PLAY Kaboom beat Indefinite Article (a psuedo Boston Bear team) in that quarterfinal game. Kaboom had easily advanced out of their pool, but Indefinite Article came out of a pool in which all five teams (one team had dropped out)almost finished at 2-2. As it was, the Void and Article qualified, but not without a tough fight from the Gremlins (Brooklyn). The other quarterfinal game in that bracket pit Life Before Plastic against Kalamazoo, two teams that deserve national recognition. Life Before Plastic is one of the remnants of the now-defuct Crimes of Passion, and had finished well in the two Florida tournaments earlier this Spring.

Kalamazoo finished third in the Central Regional last year (the region that produced the UPA Champion and another semifinalist!). Kalamazoo beat Life 14-12. In the semis, Kaboom beat Kalamazoo 14-8.

In the other bracket, Static and Cornell squared off, and the vastly more experinced Static won 15-13. Cornell played extrememly well, and during the prelims had lost only to Kalamazoo. Static had won their prelim pool, but had tough games against Life and against the Edge (decendents of Boozy

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Idiots/ Seven Sages). In that game, Edge took a lead that it held onto unti17-7, and Static won 10-8. The last quarterfinal game put the Void against Mr. Pouce. Mr. Pouce had come out of the pool with Kaboom , and qualified by beating Houston 13-12 in one of the more exciting games of the tournament. Pouce had 6-l at one point. The Void took an early lead against Pouce, but Pouce came back, only to fall short 9-8. Jn the semis, the Void jumped all over Static, and won going away 15-9. The Void has played extremely well all spring, winning the "Ivies" and touring the South, placing second in both tournaments (Gainesville and Miami) to Miami.

In the finals, the Void took an early lead (they scored the first goal of the game upwind), and held on, leading 9-7 at half over Kaboom. Kaboom scored an upwind goal early in the second half to tie, but the Void still had the wind advantage. The score was tied at IJ, 12, 13,and 14. At 14all, Kaboomscored upwind and closed the game out at 16-14. It was the only time during the entire game that Kaboom held the lead.

WOMENS PLAY

The Womens' division was full of upsets, suprises, and excit~ng games. Nemesis, from ehicago-, and the second place team out of the Central Region, started things off with a victory over Survival. In their second game they took a 7-3lead over the Shakti Nuns, but it was all downhill from there for Nemesis, making their first Eastern trip ever. The Nuns scored 8 straight to win 11 -7.

Nemesis then lost in an upset to Club Mich and was eliminated from the tournament, going 2-3. The Zephyrs, from U.Penn, were hot and swept through tbat pool, going 5-0. Survival recovered from their first round loss to finish second, the Nuns third and Club Mich fourth. Surprisingly, each of the four teams from that pool lost in the quarterfinals.

The Fisheads had won the other pool, going 5-0. And their only tough game was against the 2nd place Boneless Chickens (U.Va.) The Fisheads beat their cross-state rivals, Club Mich, and the Boneless Chickens beat the Shakti Nuns in their quarterfinals.

Traffic finished third in their pool, and then beat Survival for the first time ever to qualify into the semis. Andromeda finished fourth in the pool, but saved their inspiring play for their quarterfinal game. Andromeda upset the Zephyrs, one of the strongest looking teams of the weekend .

In the semis. Traffic and Andromeda were really no match for the Fisheads and Boneless Chickens, resepctively. The Chickens had been playing at the top of their game all weekend. The finals pit the Chickens against the Fishies. The Fisheads took an early lead, but the Chickens came back to tie. Unfortunately the second half was wind dominated and the Fisheads held the wind advantage.

Niether team scored upwind during the second half, and the Fishead won their third straight April Fools tournament; this one by a score of II to 10.

Northwest Ultimate Schedule to Change

by Dennis Clements 1985 will see a major change in the timing and length of the Ultimate season. In order to give the Northeast a chance to host the Nationals (Washington, D.C., Halloween Weekend), the dates of the '85 Championship series have been moved up approximately 6 weeks. Sectional tourneys will have to be in mid-September. Since many of the school-based teams aren't together until then, this move will bring about a more distinct separation between the open and collegiate divisions of the UPA. The Humboldt Harvest will probably become a collegiate season kick-off tourney, and a postseason event for the open teams. In the Spring, there's a longer overlap of the two divisions. The Mud Bowl has always marked the beginning of the open season, and the collegiate season still has two months to go. This overlap provides an opportunity for collegiate and open teams to compete and learn from each other.

The collegiate championship series will start in April when Corvallis hosts a meet which will serve as collegiate Sectionals, on April 6 & 7. This tourney will have been open to all Northwest teams, and will be used to seed the collegiate teams for regionals.

Collegiate Regionals will be held at Santa Barbara, on April 27 & 28. Stanford University wilJ host the 1985 Collegiate Nationals, on Memorial Day Weekend, May 25, 26, & 27.

Meahwhile, back in the Northwest, the open teams and the college teams that can't afford to travel to California will be chompin' at the bit to play some Ultimate. Walla Walla, Washington would like to host a meet, if they don't go to Regionals. Thjey could put on a tourney in late April. Evergeen is planning the second annual Buns in the Sun tourney for May 18 & J9 0

A couple of years ago, the general consensus of this section was that tournament and party expenses should be kept separate.

That is, the entry fee should reflect the costs of fields and showers, etc., while the party should be funded by tickets sold at the tournament and money col1ected at the door. Many collegiate teams receive funding from their schools, and it's hard for them to justify party costs to the people who give them their money. So when you invite a college team to a tournament, please keep in mind that tbey may need to present the invitation to a school official to recieve funds.

If you and your team would like to host the 1985 Sectionals, please start exploring avai1ability-ef facilities, and shOt>t for a date in early September. Please get your bid in as soon as possible.

Lastly, our buddy David Moore is in the hospital , battling Leukimia. We're all pulling for you, Dave, and hope to see you aga1n soon.

UPA Newsletter The UP A Newsletter is published by the Ultimate Players Association. Membership rate: $7.00 per year. Editor: Steve Goodwin; Contributing Editors: Ann Cohan, Suzanne Fields, Joey Giampino, Ken Foote, Bart Merrill, Kathy Pufahl, Eric Simon; Production: Shelly Simon, Jay Cohen, Jim Grant; Printing: Automated Graphic Systems; Graphic Consultant: Larry Schindel; Logo: Jay Cohen.

Please submit all address changes to: Carney Foy, P.O. Box 2600, Mesa, Arizona 85204. Membership/ dues should also be sent to this address.

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Kathy Pufahl New Women's National Director Kathy Pufahl has been appointed the new UPA Women's National Director. She fills the vacancy created by the departure of Suzanne Fields, the first and only women's National Director in UPA history. We should take this opportunity to welcome Kathy and wish her luck. With her enthusiasm and outstanding track record, how could she do anything but an outstanding job? This is also an opportunity to recognize Suzanne and all of the hard work she's put into Ultimate. Women's Ultimate has grown exponentialy during Suzanne's tenure and will continue to grow as a result of her involvement. Suzanne retires to the quiet life of a traveling Ultimate player and continues to remain active in UP A organizational efforts. Thanks Suzanne, Go get 'em Kathy.

Void Wins "Ivies"

by Eric Simon The Void, along with Princeton and Cornell finished in a three way tie in the annual spring Ivy League Ultimate Championships.

Because the Void had beaten Cornell by six, however, the Void finished first and Cornell third on point differentials. Princeton, who lost to Cornell and beat the Void finished in second.

All three teams look very competitive for the collegiate championships and have to be considered the early favorites from their respective regions to advance to the Collegiate Nationals. The Void has played well in all four major tournaments that they have played in this Spring (finishing second at April Fools, Gainesville, and Miami), and Cornell also played very well at April Fools.

Corporate Ultimate

by Bob Evans Another type of Ultimate league play is developing in the Boston area. There will be a corporation-based summer leauge beginning in June. This recreational-industrial league was sprouted by current club players promoting Utlimate among their peers at work. Perhaps through corporate newsletters or via formal employee recreation journals, such as Employee Services Management, a promotional effort could be launched to foster Ultimate league to complement or substitute for company softball teams. Once a nucleus of companies are involved in league play, league expansion could be aided by teaching clinics conducted at non-playing companies.

If you are aware of similar corporation-based leagues in other parts of the country, or would like suggestions as to how to start your own league, please contact Jane Lowell, 205 Rawson Road ltl, Brookline, Massachusetts 02146. Your feedback and information is appreciated.

College Division Eligibility

by Mike Farnham The Collegiate National Championship Series was created to pit college students from one school against those of a nother. This year's more conservative eligibility requirements were adopted to help maintain a fair level of competition.

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Eligibility requirements are as follows-- You must be: 1) a fulltime undergraduate student taking a full course-load (i.e., minimum number of credits allowed at your school for one semester); or 2) a Graduate student enrolled in a degree-bearing program. This means no one taking extracuricular, adulteducation courses, or one-time-only courses.

We left an opening for non-students to petition for exemption.

If we were off-base with these new requirements, we would have expected to receive a large number of letters from a majority of teams. This was not the case, as less than 20% of the teams nationwide petitioned. Clearly, the majority of college teams is willing to play within these requirements.

This series was created to benefit the sport and many of its younger players. The one negative aspect of these new rules is that we have prevented a few players regularly competing with college teams, from playing with their teams for a couple of tournaments.

While this remains a major regret of the Collegiate Coordinating Committee, we feel that it was necessary and fair for the vast majority of players. Another requirement is that each team must establish a permanent mailing addr ess. This is the only way in which you will be contacted by the UP A. Please help us to establish a more efficient level of communication. Lastly, please abide by the 50 percent UPA membership rule (try for 100 percent). This series would never exist without UPA support, and won't survive without your help.

Women's Ultimate in the Western Region

by Ann Cohan Molly Maloney has stepped down as regional coordinator and Kate Purmal and I will be working together to fill that position.

We've decided that in order to let all UPA members know what's going on in Women's Ultimate in the Western Region, we will submit an article in every UPA Newsletter. Following are some of the ideas we have and things we want to accomplish as regional coordinators.

There is an obvious need for more women's Ultimate players.

We have encouraged the teams in our region to split up and form new teams for the spring, and to really try to get out and get new players (see Kathy Pufahl's article in this issue). It's easier said than done and I call on men Ultimate players to help start women's teams in your areas. It's almost impossible to start a team with only one or two experienced players, and some areas don't even have that. I realize that it takes a lot of time and work, but in a few months, the women who have started playing will take control.

Just be sure to get them to a tournament or two so they'll really get hooked!

We are planning to invite the San Diego and Santa Barbara Women's teams to Los Angeles to play each other in an exhibition and then teach all the new players how to throw, the rules, etc. We are also planning to have the Women's Western Collegiate Championships in conjunction with the Men's tourney. It will be held in Santa Barbara on April 27 & 28, and hopefully will have been a big success by the time you read this. College and High School teams are the future of our sport and we hope that this is just the beginning of Women's Ultimate at those levels.

We will be putting out a list of current teams and contacts in a monthly letter to each team. The following women have volunteered to be Sectional coordinators in our large region: Margot Taylor (Rocky Mountain); Peggy O'Byrne (Northern California). There have been several tournaments already this year with GREAT women's play. The New Year's Fest in Tempe, AZ fielded 5 women's teams and the Winter Crystal tourney in San Diego fielded 8 women's teams. The Lady Condors took both events. There were 8 co-ed teams at the Dead Poet tourney inS. F., and 4 women's teams at the Mud Bowl in Portland. Please see the tournament schedule section of this issue for upcoming Western tourneys.

Radi~al

Moves in Boston

by Suzanne Fields It's time for some action. We need to expand the number of players and teams in Women's Ultimate. Women in Boston are taking an exciting, albeit radical, step forward to open our sport and educate new and old players alike. This spring, the Spinsters and Traffic will not play. Instead, we will form three new teams selected "playground style" by 3 pairs of designated selectors.

These 3 new teams will be balanced with rookies, novices, and veterans and will play and practice against each other throughout the season and at the Easterns.

We hope that this experiment will result in bringing new people to us and our sport. Teaching is integral to the spring season. We have scheduled at least 1 weekend tournament primarily for "rookies" in a ..clinic" setting.

A fourth women's team will also be playing in the Boston area.

Tufts University has struggled over the years to keep a team together. Last fall, the few women from Tufts that were playing, played on club teams. Part of our playground approach this spring will result in more balanced teams, hence the college teams won't get routinely crushed as they occasionally have in the past.

Our experiment will take commitment; we all want to play with our friends yet we are willing to give up some of that to share skills and bring more women into our sport. We'll let you know how it goes. Let the Newsletter know about the radical moves you're making to help women's Ultimate flourish.

WEST May 25-27; Collegiate Nationals: Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA. Contact Sandy Koonce, 115 Chester, Menlo Park, CA 94025.

(415) 321-7274.

May 25-27; Santa Barbara Classic: Men and Women; Contact Tom Kennedy, P.O. Box 4345, Santa Barbara, CA 93103. (805) 964-0458.

June 15-16; Kaotic Beach Bash: Co-ed; Contact Dave Munoz, cf o UCSC Recreation Department, UC Santa Cruz, CA 95064. Day: (408) 429-2806. Eve: (408) 429-5179.

June 22-23; Solstice Tourney: Eugene, Oregon. Men and Women; Contact Tim Maloney, (503) 484-9161.

June 29-30; Boulder Classic: Boulder, CO. Men and Women; Contact Ian Hutchinson, Flagstaff, Star Route, Boulder. CO 80302. (303) 444-1171, or Will Longtain (303) 449-8351.

May 25-26; Central Championships: Michigan State Univ., East Lansing, Michigan. Contact Tree Vandenberg at (517) 332-5617.

SOUIH May 25-26; Atlanta, GA: Men and Women , team competition in Ultimate and other disc sports. Contact Dennis Cryor at (404) 6275192.

MID ATlANTIC/NORTH EAST May 11-12; College Regionals: Contact Mike Farnham at (914) 253-5026.

May 11-12; Newark, Delaware: Contact Steve Peterson at (302) 731-4488.

May 18-19; Washington, D.C.: Men and Women; Contact Eric Simon at (h)(703) 521-6918 or (w)(202) 857-8559.

May 25-26; OCTAD: Philadelphia, P A; Contact Jim Powers at (215) 873-0559.

June 1-2; Open Sectionals

Tournament Results Wanted One of the best ways that the Newsletter can serve the players is for us to print tournament results. To that end, we ask all tournament directors to submit a short article to the Newsletter not more than 2 weeks after the tournament. This way, every team in the sport will have the same opportunity to see their name in print.

Articles should be kept to a minimum of 2 typewritten, doublespaced pages. All you need to mention is the teams attending and who played who, with results and scores. Of course, there's always room for embelishment. Obivously, there will be those tournaments which merit long, in-depth articles (such as UPA Regionals, Easterns, College and Open Nationals, The Worlds, Centrals, etc.}, however, we'd like to publish something on just about every tournament. Please send articles to the UPA Newsletter at the address listed. Remember tournament directors, we know who you are.

June 8/9; Open Regionals June 15-16; Easterns; SUNY Purchase, NY: Contact Mike Farnham at (914) 523-5026.

Nationals to be held in D.C. The 1985 UPA National Ultimate Championships will be held in Washington, D.C. on October 25-27, 1985. This decision was made at the UP A's Winter Captain's meeting at SUNY Purchase.

The tournament will be held on the Capitol Mall, which is between the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial. For further information regarding the Nationals, contact Eric Simon at (202) 857-8559 or (703) 521-6918. Work on the tournament has already begun and all signs indicate a typically well-organized, enjoyable tournament.

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Women's Division Update

by Kathy Pufahl As the new Women's National Coordinator, I have an obvious task to perform in attracting more women to the sport. 1 have willingly accepted the responsibility for developing programs that will enable us, the U PA, to achieve that goal. What I cannot accept is the sole responsibility for implementing these programs. As one individual, I could not be successful in this pursuit. Instead, I must ask each individual player to devote a small portion of her/ his time in order for the women 's division and the sport in general to expand.

The following ideas emerged as a result of correspondence with the women's regional coordinators and the February 17th East Coast Captain's meeting. As you read these ideas, bear in mind that you must play a direct part in their implementation if they are to be successful.

1. It is a consensus among women players that the time has come to devote energy towards recruiting women players and lltarting new teams. Young teams and isolated women players in need of support and information should find those resources available. Please become sensitive to their needs. We want them to stay involoved.

2. New Players' Tournaments- Presently, the Western Region and the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast Regions are hosting tournaments strictly designed for new players. Each team must consist of at least 3-5 newly acquired players. Run in a clinic-type setting, these tournaments hope to give novice players confidence to become active participants in our sport.

3. Informal Letter- Describing the sport, the organizational level of Women's Ultimate and an area contact, such a letter will shortly be available to all captains (men and women). The aim of this informational sheet is to eliminate the distribution of scrap pieces of paper to women interested in playing. If a woman appears at a practice field or at a tournament, she may be more apt to become involved if we create a positive first impression. All captains and other motivated individuals are asked to have copies of this letter accessible and to actively distribute them.

4. Poster- The more we bring Ultimate into the public eye, the more chances we will have to attract women players. A generic tournament poster is in the works. It will feature a catchy design with a space below for filling in tournament information.

Tournament hosts will have the opportunity to advertise their event, no matter what its size.

5. Wham-0 Frisbee Festivals- Wham-0 will be sponsoring many more Festivals throughout the country this year. We must have individuals at each of those sites, distributing the informational letter and specific area information. Sites will be announced soon.

What I am talking about is the concept that boys, from age 3, are brought up to watch sports and specific atheletes in a special way. They are encouraged to read the sports pages, to go to games, discuss the stats, and analyze specific stars' strengths. They are encouraged to translate this analysis into emulation of these atheletes in a wide spectrum of sports involvement.

What about girls? A good percentage of women's Ultimate players were not team sports players or spectators until they reached their teens. They were rarely taught, at this late point, the language and culture of analysis, or the focus on specific plays or players' styles. They were not taught the, like boys, to consider their own playing in relation to what they had watched. I noticed myself watching an Ultimate game the other day in a disctinctly different way than I have at most times in the past. In my four year Ultimate career, I have watched hundreds of games. As a captain, I explained the game to many new players and talked tactics on many a sideline. But it hit me that, until recently, I generally watched games intently without incorporating a single move into my thinking about my own game.

There is so much to learn by watching good teams and players -- about cutting; about flow, about breaking a zone. But the watching has to be focused, or purposeful. Pick a hot player and analy1e their style. Try to figure out how you'd play to defend against them. Watch how a good team faces a tough person-toperson defense, or a tough zone. Think about the game in terms of a total play, from one end zone to another, not just a pass at a time.

Woman atheletes do not have to suffer for a Jack of role models. Use your spectating time to learn about yourself and your sport. Following through on this, and teaching young players how to do it would, I believe, have a positive impact on women's Ultimate. The next time you find yourself on the sidelines, ask yourself-- are you watching, or are you just watching?

Coaching Position open at SUNY Purchase Mike Farnham is stepping down from his position at SUNY Purchase and a replacement must be found. Ultimate is an intercollegiate Varsity sport at the State University of New York (SUNY) at Purchase. The coaching position is: a paid position the team is fully supported (including financially) by the Athletic Department, and Purchase is the top tournament site on the East Coast, with fields and facilities second to none.

Interested parties should send a resume to: Athletic Director, SUNY Purchase, Purchase, New York 10577.

Call Mike Farnham at (914) 253-5026 or 948-5132 for further information.

Women- Are You Watching?

by Su1.anne Biegel I am not speaking to all women Ultimate players, however what I have to say could apply to some men, as well. What I would like to address is the possibility that many women watch sports in a different way than do men, and that this has an impact on women's Ultimate.

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Mike has done a wonderful job of promoting tournaments and Ultimate in general. His tourneys are among the best run that most of us have ever attended. His dedication to the sport and most notably the College division is second only to his organizational ability. Fortunately for all of us, Mike plans to continue promoting Ultimate to corporate sponsors, as well as god-knows-what other projects he may have running around inside his head . Thanks, Mike.

s

Miami: King Of The South

by Eric Simon The Miami Refugees won back-to-back tournaments this March. In the thrid annual Frostbreaker, held in Gainesville, Miami beat the Void in the winner's bracket final. Atlanta's Chain Lightning looks like they're back, fininshing a strong third by losing a close one to the Void. In fourth was Mr. Pouce, while tied for fifth was Life Before Plastic and the host team, the Fat Women.

In the Women's division, the Shakti Nuns continued thier domination of the South (they have not lost a game in the South since last April).

The very next weekend, it was off to Miami, and the Refugees again beat the Void in the finals. In third was Life Before Plastic, with Turmoil, a team of M.A. and N.E. players, finishing fourth.

There was no Women's play in Miami.

Spirit of the Game/Question of Obsenrers

by Bob DeBruin, Seven Boozy Idiots Please don't get me wrong. Some of my best friends are observers. But all things condidered, observers are the worst thing that has ever happened to Ultimate. As they bring peace and order to the game, they concurrently undermine the "spirit of the game."

Ah, that elusive "spirit of Ultimate." What does it mean?

Actually, it's pretty simple. You see. Ultimate doesn't have its roots in Little League baseball, where you get neat uniforms. but the coach is a jerk and your mother is screaming at you to run you tail off and hit a homerun if you want any supper tonight. Ultimate has its roots in a game of schoolyard basketball, winner is the first team to a zillion or whoever's still running when it's too dark to see the ball.

The Spirit of Ultimate is simple schoolyard ethics, not some lofty ideal. Oversized kids on a grass playground. We play. We argue. And when we reali7e that we're the only ones around to solve our problems, we learn to get along and we play again. It's the getting along that makes the spirit of the game. Putting a higher authority on the playground relieves the necessity of getting along, and puts in its place the necessity of observing a concrete set of rules. This very subtle change of values, which deems the game

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more important than the terribly human people who created and play the game, is an archetypical failing of man's vision. It's kind of heartbreaking.

I am aware that my childlike attitude toward this subject creates problems. For one, it's very difficult to promote a game in which the players are allowed to argue interminably. Well then, work harder. And what is one to do when the opposing team refuses to play honestly in a very important game? When they simply won't be gotten along with? You are to walk up to the worst offender on the dishonest team, look him in the eye, meaningfully pause, and say, 路'Man, you're a jerk." And then take your disc and leave the field. Maybe hum a few bars of "Alice's Restaurant" as you go. Lose the game. It wasn't fun anyway. Don't lose the spirit.

Welcome to the MidWest

by Joey Giampino That's right folks, the lovely Midwest - land of the Great Lakes, fields of corn, pigs, cows, and six UPA national finalists in three years. The Midwest must have lots of tourneys with teams from coast to coast competing all the time, right? Wrongo! Well then, at least with all those highly competitive players there, they must have a lot to do with the movement and growth of Ultimate, right? Not really, Rielly! Last year, there were only a handful of UPA members on the champion Tunas team, for example. (Ed. this is nothing to be proud of!) But there is hope. Rising out of the sea of apathy is a wave of vigorous participation. The Midwest is tired of waiting for big teams from other regions to come to our tournaments. WELL THE BUCK STOPS HERE! We Midwesterners no longer have any excuses. We shall no longer be content reading and seeing only coastal and Southern news.

The U PA newsletter tournament announcements as your UPA Newsletter Giampino, 4420 Gilbert St, (312) 246-5761.

wants your articles, picutres, and and results. I'm here to help. Use me vehicle. Send your info to: Joey Western Springs, IL, 60558. Or call

As for you other regions, the Midwest has many tournaments with serious competition. There is often attractive prize money, too. The next tourney is the Central Championships, May 25 & 26, in East Lansing, Michigan (MSU). There will be a men's and a women's division, and you can contact Tree Vandenberg at (517) 332-5617 for further information. SO, Midwesterners, let's get on the stick and contribute to the UPA and the Newsletter.

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