Vol. 20 No. 3 • Fall 2000 • $3.00
3595 E. Fountain Blvd . J2 Colorado Springs, CO 80910 800-UPA GETH • 719-591-1168 • info@upa.org Executive Director Joey Gray • ed@upa .org Assistant Director Joe Gorman 800-UPA GETH • 719-591-1168 • joe.gorman@upa.org Open Director David Raflo 703-807-1934 • upa_nod@upa.o rg Women's Director Cindy Fisher 512-418-4690 • upa_nwd@upa.org Co-ed Co-directors for Celebration Series Bill & Julie Capossere 716-224-1852 • upa_celeb_series@upa.org National Co-ed Director Jen Christianson 770-594-9562 • upa_coed_champ_dir@upa.org Masters Director Pete Guissti
Letters t:o t:h e Ed it:o r
upa_nmd@upa.org National College Director OPEN upa_ncd@upa.org National Juniors Director Michael Baccarini 404-370-1404 • upa_njd@upa .org Alumni Relations Steve Mooney 617-323-2332 • upa_alumni@upa.org Innovation Grants Angelo Artemakis 773-227-5583 • upa_grants@upa.org
UPA BOARD MEMBERS: President Jim Parinella • jim .parinella@upa.org Vice Pres. Joe Studholme • joe.studholme@upa.org Treasurer Matt Healey • matt.healey@upa.org Secretary Lynne Nolan • lynne.nolan@upa.org Members: Jennifer Donnelly jennifer.donnelly@upa.org Mary Hagler mary.hagler@upa.org Tim Murray tim .murray@upa.org Kurt Dahlenburg kurt.dahlenburg@upa .org Bill Layden bill.layden@upa .org Dave Remucal dave.remucal@upa .org Vinnie Shelton vinnie.shelton@upa .org Henry Thorne henry.thorne@upa.org
REGIONAL COORDINATORS: Central Open Mike LaScola 618-893-2712 • upa_central_rc@upa.org Central Women DeAnna Ball upa_central_wrc@upa.org Central Masters Alexander Dee upa_central_mrc@upa.org Mid-Atlantic Open AJ lwaszko 703-533-8325 upa_ma_rc@upa.org Mid-Atlantic Women Melissa lwaszko 703-289-1793 • upa_ma_wrc@upa.org Mid Atlantic Masters Craig Murray upa_ma_mrc@upa.org Northeast Open AI lwaszko 703-533-8325 • upa_ne_rc@upa.org Northeast Masters George Cooke upa_ne_mrc@upa.org Northeast Women Lori Parham 617-868-5132 • upa_ne_wrc@upa.org Northwest Open Chad Walters 650-969-0868 • upa_nw_rc@upa .org Northwest Women Sandy Angelos 415-221-2014 • upa_nw_wrc@upa.org Northwest Masters Baird Johnson 206-329-7422 upa_nw_mrc@upa.org South Open Carl Parsons 214-358-4768 • upa_south_rc@upa.org South Women Leigh Gorman 512-708-0169 upa_south_wrc@upa.org South Masters J .R. Reynolds 912-356-1215 upa_south_mrc@upa .org Southwest Open Alex Bellows 303-402-6721 • upa_sw_rc@upa.org Southwest Women Rachel Nobel 213-740-5546 • upa_sw_crc@upa.org Southwest Masters Jon Shepard upa_sw_mrc@upa.org
NEWSLETTER STAFF Editor-in-Chief OPEN Editor Carrie Simison • upa_newsletter@ upa.org
Graphic Design Cathy Maykut upa_graphic_design@upa.org Editorial: All submissions must be typed double-space and/or on a 3-1 /2. disk in RTF format. Email your submissions to upa_newsletter@ upa.org Submit full name, address, and phone. All editorial submissions become the property of the UPA.
Photographs: Labeled prints and/or digital scans, black and white or color photos are acceptable. Please include all information on the back of each photo: Subject, event (ie Women's Nationals, etc) & name of photographer. Email photos as a jpeg of at least 300dpi to upa_newsletter@upa.org. Published photos become property of the UPA, unused photos will be returned upon request if accompanied with a SASE.
2
Ultimate Players Association
Fall 2000
Dear Editor: Hi! My name is Kyric Avery and I am helping to start the first Women's Ultimate team at American University in DC. I just finished reading the manual on starting a new team, and I wanted to tell you that it was really great. I learned a lot and I am psyched about getting started. We already have a fairly solid team of 11 women, (our team name is the Dirty Ladies) and we were able to play at our sectional and regional games after only three weeks of banning together. We now face the task of recruiting for the upcoming year. I am also writing to ask a few things. First, I'm confused as to which region and section my team belongs to, so I'm not sure who my regional coordinator is. Also, you mentioned that you have drill and strategy handouts available and I would love to take a look at them. Any information you may have that you think we could use we would really appreciate! Again, I have found the UPA site to be constant source of great information and it is very well organized. Thanks again! - Kyric Avery
Dear Editor: My husband and I, along with all of our married Ultimate teammates, think
that the UPA should offer a special membership for married Ultimate players. We currently pay $60 a year and we get two newsletters and two of everything else. Why not offer a membership for those of us who are lucky enough to be married to a fellow Ultimate player? We certainly do not need to receive two sets of UPA info, and I am guessing that a significant portion of the yearly dues goes towards postage. Currently, discounts are offered for students and first-time members. Speaking for my married Ultimate friends, a discounted membership would be received enthusiastically . Sincerely, -Beth Beason Armendarez Houston, TX 77005
To the editor: So I am most concerned with the new
reading of the stall count rules as was put out in the most recent newsletter. While the reading is technically right I think it violates the initial intent of the rule. The most recent reading of the rule invites refs and observers to get involved even more. How can you contest a stall when the counter is 40 yards away? Count louder? That's BS. Staying within three meters is kosher. Everyone can hear a count from 10 feet away - less arguments. Seems silly to keep this big a problem in the next addition of the rules unless you want refs/active observers counting for you. I don't want them at all. I like some of the ideas from the college ranks over the past few years - I want the game to be played faster but still believe that I can play fairly with the self officiated model. But then again I am very honest. -David Dominic "Flash" Doughan
Next issue: • Open- Women - Master
• New Board members
• World Games Seleaion Criteria
• Newsletter Naming Contest
• Teaching Workshop
CORRECTIONS Many thanks for printing up the 19th Fools Fest recap in the last newsletter. As I stated in the article, we're trying to compile a comprehensive list of the last 20 years of HorrorZontals for next year's big bash, Fools Fest XX. Unfortunately, my e-mail address was misprinted in the article. It should read as wspotts@falcon.cc.ukans.edu. Could you put a note in the "Corrections" section that all former Zontals should e-mail me at the updated address? Thanks, and let me know if you need anything else from me. Consider coming to Lawrence next April for Fools. It's the real deal. - Will Spotts HorrorZontals
Dear Editor: Well, I just got my newsletter- whether it was lost
Letters to the Editor
in the mail or just sitting around and no one told me about it, I don't know ... but anyway, I was really impressed. It was really well done with good articles and some great pictures. The Junior Nationals article was really good, too. The only mention we got though, was "others in barely matching T-shirts," but it's all good, we had a great time. My only complaint is that apparently they didn't get the score for our first game, which was in the second round against Savannah. The only reason I'm saying anything is because it was our only win and they just gave it to Savannah for some reason. Really, we (Atown) went 1-3 on Saturday and I'm sure if there is anyone from Savannah out there they can back me up on this one. It was a close game though, maybe ended up 14-12 us, but I'm not sure. -Ryan Mackenzie A-town PU.F
PLAYERS ASSOCIATION Fall 2000
WORLD CHAMPIONS!
Co-ed National Championships
U.S. wins the gold in 4 of 6 divisions!
38
National Sports
OTE
Center Blaine, MN
BOARD ELECTIONS
Read candidate statements. Vote before Nov. 7th.
Co-ed Sectionals Over 150 Co-ed teams handled the
47
45
UFO Sightings
Innovation Grant Avvards
WheTe in the ~oTld have you seen Ultimate in the ne~s?
A note fTom Bucks County CenteT RecTeational SeTVices
Tune-Up One playeT's account of the peTfect Ultimate ~eekend
World Games 2001 Pick youT o~ dTeam team
8
Toumament Reports
Standing Rules Committee
Poultry Days, Potlatch and Gender Blender
The longa~a ited 1 Oth Edition is undeT ~ay
Ask the Rules Guy
Š 2000 The UPA Newsletter, Vol. 20 Issue 3, Fall 2000. The UPA Newsletter is the official quarterly publication of the Ultimate Players Association. The UPA Newsletter relies on member contributions for its content. Subscription Information The UPA Newsletter is free to all UPA members. Single copy cost is $3. Membership rates per year: $30 U.S., $20 student and $15 junior. Send to UPA, 3595 E. Fountain Blvd., Suite J2, Colorado Springs, CO 80910. Change of Address: The UPA Newsletter is mailed bulk rate and is not forwarded. To change your address: email info@upa.org, or mail: 3595 E. Fountain Blvd., Suite J2, Colorado Springs, CO 80910 or call 1-800-UPA-GetH.
Table of Contents
I Fall 2000
I www.upa, org I
3
ExECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Joey Gray
"Do not think I'm talking to those 'rich' Ultimate players. I'm talking to you."
4
Ultimate Players Association
Fall 2000
The other day I was talking with someone who called the UPA 1-800 number. He posed a random newbie-like question, so I asked how he learned about Ultimate. "I've been playing with my buddies for years", he said, "but I didn't know it was, like, real." That got me thinking. At first, I thought it was silly that just because he discovered the UPA, this guy suddenly could call his pastime "real" . The existence of the UPA doesn't make all the sweat, mud, friends, foes, sore muscles and joy more real how could it? Then I realized that my simple answer to a 1-800 call is more than just that- I could answer his question because of 20 years of organizational effort by hundreds of volunteers and staff. The office, the phone number, the web site, this newsletter, well, it's not perfect, but having a place to call "home" for the sport, helps make it more "real". Yet, Ultimate players tend to have a love-hate relationship with authority. Extremely capable independent-minded people of all ages just do their own thing at the local level- it's creative, it's a challenge, and it's exciting- often without noticing how they are part of a much bigger picture. On the other hand, many players hold unreasonably high expectations for this organization (whose excellence they are often too reluctant to support). Fortunately, some players also "get it" -support of the UPA makes a difference in the quality of events, the evolution of the sport and the ability of members to participate. I'm especially thinking right now of people like organizers who sanction their events with the UPA, just because it's the right thing to do (even if they don't need an insurance certificate to reserve fields). Thank all of you who sanction your events - i t's one of the best ways we have to expand the membership and represent all levels of play. I also "get it" about why many players have not yet become involved with the UPA. As a founder and director of Potlatch, I never sanctioned because I thought the UPA was for somebody else. The UPA seemed like a big, cold, impenetrable thing that was not relevant to me as a player. How ironic is that! Well, that's not how I thought it should be, so about 10 years later you're reading this article. I am on a mission to change the perception and accessibility of the UPA because it is, and always has been, a player's association.
Executive Director
There's a big difference between a players association and the national governing bodies of other sports. For example, I mentioned to the US Rugby Executive Director next door how I was excited about the re-formation of our Standing Rules Committee and their commitment to presenting a lOth edition of the rules to the membership. We discussed rules a bit and he said, "Well, it's easy. If players want to be involved, just have them tum in suggestions to a committee, the committee makes a decision, and boom, it's done". He was incredulous when I mentioned that, for Ultimate, rules editions need to be approved by the membership. No, it's not so easy, but member input is one of the most important things that makes Ultimate real for every player. For us, the obligation and the challenge is to get involved and stay involved- is it really Ultimate if you're not personally contributing to the sustainability of the game? If you're reading this, you may be a current member - remember to renew each year and tell your teammates, too. If you're not a member, join. Vote for board members. Read their blurbs. Make a charitable donation. Tell the Rules Committee what's important. Return questionnaires. If you don' t get a newsletter, call to update your address. If you disagree, write a letter to the editor. There are hundreds of player-generated projects and ideas I'd love for the UPA to take on. Every week, someone writes or calls with a damn cool idea that I want to drop everything and help make happen. Reality is this: As of yesterday, the UPA has a whopping full-time staff of two me and Joe Gorman. The newsletter goes to press now - and it doesn't just happen on its own. Sectionals start Saturday. I have 900 messages in my inbox - all read, not so many answered. I arrived back from Coed Nationals exhausted, to learn that the other (former) Assistant Director, April Hoskins, got picked up by Agilent as she's finishing up her MBA. As Executive Director, I am supposed to put time into planning, budgeting, gathering member input and building partnerships. Today, I was in the office from 12-7, mostly answering calls, scrambling to deal with upcoming sectionals plus a trip to the graphic designer and bank. I could have turned off the phone. One of those calls was a player determined to tum one of her clients into a sponsor for Ultimate - I
don't like to miss those. Nor do I like to miss calls from any member, even just checking their status. It's about 1:30am now. We need more staff. To hire more people and to keep them, it takes funding. We have 3 temps coming in tomorrow to start on rosters and help with calls -just a quick fix in a tough job market for employers. My 3-year plan, mentioned earlier this year, is very simple: Foundation, Financing, Fun. My first year as ED, is all about "foundation". In some areas, we' ve had to take a step back from programs and activities to become ready to take more steps forward. Accounting was huge- with a new accounting system, new accountant and audit we're able to generate reports and have become more accurate and responsive about membership dues, merchandise sales and bills. Other foundation issues include staffing- we've changed from in-house data entry to hiring temps only when we need them, undergone a staff reorganization, plus excavation of documents and a start on making them accessible, upgrading the database and web page, etc. We've made progress in these areas. We still have a long way to go. It is becoming clear that we can' t do much more without additional income. I already put in enough hours I could take the rest of the year off and still not come out even. It's excellent to see the progress but neither I, nor your key volunteers can keep this up. It's not healthy for an organization to depend on overworked individuals - the UPA has a history of burnout. We need more staff. I need your help to hire them. Other funding sources (sponsorship, grants, fees, etc) are important, too, but Ultimately, it's up to you. I want to say yes to the next person, instead of putting their mail off 'til tomorrow. As a player, you can make the UPA as responsive as you want. Please contribute to the future of Ultimate and the UPA. Send a check. Send stock. Send it each year. Do not think I'm talking to those "rich Ultimate players". I'm talking to you. Any amount will make a difference. To think the UPA can do all the things you want without more financial backing is, well, unrealistic. I'm sure we're beyond any healthy ratio of staff to volunteers to activities for a national organization. The staff part of that triangle has got to get balanced out. I can't, and wouldn' t want to, do it without your support.
ASSISTANT DIRECTOR REPORT
Joe Gorman
Hello from your UPA headquarters. I'm Joe Gorman your new Assistant Director out here in UPA land. I figured I would let you know a little about my Ultimate career. That way you have some idea of the person you have working for you. I have been playing for six years. I started in college with Full "F" Tilt, a team that won more parties than tournaments, we never made it out of our section but I made some of my best friends. I won my first tourney when I moved to Missoula, MT. Then went back to school to become one of those computer tech workers. Two years later I'm the Assistant Director of the UPA. That is probably more information than you need or want about me, so I'll tell you what I have learned about the UPA since arriving. There is no ivory tower. There is no list of priority players we listen to more closely. There are no trolls that steal newsletters, unless they're in the postal service. There are lots of ways we can improve the UPA for everyone involved. These improvements will require some changes and experiments to figure out the best system. Some of the changes are going to be uncom-
VOTE FOR LOCAL POLITICIANS
fortable in transition. Some experiments will fail. By being involved you can help us to see these problems ahead of time to make it easier on all of us. If you notice a problem point it out, but offer a solution or at least the beginning of one. Send ideas about how to improve member benefits. Send your address if you aren't getting your newsletter. Let us know what we can do for you. Pass your newsletter on to an Ultimate player who isn't a UPA member to show them what we are trying to do for Ultimate. The other Assistant Director, April Hoskins, has left the happy confines of the UPA HQ, moving on to corporate America. Hopefully you all realize that this means there are 2 people to do most of the work of the UPA. Want an idea of what it is like? Just imagine trying to keep 13,000 Ultimate players informed and deliver quality customer service to all of them. Now imagine that you have to rely on other Ultimate players for the information you need. All these other Ultimate players are volunteers with jobs, families, and a million other things to do in their own lives. Yet
CALL
FOR VoL UIVJEERS
Who runs your Parks Dept? The UPA serves as the governing body of the sport of Ultimate in the USA: • To promote and support the sport of Ultimate • To preserve the integrity of Ultimate including Spirit of the Came • To serve the needs of the players • To provide a framework for organizing and conduding competition and other adivities related to Ultimate.
Vote for your UPA Board AND vote in the upcoming national eledion. Who is running for your city counci/7 Anyone who could influence Parks & Recreation [read: YOUR fields] in the next years? How has sprawl and growth affeded your ability to play Ultimate? Find out who cares, who has the power and put them in office. Remember to register to vote and mark Tuesday, November 7th on your calendar for both the national eledion and the last day for UPA ballots. (see page 42)
they still find time to run tournaments, organize leagues, teach new players, and in general make Ultimate happen. Next time you blow off turning in a roster, waiver, or are late for a captains meeting, you add to these volunteers' frustration. Sure some of them just shrug and can deal with it. But did you ever think how many more tourneys there would be if people acted more responsibly? I know quite a few people who would throw tourneys if they didn't expect them to be headaches. Yes, part of this will improve as the UPA builds a less cumbersome sanctioning format, but you can also help out by turning in your roster and waivers at the captains' meeting. We are working on it on our end, so help us help you. Just a couple more things to add. First a huge thank you to all the volunteers that I have worked with at Co-ed Nationals, Tune-Up and all the tasks in between. Thank you for everything you have done to help this sport be so great. Also anybody out there in flat plastic land know Eric Rasheed (Athens, GA ?) or Mike Thornburg (Tucson, AZ or Denver, CO), tell them to get a hold of me.
UPA Fall Championships 2000 If you would like to volunteer at Fall Nationals in Sarasota, Florida, drop me a line. We need scorekeepers, observers, and general help. If you volunteer for the entire tournament, we will provide hotel (4 per room), food (2 meals a day), plastic, shirts, parties and so much more. Tim Finan, Tournament Diredor PO Box 32895 Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33420 tfinan /060@aol.com wwwbeachultimate. comjupa_nationals. htm
Assistant Director
Fa/12000
www.upa. org
5
NATIONAL CO-ED DIRECTOR by Jen Christianson fu 1996, Joey Gray asked the UPA, "what are you doing for Co-ed?" The response was, "nothing ..." In 1997, the UPA staged the first Coed Celebration, designed to be an offbeat event celebrating the special spirit of Coed Ultimate, complete with whatever crazy rule variations the players wished to dream up. However, many players still felt there was room for a more "serious" kind of Co-ed Ultimate at the highest levels of the UPA. fu 1998, Joey (by then the first-ever UPA Co-ed Director) was charged with assembling a team of Sectional and Regional Coordinators by July. If enough coordinators could be assembled in time, Co-ed would be played alongside the Open, Womens, and Masters divisions in the Fall Championship Series. The deadline was met, and 92 Co-ed teams participated in that first season. Red Fish Blue Fish of San Francisco, a Co-ed team that
had been playing in the Open division for about 4 years, became the first UPA Coed Champions. fu 1999, Co-ed participation grew to 122 teams, surpassing the womens division to become the UPA's second-largest division. At the Championships in San Diego, the Raleigh Llamas edged out Red Fish Blue Fish to become the second UPA Co-ed Champions. Co-ed seemed already entrenched as a fundamental part of the UPA, even though it had only been a few short years since Joey had first asked what the UPA was doing for Co-ed. Then came this year. A year in which some people felt the Board did perhaps a little too much "to" Coed Ultimate and maybe not enough "for" Co-ed Ultimate. At the very beginning of the year, Joey applied for the job of UPA Executive Director. She was appointed by the Board, and moved to Colorado Springs to
become the overseer of our whole organization. At about the same time, the Board held it's yearly meeting. During that meeting, the Board voted to move the Coed division out of the Fall time slot. Many factors were cited for the Board's decision, including the decline of womens division participation, and the difficulty in running a Championship event with so many divisions at once. Many Open and Womens players looked forward to the chance to play Co-ed while not giving up their "regular teams, while many Co-ed players felt inconvenienced, or even downright betrayed. I was among the ones who felt betrayed. fu the days after the Board decision, I received a phone call from Joey asking me to consider serving as the Co-ed Championship Director. I felt she had some nerve, calling me to ask a question like that- why on earth would I want to help carry out a decision I despised? Still, I didn't say no. Instead I told her to call me back in a few days. During the next few days, I came to realize that Co-ed Ultimate was what was important. Not fall Co-ed Ultimate, but just plain Co-ed Ultimate. We had to make sure all the progress that had happened over the past two years would not be undone. So I took the job, something I've never actually regretted, even through all the
inevitable screw-ups and bumps in the road that followed. (The worst thing to happen all year was the cancellation of the Co-ed Celebration. I'm hoping it will be back next year.) Working with people only over email in most cases, we managed to pull off 26 Sectional and Regional events all across North America that were attended by 151 teams. Co-ed was not only surviving the change, it was still growing. All that work came to a head in Blaine, Minnesota over Labor Day. Mike Remucal, Dave Gregg, and the rest of their crew put together a fine event for us up there, and the 24 teams that came to play all showed a high level of respect for the game and for each other. Though the weather started out a bit cold and drizzly at first, the spirit shone through- and finally on the last day and a half, so did the sun. The weather was a fitting metaphor for the whole Co-ed season- things started out bleak, but in the end there we all were, sitting in the sun, drinking cold beverages, watching some truly great Ultimate, with five little kites flying overhead, each bearing a single letter: F-S-0-T-G, for Free Spirits of the Game... Thank you to all the free-spirited coordinators, volunteers, and players who helped make this Co-ed series happen, and congratulations to Spear, the 2000 UPA Coed Champions!
TREASURER'S REPORT Board Approves 1999 Audit I am pleased to announce that at the board-wide conference call , the board approved Waugh and Associates ' audit of the UPA's financial records for 1999. The approval of the audit completes the auditing process. We now have a more accurate picture of the UPA's financial condition which will enable us to better analyze the financial impact of various programs. Three financial statements were created by the auditors and will be presented in the next newsletter. They consist of the Statement of Financial Position (balance sheet) as of Dec 31, 1999; the Statement of Activity and Changes in Net Assets (income statement) for the year ending Dec 31 , 1999; and the
6
Ultimate Players Association
Fall 2000
Statement of Cash Flows for the year ending Dec 31 , 1999. Of these three statements, the most critical for the UPA is the Statement of Cash Flows. If the UPA is to ensure that we continue to meet our financial obligations, we need to generate cash. The cash flow statement shows that over 1999, we were able to generate $21 ,081 from operating activities. Over 1999, we invested a net of $3,573 in property and equipment, which resulted in net increase in cash and cash equivalents of $17,508. This provided us with a cash balance of $112,954, which is sufficient to ensure smooth financial operations throughout 2000. Reviewing the expenses for 1999
Directors Reports
by Matt Healey shows that most of out expenses are related to program services that directly benefit the members. Examples of these services include running the championship series, producing the newsletter and the 800 number. Of the total expenses, only 12% went to Administrative and Board function.
Revenue model concerns impede budgeting process Over the past several months, the Board and HQ have been considering changing the membership cycle (See Membership Cycle Change article). Due to the potential financial impact of changing the membership cycle, and the questions surrounding the effect of this year' s Co-ed move, we have been
unable to generate accurate revenue models for 2000. As a result of this, the UPA has been using the preliminary budget that was passed at the annual meeting. This budget represents conservative revenue projections. As a result of these projections, we believe that the UPA will remain on sound financial ground throughout this year and into 2001. Now that the board has determined the best way to proceed regarding the membership cycle for 2000, we may be able to clarify the revenue models and generate a final budget. If the models show that we have increased revenue, we will be able to launch additional programs in the end of this year or early next year.
Upon
stopping atabl.oody toi.II'"I'IE!Y
STANDING Ru1 ES COMMI I I EE REPORT Chris Van Holmes, Chair cvh@cbr washington. edu The newly revamped Standing Rules Committee has been assigned the task of write a lOth edition of the rules and to develop an annual cycle of rules review and revision. The nine member committee consists of: Chris Van Holmes, Seattle Tim Murray, Michigan Alan Hoyle, North Carolina Troy Frever, Seattle Joy Endicott, Fayetteville, AR Will Deaver, Atlanta Kate Bergeron, Palo Alto Eric Simon, Washington DC J uha J alovaara, Finland The lOth edition revision will address the following issues:
RULES ISSUES: "General" vs. "Specific" rules clause Captain's Clause vs. new "Event Director's" clause Include pull rule as currently played Address a disc touched by receiving team then going OB WFDF Eliminate contradictions and ambiguities in the OB section Previous SRC rewrite Does the disc count as a part of a player for determining OB? Possession Make more concise (Delete "up to that point") Clarify accidental self pass &/or bobble Make field size adjustable? Standardize measurements (metric/English) Equipment
Make assist or hindrance illegal Length of Game Time outs after overtime Timing , positions, violations WFDF penalties Equipment Time Outs Self Checks Define When used Consolidate all calls into one violation section Eliminating contradictions & ambiguities in fouls & violations Define positions following as call Fix continuation rule How to handle a foul that is subsequently played into a turnover WFDF variation Modify continuation rule to include " in the act of throwing;" eliminate corresponding thrower/marker special rules Throwing fouls Marker-thrower contact Result of offensive foul Picks Proximity/distance required Blocking picks - offensive player steps in path Screening picks - Cutter drags defender through any player Traveling Add additional traveling violations Failure to put disc in play at appropriate spot Stall count at this violation? Positioning Clarifying obstruction and boxing out Stalling Initiating vs. continuing Clarify counts including the nature of two seconds Initiate vs. maintain distance from thrower? within 10'?
Whose throw this is, I think I know I stand no chance without a ho' I skip across the barren 'zone with disc in hand, I'm scored with stone.
Define who can make what call Strip Include a check? Contesting a strip on thrower bring disc back to spot of violation and have check disc Define observer roles Improve definitions Pivot Legitimate position Brick Improve description of the game Eliminate clarifying statements Scoring Callahan goal Observers & Timekeepers Empower as needed
We would like to thank all the volunteers who stepped forward to be in the Standing Rules Committee.
My little flesh must think it queer To get filleted six times a year I take a break to stop the flow, Sunset light adds to the red glow He gives his hucking arm a break to see if there is some mistake. We score this time without a dive I'm in again, since out for five. My bodVs broken, bruised and pained, But I have memories from which to gain, And pools of pus that must be drained, And pools of pus that must be drained. - Ralph Lange, Boston I wrote a poem some time ago about Ultimate, as I have experienced it sometimes at tournaments. It's based on Robert Frost's "Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening'~ - RL
IOVVAS MOSTVVANTED.--
Doug Lane proposes to Carrie Welter There was a post game proposal at the end of Day 1 of Co-ed Nationals. Two players, Doug Lane and Carrie Welter, got engaged during the team's post-game toast. It was a truly awesome moment in the waning sunlight of a wonderful day.
UPA Sanctioned events The UPA offers league, practice and tournament sanctioning package which includes: • general liability insurance • a $5/per introductory member rebate to sanctioned leagues, to use for local outreach
In m~ ideal V~orld, ever~one V~ould pia~ Ultimate. Yet in suc.h a V~orld, the pressures to master the diffiwlt forehand thro'll V~ould be intense. -Tim Athan I love you , and I've waited patiently, but I wonder if your forehand will ever be reliable.
~OD HElPSHt/~~t W~O APPlYTH WRI~l
• Incentives for on-time rosters, including discs, extra newsletters and other merchandise. For complete event sanctioning info, email info@upa.org. A MA TRIMONIAL ST ALL COUNT
SOME WOULD SEEK GUID ANCE FROM THE PATRON SAINT OF ULTM ATE, ST FRJSB.
Standing Rules Committee
THEN SOMED AY THERE WILL BE THE FINAL LAYOUT.
Fall 2000
www.upa. org
7
Ask the Rules Guy! Please send your rules questions to: "upa_rul es_guy@ up a. org"
PLAYS OF THE GAIVIE let's take a look at some exciting plays in the game of Ultimate and the rules behind them.
Wholiso 'MAC'~ and is it/ego/ in Ullimole? 1
MAC stands for "Mid-Attitude Correction" (l have also heard it given as "Mung Angle Correction"). lt basically refers to contacting (sometimes also known as "brushing") the disc on the side, top, or bottom in such a way as to alter the flight path. ("Mung" is the angle of pitch of the disc - see "Frisbee", Dr. Stancil E.D. Johnson for more details.) Ultimate players generally use the term "MAC" to cover any contact with the disc in the air other than catching it. Experienced players can often intentionally MAC a disc and send it in a slightly different direction than it was originally headed, or MAC a disc which is about to hit the ground in such a way as to make it rise again. A common misconception is that MACs are illegal in Ultimate. ln fact most MACs are legal. Here's the rule: XV.2. Bobbling to gain control of the disc is permitted, but purposeful, controlled bobbling to oneself (i.e., tipping, delaying, guiding, or brushing) in order to advance the disc is considered traveling and is not allowed.
This rule only prohibits a MAC in one particular situation -when a player MACs it to him/herself in order to advance the disc. So, it is
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Ultimate Players Association
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perfectly acceptable for one player to intentionally MAC to another (why you would want to do this is another question.) lt is also legal to MAC the disc to oneself for the purpose of gaining control. An example of this would be jumping up to catch a disc, but discovering that instead of being able to make the catch you can only get a finger or two on it. You might then hit the disc in order to keep it from flying away, or to make it lose altitude, and then try the catch again. This is allowed since you are not advancing the disc. Another case is if you attempt the catch but the disc bounces off your hand and goes flying. lf you chase it down and catch it before it hits the ground, then you have successfully and legally MACd the disc to yourself, since your bobbling advance of the disc was not purposeful.
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Ok, I'll bite. Why would you want to MAC the disc to a teammate anyway. Isn't that rather risky?
lt is indeed risky, which is why it seldom occurs. But there are rare situations where it can come in handy. One example is a floating disc. lf the receiver misstimes the jump slightly and finds that s/he can only get a finger on it, it might be best to brush the disc slightly to another waiting receiver if it prevents a nearby defender from making a play on it. Another situation is when the disc is flying out-ofbounds and the receiver leaps from in-bounds to make a play, but is
Ask the Rules Guy
unable to make the catch. There is a chance that this receiver could tip the disc in such a way so as to make it come back in bounds to be subsequently caught by another receiver. This would also be a legal MAC, as long as the first receiver did not contact any out-of-bounds area before or while touching the disc.
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Why are some MACs illegal?
Back in the days when many Ultimate players were also Freestylers, it was not uncommon for someone to be able to run sizeable distances while brushing the disc along in the air. lf on a breakaway (the D wasn't as good back then either J ) it was possible for a receiver to opt not to catch a leading pass, but to instead begin repeatedly brushing it while running, and in this manner proceed by himself (or herself) the length of the field and into the goal. People didn't like this way of advancing the disc and decided to prohibit it. However, as shown above, a violation of this rule is not a turnover, but merely a travel (assuming that the disc is eventually caught by the offense). ln this case the thrower must return to the point of the first MAC, but does not lose possession.
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What is "The Greatest" and why is it legal?
"The Greatest Play" or more commonly simply "The Greatest" refers to a particular play in which an offensive receiver saves a disc which would otherwise become out-of-bounds. Imagine a disc that is flying out-of-bounds, and a receiver laying out for the catch. The receiver's last point of contact with the ground must be in-bounds. Now this airborne receiver makes the catch, but realizes that there is no way she can land in-bounds or even get a toe in-bounds. lf the receiver lands out-of-bounds, it will be a turnover. Instead the still airborne receiver throws the disc back toward the field. An overhand wrist-flip back over the shoulder is an artful way to achieve this. lf another receiver catches the disc in-bounds, then the pass is complete! It's especially spectacular when the final catch is made in the goal. There are several rules which bear examination in support of the Greatest: IX.2. A disc is out-of-bounds when it first contacts an out-of-bounds area or contacts anything out-of-bounds. IX.3. The disc may fly outside a perimeter line and return to the playing field ... IX.4. A player is out-of-bounds when s/he is contacting an out-of-bounds area. When a player is in the air, his/her in or out-of-bounds is determined by where the ground was last contacted by the player.
These rules show that the player performing the Greatest is in-bounds while catching the disc in the air, as long as the last point of ground con-
tact was in-bounds, and that the state of the disc is not yet out-ofbounds. XV.s. If the receiver is running or jumping as s/he catches the disc, the receiver may throw a pass before the third ground contact after catching the disc without coming to a complete stop; however, change in direction or increase in speed while in possession of the disc is a travelling violation. This indicates that the receiver may throw the disc while in the air and before landing without being called for traveling. Together these rules make the Greatest legal.
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What happens if the person attempting the Greatest is fouled while throwing, resulting in an incomplete pass?
The disc goes back to the person performing the Greatest, who takes it at the nearest point on the playing field proper (i.e. not in the end zone) to where the aspiring Greatest was when throwing. There are a number of factors to consider here. First, is the person performing the Greatest actually a thrower, or is the pass from the Greatest just treated as a MAC? The answer is that as long as the disc was actually caught by the airborne receiver, then that receiver is a thrower with possession of the disc, and the subsequent pass is treated just as any other. II.1.F. Possession of the disc: Sustained contact with, and control of, the non-spinning disc. a. To catch a pass is equivalent to
establishing possession of that pass. Xlll.1. The thrower is the offensive player in possession of the disc, or the player who has just released the disc. The important point to note here is that a receiver establishes possession by catching a pass. Ground contact is not required for possession. As soon as the receiver makes the catch, that receiver becomes a "thrower", even if still in the air. Now the only difficulty is how to return the disc to a thrower who was airborne. Fortunately, there is a rule explicitly covering that: XIX.8. Should a foul or violation result in possession reverting to a thrower who was airborne while releasing the disc, play shall be restarted at the point on the playing field proper closest to the location from which the throw was made.
What happens if there is a Greatest Play but the final receiver (who fails to catch it) calls a foul, which is also contested by the defense?
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The result is the same as in the last question. A contested foul of the receiver goes back to the thrower. ln this case the thrower was airborne over out-ofbounds territory, so the Greatest player gets the disc at the nearest point on the playing field proper.
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Can the airborne receiver call a time-out instead of throwing the disc?
No. VI.1E. During play, only a player who has established a pivot foot and who has possession of the disc can call a timeout. The player in the air does have possession, but has not yet established a pivot foot, and therefore cannot call a time-out.
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Q: What is the "Stupidest"?
Troy Frever
That is when a receiver attempts a Greatest but throws an incomplete pass, and then lands inbounds! The attempted airborne throw resulted in a turnover, although the original pass would have been complete if the player had simply held onto the disc after catching it, since he actually landed in-bounds.
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Is there a play greater than the Greatest?
Undoubtedly, but it has yet to be named. I'll therefore nominate the following as the "Ultra-
Ask the Rules Guy
Greatest", based on all of the rules discussed in this article. Here's the play: You dive from in-bounds getting ready to perform the Greatest on a disc which is flying out-ofbounds with no chance of coming back in. You're well over out-ofbounds territory with no chance of landing in-bounds. However, you realize that you have no receiver in position to make a catch if you throw the disc. Therefore, instead of catching the disc, you MAC it in such a way that its velocity slows, its trajectory changes, and it heads back in towards the field of play. You crash land amongst the lawn chairs, jump up, run back inbounds, and catch the disc. The crowd goes wild. This is probably a travel, since you intentionally advanced the disc back in-bounds by MACing it to yourself. Nevertheless, you maintain possession and get the disc on the sideline. UltraGreatest! That about wraps it up. Please send your rules questions to upa_rules_guy@upa.org. And as always, "play hard, play fair".
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Fall 2000
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by Adam Zagoria The first cut is the deepest Every year, Lee Franklin and Matt Mailman get together with some other folks over homebrews and try to figure out how to put a team together for the fall. The fellas live in Columbus, OH, and every year the question is the same: since there aren ' t enough players here to form a club team, who should we combine with to make a competitive one? Every year, a bunch of New York guys get together over Budweisers and work on assembling their team. And every year the question is the same: who should we axe to cut our numbers down to an acceptable 22 or 24? Two cities, two juntas and two sets of problems. Franklin, a Yale alum, and Mailman, a Binghamton grad, have never had to deal with the things the New York junta does. Like the guy who got cut last year, and called then-captain Allon Katz twenty times one day to find out why. Twenty times. In one day. "I've never cut anybody," Franklin said. "Nobody (here) wants power, nobody wants to be in charge. People run and hide from the responsibility of starting or running an Ultimate team because it's hard." Jude Travers-Frazier, one of five guys on the first-ever New York junta without a representative from the old New York, NY teams, has the opposite problem. He has to axe people. "It makes practices hard because I have to play my game, and also pay attention to other people," he said. Annoying phone calls and distracting practices aside, being on the junta has its benefits. On a summer trip to Montreal for the J azzfest tournament, at least one New York tryout did everything for Travers-Frazier but get his breakfast in the morning. "If you have any suggestions on my game, let me know because I really respect your game," the tryout said. "Oh, and by the way, fill up your coffee?" OK, OK, it wasn't that bad, but Travers-Frazier did admit, "I'm get-
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Ultimate Players Association
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ting talked to a lot more." Mostly he gets talked to when a rookie makes a mistake. "One guy likes to come and explain whatever motivated him to drop the Frisbee or cut wherever the hell he did" he added. As we went to press , five New York guys were fixing to make two rounds of cuts over one month to determine who makes up the fall squad. In doing so, they'll basically have four categories of folks to choose from. First, there ' s the core of the team. These are the soldiers who have been on the squad for a couple of years, and hope to improve their level of play while picking up complimentary additions. Second, there are the superstars. Every big-city team has them. These are the guys who don ' t show up to practice until August, and still get all the PT they can handle in the gameto-go at Regionals. Why? Because they usually deliver the goods. Third, there are the up-and-coming young players. These are the guys just recently out of college who show promise, and one day aspire to be a member of one of the first two groups. If they 're smart, they'll play hard defense and value the disc. They ' ll walk the fine line between being cool and kissing up too much. Finally, there are the older guys trying to eke out a spot on the club. Some of them are from town, and are hoping for one last run at glory. Their skills are solid, but they aren ' t improving. Others have recently moved to town, and are trying to show their skills without disrupting the program. In New York, all of these groups are represented - and probably a few not even covered here. But in Columbus , there aren ' t as many options. "Even at practice, we often have less than four guys," Mailman said. "When we have sevens, we can't play as hard as we'd like because there are no subs."
Zag's Rag
That means turning to other pools of players. Last year, half a dozen Columbus guys tried merging with a dozen or so players from Cleveland, but that scheme was complicated by the two-and-a-half-hour drive between the cities. The team didn't practice as much as Franklin hoped, and he also felt the merger hurt the Columbus Ultimate scene by taking its best players away. In the end, the team didn't make it out of Regionals, prompting Franklin and Mailman to go another route this season. For the summer, they decided to pair up with the ten or so women from town - who had similar issues with numbers - and make a run at Co-ed Nationals. No one got cut from the Co-ed team Cocoa, and the junta urges people to attend practice twice a week. At press time, Cocoa had qualified for Nationals. Meanwhile, for the fall , the Cleveland men have apparently joined up with guys from Athens and Cincinnati to form Heartland, an all-Ohio all-star team. Franklin and Mailman have decided to stay local and play with the Ohio State Men's team in the fall. "This year the college team is pretty good," Mailman said. "They 're in charge, we're just gonna be roll players on their team." The two guys from Columbus admit feeling pangs of jealousy about their friends back East, the ones who play for Boston and New York, and have a large pool of players to choose from. "I think it encourages people to play much more competitively when you know that your position on the team is in question," Mailman said. Still, by playing with Ohio State, the guy who went from Crugers, NY to Columbus won' t have to drive more than two hours to practice anymore, and won't have to worry about getting sevens for practice. Together with the college kids, maybe he' ll even build something that lasts for a while.
GOALTIMATE UPDATE In other developments, Rick Conner' s Goaltimate is in full swing.
Goaltimate Phase II aired about half a dozen times on ESPN2 during April even though the network only contracted to show it twice, Conner said. On July 2, San Diego's Ground Zero and the Santa Barbara Condors were set to play in conjunction with the opening day of San Diego Chargers training camp. ESPN was to film the event, while approximately 2,000 to 3,000 fans were expected to attend. Conner also plans additional Goaltimate tournaments in Vancouver at the end of the summer and in Los Angeles next spring. The appeal of Goaltimate for ESPN is that there is less down time between points , and that fewer cameras are needed to cover its smaller field. Also, as the recent coverage revealed, the folks at ESPN can position Goaltimate as an " extreme" sport by showing people bleeding , and coupling it with other "extreme" sports. Conner, who paid out of his own pocket to fly players to several tournaments, has also recently hired a marketing group , McClellan Sports Management Group of Newport Beach, Calif. , to help him find the sponsors which could make a Goaltimate league happen. As evidenced by the mention of Ultimate in Sandra Bullock ' s recent film , 28 Days, Conner says "there' s a generation of people growing up who are more familiar with Ultimate." While he stresses that Ultimate and Goaltimate are not competitors, he thinks that the success of Goaltimate may enable a similar growth for Ultimate. "As we are able to break through, I think Ultimate could break through as well," he said. "There are professionals in everyday life who play Ultimate. If they worked together on getting the right sponsorships, it could happen." For more information, check out goaltimate.com.
If you have news, opinions or gossip you'd like to share with the author; email him at aaz70@ hotmail. com.
by Brandon Silverman
TUNE-UP THE GREATEST VVEEK OF MY LIFE My name is Brandon Silverman, I play for the Swarthmore Earthworms, and this is the story of the greatest weekend of my life. The story begins on Wednesday, three days before Chicago's infamous TuneUp. Procrastinating in the usual Ultimate player's fashion, I was browsing the UPA Web site when I glanced over the details of this ridiculously large tournament. I had heard of Tune-Up before, while I was practicing with Tampa Bay Undertow that previous summer, and I had imagined the possibility, but was far from even thinking about arranging any actual plans to attend. In a moment of utter brilliance, a fellow Earthworm, Jeremy "Badger" Slezak and I looked at each other, looked back at the tournament information, and then simply decided to go. If only everything were that easy. Thirty-six hours later (during my painting class and his microeconomics class) we were at the Philly airport picking up two electronic roundtrip tickets to Chicago for $150 each, with two sleeping bags, two pairs of cleats, a dark, a light, a couple of changes of underwear, and a disc. As soon as we touched down in O'Hare and started looking for a ride to Naperville, we realized the magnitude of what we were doing. To begin with, Tune-Up was taking place in Naperville, which as turned out, is 40 miles outside Chicago (of course, we didn't know that). Hence, our original plan of walking to the fields had to be scrapped. So, walking off the plane we headed for baggage claim even though we were carrying everything we needed on our backs. We searched up and down looking for people who might possibly play Ultimate for about an hour. Then we resorted to begging, and finally, we actually started asking people. I can still remember Jeremy sitting on the ground with a sign that said, "Naperville anyone?" while I asked random people (generally, women between the ages of 17 - 27) if they were
going to Naperville. Two hours later, still in baggage claim, we found a shuttle that was driving to Naperville for about $12 a person. This is when things went from disorganized to unbelievable. In the shuttle, Jeremy started a conversation with a man, heading to his house in Naperville from a business trip, who ended up putting us both up for the night. Did he play Ultimate? Nope. Had he ever heard of Tune-Up? Nope. Not only that, but his wife (they were just married) made us dinner, took us to the movies, and the next morning, drove us both to the fields for the start of play. Furthermore, I had the good fortune of opening my big mouth in order to recommend a Harrison Ford movie that ended up being a mid19th century English romance (with no Harrison Ford). So, somehow, Saturday morning, we were at the fields. From the minute we stepped on the fields, Tune-Up was everything I had imagined and more. Jeremy and I just looked at each other and smiled. And then ran to the TD's table to ask for pick-up possibilities. We ended up picking up with Corn Fed from Nebraska. Corn Fed was the nicest group of guys we could have possibly picked up with. They gave us playing time, put us up Saturday night in their motel room, and otherwise, made the tournament for us. Without a doubt, had it not been for their generosity (or pity), we would not be telling this story right now. Furthermore, as a team, we played great. We advanced from Division C to Division B, and basically played solid Ultimate. The weather was beautiful, the tournament was great, and the people were fantastic. Sunday was probably the highlight of the entire weekend. Corn Fed did well but we were out of the tournament in time to see Semis and Finals in the Men's Open Division and the Women's Finals. I had wanted to see Houndz (what's up, JT! !) play more than anything else, and I got that opportunity
in the Semis when they played DoG. This made me realize that going to a tournament like Tune-Up is about two things: getting to play against great players and getting to watch some of the best players in the country. Jeremy and I were just as excited sitting down to watch Semis as we were when we walked on the line for the first time Saturday with Corn Fed. Houndz were amazing, DoG was incredible and Furious George was even better. Actually, the one player that I remember the most was Brian Harriford from Houndz. I had heard he was a Callahan winner, but I learned why that afternoon. Anyway, the point is that we got to watch the best Ultimate we had ever seen, and we sure as hell appreciated it more than the shitty cafeteria food we would have been eating during our usual Sunday afternoon at Swarthmore. Not to mention, I scored a $55 long-sleeve Gaia jersey for $10, because it was drizzling and the Gaia guy did not want to pack a wet display shirt. When the tournament finally ended, it dawned on us, oh ya, how are we getting home? Our tickets were for Monday afternoon from O ' Hare, so if nothing else, time was on our side. Com Fed dropped us off at restaurant near the train that went into Chicago, and we dug into our wallets for the second time that weekend (and the last, whether we liked it or not). We were so poor, in fact, we snagged some toilet paper from the bathroom just in case we could not afford a place to stay that night. Choosing the undiscovered country of Downtown Chicago versus hitting up the airport couple for a second night, we hopped on the train to Chicago around nine, having no idea where we were going to stay. Sheer exhaustion caused us both to pass out in Union Station for about an hour, but pure shadiness forced us to bag that plan. Somebody asked Jeremy if he wanted any hash, and I had somebody ask, "Can you change two tens for a five?" We
Tune Up
ended up finding a youth hostel that was near Loyola. Two metro rides and bus later, we stepped onto Loyola's campus and headed for a nearby hostel. Passing a lit field in the middle of campus brought to mind the games we had seen six hours ago, but even those memories could not quell the feelings of anxiety we were having as it approached 11 o' clock. When we finally reached the hostel, there's basically no other way to put it then it stank. The whole place smelled, and we were too happy to put up with the slightest mediocrity... so what did we do? We went back to the lit field to throw around. Throwing around, we ended up meeting several Loyolan women (on their way back from Sunday night mass). Badger's charm once again proved unmatchable, and within minutes the girls were scouring the campus to find us rooms with their friends. However, Badger's charm does fall short when it is being used on guys, and unfortunately, no one was willing to let to dirty strangers stay in their room on a Sunday night (if you can believe that.). Now its almost midnight, and we headed for the last public place still open: the library. At 11:52 we walked in the front door (the library closes at midnight) with all our stuff, showerless from the days activities, headed to the basement, hopped over the wall of a locked study lounge, and put all our stuff up on chairs so we wouldn't be seen. Eight minutes later, the lights went out, we moved the chairs, laid out our sleeping bags, wet clothes, and went to bed. Eight hours later, the library lights back up, we brushed our teeth in the bathroom, and walked back out the front door with all our luggage. One hour throwing around on the quad while everyone at Loyola went to class and one trip to the Sears Tower later, we were at O'Hare boarding our plane back to real life. A weekend of mooching, playing Ultimate, watching Ultimate and hanging out with one of your best friends. What more could you ask for?
I Fall 2000
I
www.upa. org
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by Jim Parinella
, Keep rtlOVIn
This feature by Jim Parinella, member of sixtime UPA Open Champions DoG provides new insightful strategies on Ultimate. From recreational players to cagey Master veterans, take a look-you should find a new edge on how to play the game.
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Ultimate Players Association
Fall 2000
What are the characteristics of a good Ultimate player? Some of them are easy to name: good throws, speed, quick first step, leaping ability, good layouts. But some of the more subtle aspects of the game that many players pay little attention to can turn the course of a game or a championship. In last year's semifinals of DoG against Furious George, Alex de Frondeville just missed Fortunat Mueller on a huck, but Jim "Bim" Johnston was diligently trailing the play and made a brilliant layout catch for the goal. Someone casually watching the play might not have even noticed Bim running towards the play, or if he did he would have thought that Bim wanted to be the first one there to exchange high-fives with Fortunat after the impressive leaping catch. But by hustling and thinking, Bim was able to make what was for me the most memorable and inspirational play of the 1999 tournament.
Defense Obviously, what the thrower, cutter and their defenders are doing matters a lot, but what the other players do is often more important. At practice the other day, a huck to the end zone floated just enough for the deep in the zone to be able to make a block attempt. He inadvertently committed an uncontested foul and the offense scored easily after the check. The reason? The other deep and the two wings just stood and watched, while the other offensive players continued moving toward the disc. Even though none of them had a realistic shot at the disc, the other defenders should have hustled back for at least three reasons. First, it's possible that the disc will hang longer than expected and the unrealistic shot will tum into a realistic one. Second, as should have happened here, the defense will be in place if there is an uncontested foul. And third, if the deep does make the block, the other defenders are now wide open for an easy 20-yard reception. How often does your team get a block on a huck but then wait ound for the stack to set and throw it away on the first pass? Hustle by the players not directly involved in the play at hand will prevent that. Defenders can also add value by learning when to go against conventional wisdom by playing something other than basic "shut your man down" defense. The principles that say to stick with your cutter exist for good reason, but even the most rigid
Inside Out
and unimaginative team should still encourage its players to exercise good judgment by carefully breaking those rules. If a teammate is being beat such that a goal is certain to result, then by all means move away from your offender to get in the way. Dynamic defensive positioning also falls in this realm. Speed might get an occasional impressive-looking block, but the really good defenders are the ones who always seem to be right where you want to cut to. These defenders pay attention to the flow of the disc and reposition themselves before the offensive player begins his cut. They hustle and put in that extra effort up front, so they don't have to go chasing after an open cutter in hopes of making up the distance. And sometimes the receiver will continue cutting, the thrower has no other choices, and the pass either goes right to the defender or else sails beyond everyone's reach. So, if you notice this happening a lot to a defender on your team, realize that it's not because he's lucky.
Offense Some of my proudest moments on the field come when I don' t get within ten yards of the disc. I often find myself near the back of the stack setting up for a continuation cut after the next pass, when I'll notice the primary cutter get a good jump on a long cut. If I do nothing, my defender can easily switch to stop the deep throw. If I delay a little, I'll often be free underneath after defensive confusion surrounding the poach. But if I immediately break towards the disc, my defender won't even be aware of the long cut and will come in with me, opening up the whole deep area. In general, I will cut in at about 80% effort and will cut more directly to the sideline than if I were cutting for real, in order to give the throwe~ wider passing lane. In the stack (which is really just a more general a plication of the principle "get the hell out of the way"), each of the non-cutters should stil be actively engaging his defender. Teams sometimes force this issue by having set plays where each player in the stack moves in one direction as if cuttin , while one player breaks off to the vacated area. If there is no formal movement, the individuals must either actively move in the direction opposite of the open cutter.-or else make it look like he is in the process of setting up a cut of his own. The hustling player has several options
on the long pass. Sometimes the best choice is to cut toward the thrower after the release in order to draw your defender out of the way. However, let's assume that the pass is up, everyone realizes it, and at least one teammate has much better position. Occasionally (maybe you're 6' 10", or perhaps there are already three defenders jumping against your 5'2" teammate) it will be best to get in there and try to make the catch yourself, but more often, you'll help the team most by being a backup. First determine where the disc will land if it floats over everyone's heads. If only two players are going for the disc, you should set yourself so you can get to both an overthrow and one that gets tipped. If many players are involved already, then one option is to get on the side the disc is coming from for garbage that is deflected by the defense. Another option, especially when it's obvious the disc won't make the end zone, is to get give yourself 15-20 yards toward the side so the thrower has an easy goal pass if he does come down with the disc. A third option is to run beyond the disc in case it's barely brushed, as the mac will send it quickly toward the back of the end zone. As a thrower, I'm not particularly enamored with routine fakes, for the simple reason that when you're faking, you can't be throwing. In an earlier column ("Offensive Thoughts," August 1999), I referred to the concept of spatial margin versus temporal margin, how some passes have to be precisely located but can be thrown at any time within a 3 second window (a player with defender close behind running hard straight back to the thrower), while others have lots of physical room for error provided they are thrown at the right time (most leading passes thrown to space). A slow fake can eat up all the temporal margin on a cut, so the thrower is better suited by doing something else while waiting to throw. Often times a basic pivot without making a big throwing motion or a simple weight shift from one leg to the other accompanied by some disc motion is just as effective at moving the marker to that side. Working on these hidden skills can make you a better teammate, someone who is always in the right spot, someone who never seems to get in the way and someone who never gives up. It's the attention to detail that can make all the difference.
Boston Invitational Elite Open Champions: Thermonuke
College Nationals
2000
Staff Photo by Jon Shepard
Top Row (LtoR): Chris Archer, Ben Pauker, Mark Determan, Jim Nesbitt, Curtiss Ca ll eo, Arno ld Sanchez, Stu Da lheim, Eric Prange, Ron Kuba lanza Knee ling (Lt oR): Ca lvin Li n, AJ lwaszko, jesse Ka lb, jason Grove, Dave Fause l Photo by ji m Nesb itt
tourna111ents 2000 Tournament s reported to t he UPA as of September 1, 2000-Send your tourney info to: tourney_ author@upa.org Cont act info@upa.org if you woul d like your event to be UPA sanctioned.
UPDATES: If you would like to make any additions, corrections, or updates, please use the UPA Tourney Info Submission Form, at <http:// www.serve.com/ upa/ tourneys/ tourneyReg.html>. The web page was designed in patt by Philadelphia Area Disc Alliance members and is sponsored by DataRealm Internet Services. If you can not access the web, you may send the info to me at tourney_list_author@upa.org
Oct 7-8, Blue Plate S~»eclal, .lackson, TN $100.00/ Team due Sep 7; Overage to Jackson Jaycees Children's Christmas Shopping Spree of Jackson, TN Extras: Disc 6-10 Open Teams Ian Stevens, stevens.ic@pg.com, h:901-664-7149, w:901-423-7100 x6103 http://www.jacksonjaycees.com Bagels, bananas, water, lined fields , awesome patty. Come 'n get it!!
Oct 7-8, Dlsctoberfest. Ann Arbor, Ml $175/Team due Sep 15; inc! Dinner 4M/3F; 8-12 Coed Teams Abigail Sanford-Clapp, abbyjs@umich.edu, h:734.327.0269 , w:734.646.1850 http:// http://wwwpersonal. umich.edu/ -blksqrl/Disctoberfest.html Hosted by Viscous Coupling
Oct 14-15, Winclv CitV Ram~tase, Chlcago,IL $70/ Team due Aug 26 inc! dinner UPA Planned; Rated 5 Stars 5M/2F; 16 College Only Co-ed Teams Kevin Nicholson, columbia_ultimate@hotmail.com, h:309-3535677 Erica Ashburn, airca2@aol.com http:// interactive.colum.edu/ students/ knicholson/tournament.htm 16 coed teams, great food , big and small schools, 20 miles from downtown Chicago
New England invited: both Open and Women's teams, all levels.
Nov 4-5, PADA MOSH IV, PlliiiV,PA
Oct 21·22. Danse Macabre Halloween Ultimate Tournament. Rochester, NY
$125.00/ Team; Deposit:$50.00 due Oct 7; Overage to PADA Juniors of Philly, PA Extras: Dinner 4M/ 3F; 28 Coed Teams Gamal Sherif, gsherif55@hotmail.com http:// pada.org/padatourneys/ mosh/ Food, beverages, band , fireplace; Surprise for each pool's most spirited team.
$120/ Team due Sep 22 16 Open, 10 Womens Teams Steve Lacagnina, spl0701@cs.rit.edu, h:(716) 334-4845 http://www.rit.edu/ -frsbewww/ Danse/ Costume Patty, Prizes -Best Team Costume, Spirit Award, Best Costume at Patty
Oct 26-29, 2000 UPA National Cham~tionshi~». Sarasota, FL $35.00/ Individual UPA Planned; Rated 5 Stars Tim Finan, tfinan1060@aol.com, w:561-6266735, fax:561-626-5578 http://www.beachultimate.com/ upa_nationals .htm Volunteers are needed and will receive housing, clothing, plastic, food , patties
Oct 28-29, 10th Annual Harvest Moon Ultimate Classic, Favettevllle,AR $150.00/ Team 20 Open, 8 Womens , 8 College Only Teams Tony Potter, ragu@ipa.net, h:501.443.2530 Jeff Fox, foxy@fayettevilleultimate.com Joy Endicott, vista6@mc2k.com http:// fayettevilledisc.org resurfaced fields & the legendaty Harvest Moon Costume Ball, bring your costume!
Oct 28-29, Hanford Howl, Kennewick,WA
Oct 14-15, 7tll Annual Hold Back Tile Snow, Winni~teS, MB
$200.00/ Team; Deposit:$50.00 due Oct 14 Overage to Benton and Franklin County Humane Society of Pasco, WA UPA Planned; Rated 3 Stars, inc! Dinner 4M/3F; 14 Coed Teams Desett Lorax, Desettlorax@eatthlink.net Liz Jurrus, lizjurrus@eatthlink.net, w:(509)375-3960 Dave Wunschel, wunsch@owt.com http:// home.eatthlink.net/ -desettlorax/ Located next to the Columbia River providing dry weather and clear skies.
$150 Cdn/Team; 24 Juniors Only TeamsDean Wright, dwright@mbnet.mb.ca, h:204-477-1433, w:204-477-2444, fax:204-477-2446 Canada's largest Junior Tournament. Billeting and meals provided.
Nov 4-5, Dave Baldwin Memorial Tournament IV CFormerlv U.T.U.T.), Knoxville, TN
Oct 14-15, New England Fall College Challenge, Devens. MA $150.00/ Team due Sep 20 50 College Only Teams Tommy Proulx, tproulx@buda.org, h:978-486-0977, w :978-370-1437 Boston Ultimate Disc Alliance, college@buda.org http:// www.buda.org/college/ All colleges in
$133/ Team due Oct 21 16 College Only Teams Tim Halt, thalt@utk.edu, h:(865)521-7034, w :(865)974-2299 http:// web.utk.edu/ -ultimate/ dbmOO.html Same fields, same great and spirited play.
Nov 11-12, National Ultimate Discard, Savannah, GA $60.00/ Individual; Deposit:$100.00 per team due Oct 15; Overage to Chatham Assn for Retarded Citizens of Savannah, GA Extras: Dinner, Breakfast 16 regional qualifiers Open, 16 regional qualifiers Womens Teams Ed Pulkinen, dicophile@worldnet.att.net, h:912-232-6464, w:912-398-1054, fax:912-234-1113 http:// tuskcamp.freeservers.com
Nov 18·19, HOASIS, Tem~»e, AZ $60.00/ Team; Deposit:$40.00 due Nov 1 Extras: Disc, Shitt 2M/ 5F; 8 Coed Teams Amanda Dunleavy, powerpuff@uswest.net, h:602-431-1552, w :480-775-1999, fax:480-775-1919 ASU hosts yearly co-ed tourney. 2/ 5 3/ 4 0 calls it. Great weather, and floor sp.
Nov 18, 8th Annual3-on-3 Tournament. Charlotte, NC Other format,2M/2F; 20 Coed, 20 Open Teams Ed Fox, ed.fox@upa.org, h:704-846-4844 http://3on3.eboard.com 4 players/ team. Smaller fields. Open A & B divisions and Coed Division.
2001
.lan 6-7, .IANUS 2001,
Tam~ta aav, FL $125.00/ Team; Deposit:$125.00 due Dec 10 6 Coed, 14 Open, 10 Womens Teams Floyd Robetts, FER3@bigfoot.com, h:727-363-4825, w :727-363-7625 http:// www.geocities.com/ Colosseum/ Pressbox/1012/ janus2000.htm Warm Weather, Beach Patty, Cheap air fare - questions call floyd
.lan 17-21, Ultimate Fiesta in Pie cle Ia CUesta, Acalltlllco. Mexico $495/ Individual; Deposit:$100 due Sep 15 Extras: Shitt, Dinner, Breakfast Hat format,5M/2F Fernando Najera, fnajera@com-
versens.com Catherine Greenwald, ckgreenwald@lermanet.com.mx http:// www.discovolador.com/ fiesta2001 Price includes 5d/ 4n at resott plu s all meals & drinks. Games on beach & fields.
Feb 17·18, MUD BOWL 20, Birmingham, AL $150.00/ Team due Jan 20; Overage to Bread & Roses Hospitality for Women of Birmingham, AL UPA Planned; Rated 5 Stars Extras: Dinner, Breakfast 20 Open, 12 Womens, 10 College Only Teams Dave Edwards, wavy@uab.edu, h:205-930-8174 http:// mudbowl.org Please join us for our 20th anniversary celebration!!!!
Mar 10-11, Beach Ultimate, West Palm Beach, FL $20.00/ Individual Other format ,2M/ 2F; 16 Coed, 16 Open, 16 Womens Teams Tim Finan, tfinan1060@aol.com, w:561-626-6735, fax:561-6265578 http://www.beachultimate.com
Mar 12·1&. High Tide Session I, Savannah, GA $150.00/ Individual; Deposit:$300.00 due Jan 1 Overage to Coastal Assn. for Retarded Citizens of Savannah, GA Extras: Dinner, Breakfast 16 College Only Teams Ed Pulkinen, tuskcamp@worldnet.att.net, h:912-232-6464, w :912-354-7744, fax:912-234-1113 http:// tuskcamp.freeservers.com Includes lodging, meals, beach, tourney. $300 deposit before 1/ 1/ 01, $500 after
Mar 17-18, 1st Wave, Savannah, GA $40 includes 2 nights lodging/Individual; Deposit:$100.00 due Jan 1 24 College Only Teams Ed Pulkinen, tuskcamp@worldnet.att.net, h:912-232-6464, w:912-354-7744, fax:912-2341113 http:// tuskcamp.freeservers.com Includes 2 nights lodging, St Patrick's in Savannah is a must!
Mar 19-23, High Tide Session 11, Savannah, GA $150.00- 175.00/ Individual; Deposit:$300.00 due Jan 1; Overage to Coastal Assn. for Retarded Citizens of Savannah, GA Extras: Dinner, Breakfast 24 College Only Teams Ed Pulkinen, tuskcamp@worldnet.att.net, h :912-2326464, w:912-354-7744, fax:912-234-1113 http:// tuskcamp.freeservers.com Includes lodging, meals, beach, tourney. $300 deposit before 1/ 1/ 01 , $500 after
This list is up on the web. Check out the UPA Home Page, at www upa.org or go diredly to wwwwafc.orgjupajtourneys. html
Upcoming Tournaments
Fall 2000
www.upa. org
13
ASTERS f'IOTES by Chuck Figur-Oid and In the Way (Boulder) Photos by J. Jorgenson Old & In the Way won the masters division, beating home team Germany in the finals. There were 8 masters teams, and by the middle of pool play it was obvious that 4 teams were of very high caliber, and 4 teams were a bit weaker. The Italians, Swiss, Japanese, and British, all had some excellent players, but nowhere near enough depth to compete with Germany, Austria, Canada and us. We were the only club team there. The rest were all all star teams picked by each countries' organizing body.
POOL PLAY We came in second in the pool because we lost to Austria, an up and coming team with 3 players that have pretty extreme speed and skill, after many days in a row playing tough games, and many nights in a row enjoying the Heilbronn night life. Bob Pease developed schizophrenia during pool play because Masters Worlds-US vs. during the day he was "Bobba Block" for all of the D 's he was getting, and at night he became "Beerhall Bob" for holding court at the large beerhall being hosted by a festival Qust like American carnivals, but with some SERIOUSLY gut churning rides) that happened to be in town that week. Austria won the pool because they beat us and Canada, losing only to Germany. Germany had a shot at winning the pool, especially when they had us on the ropes 1411 , in a game to 15. But, we finally started
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Ultimate Players Association
playing tight defense and won in overtime. The loss to Austria was good for us, because it helped us focus as we moved into the quarters.
QUARTERS; SEMI'S; FINALS We played Italy in the quarters, a small team that didn't go too deep on talent, but was my vote for the most fun team to play and hang out with. Randy Ricks found a harmonica playing Italian and those two were heard jamming at one of the many tourney parties at 3 or 4 in the morning - they ROCKED. The other quarters went according to seed, which set up some tough semifinal matches: USACanada, and Germany-Austria. Unfortunately, Austria had two things working against it. They had played above their expectations in pool play, and when you don' t have much Germany experience winning, Photos by J. Jorgenson its tough to get over the hangover of your victory giddiness in time for the next important game. And, they have the monkey on their back of NEVER having beaten Germany in any match. They couldn't shake their victory hangover and perhaps intimidation. So, stellar plays that seemed so easy the day before against us were unachievable against a strong German team that wanted very much to win a world championship on its home turf. Germany advanced 15-6. I'm sure Austria would
Fall 2000
World Ultimate Championships
Masters Worlds-US vs Germany
Photos by J. Jorgenson
believe that it was about 50/50 for bad calls much rather have played either Canada or (probably 2 each) - but, had I been on the Old than their old foe. For the most part, we would have liked the chance to have losing side, I'm sure I would think they avenged our loss, but I guess we' ll live with made enough more to change the outcome. Even with the calls, though, it was an the outcome anyway! Unfortunately, things weren't so easy in incredibly hard fought game. Both teams ran well (the poor sap who was guarding Karl our semi. Canada was the defending world Mimmack on one point in particular would champs, and wanted to keep it. Their team probably agree- I've never seen a defender appeared to be much younger than us (we look unhappier to realize that the point is average about 38) an they had some guys going to continue and he's who looked no going to have to chase his older than 30 (PUNK KIDS!!!). guy again- and it probably didn' t help his psyche We had played a to have Karl's teammates tough pool play noticing and encouraging game against them, Karl to run even more though they had (anyone who knows Karl just unexpectedly knows he was happy to do lost to Austria. We that!)) and we ended up won that one 15-9, winning in overtime, 16but we expected a different team in 14. the semis and were The finals were played right. We started off on a field that had a very well going up grandstand capable of 6-3. We even had seating what I estimated the disc twice to to be at least 750 and make it 7-3, which maybe as many as 1000 would have been a or so persons, and was pretty tight grip. ringed by stone stairs. Half-time freesyt/e show by Mary Jorgenson. Although we didn't get a But, for some reaPhoto by Jeff Jorgenson crowd too densely packed son, we went on a around the field, the long run of grandstands were packed with folks ready turnovers and they ended up taking a lead to support the hometown men. We probably until late in the game. By the middle of the had a similar number ringing the fields. second half it was obvious that the game LOTS and lots of Heilbronner's came out was going to go to the wire, and the momentum turned to calls for a while. There were throughout the week to watch a world chaman endless series of calls by both teams. I pionship in a sport they probably had never
even heard of a few weeks earlier. I wonder if Boulderians would come close to this level of support- NAH. Throughout the game I felt that the crowd was very polite towards us by clapping for good plays. Most of the other US teams had a break at that time and came by to cheer us on, and we had a few supporters among the other Ultimate players from around the globe. The roars for good plays by the Germans was good to hear too (strange, I know, but I guess I've waited 22 years of playing to hear any roars for Ultimate from a crowd). There was lots of loud national cheering (DEUTCHLAND clap-clap-clap) and counter-cheering (00-SS-AH, during the claps). The game was very hard fought and generally well played. Also, it was extremely clean. We made a few unforced errors in the first half and Germany was up 9-7 at halftime. At half we made a defensive adjustment to their very precise offense, and before they even noticed it we had gone on at least a 4 point run. Somewhere in there, Brian Oliver got perhaps the most important of his approximately 19 blocks for the week and sent a Deutchland pass up into the stands. We extended that lead to 16-11 with our increased percentages on offense and then Germany turned on their last burst to score two more (to HUGE roars from the crowd). Our offense stayed in and stayed poised and we put in the last goal for the win. We had 21 guys on the roster and everyone of us contributed something to the effort. Every one played well at some time during the tourney. The finals were satisfying in part because our best players did not have their absolute best games (but by no means did they have bad games), and the rest of us stepped it up and helped get theW. Some family members of the players were with us. They were unbelievably important as they provided support, and maybe most importantly patience with us as we pursued this week-long goal. Kevin Hamilton and Wim Van Reit also happened to be in Europe and gave us great support. We also thought a lot about the support we were all given by our families and friends here in the States, as well as the support of the whole Front Range Ultimate community. When the going got tough, remembering how many people were with us in spirit helped us dramatically.
OTHER The tourney was well organized. The fields were all at soccer clubs, each of which had room for 2-4 Ultimate fields, so unlike tourneys here, we couldn't see too many games at a time. But they were fairly close together and it turned out just fine. Map information was the only real weakness I noticed. There was lots of great food and drink, including excellent beer and weissbier. Don't eat too many bratwursts, though, it's hard to play on brats and beer. The main dining hall was in a converted slaughterhouse, which was a bit disconcerting at first, but the food offerings were varied and far better than any other worlds I've been to. The weather was gorgeous most of the week, with one hour long rainstorm one day to soften up the fields again. The parties were excellent. Some say that a bunch of
Old and In the Way guys were seen slam dancing without shirts at 2 or 3 one night, but I'd deny it because I got to the floor late and some shirts were already going back on. Lots of our guys rented old style bikes and got around town that way. It looked like a fun way to go. It was great lining it up against players from all over the world. European offensive strategy is different than our stack oriented US offense and looks a lot like soccer. I found it interesting that Euro D didn't include a strong commitment to denying the dump. They seem to just play downfield D very tightly. It's very possible that that was the key difference in many close games. The team that denied downfield and the dump probably prevailed more often. We saw some zones and junk, but it's still person D that most teams rely on when there is no wind. Time between points was strictly kept
by an on field official. Their job was to also keep disputes to 30 seconds or less, but we had a less assertive one for the semi, so that didn' t help much. My opinion is that it would have done a great deal for the tone of the game if he had stepped in during the few lengthy discussions. Time between points was short and sweet. I think it should be a part of all major tournaments, but I would add a total of 15 more seconds between points. Keeping time cut down on all sorts of junk, like spending time talking about the last point, etc., and kept games moving incredibly fast. It is also be a lot harder for teams to dictate the pace of the games, though those that really want to speed things up even more have a chance to fluster teams that don ' t fully understand the rules. But that tactic doesn ' t work against old folks, and shouldn ' t exist for too long.
World Ultimate Championships
Fall 2000
www.upa. org
15
Juf'IIOR DI"ISIOf'l by Shirley Wu One week of the greatest Ultimate ever to grace this earth ... Two weeks spent playing with the most amazing young talent out there ... Players putting their filthiest d, their chilliest o, and, sometimes, their manhood on the line for 175 grams of beautiful plastic. Welcome to Junior Worlds 2000 ... The year 2000 marked the first ever junior women's division in this mother of all Ultimate tournaments. Comprised of teams from Sweden, Finland, the United States, and Canada, it was a powerful testament to the potential of women's Ultimate. Hard-fought games took place all around, most notably between the United States and Canada, who battled it out in the finals in front of a packed stadium (USA d. Canada, 17-14). It was a week characterized by smiles, googoo clusters, the refilling Harmel pen box, and voices hoarse from cheering. The junior open division saw a little more conflict. There were many tough games, where the victory could have gone to either team, and the tournament eventually saw the #3 seed (Sweden) upset the #2 seed (USA) in the semi's on its way to defeating the #1 seed (Canada) in the final 17-14. However, much credit must be given to the USA junior open team for their thrilling "top game of the day" win over Sweden in the stadium in front of a roaring crowd. Down several points with Sweden at 11 in a game to 15, the time cap went on, leaving it a game to 13. The USA tied it up at 12s, making it a sudden death point, with the USA on the defensive. Enter #9 Andrew Berry with a filthy layout block in the Swedish end zone to give the USA their chance to score and win the game, 13-12. It was definitely one of the most exciting games (I've) ever seen.
Canada vs. U.S. Junior Open Photo by Rick Collins Canada vs. USA Junior Womens
Coach Tiin a Booth
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Ultimate Players Association
Fall 2000
World Ultimate Championships
Photo by Rick Collins
Photo by Jeff Jorgenson
I 1IOY11EN's
AND f11IXED
Swe den vs . USA- Fin als
LOOK for more worlds in the next newsletter Ph ot o by Jeff Jo rgenson USA vs . Japan-Fin als
Ph oto by Rick Co lli ns
World Ultimate Championships
Fall 2000
www.upa. org
DIVISION f'IOTES By Ben Worthen DoC
First off The tournament was highly competitive. The top eight teams (those that made the winners round robin) would all make US nationals and most if not all would win most of their games. The differing styles of play were also notable. The Australians hucked a lot, the Japanese had precise short passes, and of course the Germans have their throw to space offense. It made for some fun and competitive ultimate. DoG practiced hard all summer we had a twelve week prep plan that included track work and three practices a week. And clearly we needed all that practice. The number of quality games spread over a long week and the frequent 5 hours between games made for a mentally and physically taxing week. I think this was evident in the semis. The biggest surprise of the tournament was the fine play of the German team. All of their games were hard fought and they deserved to make the semis. Boston had beaten the Germans on the second day of the tournament and that gave us an edge. The Germans had their eyes on a medal, but it was clear that they were thinking bronze. The USA/Germany final was never really close. I don' t remember the final score. The Canada Sweden game was very tight. Earlier in round robin play they played a 16-14 game with Canada winning. Clearly the teams were fairly evenly matched. Everyone knows how talented Vancouver is and the their teams strength and (few) weaknesses. Sweden is another story. They play a very precise and methodical offense. They have confidence in their throws (as witnessed by their willingness to throw high blades in any situation) and rely heavily on Anders and number six (the newsletter idd him as Petri). Their offense seemed much stronger than their D. In the DoG pool play game they poached a lot and getting open was never a problem. They also never stopped our deep game, which didn' t bode well for a semi against Furious. I only caught the second half. It was a pretty even game, both teams scoring easily against the other. Canada, however looked very tired. Rumors were swirling that several key members had not been playing much this summer and it showed.
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Ultimate Players Association
Open -
U.S. vs. Canada
Their D played the same seven every point (so did their 0 but that team didn' t really struggle). The Canadian D team had their chances, but was never able to score. Sweden capitalized on the one chance they got. I had imagined all week a DoGNancouver final, but it was clear well before the game ended that the Canadians were tired from a long week ad that such a final would not have been as close as a USA/Sweden match up. Sweden had taken the controversial step of resting players during the week. In general, they were compared throughout the week to either a Borg collective or a team full of Soviet science projects. Their attitudes struck many opponents as fun-challenged. But they sure can play frisbee. One break was all the Swedes needed to win 15-13. On to the final Like I said, as much trouble as Boston
Fall 2000
World Ultimate Championships
Photo by Rick Collins
has had in the past against Furious (2-4 lifetime), this clearly was the right match up for finals. Canada may have more talent than any team out there (except DoG of course) but they were dead. The final promised to be an offensive showcase. The Swedish D was vulnerable and the DoG 0 had been playing well all week (with the exception of a meaningless loss to Japan). The Swedes had faired well against the tough Boston D earlier in the week and could add to that their top two players who had sat out the earlier game. DoG received and scored first. The first few points were trades, but then the Swedes got the first break to go up 3-2 and then broke again to open a two point lead. More trading. The Swedes were playing great. Their 0 looked fantastic and the D had already done their job. (in the Sweden Canada semi there had
been a total of three breaks, two by Sweden one by Canada.) But the DoG D adjusted and started playing a zone, despite sun and absolutely zero wind. In a classic DoG zone moment the point covered the dump and Billy, who was playing wing charged the seemingly open popper and got a layout D. One break back. At seven all DoG broke again and then the teams traded till half. 9-8 Boston. The Boston D had saved the 0 and won the half for the USA. Sweden narrowly avoided a back breaker when Anders dropped I mean really dropped, he was standing still and it bounced off his hands a pass. But we were unable to punch it in and Sweden scored the point. The general feeling was that the both teams played very well and as the second half unfolded with more trades, whoever broke first would
win. In the first half, Sweden's D made us work harder than usual. We had no deep looks and instead had to work the disc upfield one throw at a time. We probably averaged about ten to fifteen passes per goal (which is very high for Boston's quick strike man offense). In the second half we switched to a spread formation, with cutters lining the sideline and cutting into the middle. Things opened up a bit and we had some success with our deep game. Then at 14-13 Boston the D got what looked like the game winning break. 15-13 Boston. A trade later and a half later and Boston was receiving the disc for game up 16-15. Our 0 had not turned the disc over in the second half and confidence abounded. But an underthrown deep pass was caught by former DoG member and Swedish citizen Stefan and the Swedes hucked it deep. And scored. 16 all. The next five points demonstrate how fatiguing a long tournament like worlds can be. Each time the DoG 0 had the disc they turned it over, but Sweden couldn't score. Turnovers, virtually nonexistent for much of the half, became common place as the pressure and exhaustion got to both teams. Finally it came down to one point for all the marbles. 18 all next point wins. Dog worked it up the field, unable to get a quick deep look. The controversy referred to was a foul call on a dump pass. The Swedes booed when the call was made. Multiple independent nations have confirmed that a rather blatant mugging occurred and that the outrage was
Open-U.S. vs. Japan
confined to some rather rude Scandinavians. Four passes later DoG scored in the corner of the end zone ending a game that truly could have gone either way. Both teams broke three times and if the Swedes had received the opening pull things may have ended differently. The close final was a fitting end to a tournament that showed how good the rest of the world has become. It will be anyone's game in 2004.
Photo by Jeff Jorgenson
Open-U.S. vs. Japan
Photo by Rick Collins
World Ultimate Championships
Fall 2000
www.upa. org
19
HATIONAL co ED CHAY\1PIONSHIPS by David Perry BLAINE, MN-On a cool and misty morning in September, pool play for the 2000 Ultimate Frisbee Coed National Championships began. The fields were in good shape, the weather cool and misty, and the teams ready to go. One of the exciting things about the Coed Series is that the teams are mostly new, and certainly new to each other. While great rivalries have yet to develop, it adds a sense of mystery to the game. Which region would emerge as the strongest? Which teams would demonstrate that they deserved their #1 seed? Who would climb up from the ranks to make their name known? Pools consisted of six teams, seeded by combined regional performance in the 1999 Coed Championships and 2000 regional placing. Four from each pool would qualify for the elimination bracket. In Pool A, the top seed and Mid Atlantic regional champion, Spear (NC), controlled all their games, going 5-0. His and Hers played well, upsetting Ripplt, the #2 seed from the Bay Area, in round 3. The real story of the Pool, however, was TnT, from Dallas. Except for a 15-6 loss against Spear, TnT won every game on Saturday by a reasonable margin, and squeaked by Ripplt, 1312, in the last round on Sunday morning. That put TnT at 4-1 , moving up from sixth seed to second place, followed by His and Hers, then Ripplt as qualifying teams. Pool B also had a dominant team, 1999 semi-finalist Trigger Hippy. Marked by a highly creative logo, their defense was tenacious and their offense chilly. No team in their pool even came close to upsetting them. Perpetrator (D.C.), the number 2 seed in the pool, did not have so smooth a ride. They lost a closely fought, time-capped, 12-10 game in Round 1 to Payasos con Pistolas (Austin). The Clowns with Guns (PeP), seeded fourth, rode that victory to a 4-1 record, shrugging off their only defeat (15-6) to Trigger Hippy. Perpetrator did not, let their early troubles stop them. Though losing to Trigger, they took care of their other opponents handily and qualified for the next round, 3-2. NYCE, 2-3 , also continued on, and were witness to one other story from Pool B at the end of play on Saturday. Iowa's Most Wanted, a highly spirited team, after losing to NYCE 14-12, were engaging in their traditional "Tequila Slammers," when Iowa player Doug Lane proposed to his teammate Carrie Welter. She accepted, and we wish the couple happy hucking the best
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Ultimate Players Association
Fall 2000
Co-ed National Championships
of luck! Pool C looked like the toughest pool. Holes and Poles (Baton Rouge), winner of the south, Free Spirits of the Game (winner of the Northeast), and Red Fish Blue Fish, triennial Coed Nationals participants, all seemed contenders to do very well. Holes and Poles did not lose, but Free Spirits fought them to a close 15-13 game at the end of Saturday. Red Fish Blue Fish lost to both of the top two teams and won their other three matches, all in close games. Holes and Poles went 5-0, FSOTG 4-1, RFBF 3-2, and Cocoa, the dismal central region's only bright spot, a qualifier at 2-3. Like the other three pools, Pool D also had a team go 5-0, but that team emerged as a surprise victor. Although most of the games were very close, Kibosh (Eugene, OR), 3rd out of the NW and seeded 4th in their pool, won all five rounds to take the number one spot. Salsa, the Southwest winner, and Crunch, from Atlanta, both went 32. The last championship spot went to Tattoo Hottie, from the Northeast, edging out Lucky 7 (Winnipeg), the Central regionals winner, and eventual winner of the consolation bracket. As pre-quarters (a round of 16 teams) begun, one expected Trigger Hippy, Spear, and Holes and Poles to easily dispatch their opponents, all the fourth qualifier from other pools. Trigger and Spear, in fact, won handily. Spear then prepared to play Payasos con Pistoles, who won over Tattoo Hottie in a game that was very close until the final points. Trigger, meanwhile, turned to Red Fish Blue Fish, who had cruised over TnT. Holes and Poles had a much tougher game against Ripplt, but former college Callahan MVP Brian Harriford led them to victory 139. Holes and Poles then had to match up against Perpetrator who had ended Salsa's disappointing weekend with a 15-7 victory by the D.C. team. No one quite knew what to expect from Kibosh, and their game against NYCE drew some interest. Though winning by the comfortable margin 15-11, their game was the longest of the round, and stayed very close
Team Boise
until the end. With little time to spare, Kibosh turned to their third New York team in a row, Free Spirits of the Game. Free Spirits had convincingly defeated His and Hers, 13-5, and was ready to avenge the losses of the other two East Coast squads. The first half of the quarterfinal game between these two teams was fractious, hotly contested, and ended with Free up 8-7. Attempting to continue their Cinderella story, Kibosh had taken the early lead, but Free rallied. On offense, Free generally put in four women, and ran their 'womanator' set. This involved three women handling, and the men staying out of the way as the disc moved down the field. In the second half, proving that you can't beat City Hall forever, Kibosh disintegrated and
Spear, meanwhile, was receiving their biggest challenge yet from Austin's Payasos con Pistoles (Clowns with Guns). PeP's sheer athletism and determination drove them to a 7-6 lead over Spear, the first serious deficit the NC team had faced. Spear was, however, up to the task. They scored two points to take half, then scored the next two to go up 10-7. Spear won 15-11, but heard footsteps all the way to the finish line. PeP fought hard throughout the tournament, while showing great spirit in all their matches (and on the sidelines for the other games). Trigger Hippy and Red Fish Blue Fish faced off in a Northwest rematch. Trigger won, 15-9, but the game was closer than that score suggests. Both teams played a poised game, hustling for every disc, and making relatively few unforced errors. This game, too, had a close halftime score (8-6 Trigger), before Trigger managed to jump out to a solid lead. Finally, Holes and Poles and Per-
petrator played the tightest game of the Quarters. The score was always close, tempers were a bit on edge, calls were generally contested, and the talent of both teams made this one hard to predict. Perpetrator made great use of their long game early, and Holes and Poles countered with a straight up mark. Both teams used their women and men well, and, after many long points, Perpetrator finally took the game at 17-15. Semifinals - Perpetrator against Trigger Hippy (a rematch from pool play), and Free Spirits against Spear- began a little after 8:00 on Labor Day. Perpetrator struck first to go up 2-0, playing a zone defense and showing an easy flow on offense. Trigger then also switched to zone, after scoring, and
eventually tied the game at 3-3. They traded points, and, tied at fours, Trigger Hippy managed to score with a great vertical catch in the heart of the defense by Pat Benson (#11). But Perpetrator, playing hard defense and taking advantage of Trigger's miscues, answered with four straight points and took half at 8-5. To start the second half, as the weather turned more pleasant (it had been cold in the early morning), Trigger Hippy rallied. After a few turnovers, they flowed down the field for an easy score. On the next point, after losing a score on a travelling call and then throwing away the disc, Dana Green (#17) made an inspired sideways layout to get the disc back for the Hippies. A quick huck to the speedy Jamie Arambula brought it to 8-7.
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quartQr
and Photos by Sara Rubenstein
Brian Harriford of Holes and Poles
Above: Red Fish Blue Fish vs. Trigger Hippy
Right: Perpetrator vs. Trigger Hippy.
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quartQr
and SQtlliS Photos by Sara Rubenstein Co-ed National Championships
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ational fil Photos by Sara Rubenstein
But Perpetrator would not surrender their lead, scoring the next two points, stopping Trigger on the goal-line for the second. Trigger burned a timeout, down 10-7, then scored on a long pass to Mark Aagenes, #12. The Hippies scored again, traded points, then tied the game at 11-11. On the next point, a Perpetrator handler committed a throwaway, and the Hippies sent it to Arambula again. The teams traded points all the way to 1514. Both teams, at this stage, began to rely more and more heavily on their long game, using their best throwers and tallest men as their principle offensive weapons. Finally, at 15-14, Perpetrator received the pull and began to move it down the field, only to lose the disc on an aerial D by one of the Hippies. The Hippies calmly moved the disc to the goal-line, only to have the potential winning throw knocked away by a poaching Perpetrator. Immediately, however, a diving D by #10 of the Hippies got them the disc back right at
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the zone. They called time out, and easily punched it in. Trigger Hippy wins, 16-14. On the other field, Free Spirits of the Game and Spear played an equally thrilling match. The Spirits tried to play just as they had in beating Kibosh. They went to their long and hammer game, but used four women on offense to work the disc up the field when possible. Spear, however, played harder defense, and quickly adapted to the four women set. The game was tied at twos, at fours, at sixes, and at sevens. Free Spirits received the pull, hoping to take half, but suffered a miscue in their own endzone. With the stall rising, Free's handler threw a dump pass, but she was called for travelling. Her cutter, however, stopped running, and the disc hit the ground. Turnover. Spear is much too good a team not to score in that situation, and easily punched it in and took half. The game continued to be tight. Both offenses settled down, flowing for quick scores. Ben Usadi
caught a huck fa 9, but Spear tool huck to #99 Jon a high blading h again. On the w in the endzone, t back corner. Qui Free Spirits usee tight zone, but aJ would lose twen After a time out, throws, Captain exhausted cup tc endzone. Free is against Free's zo that, had the Fre have meant the ~ none near the en repeatedly break Both semifin;
nals
•r Free Spirits to tie c back the lead . the game at 9With th · e1r own p roctor. T.imO'L ammer in th eary then caught , . e endzone t . . ~xt pomt S o tie It . ' pear, with hrew It just out an open man ckly, they slappodf bounds of the l hammers t b e on a zone. 0 reak th . nytime they g t e otherwise o stuck h . t fi y- Jve yards gettin on t e !me, . and a po ssessJOn . g out of it· 1 . Eric Olson h astmg sixty ammered hr ' an open Jonathon D t ?ugh an ono m the up, 11-10 S •ne, but th . pear lost the disc en mana d e Spirit receiver ge to D a huck ~arne. Aft caught it, could er several dzone, Spear final! more turns, their marks t y managed to a! games o ~core. were tied at 11-11 · Free r" .
uontlnued on page 26 Co-ed National Ch amp1onships .
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Photos by Sara Rubenstein
National Champions-Spear
scored on a hospital pass on which at least 10 people had a play (caught by Olson). The next point was just as sloppy, with throwaways from each side, but eventually Spear punched it in, 12-12. The next two points decided the game. Spear got the disc back after an ill-advised hammer swing. After a lot of short passes, dumping and swinging across the field, Spear scored and takes the lead for good. Free Spirit almost answered, hurling the disc to an open receiver in the endzone. Spear's #69 Melissa Ditz came up from behind her and took the disc away. Ditz also scored the point, pulling down a swilly pass in the endzone. On the final point, Spear's defense forced a pass into the middle of the field with the stall at 9, D'd it, worked it down to the goalline. After a timeout, Frannie Goodrich threw low and hard to the diving Melissa Pigs in Sapce-SOTG
Spear
Trigger Hippy
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Ultimate Players Association
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Ditz, and the disc glanced off her hand (the spectators started breathing again). Immediately, though, Free Spirits threw the disc away again, and Spear would capitalize this time. Spear's Dan Axon threw a high hammer over the outstretched hand of the defender Alex Tiersky to Brian Lang for the wm. Final - Both semifinal games were intense, featuring second seeds rising out of the quarters to seek a spot in the final. However, the number 1 and 2 seeds of the tournament, now 8-0, were the two to square off in the final. Both had strong men and women, sufficiently tall deeps and skilled handlers, and the crowd was anticipating a close match. Trigger, however, started the game looking rough and quickly gave up two unforced
Continued on next page
Photo by Sara Rubenstein
turns, resulting in two easy scores for Spear. Trigger did score once, but Spear answered by scoring the next two on huge hucks. At 41, Trigger began to show the patience and poise that got them this far and scored, but Spear maintained its lead. Every time Trigger scored, Spear answered, reaching a 7-4 edge. Would Trigger Hippy get it together or would Spear could play flawless Ultimate forever? Trigger's Mark Aagenes hucked to Arambula to make it 7-5. On the next point, after turns for each side, Trigger got lucky. Sp~ar defenders knocked consecutive poorly delivered passes into the Hippies' hands, and they closed the gap to 7-6. The next point turned out to be the key to the game. Either Trigger would tie, or Spear would maintain its lead. The Hippies slapped on a potent zone defense which eventually earned them a dropped disc, but they could not capitalize. The disc bounced out of a diving Arambula's hand in the endzone, Spear grapped it, hucked it the length of the field, and scored (8-6). Spear then slapped on their own zone on the next point, and did a better job of it, suckering one of the handlers into a risky throw up the middle that got swatted aside. Spear took half, 9-6. During the second half, though Trigger Hippy never gave up, the game would be essentially over. Although lacking any one superstar who could take over the game, the men and women of Spear worked too well together, and were too consistent to be give up their lead. Trigger, meanwhile, feeling the tension of losing in the finals, contributed to their own destruction, committing unforced turnovers and surrendering too many make-it-look easy scores to Spear. The score went from a still close 10-7, to 16-8. Trigger took advantage of a rare miscue to g~t a score and end the drought. Fired up by this small victory, Trigger suddenly starting playing hard defense again, earned the D (forcing an errant pass), and patiently worked it into the goal. At 16-10, then, Trigger had hopes of climbing back into the game, but Spear was determined to end it right away. They worked it down the field but the hammer to win the game was take~ away by Hippy. Pushing the disc back up the field, a high pass went over an open Trigger Hippy, Dana Green, in the endzone, and fell just in front of the diving Lucy Chubb. Spear, collectively deciding that enough was enough, returned to the calm flow that had brought them to the edge of victory. Brian Lang made an easy one-handed catch on a cross-field backhand to Thuy Boyd to win the game and the tournament. Overall, the Mid-Atlantic and Northwest regions can take pride in the strength that their teams showed at this tournament, with the Spirit award going to Portland's Pigs in Space. Congratulations to all the teams, the Minnesota volunteers who made the tournament possible, and good luck next season (whenever it may be!).
Co-ed National Championships
SPIRIT OF THEGANIE
AlNARDS Each team at Coed Nationals scored the all the teams played against on a 7-5 scale:
s = Exemplory 4 =Above Averoge J = Averoge (next time we 'II specify overoge of whot) 2 = Below Averoge 1 = Unsofe Congratulations to Spirit Award winners Pigs In Space and to the top 12 teams, all with averages over 4.0. Each team also picked an individual player of their own who they felt most exemplified Spirit of the Came. These, and players like them, are some of the most appreciated people in Ultimate, for whatever reasons their team chose to give them this honor Thanks to each of them for their inspiratiOn and commitment to the things that make it Ultimate. 4.86 PIGS IN SPACE! (NW-Oregon) 4.63 Ripplt (NW-Silicon Valley), Alan Harder 4.57 Crunch (S-Atlanta), Blake Holland 4.32 NYCE (NE-NY), Abby Lubblin 4.29 Holes & Poles (S-Baton Rouge), Lance Coleman 4.29lowa's Most Wanted (C-Iowa), Doug Lane 4.25 Bad Larry (SW-Denver), Julie Dintaman 4.74 Fliegenp/atte (C-Michigan), David "Vicso" Vilosky 4.73 Free Spirits of the Came (NE-NY), Natasha Delgado 4.04 Cocoa (C-Ohio), Shari Caresse/ 4.00 Trigger Hippy (NW-Big Sky), John Milich 4.00 Spear (MA-NC) 3.83 TNT (S-Texas), Dave Patton 3.77 Salsa (SW-NM), Ethan Decker 3.77 Donkey Bomb (MA-Philly), Mark Carracchio 3.69 Lucky 7 (C-Winnepeg), Jeff Yuen 3.57 Payasos con Pistolas (S-Austin), John Reddy or Meetesh Karia 3.37 His-N-Hers (MA-DC), lin Ding 3.74 Tattoo Hattie (NE-NY), Buzz 3.00 RedFish BlueFish (NW-Bay Area), CeCe Fairley 3.00 Ralph (C-Chicago), Tony Moore 3.00 Red Dye #5 (SW-Arizona), Amanda 2.93 Perpetrator (MA-DC), Jean Wilson 2.29 Kibosh (NW-Oregon), Jared Weybright
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potlstch 2000 summer sJlool rgdmoact, wa
All photos by Jeff Jorgenson
A Pool Outer Danks defeated MILF 75-72 in the finals. (By the way, the "M" in MILF stands for Mullets. They all have mullets attached to hats, bandannas and visors.) It was a great game. Both teams were really spirited and the level of play was excellent. Lay outs, hucks, chill, and determination abounded as Outer Danks (La Nina from last year) defended their crown as Potlatch champions. It was Outer Danks over Lawn Party and MILF over the $6 Million Team in the Semi's. Super Thirsty won the consolation final. B Pool Spontaneous Combustion (from /D) defeated Brown University Alumni in the finals. To get there, Spontaneous Combustion beat Danger Prone Daphne and Brown beat the Aying Nones. It was NaughtyBear over I'll take Bible Charaders for 500, Alex by the score of 76-74 in the consolation final. (Rumored to be one of the best games of the tourney) C Pool It was Hot Dish over Delivered Fresh (the Seattle juniors team) 75-72 in the finals. Hot Dish beat Kudzu in one of the Semi's. Carden City Porn Stars beat Who Smooched the Rancor Monster 77-9 in the consolation final. D Pool Funky C Funky Do (The Penn Alumni team) beat their nemesis from Princeton, Clockwork West in the finals. Clockwork West beat Milaca Pooh to get to the finals. No word about the D-pool semis from FCFD. Lollipop Sassafras Experience (Sassy) won the consolation. Their Opponent was not specified. E Pool Weird Uncle Bob, after after losing most of their women to injuries on Sunday won the final over Desert Lorax 75-//. The consolation saw NO (UW alumni) over Illegal Smile by a score of 73-9.
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POULTRY DAYS
XIX
Hovv I
SPENT MY SUMMER VACATION AND VVON THE TOURNAMENT As the Tournament Directors of Poultry Days, we try to create the best tournament we can. We build on our successes each year to do it one better the next year. People tell us it is the best tourney they have ever been to and that we can't let this be the last year of the tournament. For the article, we wanted a different view this year. One which would tell the story of what it is like to play at Poultry Days. Maybe, those who have not yet come will understand what makes people drive, fly or walk to this little town in the Midwest to play Ultimate "next to the corn fields" during the town's summer festival ...
Versailles (Ver-sayles), OH. Poultry Days, is an annual tournament to raise money for the Leukemia Society in honor of Jeff "Thing" Warwick. Held in early June in Versailles, OH, the tournament is a favorite of many players. Camping is at the fields; nearby is a pool (and pond), showers, low priced food, and of course the Versailles Poultry Days Fair, a slice of Americana featuring rides, snacks, skeeball, and carnies. The team I played with this year has been attending, in various incarnations, since 1994 (I think), but has never won it all.
ent eight-hour strategy session between FRSOTG'ers and the PAX that finally broke off around 4 a.m. Our plan was clear: survive Saturday play, and then make our college All-Stars earn their keep on Sunday. What was also clear was that the People's elbow is the most dynamic move in sports entertainment. What was less clear was who was to lay claim to having "the people's hammer," and of course, the way to my campsite.
Saturday, June 10 The day broke on my head like a twoby-four. I tripped over the pile of empty cardboard and brown aluminum and made my way slowly to the breakfast pavilion, while my teammates heaped abuse me for late night volume. I maintained plausible
Friday, June 9 The second thing that we did after arriving in Versailles, OH was to move the tent city of the Free Range Spirits. We then adjourned to a local tavern for food, drink, and to enjoy the NBA finals. After enjoying the various macrobrews of the Midwest, some fries and, of course, cottage cheese (well it is the most readily digestible form of protein), we walked back to camp. This was followed by a rather prolonged and occasionally incoher-
Winners, Division one
Runners-up, Division one Photo by Mark Simons
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Winners, Division two Photo by Mark Simons
Poultry Days
denialability, blaming Robbye and Alex for everything. Breakfast was simple soft fare, plus some Turns. The Poultry Days food is remarkably inexpensive. Members of the community donate their time to help out, and given the low cost of the food, I assume that some of it is donated as well. It is merely indicative of the tremendous attention to detail
taken by Dale, Feebs, Wade, John, Chad, Rob, family & friends, etc. in orchestrating this event. Check out the website at www.poultrydays.com for more information. For PAX Americana, the road to this years Versailles began January in Athens, Georgia at the Savage 7 tournament. I think that the roster swelled to 22 players by midway through February. Victory was assured. However attrition (oh! There's a "problem" with my plane ticket) and desertion (oh ... I've actually got my own bid this year) cost us numbers. Tension was felt, tempers flared , and it appeared that the roster and the outcome were in jeopardy. After 250 emails, one lastminute phone call, and a kangaroo court we had 13 players (eight men, five women). Saturday was uneventful for us. Pain management and a couple of injuries aside, we emerged victorious in our pool after a paltry number of mid-day beers, way too many silly references to the movie Gladiator (I mean, it is the PAX Americana), and retired to the All-Star Game. Our All-Star. Selected for his poise, athletism and hard work in single-handedly accounting for 95% of team turnovers on Saturday (we ran out of hats), ___-dawg, as we'll call him, redeemed himself in the All-Star game. We didn't bother to tell him his status until he'd put some miles on his liver, but he came up big with the plays of the game ... a nutmeg goal, and a hammer reception for goal, trapping the Disc under his shirt for the catch. Good work Nate, and enjoy the stylish jersey that the Tournament provided to all of the All-star Players. Off to the skeeball, etc. The fair is excellent. However, we got stuck at the Skeeball area for most of the evening.
Winners, Division three Photo by Mark Simons
Photo by Mark Simons
VVINNERS INTHE FoUR
11 , OT
DIVISIONS The Tournament Diredors would also like to thank all 60 teams who played this year and the winners and runners-ups of the 4 Divisions:
Egg Grades Division A Winners: Chicken Pax Runners-up: Polio Con Pistolas Division B Winners: Voodoo Chicken Runners-up: Super Fry Division C Winners: Chicken Soup 420 Runners-up: DiscChickenMonster Division D Winners: Chick Fit Layout Runners-up: Flying HorseChickens Visit the tournament web site at www.PoultryDays.com for Bios and Histories of these and all the teams at the 79th Annual Jeff Warrick Poultry Days Classic Thanks and see you next year. Welcome to Versailles Photo by Jeff Jorgenson
Sunday, June 11 Sunday at Poultry Days is a dirt road for all the top 16 teams. There are seldom easy games. Teams such as Red-Fish Blue-Fish (except, with revised chicken sounding names), compete against Midwest All-Stars (Breasts and Thighs), Texas All-Stars (Pollos Locos), all-star All-Stars (Friends of Frank), NY All-Stars (Free Range SOTG), you get the idea. The firstround game Sunday morning can be the toughest of the weekend. Residents of Versailles watch from their decks and yards as the two Poultry Days teams of the '90s play their first game Sunday on fields named "The Smoke Field" and "The North Field." Friends of Frank Perdue fell behind early, to Pollo Con Pistolas from Austin, TX, and ran out of points before they could get the lead back, losing 13-10. In maybe the best game of the tournament, Dixie Chickens pulled out an amazing win over Free Range Spirits in their game win-
ning 13-12. As Eric Olson from Free Range Spirits said, "We had the disc three times to win. The last time after a lay out block by myself on Donovan, we moved the disc to ten yards short of Dixie's goal line- we threw it away then and they went the length, scored and won. Ugh! We traveled from Brooklyn and it was well
worth it. We had a disappointing loss Sunday but it did not dampen our spirit. We partied hard and played hard all weekend and had a blast. We'll be back!" Pollo Con Pistolas swept the ' 90s out with their semi-final win over Dixie Chickens, 15-13 to play Chicken Pax in the finals. We faced the Ohio University
reunion team in our first game Sunday morning in the pre-quarters and sweated out a victory by three. As an aside, they are based in Athens, OH. We were loosely based in Athens, GA. Plate of Shrimp? (Repo Man? Oh never mind). Indicative of the quality of this tournament, our Quarter-final Match , against Breasts and Thighs saw us down 12-10, cap at thirteen. I don' t even remember pulling it out. Two close games later (Lemon Chicken & Pollo Con Pistolas) , and we're Reaux-cham-trophying, putting on the hats, and getting the pic with Miss Chick. And it ends just as quickly as it begins. Where one minute, it's a busy tournament atmosphere, the next it's just 15 old friends sitting around a picnic table, waiting to run out of beer, toasting plays, and wishing well. And then five minutes later, you are hauling ass for a car, gear shoved loosely into bags, as a huge thunderstorm starts dumping on the deserted fields. Hey, wouldn't be Poultry Days otherwise.
-Luke Smith
Winners, Division four Photo by Mark Simons
Photo by Mark Simons
Photo by Mark Simons
Poultry Days
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GENDER BLENDER TOURNEY. It only REALLY hurts when I stop moving ... Beginning Friday when J.P & Kate showed up, followed closely by Leslie (our only off-island Gender Balance graduate) and Ben (the Russian chess wiz), until Scott Wood left on Monday after helping unload all of the breakfast stuff at the fire station (and that shit was HEAVY!) everyone that attended "GB 4" was totally awesome with cooperation and spirit. Because of y' all, presiding over the wreckage was not nearly the daunting task that it may have been in the wake of the weekend. I wish you all would cut that crap out so I could come up with a reason to cancel "GB 5" in 2001. Congratulations to all of the players that won "Spirit" awards. All of this work is made worthwhile because of the spirit at GB. Special congrats to Suzanne Baker for "being her own dog", Shiv, for winning the overall spirit award (way to hydrate man!) - proud to have shared "Beets" with them! Special thanks to "Zanga Zanga" for the groovy toonz that kept us in the zone well into Sunday mornin' . Gender Balance would have never happened without Karin & Corey ( who claimed to be " fresh as a daisy" as he sat motionless, while wincing at every movement, at Frisbee central after y' allleft for the ferry/showers on Sunday evening- uh huh). Karin Slabaugh, who did all of the
dirty work while we played, and whose focus and dedication kept us all in line in the weeks leading up to the event. Next year we are going to have to have a couple of folks who are willing to come just to man/woman Frisbee central for the weekend Dave Hawkins, who had the misfortune to run into me on the beach in Hawaii in February and volunteer to do registration - thanks for the stress relief and responding to every one of my 200 or so e-mails in the past few weeks! Paul G. for the root beer and flippin' flapjacks. To the cleanup crew: J. P., Kate, Jones & Michelle that came back to the house and did such a great job cleaning grills and storing the tiki torches for next year, when they coulda just gone to the lake -"bless you." And finally, although you all did not get to meet them, I want to mention Mike Weaver and the Camp Orkila folks, Phil and Jill, whose spirit was sorely missed by the committee. Mike had to be out of the state as part of his job (freakin' rent and food can be SOOO inconvenient... ). Phil and Jill were dealing with the onslaught of the opening weekend at the YMCA camp (damn kids) . . . we missed you guys, man. I refuse to host this thing again next year without you! So, what did you like about GB 4? What ideas do you have for GB 5? What could we have done better? Although the final bookkeeping has not been done we think that with the help of the few extra folks that came and paid their $30 fee, we
may actually break even this year! First time ever! I am sure Disc NW will be happy to hear that since they have covered our shortfalls for the past three years. One more thing for your files: Long, long ago, war war afay there lived "Pee Little Thrigs". They had grown up and it was time for them to heave lome and go out into the wig borld. When they left their mother said "huild you blouses out of mong straterials because the wig, wad bolf will eat you up !!" The pirst thrig huilt his blouse out of straw because that was the easiest. The pecond thrig huilt his blouse out of sticks. The pird thrig huilt his blouse out of bricks. One night the wig, wad bolf who loved to eat fat pittle liggies came along and saw the pirst thrig's strouse of haw. "Pittle lig, pittle lig let me in or I'll puff and I'll huff and I'll ho your blouse down". "Not by the chair on my hinny hin hin" said the pirst thriggy. But the wig wad bolf did ho the blouse down and he ate the pittle liggy. THEN the bolf came to the strouse of hicks. "Pittle lig, pittle lig let me in or I'll puff and I'll huff and I'll ho your blouse down". "Not by the chair on my hinny hin hin" said the pecond thriggy. But of course the wig wad bolf did puff
- - Ovvl
and he did huff and he hew the blouse down and he ate the pittle lig. Then the bolf came to the brouse of hicks "Met le in" cried the wolf, "or I'll puff and I'll huff and I'll ho your blouse in". "Not by the chair on my hinny hin hin" said the pird little thig. The wig wad bolf could not ho down the brouse of hicks. Then the bolf saw a brarge lick chimney, so he rimbed up on the cloof to get into the house. The prittle liggy saw this so he lit a foaring rire and in the pireflace and he put a karge lettle of water. When the wolf chent down the wimney he landed right in the wot hater and that was the end of the wig wad bolf. The storal of the morey is ... build your blouse of hicks and you will never have your blouse hown down ! The second (and widely unknown) soral of the morey is: if you find Nacey's stotes during your cleanup yext near just throw them trirectly into the dash cuz typing this way is a giant bain in the putt ... As an old Irish saying goes "may the Lord hold you all in the palm of his hand for an hour before the Devil knows you are dead."
-Your Cap't Bob Orcas Island, Washington
NATIONAL DISC-ARD TOURNEY IN THE VVORKS by Edward Pulkinen In 1999 approximately 110 teams played in the Women's division and approximately 290 teams played in the Open division. These are two biggest divisions. There were only 16 teams in each division at Nationals. Therefore, 14% of women's teams and 5% of open teams competed in last years title event, of these many were returning for another attempt. The history of this event brings us to a simple conclusion: you must pay your dues! Teams don't just show up at Nationals and win games. There is a different tune being played at this dance, and until you hear it a few times your not likely to have any rhythm. So how can you gain experience at the National level if you're region's national qualifiers are perennial powerhouses or combo-super teams? The answer is "The National Disc-ard." It may sound to some that this is another championship, but this tournament or something like it is in definite demand. There are more players and teams every year, but the UPA title
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event can not expand these divisions. In order to serve the growing demand, we are either going to evolve the fall series by segmenting into smaller divisions with more specialized teams or we are going to incorporate alternative events for those who don' t make the cut. I prefer the later as a "shoot for the stars and land on the moon" approach. Rising teams need a shot at the upset, but also a chance to compete if the probable happens. Joey and many of the UPA's administrators agree that The National Disc-ard is one possible solution. This year the Savannah Ultimate Disc Society (SUDS) along with TUSK will be hosting the first National Disc-ard in Savannah, GA on November 10-12. Teams will be selected according to their placement at their Regional Championships and rosters will be used to verify adherence to UPA Fall Series eligibility. Sixteen teams from the Women's division and 16 teams from the Open division will be invited to compete. In order to attract the top non-national-qualifying teams, we have put together some all-
Tournaments
inclusive discount player packages. Your Regional Coordinator will hand out team applications at your Regional Championships. Team selections will be made the following week and teams will be notified promptly. If you are on a team that is training to make it to Nationals, you should also have a secondary plan if the unthinkable should happen. In order for this tournament to become a permanent national event there will have to be
INFO FOR
solid representation from all regions. Even if you do not finish as strong as you would have liked, please fill out the application if your team is interested. Some teams may be just focused on making Nationals or this event may not be appealing to them. The National Disc-ard will double the number of teams participating in a National Championship Tournament this Fall. Be a part of the solution.
2000 UPA NATIONAlS
OCTOBER 26-29, 2000 SARASOTA POLO CLUB, SARASOTA,
FL
Volunteers & Observers are needed for 2000 Nationals, you will receive housing (up to 4 people per room) clothing, disc, breakfast, lunch and parties. RSVP NOW! Hotel Information
Players, Contad the Shine Hotel Croup, shgps@aol.com or call 7-947-758-8693. There are at four hotels ranging in price to meet everyone's housing needs. For more info go to httpjjwww.upa.org/ or www.beachultimate.comjupa_nationals.htm Tim Finan â&#x20AC;˘ PO Box 32895 Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33420 Phone(567) 626-6735 ¡Fax (567) 626-5578
NIKE, THE Bovs AND GIRls CLuBs OF AMERICA (B&GCA) AND THE U.P.A. By Barbara Denison and Swoosh Club members at the 2000 camps
II IKE SPORTS LEADERSHIP
CAMP \ I I
"In the middle of dinner you'll hear a group of kids shout: 'Ultimate!' Months later in my office, I'll hear 'Ultimate!' and smile" -Tim Richardson of the Boys and Girls Club
BOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF AMERICA
"All kids deserve and demand an escape from the daily pressures facing us in our society - they need somewhere to go, something to do, someone to be..." says the P.L.A.Y. pledge signed by nearly three million youth who participate in Boys and Girls Clubs of America. What better escape than Ultimate?! For the third year, the UPA Participates in the Lives of America's Youth (P.L.A.Y.) through Nike Sports Leadership Camps. Attending the camp is a reward for these teen leaders who have demonstrated positive participation in their own communities. Six camps, drawing participants from each region of the United States (and this year Europe), are supported in cooperation with Nike and the B&GCA. "This is our opportunity to give the sports back to the kids;' says Judith Umipie, community and business relations manager for NlKE. A five year, five million dollar grant from the sports company supports the program. "NIKE knows sports, the B&GCA knows kids .. .it's a perfect union; ' states another NIKE representative. "These kids may never get to a college campus; ' says Tim Richardson, a B&GCA administrator of the leadership program." The kids live in the college dorms, eat in the college dining halls and get a taste of college life for three fun-filled days. Camps are being held this summer on college campuses in Dallas, TX; South Bend, IN; Philadelphia, PA; Portland, OR; Greenville, SC; and Manneheim, GER. The first official SWOOSH Club was sworn in by Michael Jordan, Jackie Joyner-Kersee, and Colin Powell, all childhood members of the B&GCA, in Chicago in 1996. As part of the program, campers are exposed to successful athletes and coaches who share opportunities, hope and determination to inner-city youth. In between work-outs, they receive information about financial aid and college application processes. Organization of study skills and goal setting are always a topic of discussion at each regional camp. The P.L.A.Y preamble continues " ... a kid's movement is awakening. Kids are taking initiative and responsibility for positive, energetic actions charged with fun and free motion. These are our inalienable rights: Active life, sport and the pursuit of fun." Through the efforts of volunteers Barbara (Bubba) Denison and Lynne Nolan, kids learned the basic elements of Ultimate and realized the nature and importance of Spirit of the Game. "These kids are so fired up about Ulti-
mate! They want to play! Ultimate is one of our favorite sports activities." says Lorraine Jackson, director of the summer camps. The administrators at the B&GCA feel that Ultimate is a "perfect fit" for their programs. Equipment needs are a minimal and affordable. Ultimate can be played on whatever space is available to an inner city club. "Sports are the tools we use, but not the lesson," says Richardson. "The objective of the camp is not the sports. It is about learning what you can do, and become a winner in life; ' says Richardson. According to Tim, B&GCA are known for basketball "You walk into any B&GCA in any city and there is probably a game a basketball going on. We want to expose kids to other sports as well. Barbara has been great working with kids on and off the field. In the middle of dinner you'll hear a group of kids shout: 'Ultimate!' Months later in my office, I'll hear 'Ultimate!' and smile" Jackson was impressed by how quickly kids picked up the different elements of the game. "Also impressive was the work of Barbara Denison. With ease and loads of enthusiasm, she taught basic skills and elements of the game to each and every group. Back to back sessions in sweltering heat didn't melt her desire to communicate with these young leaders, who will return to their local clubs and teach the sports that they learned at camp;' continued Jackson. Part of the camp experience is also to expose kids to sports-related careers. In addition to their regular sessions, those campers considering a career in sports journalism publish a camp newsletter. In her article for the Texas publication, Valerie Burgiaga of San Antonio asked Swoosh campers, "What was their favorite activity?" Brittanie Gathright of Harlingen replied "Ultimate is a very cool and exciting game. I learned a new sport that is both fun and easy."
Elizette Rentieria, also of Harlingen replied "The sport I liked most was Ultimate. It was fun and it adds a whole bunch of aspects of soccer, football and basketball." Shaun Brooks of Delaware, a writer for the Northeast newsletter, surveyed a group of campers on their favorite and most challenging events. "The top three vote winners for favorite sport were: Ultimate, Team Handball, and Tennis; ' he reports. Other sports presented at camp included team handball, rugby, tennis and field hockey. In addition to the sports training sessions, campers are exposed to diversity training (through the anti-defamination league), a career panel, discussions on club service, motivational speakers and evening social experiences. Campers may choose from a variety of open activities in the evening sessions. "Ultimate was the most popular choice for evening activity in many of the camps;' says Lynne Nolan. "At the Midwest camp we had two fields playing simultaneously! " she exclaims with a smile. In the three years that Ultimate has been invited to leadership camp with Swoosh Club members, over 1200 youth have been exposed to our sport and the spirit of the game. As a national organization, our next step is to support the B&GCA with adequate coaching and leadership through properly trained players in the UPA. UPA members interested in becoming involved should contact Barbara Denison through the National office. Presently she serves the UPA as coordinator for the Texas section. "Eventually, we may be able to establish local connections between UPA members and the B&GCA so that kids can be playing Ultimate regularly. Our sport is special because it teaches leadership and responsibility through self-regulation. This is one of the reasons groups like B&GCA are attracted to Ultimate."
Texas Co-ed Sectionals Dallas by Hugh Dashbach July 22-23 Ten courageous teams endured the Texas heat in Dallas for the 2000 Co-ed Sectional Tournament. Last year the section had only four Co-ed teams, so there has been significant Co-ed growth in Texas. Top seeds Payasos con Pistolas (Austin) and TNT (Dallas) had no problem holding seed through pool play, while close matchups dominated the other spots in each group. Pool 1 finishing order was Payasos con Pistolas, Throng (Dallas), ACME (Houston), Glitter (Austin) and the Humpday Huckers (Dallas). Pool 2 finishing order was TNT, Area 51 (Houston), My Bad (Dallas), UT Tantric (Austin) and Full Disclosure (Dallas). The quarterfinals saw the Payasos take their hometown UT squad, while ACME and Area 51 battled it out in one of the most exciting games of the weekend. This game was a war, with ACME staging a furious comeback to take the lead at 11 only to have it slip away. TNT beat Glitter in their quarterfinal matchup, while Throng defeated My Bad in a battle of Dallas locals. Payasos and TNT won the semis easily. Payasos defeated Area 51 while TNT handled local rivals Throng. The finals between TNT and Payasos con Pistolas were close all through the first half. Payasos got a big defense in the end zone to start the game and took it upwind for the goal. From there, both teams traded points, with neither team establishing any kind of lead. The half ended with Austin clinging to an 8-7 lead. The teams traded points to start the second half and then Dallas hit their long game to tie it even at 10 all. The Payasos defense took over from there, coming up with several big defensive blocks. The Austin offense went into high gear and closed the game with five straight points for a 15-10 win. As it turned out, ALL 10 teams from this Section competed at Regionals in early August. Thanks to everyone for participating and making the Southern Regional tournament a success. We couldn't have done it without them. Congratulations to ACME for winning the Spirit of the Game award for the 2nd consecutive year!!!! Honorable mention goes to Full Disclosure who brought almost 20 new UPA members on their spirited squad! Many thanks to Jim Davis, Rex O'Quinn, Carl Parsons and the rest of the Dallas Ultimate community who put in the work to make it an enjoyable weekend despite the incredible heat.
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Florida Co-ed Sectionals Florida Co-ed Sectionals were held July 16 in St. Petersburg. The teams were Gainesville, Orlando, St. Pete, Tampa, and West Palm Beach. We were all but rained out on the first day- one game was played, a tight one between Orlando and West Palm. With high winds and a storm threatening, WPB came back from a 10-12 deficit to win 15-14. Luckily Sunday brought beautiful Ultimate weather. In the games that actually got played, Gainesville went undefeated, Tampa came in second. Unfortunately several teams fell apart during the day (the tournament had originally been scheduled for Saturday only, so many people couldn't stay all the way through Sunday afternoon). So by the end of the day, we did what we could with whoever was left, which turned out to be Gainesville vs. a combined Tampa/St Pete.
East Northeast Sectionals By George Cooke, JP House of Frisbee First of all, thanks to Jim Siewart for pulling together a 12-team tournament after taking the job of SC less than six weeks earlier. The ENE section ballooned to 12 teams this year, up from six or seven in 1998 and 1999. The teams were for the most part, corporate teams from the Boston Summer league. There were no "ringer" teams present, so while the goal of increased participation was achieved, the goal of higher quality Ultimate was, in my opinion, not really achieved. The pools ended up as follows:
Pool A Chinstrap(NH/RI)-real Co-ed club team/#3 last year Bubba Disc-#5 last year JP House of Frisbee-Boston corporate team MT-centered around a core of EMO(Regional #1 last year) Das Boot-mix of Boston Corporate X-Mojoination-summer league team
PooiB Woods Hole-placed well at Chowderfest 99 Force Huck-Strong Boston corporate team Pablo Rising-#2 1999, but depleted roster Stonecutters Reservoir Penguins BFS Hammers-young, new corporate team
SATURDAY Gusty wind and threat of rain was around all day. Four games of pool play with Game 5 first thing Sunday. In Pool A,
Co-ed Sectionals
the first big surprise was Game No. 2, in which MT came out and beat Chinstrap 154. Flash from Chinstrap said that his team was uninspired and slow. JP played MT in Game 3 and lost 13-11 in a great, close match. MT finished the day at 4-0, both Chinstrap and JP were 3-1 with their pool game on Sunday. Das Boot, who played everyone hard and close, came in at 2-2, while Bubba Disc went a disappointing 04. X-Mojoination was also 0-4, and when Bubba bailed on day 2, they finished pool play at 1-4. Pool B started with Resevoir Penguins barely losing to Woods Hole 9-8. RP ended up as the sleeper team as they played everyone close. Force Huck and Woods Hole had a great Game 4 to decide No. 1 in the pool. When I arrived it was a close game at 13-12 in favor of Force Huck. There were quite a few calls in a row, and as sometimes fits intense games, the reactions to these calls was, shall we say, "spirited." Force Huck held out to win 15-13 to take the pool. Woods Hole was No. 2 followed by Resevoir Penguins, Pablo Rising, Stonecutters, and BFS Hammers. Pablo Rising bailed on Sunday as they had only one woman who could return. Conflicts with summer vacations and other tournaments really hurt this team that was No. 2 in the section for the past two years.
Sunday No surprises in Game 5 other than Resevoir Penguins losing to Stonecutters. So, while Force Huck and MT enjoyed byes, Chinstrap played Resevoir Penguins and Woods Hole played JP for a berth in Semis and a spot at Regionals. Resevoir Penguins really worked Chinstrap hard, but succumbed 15-13. In the other game, JP came out hard to take the half at 8-3, but Woods Hole made a massive run in the second half with the combination of great hucks and hard running women. JP managed to hold off the run and hold onto to a 15-13 win. So, Woods Hole and Resevoir Penguins now had to play an additional two games to reach the No. 5 and No. 6 spots. Das Boot, playing with heart as always, beat RP while Woods Hole beat Stonecutters to set up the "back door" game. Woods Hole prevailed in that game to take No. 4 in the section. In the top bracket, the semis featured Chinstrap beating Force Huck, while MT took it to a tired JP team 15-9 to set up the final. Was their first match up a fluke? Apparently not as Chinstrap was unable to stop MT's flowing offense. Although both teams considered flipping for the No. 1 spot, those of us that stuck around were treated to a dominating performance by MT. As I was leaving, MT was closing out the game at 12-4.
Final Standings: 1)MT 2)Chinstrap 3)Force Huck 4)JP House of Frisbee 5)Woods Hole 6)Das Boot ?)Stonecutters 8)Resevoir Penguins 9)BFS Hammers 10)X-Mojoination 11)Pablo Rising 12) Bubba Disc
NC Sectionals by Thuy Boyd NC Sectionals was held on July 8-9 and hosted 9 teams from all over the state. Due to the odd number of teams participating, we opted for the round robin format. With eight games each, there was a little concern that teams who would not be advancing might bail early on Sunday. To EVERYONE'S credit that did not happen and all the participants had two full days of great Ultimate. Way to go NC teams!!! The "main event" on Saturday would be the game between the reigning champion, Raleigh Llama, and a combo team of club players, Spear. There seemed to be no doubt that these two teams would hold the #1 and #2 spots. The question was, who would be first? The game started off very well, with the Llama taking the lead early on. Eventually Spear was able to catch up and control the game early in the second half and go on to win, 13-7. Once it was clear which teams would claim the first two spots, the battle over the last 3 spots would be close and hard fought. By Sunday, two teams, Elvis Needs Boats and Duke Coed, would be in contention for #3 and #4. In a very clean and intense game, the more experienced Elvis squad would take the victory 13-11. To everyone's surprise, the fifth spot went to the Asheville team, Prizm, who's record would prove to be better than both a strong Charlotte team and a veteran Winston Salem squad. Thanks to all the teams for persevering and making Sectionals a huge success and to all the team captains for working diligently on your rosters and making ME look good!
Oregon Coed Sectionals Report 2000 by Jeff "Shiv" Aynn THE SETUP: With 12 teams in the fray (up from eight in '99), the Oregon Coed scene has added both strength and depth since last fall's series. Returning from their
(including a big come from behind victory over Velvatone Jiggy Jim) and lost only to Kibosh in what was rumored to have been Kibosh 's toughest test in pool play. Meanwhile, Mystery Machine left their fifth place pool seeding in the dust as they ripped through the pool on Saturday, losing only to Kibosh. The first round of Pool B games started off with a horrific blow to the defending state champs when the Pigs' captain and emotional leader, Simon "Simookius" Shapiro, went down with an ACL tear in a non-contact play on the disc during the first game. Working to absorb that blow to the emotion and chemistry of the team, the Pigs moved on to a second round match up with fellow Portlanders, Mean Flower. A tight contest through halftime, the Pigs pulled out a 15-10 win in the Photo by Jeff "Shiv" Flynn end to begin rebuilding their confidence for the weekend. The best game of Saturinaugural season and 1999 sectional championship, Pigs in Space brought back day was the rematch between Pigs in much of their squad and fortified it with Space and Army of Darkness. Pigs had come back from a 8-4 deficit in Corvallis's some additional depth. Skin & Bones (1998 's 3rd and 1999's 2nd place Oregon Slugfest Tournament semi-finals to win by one at the hard cap less than two months team) added heaps of athletic depth for both genders despite losing some key con- prior, so everyone was braced for another tight match up. From the start, the game tributors from last year. The most potent additions to the 2000 series' teams were had all of the makings of a great contest. Kibosh [Eugene], a perennial power in the Both teams fueled the fire with intense Northwest's tournament scene, and Army play and loud sidelines. Cries of "Yea Pigs! " were met with the more esoteric of Darkness [Corvallis], a powerfully "Boom-stick!" from the Army. Trading engineered combination of the OSU Men's team and the Corvallis Women's points and short runs, the Pigs took half 8team, The Wild Hairs. Both Kibosh and 7. The second half saw more of the same intense play and the coining of the forArmy benefited from the move to a late summer series, bringing many players to ward-looking rules-related phrase the Co-ed series that would have other"supreme perspective." Army of Darkness wise been committed to single gender exploited the experience of their veteran teams. With many newcomers and tight women handlers as their isolated the lethal recent contests between top seeds, this combination of Matt Lupes, the star of the OSU Beaver Open squad, and his veteran year's finish would be far from precoach, Kenny Fasse. However, the differdictable. EVERYBODY IN THE POOL (POOL ence of the game may have been the quesPLAY): Pool A saw Kibosh go undetion to which opponents have had no answer, the Pigs' giant, Mike Szwaya. feated as the rest of the teams ignored seeding and mixed things up. Skin & With the highest of grabs and amazing Bones pulled out some tight wins Saturday mobility for a man of his height,
"Szwayzilla" was a powerful force all weekend long. As shadows grew long, Pigs in Space eeked out another 1 point victory at the cap, wrapping up first place in Pool B. IT' S ALL ABOUT SUNDAY: Sunday morning 's final pool play round, seeded to be a no-contest, suddenly became the duel for second place between Skin & Bones and Mystery Machine in a tight pool "A" that had four of the eventual top six finishers. Although warm and ready to go well before their opponents, the Bones suffered from a number of missed executions, falling to the surprise team of the tournament. The Bones' punishment would be a tough quarterfinals game with Army of Darkness as the Machines went on to face Mean Flower.
FINAL POOL PLAY RESULTS: Pool A: !.Kibosh 5-0 2.Mystery Machines 4-1 3.Skin&Bones 3-2 4.VJJim 2-3 5.Cosmos 1-4 6.Spin Cycle 0-5
Pool B: !.Pigs in Space 5-0 2.Army of Darkness 4-1 3.Mean Rower 3-2 4. Thermos Nation 2-3 5.Aic Class Dogs 1-4 6.Bush League 0.5
CONSOLATION: The most disappointing result of a tough Pool A was that Cosmos, a strong collection of Corvallis and Bend players, were eliminated from regional contention after some tight losses in Saturday's pool play. Another consolation bracket notable was Bush League who broke the traveling team silence that had recently enveloped Salem. Although they showed some veteran guile, promising athletism and plenty of good spirit, the squad from capital city would have to wait until their final consolation match for a win over Corvallis's Spin Cycle. Finally, Alcoholic Glass Dogs racked up two weekend victories with style grace despite their faux pax-laden name. ELIMINATION: On the top half of the elimination bracket, Kibosh and Army of Darkness dispatched with Thermos Nation and Skin & Bones with relative ease. On the other fields, Pigs in Space saw VJ Jim come back from an early deficit to keep the game tight through half time. Although the Pigs won the game going away, the effort of Jim was an early indication that they could pull together inspired, energetic play against strong opponents. Mystery Machines worked through Mean Flower in blue collar style to set the stage for semifinals. Pigs in Space and Mystery Machines were two teams almost completely unfamiliar with one another. Taking advantage of a deeper women's roster and a flexible and malleable (if unorthodox) offense, Pigs took the game with minimal fanfare. Meanwhile, Kibosh faced its best matched
Co-ed Sectionals
Photos by Jeff "Shiv" Flynn
I Fall 2000
I www.upa. orgl
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Elite Division A Pool Quarterfinals Godiva(/) over Vixen 13-7 Backhoe over Philly 13-2 Nemesis over Ozone 13-8 Godiva(2) over Luna 13-3
Semifinals Godiva(/) over Backhoe 15-4 Godiva(2) over Nemesis 16-14
Finals Did not play
Elite Division B Pool (last two finishers in Elite Division played top two finishers in Easterns Division - next year, there should be a consolation game to determme 3rd and 4th place)
Semifinals Stella over Snuffalupogus (formerly Nomar) /3-3 Clutch over Harmony 13-7
Finals Stella over Clutch 75-10
Easterns Division Quarterfinals Fuego (formerly Tallulah) over Hussey Sound /3-/
Juice over SOL 13-8 Fifi over Undertoe 14-12 Zephyr over Brickhouse 13-7
Semifinals Juice over Fuego 13-9 Fifi over Zephyr 13-11
Finals Juice over Fifi 13-4
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opponent in a hotly contested match. When a few Pigs wandered over to see who their finals opponents would be they were surprised to find the score 12-11 Army in the game to 13. Objective spectators were reluctant to call it an upset after having seen the strength of Army's play, but anyone placing bets on the game beforehand would have been hard pressed to favor the kids from Corn Valley. The few reports that have trickled in praised the work of Fasse and Lupes while questioning the labeling of several of Kibosh's "ringers" as such. THE TOP FOUR: The final had been set, and the two teams involved were guaranteed top seeds for regionals. However, before the Pigs and Army meandered to the finals field for their rematch, back door elimination games held the fate of four remaining combatants. Kibosh and VJ Jim faced off, but Kibosh ended the match with ease. Jim, although disappointed at a chance to add further upset to the Goliath's weekend, had only to look over to the neighboring field to see the desperate situation that claimed fellow Portlanders, Skin & Bones. Mystery Machines, in their second victory of the pairing Sunday, took a time-shortened match 9-7 and guaranteed themselves a spot at NW Regionals. With eight games already in the books for the weekend, Kibosh and Mystery Machines decided the third/fourth seeding match with a simple sprint. No sooner had "Colorado" Bob taken Canadian Ken to secure third seed for Kibosh than teams began to assemble to watch the finals match between Pigs in Space and Army of Darkness. With two single point victories by Pigs, this third match was anticipated to be another tight affair. From the outset, such expectations were satisfied. Taking half by a margin of 8-7, the Pigs built confidence in small victories. However, worn down by their effort in defeating Kibosh or content with an assured regional bid, Army of Darkness let the game slip away in the second half. Following an unforced turnover at the goal line, the Pigs finished out the match 12-9 with an unspectacular hammer. Although play was impressive from all participants, a layout hand block by Mike Szwaya and multiple deep scores by Shar Kamin stand out as golden images of the Pigs in Space championship defense. THE BACK DOOR CLOSES: As finals wrapped up, the last two teams with a chance to advance to regionals were approaching the end of their match. Skin & Bones, a two-time regionals team, led 10-7 in what seemed to be the waning moments of the match to 13. However, newcomers Velvatone Jiggy Jim would
Co-ed Sectionals
not concede. Inspired by layouts from their men on both sides of the disc (including a spectacular layout score by Anthony Hawley on a cross-field hammer), VJ Jim battled to a 10-10 score. As Jim fed off the gathering crowd and elevated tension, raising their effort and will to win, the Bones came up just short in their execution. With unflinching momentum, VJ Jim steamrolled through the finish, taking the match 13-10 as Skin & Bones players gasped in disbelief. The final match of the weekend took its place among the best played in the tournament, but it also attested to the depth that has been added to this year's Oregon field. Additionally, it is a testament to a group of players whose first goal in forming as a team was to have fun. After congratulating their opponents on a well played game, members of VJ Jim assembled
gear not to bask in the glory of a great comeback win but instead immediately began composing a masterful cheer. It was the natural thing for the "Jims" to do, and it certainly impressed upon the tournament TD that all of the volunteer work UPA officials and members do is worth every effort. Congratulations (and thanks!) to all participants in Oregon's 2000 Season Co-ed Sectionals and good luck to those advancing to regionals (and beyond!) Final 2000 Oregon Co-ed Sectional Standings: 1st- Pigs in Space [Portland] (8-0) 2nd- Army of Darkness [Corvallis] (62)
3rd- Kibosh [Eugene] (7-1)* 4th- Mystery Machines [Eugene] (62)* 5th- Velvatone Jiggy Jim [Portland] (5-4) 6th- Skin & Bones [Portland] (4-5) 7th- Mean Flower [Portland] (3-4) 8th- Thermos Nation [Portland] (2-5) 9th- Cosmos [Corvallis/Bend] (3-4) lOth- Alcoholic Glass Dogs [Eugene]
(2-5) 11th- Bush League [Salem] (1-6) 12th- Spin Cycle [Corvallis] (0-7) > *- 3rd/4th seeding contest (decided by 1vl sprint) not included in record.
WA/BCCo-ed Sectionals Ray Birks, WAjBC The most often heard quote surrounding this weekend was, "I hope you brought your sunscreen." Followed almost invariably by, "Yeah. It's right next to my rain jacket." Thus the stage was set for nine teams to battle it out for three precious spots at Northwest Regionals. The overcast skies opened up generously throughout Saturday's play, combining with the wind to chill player's hands, cause normally trusty passes to flop and flail and making player's hair stand on end, literally. Play was halted on Saturday when a rare thunderstorm reared its ominous head causing players and fans to race for their cars seeking shelter. Players reported their hair standing straight up because of the electricity in the air and that was enough to warrant a stoppage of play. Players took the opportunity to race to the store, steam up car windows and think of cheers, including one that included the line, " ... get the tall players off the field." After a flurry of Friday emails the nine teams that converged on Blaine, WA all agreed to play one big round robin with five rounds on Saturday and four on Sunday. The team that traveled the farthest was Desert Lorax from Tri Cities, east of the mountains. With their multi colored socks, great women handlers and undeniable spirit they were a crowd pleaser finishing in the middle of the pack after the weekend. Team NO, from Seattle, could only play on Saturday but made the best of the wind and rain. Because they only played one day they had to forfeit all their games but we were thankful they made the two-hour trip and didn't get singed by lightning. MoHo, also from Seattle, comprised of young Seattle players and recent Carlton grad Mike Caldwell, played savage on Saturday and did quite well, although they had to forfeit their last game due to a loss of players. They would return on Sunday though, this time with only six players, but were plagued by injuries and had to end the tourney early. They ran hard on Sunday, playing a two-person cup and a stretched out '0' that emphasized long throws to streaking players. This team would have given some serious competition to the frontrunners if they could've fielded an entire team.
Two teams made their way south from Vancouver, B.C., Canada hoping to fine-tune their offensive and defensive machines in preparation for Canadian Nationals the following weekend. Biggest Banana, with their red-dyed hair and bright red shirts, ran and played hard the entire weekend. They were the first team to 'hit the deck' when the storm rolled in after they noticed each other's hair stretching to the heavens. They spent a good fifteen minutes flat on the ground urging other teams to do the same and were mostly responsible for the decision to postpone the games. The other Vancouver team was Idle Hands, also testing their game out on their neighbors to the south. Their bright white Gaia jerseys with red stripes was a sharp contrast the dark green fields and bright orange cones. With a good mix of veteran men handlers and great women they played well and got enough conditioning to get them ready for Nationals. The best game of the weekend was between Idle Hands and the Promise Breakers from Seattle. The Promise Breakers were fighting hard to qualify for Regionals and this was their big game of the weekend. Promise Breakers led 11 - 8 at one point in a capped game to thirteen but Idle Hands stormed back to take the game and secure the fourth spot in the Section. The third place team that qualified for Regionals was the ever-spirited veteran squad from Seattle, Vincelot Link, Ultimate Chimp. Vince played hard all weekend and managed to stay dry thanks to their small mobile tent city and very comfortable, dry chairs. They are a fun team to play because their constant stream of one liners and undying quest to ridicule and heckle other teams into submission usually comes back to bite them in the landshark region. The second place team was Snatch and Tackle, composed of
a squad of fast, hard running men and excellent women handlers. Two late Australian additions on the female side and a 3-1-3 offense will make them a strong team at Regionals. The game to watch on Sunday was the game between Snatch and Tackle and the eventual first place team Naughtybear, also from Seattle. Naughtybear jumped out early, 5-1, but a stellar handling by the Aussies combined with a great sky in the end zone propelled Snatch and Tackle to a one point lead, 6-5. Naughtybear called a timeout to take a couple of deep breaths and refocus their energies. It helped as they went on an 8-1 run to finish the game and secure first place in the Section. Highlights of the weekend included: a cheer delivered over a cell phone to a captain that had to leave early, watching some of the parents from the neighboring Little League tournament with one eye on Bobby/Betsy and one eye on the Ultimate field, Naughtybear's naughty Co-ed cold shower after Saturday, and 140 proof home made Eastern European hooch shared by Idle Hands. Thanks to all the teams for their exceptional level of spirit and flexibility throughout the whole weekend. Good luck to Vince, Snatch and Tackle and Naughtybear at Regionals as well as to Idle Hands and Biggest Banana at Canadian Nationals.
Extremely hot temperatures and sun dominated the weather while extremely elevated Co-ed play dominating the fields. It sure felt like the most competitive Co-ed Ultimate I have ever witnessed in Colorado. I don't believe there is any question as to whether the move of the Co-ed season to mid-summer has changed the complexion and level of this division. I appreciate all of the team's cooperation in helping me to keep this tournament running on time and without any problems. I especially want to thank a few individuals that assisted me in very key ways to keep the tournament running well: Chuck Brunson (Regional Coordinator), Mike Lyle, Jennifer McKean, Paul Schuricht and Connie Jones.
Standings after Saturday and Sunday play: 1. Aintree AllStars (8-0) 2. Bad Larry (7-1)
3. Ryno's Revolution (5-3) 4. Ho Cakes (5-3) 5. Jager Monsters (4-4)
Co-ed Sectionals Rocky Mountain
6. Pira Haku (4-4) 7. Country Mike's Big Breakfast (2-6)
by Jeff Jones
8. Breckenridge (1-7)
Congratulations to all teams that participated in this year's Co-ed Sectionals for the Rocky Mtn Section.
9. Shamelessly Irresponsible (0-8)
HosT UPA
TIIVIING OF MAJOR EVENTS
NATIONALS
TASK FORCE (TIME)
Bid Packets for 2001 Hosts Available Novv The UPA will hold national championship events for at least 8 divisions in 2001 - Junior Open & Girls, College Men & Women, Club Coed, Open, Women & Masters, plus the alternative Celebration and the NIT-like Non-Nationals Discard (if the demand is there). Want to host one of these
premier events? Got lush fields, a major airport within an hour of the fields , a trusty volunteer staff and a lot of love for Ultimate? Write info@upa.org for information on how your city can bid for a national Ultimate event. Exact dates TBD.
VVFDF VVORLD
CLUB CHAMPIONSHIPS 2002
Aloha Havvaii! The World Flying Disc Federation selected Hawaii as the host for World Clubs in 2002. With a huge, plush new sports complex, gorgeous setting and proximity to emerging Ultimate teams in Asia and Oceania, Ultimate players in the US and worldwide have much
to look forward to. I'm sure we'll be hearing a lot more from Tournament Director Grant Wise and his expert team in the months ahead.
When vvill the Coed Championships be and more ... The TIME Task Force is under way. Chaired by Seattle's Summer League "Commish" , Chris Burke, who by day is a meteorologist with NOAA. He also has been known to introduce himself at public meetings as "Joey's Minion" . Chris so graciously and fearlessly accepted this important position late in the game after two potential chairs had to bag due to other commitments. Never fearChris "gets it" about politics, bureaucracies and institutional decision making. He is committed to objective pursuit of the best solution to the coed conundrum and an inclusive process. Worst/best of all, he did his ACL so has more time on his hands for this than he really wants. His TIME task force is a rag-tag bunch of UPA outsiders from a variety of backgrounds. They want to hear from you, so be ready to spew.
The next newsletter will include details of TIME's methods for gaining member input- it will likely include an on-line poll, membership questionnaire, plus targeted and/or random calling. The details are being ironed out now, but expect two main periods for member input. First, general opinions will be solicited (including all the mail we 've already received). Then the Task Force will formulate the main questions that need to be answered and present several summaries and options. Second, the membership will be polled on those options. The findings will be presented to the Executive Director and the Board before the January annual meeting.
Stay tuned to the web page or write upa_time@upa.org
Announcements
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rei Elections midnight on Nov. 7th
CANDIDATE STATEMENTS
UPABoardof Directors Election Each year the UPA elects 4 of its 12 Board of Directors members - two regional representatives and two "at-large" members. This year the Mid-Atlantic and Southwest regional positions are open. The Board of Directors is responsible for the UPA. You, as a member, are responsible for your Board. Your vote counts. A ballot is enclosed - use it. Thanks to all nominees for your willingness to step up!
MID-ATLANTIC BOARD NOMINEES Tracy Berg Paul Bonfanti Mel Ditz Rich Franck Steven Paul Wendy Richardson
SOUTHWEST BOARD NOMINEES Richard Hart Dan Revelle Jon Shepard Holly Wright
AT-LARGE BOARD NOMINEES Joanne Adamkewicz Kate Bergeron MarkBrehob Mike Lascola Jim Parinella
Tracy Berg
Mid Atlantic Wendy Richardson - Started playing 10+ years ago in a very casual game in Northern VT. - Traveled around the world for a year. Organized a Christmas Day game in Christchurch, New Zealand by putting up flyers in hostels. Played in a weekly game in Bucharest, Romania, organized with VT friends living for a few years in Romania. Taught some village kids in northern Thailand how to throw and catch a disc. - Moved to Ft. Collins, CO where I played pickup, summer league, women's (with Amazing Grace), and Co-ed (mostly with Village Idiots). Played in sectionals and regionals, and several major western tourneys. - Moved to NC 4 years ago, and have played and coached here. Cocoached Triangle Flying Disc Club winter league team, co-coached Sherwood Githens middle school Ultimate, and currently cocoach Women's team Dixie Flicks. I've helped out at practices for other area schools (H.S.) I also play on a men's masters team and a few co-ed teams (Triangle and Ashville) in the area at tourneys. Have played at several of the larger eastern tourneys. Other sports: Too much to go into detail, but have achieved state and national recognition in field-hockey and lacrosse as a younger
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gal. Currently my "other" sports are kayaking and aggressive inline skating. Motivation for applying: I have been involved in the Ultimate community for some time, and certainly feel I have been "giving back" to the community by coaching and teaching. However, I feel that my experience (especially with the not-sosuper-competitive portion of the community) has given me good insight into the needs of players that we don't hear from a lot, the local "summer/winter league only" player, the Jr. and Sr. high students, and the women that are playing for recreation and fun and not striving attend the best tourneys. I also, at 46, have a line to many other folk who think of Ultimate as a lifetime sport and will play till the grave. Of course, I do play locally with some of our local "elite" , on Co-ed teams, and at pickup, and expect that I should be able to be aware of any particular concerns that they might come up with as well. But I believe I'd be a particularly good voice for the UPA or potential UPA player that is not attending 5 star tourneys. Additionally, I believe I have good people skills, have creative ideas, and can express different views well. I'd love to see more players joining the UPA, and making it an organization for all levels of players. I'd be happy to discuss any of my ideas.
Fall 2000
Background Statement: I have played Ultimate for nineteen years since founding the Univ. of Mich. women's team in 1981. I have been playing, and frequently captaining, in Philadelphia since 1985 taking two seasons off to have children. I played on the first US Masters team, winning the championship in Oslo in 1990. I've run many clinics for new women players here in Philadelphia and have helped the Women's Sports Foundation expose hundreds of girls to the sport. I also know what it is like to compete in other sports at the national level having played three years of intercollegiate tennis at Kalamazoo College. I also raced on the UMich ski team. My professional experience includes five years as a production engineer, and eleven years of raising children. I would like to become a UPA Board Member to help set the goals that will guide our sport into the next century. Watching the Jr. Championships this year gave me a renewed confidence in the growth of our sport and I would like to be a voice in how it grows. I have played many years of co-ed summer league but most of my energy has gone into competing at the National level in the Women's Division. My first Nationals was in 1985 in DC and have competed in many since then, including last fall. Having seen the changes in the Women's Division over fifteen years, I have accumulated a lot of ideas about how to improve the series and get more women involved in the sport. This knowledge of the sport and its history, along with the connections I have made
Board Nominees
with players from all across the country, give me a unique perspective to help guide us into the future. I am organized (although I only have 45 minutes till the deadline here) and quite capable of overseeing administrative operations for the UPA. I would be committed to giving as much of myself as I can to the UPA since it has given me so much for nearly twenty years of my life.
Steven Paul To The UPA Membership: My name is Steven Paul and I have a vision of the future of Ultimate. In my vision, when you mention Ultimate and Spirit of the Game, everybody knows what you're talking about; college freshman bring ten years of experience to their teams; Co-ed means 4/3 without definition; boys and girls learn to throw and catch the disc at the same age and pace as a ball. This vision can be realized, but much has to happen. The initiatives must start now, particularly in the areas of increasing women's participation, teaching children, and increasing public awareness, recognition and understanding. Growth in these areas can be sustained if they proliferate locally and globally, and the UPA is uniquely positioned to make that happen. The UPA can offer programs to facilitate the creation of local organizing groups, including structural blueprints, insurance, and networking between similar groups; teaching curricula for men, women and for kids; marketing how-to kits to get groups on the map in an age of media saturation. Demands such as these put even greater strain on an already squeezed budget. But there are more resources available in today's economy than ever before, and we must find creative ways to tap them. Tasteful sponsorships, endowed management seats and effective grant-writing are the order of the day. Development must become a priority in the new century. I ask your permission to join the UPA Board of Directors so I can better apply my abilities and experience to this cause. I started playing homemade Ultimate as a 17-year-old in Gaithersburg, MD, in 1986. I've been a regular summer league player in Pittsburgh since 1993 and a club player since last year. In 1995 I revived and managed the July 4th Mars Tournament, which I turned over to the Committee for Pittsburgh Ultimate after 97. I received an MBA in sports management in 1996 and have worked in professional and amateur sports organizations. I've written and revised marketing and business plans in the sports and technology sectors. I served as co-chair on CPUs summer league sponsorship and marketing/recruiting committees, and I currently serve on the bylaws committee, where we are drafting documents to organize formally. I encourage you to contact me with your comments at stevenpaul15@hotmail.com. Thank you very much for your thoughtful consideration. Steven Paul
Rich Franck Qualifications for The Board: - Joined the UPA in 1992. - Played Ultimate in Cleveland, Ohio for several years. - Was a jobless Ultimate "gypsy" for 3 years ... travelling the country from one tournament to the next. Went to 30 tournaments in 1999, mostly on the east coast, but also as far away as Mexico City, San Diego and Ottawa. - Captained a team in the UPA Co-ed Championship Series (1998 and 2000) - Played in the UPA Open Championship Series for six years - Observed at the UPA Club Nationals (1998 and 1999)- Played and Observed at Callahan Rules Tournaments Coached at the Mexico City Ultimate Summer Camp ... UPA Innovation Grant Recipient (1999) -Tournament Director of JUST-NC 2000 (Juniors Ultimate State Tournament, North Carolina) ... The first state championship in NC. - Coached a high school Ultimate team in Winston-Salem, North Carolina for 3 years Promoted the Juniors Ultimate Egroup ( for more info: www.egroups.com/groups/Ultirnate ) -Organized the Juniors Ultimate Ranking System- Was named General Manager of the USA Juniors Worlds 2000 Team- Recently settled down in Charlottesville, Virginia. Started a summer league and have taken the local team (Blue Ridge Ultimate) to 3 Co-ed tournaments this summer. As you can see, I've done a lot of volunteer work for Ultimate, especially in the Juniors Division. I plan to give the Juniors Division much more attention at the Board meetings. I've also been involved in the debates about - SOTG vs. Observers - leaving the UPA Co-ed Series in the Fall But instead of just arguing, I tried it. I played in Observed tournaments, I became an Observer, I played in the UPA Co-ed Series in the Fall and in the Summer. I played with and against the Elite teams ... yet some of my fondest memories are playing with some pretty bad teams that had great SOTG. I've been to over 100 Ultimate tournaments. Everywhere I met Ultimate players who share the same brotherhood and passion for the game. As a member of The Board, I plan to keep that passion alive while promoting Ultimate. Those two goals often contradict one another, but neither would exist without the other.
Paul Bonfanti My name is Paul Bonfanti. I've been playing Ultimate for ten years, and like many players, I've let it dominate my life way too much. Why stop now? As a player, I've experienced a lot of different levels and types of Ultimate. I started playing in college (Drew University in case you care), and have played for several club teams since. I have played for both casual and ultra competitive teams, and have played for new teams, national caliber teams, and every thing in between. I am currently captaining a competitive co-ed team in Philadelphia having previously played Open
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CANDIDATE STATEMENTS my entire career. I've also always believed in giving back to frisbee. I've been a very active in the Philadelphia Area Disk Alliance for the last five years. I was summer league co-coordinator for two years, and have been the President for the last two. I will be stepping down as president at the end of 2000, and will be looking for another vehicle for my energies. I've also been the Pennsylvania Open Sectional Coordinator for two years. I also have significant experience with non-profit organizations. I am currently employed at a national non-profit organization running their Philadelphia activities, and also serve as Secretary of the Friends of Philadelphia Parks. Why I want to be on the board: The UPA as a organization with tremendous potential, but that potential has not been realized yet. There is a perception that the UPA is out of touch, and that membership is a burden rather than an advantage. Justified or not, this perception needs to change. Ideally, Players would view UPA membership as something they want to do, not something they have to do to play at Sectionals. The UPA could be an organization that assists city-based leagues in growing the sport and administering their affairs, as well as an organization that runs a National Series. Furthermore, by increasing their contacts with local organizations, and by changing the role of Sectional and Regional coordinators, the UPA can be a less-anonymous organization. For most UPA members, the UPA is the organization that they pay $30 to once a year, and little else. They do not perceive of the UPA as being an organization that contributes to and grows the sport. The newsletter is the only tangible thing they receive. Furthermore, when the UPA makes an unpopular decision like moving co-ed to the summer, people do not see themselves represented by their organization. I would like to change both of these perceptions. The UPA should not be an organization that exists for the "elites"; rather it should be working for all players from novice juniors to the top players of the best club teams, and everyone in between. The way to accomplish this is by working more closely at the local level of the sport. Sectional Coordinators should have their roles changed. Right now, it is a difficult, time-consuming, thankless job that absorbs a short period of time. Instead, the SC should be the local representative of the UPA: they should make contact with local frisbee organizations, provide resources to club, college, and school teams, be available to give tangible and intangible assistance, and work for the UPA year round. So, if a new team is starting in Dallas, the Texas Sectional Coordinator would approach them, introduce the UPA, and see what they would need to better work. To accomplish this, we would need to cooperate closely with regional and city Ultimate organizations. From my experience with PADA, the UPA does not work much with locals, but it
could. Once the UPA has a more public face and is seen as doing more participatory things, communication and perception would change considerably. This may seem like a pipe dream. However, in any successful organization, you need people "on the ground;' doing the day-to-day nitty gritty work. Such people exist in the Ultimate world, but the UPA has little contact with them. All I'm suggesting is that the UPA can and should connect with the grass roots Ultimate organizer. When the national and local levels work more closely, Ultimate and the UPA can reach their full potential. I'd like to help make that happen.
Mel Ditz My name is Mel Ditz and I want to be a member of the UPA Board of Directors. I have been playing Ultimate in the MidAtlantic Region since the summer of 1991, when a friend encouraged me to join the Philadelphia summer league (where we have our own clubhouse and where the biggest victory is winning the fields after the game). Since then, I have been playing non-stop and have been very involved in breeding Ultimate. I am the current coach of the NC State Wornens Team Disc-O. I am also the new NC Womens Sectional Coordinator in the fall. I am the former Vice-President of the Philadelphia Area Disc Alliance (PADA)s Board of Directors and Womens Committee Chair. I codirected and then solely directed the PADAs Mothers Day Tournament; during my 5 years as TD, I increased participation to 46 teams. I am a former leader of the Philly Peppers, a group of awesome women who helped me to learn the true definition of the word team, and who encourage other women to play the game by sponsoring clinics and sharing their knowledge by coaching college teams. I have played at all different levels of the game and have competed in two World Championships. My measurements are I, like many of you, have at times sacrificed my relationships with my family and non-Ultimate friends in order to play this game that I love. I recently moved to North Carolina after playing in Philadelphia for 8 years, and, as a result, maintain strong ties to both communities. I also have strong connections to the DC and Pittsburgh Ultimate communities. I feel that my relationships with the 4 of the most thriving Ultimate communities in Mid Atlantic Region would enable me to solicit opinions and fairly represent the needs of our Region. I am also one of those people who has sometimes complained about the UPA and why they aren't doing things a certain way, and, as Bob Byrne told me a few years ago, it is time for me to step up and take a leadership role in this organization. In addition to my playing and administrative experience, I will bring a trained and seasoned perspective on raising money to the UPA. In my professional life, I have nearly 10 years of Development/Fund Raising experience. I have devoted my entire
career to raising money to help non-profit carry out their missions and I understand what is expected of a member of a non-profit Board. I want to use my fund raising experience to promote and grow Ultimate. As a Board Member, I will challenge myself to increase contributions from foundations, corporations, and individuals so that we can carry out our primary mission of promoting and supporting Ultimate. Finally, I thought long and hard about this decision to be a Board Member. I have gotten some feedback that I will have to deal with a lot of complaining and that it is a thankless job. As a tournament director, I've been there, done that. I want to be a member of the Board so that I can leave a legacy in MY sport as Ultimate grows more and more popular. I also want to be sure that the voice of the Mid Atlantic Region is represented in the administration of the UPA. Vote for me although there may not be any other suckers running.
AtLorae
Mike La~cola
Dear UPA members, The reason for this letter is inform you of my intent to enter the upcoming election for one of the at large positions on the board. I have been playing Ultimate since 1986 and have been a member of the UPA since 1987. I was president of our college team, Full Tilt at Southern illinois University, where my responsibilities included being a liaison between the university and the team. After Full Tilt I moved back to Chicago where I played with the second Chicago team Czech for two years before moving to play with Windy City. I played with Windy City for the last 4 years of that team before becoming a founding member of Z. During that time I moved to Bloomington Indiana and helped coach the college team HoosierMama while traveling up to Chicago to practice. After One year I moved back to Chicago. I played for Z for 5 years then moved back to Carbondale to finish my degree in Art Education and Photography. During my return to Chicago I captained 5 summer league teams and was on the board of the summer league for 2 years. Currently I play on the Full Tilt team and will be a member of the Memphis Prairie Squids for the fall series. I have participated in 8 National Tournaments, making it to semis twice, two World Championships, Placing 3rd in 1991 and countless small tournaments. I am also currently the Central Region's RC. During my Ultimate career I have also organized and/or TD'ed the following: 4 Dennis Drazba Memorial Tournament in Carbondale IL. 2 ILIIN Sectional tournaments 2 Central Regional tournaments 1 Co-ed Celebration in Naperville IL 7 Tune Up Invitationals in Naperville IL My professional background lies mostly
in the graphic arts. I worked for a sign company for 7 years before starting my own free lance graphics and sign company. After attending art school for a year I became a union carpenter where my duties also included doing all the shop drawings and design work for the company. After an unfortunate accident I returned to school to finish up my degree in Art Education and obtain a second degree in Photography. Last year when I took the job as CRC I had considered running for a board position. I took the RC job thinking that it would be a good transition into becoming a board member. I have always tried to advance the sport however I could. I have started a few teams, captained and was a board member for summer league in Chicago and have tried to coach college teams when I could. I have tried to give back to the sport a fraction of what it has given me throughout the years and becoming a board member would be a great way to accomplish this. I think that our sport is one of the most exciting out there, but I also feel that we have a way to go before it reaches it's full potential. I would like to help Ultimate reach its full potential. If elected a board member I would like to help out the rules committee and special events and programs. There might be other I would like to get involved in once I learn of them all. I feel that my experience and level of play over the years has shown me where the strengths and weaknesses of our current rule edition fall. Also I believe that my experience at running one of the largest tournaments for the last seven years will also help me in organizing any special events that the UPA might want to try. I am very excited about the possibilities of being a board member and making a difference in the sport I love. Sincerely Mike LaScola
Mark Brehob Dear UPA members, Hello, my name is Mark Brehob. I've been playing Ultimate for about 10 years now. I started playing Ultimate in '89 or so at RoseHulman in Terre Haute Indiana. By 1990 I was a co-founder of our Ultimate club at Rose (with Mike Helmecki) and president of the club. By 1992 we had actually managed to win one game and learn how to throw a forehand What joy! During that time I also helped to start the fairly annual "Dirty Sock" tournament hosted by Rose-Hulman and been college sectional coordinator for lndiana/lllinois. At the end of '92 I went up to Michigan State University and learned a lot about Ultimate from such noteworthies as Fly and many less well-known but outstanding players. I also was involved in drafting the new constitution for the club (as required by the school) and helped to get funding from MSU (a long and painful experience). At MSU at various times I have acted as president, captain of a B team, coach of a col-
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CANDIDATE STATEMENTS lege team, and tournament director for "Mad Dog" a tournament held in Lansing. I've also helped with Centrals in the past. I've played in the college, open, and Co-ed series, often qualifying for Regionals. I've also played in Portland OR for over a year when a co-op at futel in Beaverton. I've played in the league there, was a regular at the games at Five Oaks, and an occasional player downtown and lunch games at OGI. The point of all of the above is to show that while I am not an elite player I have been involved in Ultimate at many levels, both as a player and an administrator. Let me now tum to the future and my goals for Ultimate. I believe that there are a number of issues facing the Ultimate community. These issues include refs, rule changes, Co-ed, and administrative difficulties. I'll address them one at a time. One big change corning from the college side is the addition of active observers to the game. Those observers are empowered to resolve a foul/contest situation in they way they see it. The observer is on the field and, ideally with the help of linesmen, tries to keep track of the play. These observers were introduced when the top teams of college Ultimate at the time were asked to consider them. After a fair amount of lobbying more than 2/3 of those teams asked to introduce them into the game. Currently the fmal and semi-final games at college Regionals and all of college Nationals are observed in this manner. I believe that the introduction of these active observers was a mistake. Both in the way they were introduced and the impact it can have on the long term direction of the game. I would prefer that the default during these games be no observers, but that as per the captains clause, if both teams wanted an active observer one would be provided. As a board member I would move for that change. With the active observers came a number of rule changes. These involve linesmen and timekeepers. They speed up the game, forcing teams to put the disc back into play quickly. Both as a player and a spectator I think these changes have been good As have the changes to the pull rules. I would favor these rules making their way into the lOth edition rules. Another recent change has been the introduction of the Co-ed series. While I've been playing Co-ed for years, I really enjoyed playing Co-ed with a regular team in '99. The addition of the Co-ed series gave us a reason to play and practice as a Co-ed team. The move of the Co-ed series into the summer hurt us greatly. Our college students had serious conflicts with classes and college practices. We only started playing Ultimate on a regular basis after the time change due to darkness issues. And we prefer for the first half of summer to be the mellow time as we all get back into shape and get our games back together. There are other issues here too. I wrote an article for the newsletter and the newsgroup rec.sport.disc about the "Yin and Yang of Coed Ultimate." There you can find more of my
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Fall 2000
arguments and beliefs about the issue. Also there have been some administrative problems which have been occurring from the UPA's side. Clearly we should expect problems, the organization is understaffed and mostly run by volunteers. And I cannot claim that I will be able to solve these problems, I too will be a volunteer. Rather, as a board member I will do my best to communicate to the membership what is going on. I would do this mostly via the newsgroup rec.sport.disc, but perhaps in other ways too. Also I would consider improving these problems a high priority for the budget If that means spending more for phone calls or hiring an additional part-time person, I think it should be seriously considered even with the tight budgetary constraints. Lastly starting in September of 2000 I will be a teacher and will have my summers more free than most. It would be my hope that I can spend some time helping HQ during the summer. Either as a board member, or just a UPA member.
Kate Bergeron I have played Ultimate for about seven years. If you have heard my name recently, it has probably been as the National College Director for the UPA. I would like to continue to give back to the sport of Ultimate by serving on the UPA Board of Directors. fu addition to helping coordinate the UPA College Division for the past four years, here are a few highlights of my Ultimate background: coach, Stanford Women's Ultimate (B-team) 1997present, team member Ripplt 1999-present, team member and captain University of Colorado Women's Ultimate 1994 & 1995, and finally a member of several women's teams both in Colorado and the Bay Area. If elected, I would like to help continue with growth in the college division and participate in the lOth Edition Rules/XRules development. I would also like to see the Co-ed Championship Series return to the fall.
Joanne I. Adamkewicz 1) Brief personal background statement: I have been playing Ultimate since 1989, and during that time I have competed in every division except Masters: open, women, and Co-ed, both club and college. I have played on teams that couldn't make it to the second day at sectionals, and I have won nationals (Red Fish Blue Fish, 1998). I sat out a season with a serious knee injury. I have played over 4 years on each coast, and many tournaments in between. In short, I have the diverse background necessary for an At-Large board member who is supposed to represent the entire UPA membership. 2) Why I want to become a board member: I have two things I would like to accomplish as a Board member. First, I want to improve the information flow between HQ, SCs, and players. I was partly responsible for the Red Fish Blue Fish roster fiasco in 1998, when
Board Nominees
inadvertently leaving a player off our roster caused a one-day DQ of our captain and the affected player at nationals. At that time, I promised to work towards a streamlined membership and roster process, to reduce the chance for these sorts of mistakes to occur. I think the Board is already well on the way by transitioning to a calendar-year membership system, implementing electronic rosters, etc. If elected, I would concentrate my efforts on these projects, which would have an immediate impact on all UPA members. Second, I would like to represent the interests of competitive Co-ed players around the country. Although almost all UPA members are Co-ed players at pickup games, leagues, etc., the interests of the Co-ed division are best represented by someone who competes in that division. I joined Red Fish Blue Fish in 1994, so my competitive focus has been on Co-ed Ultimate since way before the UPA Co-ed division was created. The Board Meeting in 2001 is a critical time, when the Directors will decide whether to move the Co-ed series back to fall or keep it in the summer, or some other configuration. I currently favor a move back to fall. I cannot promise that this will be my final vote, however, because there will be a long process of information gathering and debate, and because I want to see what happens with the 2000 season, which hasn't even started yet. But I do promise to be a strong voice for the Co-ed division, and to actively solicit input from all UPA members throughout the decision making process. 3) Description of capabilities that will make me a valued board member: I have 2 years of experience as a sectional coordinator, 2 years organizing a local winter league, 4+ years of captaining various teams, 1 year running a women's skills clinic to recruit new female players, and even 1 year serving on a public city school board in my hometown. This administrative experience, combined with my varied competitive experience, makes me an extremely well-qualified candidate for an At-large position.
Jim Parinella I am running for re-election to the Board of Directors. I have invested a good part of my life the last three years trying to make the UPA and Ultimate better. As President of the Board of Directors this year, I have worked closely with the rest of the Board and with the Executive Director to help plot the course of the UPA. It's been a wonderful learning experience seeing our community culture and our organizational culture. When I ran for the Board three years ago, my platform was that the elite players were under-represented and underserved As the Board and the UPA have changed, I have gradually changed my perspective to represent the broader population, and that is how I offer my services today. I feel that one of my strengths for this position is my ability to consider how an issue
affects the whole organization. Virtually all of the major issues confronting the UPA today, both internal and external, can not be addressed without looking at the whole picture. For example, here is my stance on some of these key issues: Observers and X Rules: I'd like to expand the use of Observers to improve the flow of the game and to limit the advantage gained by those who do not follow the rules. fustituting increased controls will do this, but it also removes the opportunity for players to show that they can play with honor, which is what can set Ultimate apart from most other sports. The UPA's mission statement mentions that one of our jobs is "to preserve the integrity of Ultimate including Spirit of the Game." I feel that the UPA should proceed with the X Rules but be cautious about that slippery slope that could lead to a decrease in personal responsibility. Co-ed: I currently have no official position on the timing of the Co-ed Championship series. In 1998, I voted to institute it. In 1999, I voted to keep it in the fall despite some evidence that Women's Ultimate was hurt, because I felt Co-ed needed the existing structure to survive. fu 2000, I voted to move it to late summer because I felt Ultimate as a whole was better served. I thought that there would be a slight negative effect on those who played in the Coed series the previous fall, but that it would be offset by increased benefits to a wider range of players, particularly: a) Women's teams in smaller markets, b) lower-tier players who would have more incentive to join the UPA and who previously received only a few games at Sectionals for their dues, and c) casual summer players who never joined the UPA before but might join if the series coincided with their current season. I see some of the opinions expressed on rec.sport.disc, but in forming a position I will also place a lot of emphasis on the TIME (Timing of Major Events) task force report and on the numerical analysis of the membership numbers for not just the Co-ed but also the Women's and Open. Wildcards/Format of Nationals: As a Board member, I do not care, so long as players are being treated fairly. This is an example of something that ought to be an Administrative decision, not a Board policy. Having said that, however, I do care as a player and as a disinterested hobbyist, and have years of experience in this area. As a Board member I would be readily accessible to offer guidance to Admin in making their decision. Electing me to the Board of Directors will ensure more continuity as the organization progresses into the 21st century. We are making great strides in our never-ending goal to become a well-run organization, but we still rely on word of mouth to spread information and on individual memory to tie in to the past. I have contacts within the whole of the international frisbee community, and have played at all levels of the game over the past 17 years. I would like to continue to work closely with the rest of the
rei Elections midnight on Nov. 7th
CANDIDATE STATEMENTS Board and with Joey Gray to represent our fine sport. Thank you.
Southwest Richard Hart Hello, my name is Richard Hart, and I'm interested in running for UPA board of directors. I started playing Ultimate at the University of Virginia nine years ago and have been addicted ever since. After college, I lived in the Washington, D.C. area. I didn't appreciate how much the Washington Area Frisbee Club (WAFC) did for the community until I moved to Los Angeles with its limited community organization. Once there, I organized some Ultimate friends to form the Los Angeles Organization of Ultimate Teams (LAOUT) where I have served as president for the past three years. Together we have substantially increased the number of winter league teams, started a new draft summer league, created a web page (www.laout.org), and run several tournaments every year. I have been a tournament director for numerous tournaments and last year I served as the UPA Open Sectional Coordinator for Southern California. My professional background is in finance and, I believe it affects my view of the UPA. The UPA relies on three full time staffers and various volunteers to run the organization. However, these few individuals will not be able to accomplish all of what the membership demands. The fact of the matter is that the UPA will need more money if we want: a stronger and larger juniors program; a more professionally run nationals series; an enhanced and more professional web page; additional support for local organizations and their membership; greater individual benefits for UPA members; and a well run headquarters (dues collection, newsletters, etc.) The proposed alumni association is a great first step to increasing revenues. There are 10,000 current UPA members, however there are 50,000 people playing Ultimate in the United States. Creating incentives to persuade more Ultimate players to become UPA members will boost revenues. However, we also need sponsorship. One of my goals as a UPA board member will be to push the board toward increasing revenues by obtaining more sponsorship. One of the largest issues currently facing the UPA is the timing of the co-ed national series. Although I have gone to co-ed tournaments and play in co-ed leagues, I have opted to play in the open division during the national series and I have not been as intimately involved with this issue. I am sensitive to the member concerns, and believe the UPA board must conduct appropriate research and consult more fully with the membership before determining the timing of co-ed nationals. I would be happy to discuss any concern you may have regarding any UPA issue. Please feel free to email me at rich@laout.org.
Thank you for your consideration and please be sure to vote
Jon Shepard Profession: Architectural Engineer, 10 years. Education: U of MN-Duluth, University of St. Thomas, CU-Boulder 1978learned forehand 1981-82 played Ultimate for Carleton College, Northfield MN. 1982 founded UMD Ultimate, Duluth MN. 1982-86 played Ultimate in Minnesota with Duluth and Minneapolis 1986-95 checked out of playing Ultimate with 30 dislocations and two shoulder surgeries (good as new now). 1996 officiated (observer) UPA college nationals, Blaine MN 1996 TD Minneapolis Aquatennials, helper staff at Tune-up, Chicago Ill. 1997 Staff coordinator UPA college regionals, TD Mpls Aquatennials 1998 Head Staff and observer coordinator for UPA College nationals, Blaine MN (103 staff), Observed pool play, semis and finals. 1998 Played UPA club regionals with Boulder Masters (Old and in the Way) 1998 Observer coordinator for UPA club nationals, Sarasota FL. Observed pool play, semis, finals. 1999 TD and head staff coordinator for UPA College Nationals, Boulder CO (130 staff). Authored vl.O UPA College Observers Handbook. 1999 Held 2 training clinics for Xrules and 9th edition rules, training over 35 observers for college nationals. Observer schedule, funding and travel coordinator. Provided cush observer uniforms. 1999 Observer coordinator for UPA club nationals, San Diego CA. Observed pool play, semis, finals. 2000 Secured title sponsorship for Toyota Presents the Stanford Invite 2000 college Ultimate tournament in Palo Alto CA. Overseer of organization, disc design, Web site, official Toyota liaison, assisted TD's, Observed and coordinated staff and award ceremony. Over all Budget and media/press consultant. Secured daily uplinks to ultilinks.com by Tony Leonardo (fly-in). 2000 Head observer for UPA SW college regionals, observed semis, finals. 2000 Observed UPA college nationals, Boise ID. Coordinated travel/lodging funding for Boulder contingent of observers. 2000 Organized and/or created funding for certified observer training clinics in Palo Alto, CA and Boulder, CO. Provided official cush observer uniforms. I have practiced/played extensively (6 months to a year) with some high profile teams over the years including: Carleton College (Northfield MN); 80-82 Old and in the Way (Boulder); 98 Sub-zero (Mpls); 96,97 while they were still "Blue-Ox" Pira Hayku (Colorado Springs); 99 CU Mama Bird (Boulder); 99-00 I am very active in disc sports having attended 11 tournaments in 2000 already. One focus I would like to bring is on streamlining the UPA national championship events. I applied for the (UPA former position of) National Events Coordinator earlier this year. Sponsorship is a big part of that focus. I have an ' in' to Toyota I would like to develop from
within the UPA. Another focus I have is on college Ultimate. I have worked closely with Kate for the last 3 years in a row, and Charles Kerr, the last two. I was on the ad hoc X rules committee with other board members and wrote the UPA 'con' statement on that petition to the teams in '99. I am steadfastly 'pro' X rules now as a result of seeing them in action and observing over 15 college, regional, and national level games. I would like to see them merge into the 9th or lOth edition over the next few years. I would like to become more involved with the standing rules committee too and have spoke with Troy on various issues. Last, I would like to improve the UPA observer pool and have lots of ideas to pump energy and verve into expanding training and participation. I have told Vic I would love to be his successor as head UPA observer once he retires. I would appreciate the opportunity to help with the advancement of Ultimate by being a part of the board. My capabilities include, but are not limited to: An intimate relationship with college Ultimate and many teams over the last 3 years. A thorough understanding of the rules and how they are enforced and officiated at national championship level play. Experience in running UPA nationals being involved with 6 college and club nationals since '96. A steady involvement with Masters division. I love frisbee people.
Holly Wright -I have played Ultimate for 20 years on the Intramural, Open, Masters(women's before it was eliminated), and Co-ed level. -I have coached High School, Women's, and Co-ed teams -I work with the Poudre R-1 school district on incorporating Ultimate into their physical education curriculum, as well as do demo's, and conduct PE classes on Ultimate on the HS and Jr. High level. -I have been the tournament director for Fright Flight, have run Fort Collins summer league, and have been on staff for College Nationals, WFDF Overall tournaments, and US Open Overall tournaments. -I am currently working on my second bachelors in Health and Exercise Science at Colorado State University studying marketing, coaching, training room methods, anatomy, etc. -my background in sports was competitive swimming from Jr. High through Masters. I currently am an avid snowboarder, Ultimate player, runner, rollerblader, and recreational cyclist. -I am involved in several promotions that are associated with my business that I run with my husband, The Wright Life. We run Ultimate tournaments, overall disc events, disc golf events, volleyball tournaments, and do numerous school assemblies and activities that benefit children. Our benefits most recently have focused on helping out the local Boys and Girls club, and Lutheran Family Services (child abuse prevention and counseling for at risk families). I feel that serving on the UPA board would be a way of giving back to a
sport that I have gotten a lot of pleasure, great friendships, and good experiences from. I am particularly interested in the grass roots aspect of Ultimate. School programs, summer leagues, events benefiting charities, and promoting spirit of the game. I would be an asset to the UPA because of my experience, my current course of study, as well as my exposure to WFDF and the issues they are addressing on a global perspective. Thank you for your consideration
Dan "Jello" Revelle I have been playing Ultimate for over 10 years now, and playing in Boulder,CO in the Southwest region for over 6. In these years I have played on college, club and Co-ed teams, coached the University of Colorado college team, and captained both club and league teams. I was on the college redraw committee and am on the board of our local Ultimate organization in Boulder. Our region is affected by the timing of the Co-ed series as perhaps no other region is. Players in the desert section have complained that Co-ed in the fall was taking so many players away from the open and women's teams, that people in some cities were left without teams to play on. Meanwhile in Colorado the timing of the Co-ed series has threatened established Co-ed tournaments such as Lungbuster and GRUB, and forced players to choose between Potlatch and the UPA series. While it would be premature to judge the success or failure of shifting the Co-ed season to the summer, it will be interesting to see whether any decrease (if there is a decrease) in the number of Co-ed teams is offset by a substantial increase in the number of teams playing in the fall series. Without such an increase of open and women' s teams in the sections claiming to be hurt the most by Co-ed, it would seem hard to justify keeping the series separate. Issues relating to the timing of the Co-ed series, however, should not force us to lose track of the other duties and successes of the UPA. The organization secured a great sponsorship deal from Jockey, has run good championship series in the fall and spring, and responded to the requests of many college players with regional redrawing and the experimental rules. These kinds of accomplishments and activities are what we should expect and demand from our UPA. In the coming years, the UPA will hopefully continue to gain interest from major sponsors such as Jockey, expand its ranks as the college series continues to grow, and encourage the introduction of the game in more and more high schools throughout the country. What I would work for as a board member would be a national series that encourages strong local participation and a national organization that provides the local volunteers the timely support they need. See you on the field, Jello
Board Nominees
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Ballot VOTE ON OR BEFORE
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 7th!
The UPA's 12 member Board of Directors is responsible for the UPA, incorporated as a non-profit organization in the State of Colorado. You, as a UPA member, are responsible for electing the best Board possible.
You may vote EITHER by sending this ballot in the mail OR on the web (see www.upa.org). Because you have this option, you must include your last name and member ID number or full SSN (legibly!) at the bottom of the ballot. Ballots without these will not be valid.
PART I All current UPA members may vote for up to two AtLarge Candidates for the UPA Board of Directors.
If you are a resident of the Mid-Atlantic Region (based on club regional boundaries), you may also vote for one MA
representative. Mark Brehob
Joanne Adamkewicz
Mike Lascola
Kate Bergeron
Your MA city & state: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __
Jim Parinella If you are a resident of the Southwest Region (based on club regional boundaries), you may also vote for one SW
Tracy Berg
Paul Bonfanti
Mel Ditz
Rich Franck
Steven Paul
Wendy Richardson
representative.
IMPORTANT:
Your SW city & state: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ Richard Hart
Jon Shepard
Dan Revelle
Holly Wright
You must include your last name: _ _ _ _ _ __ and your UPA ID number or SSN: _ _ _ _ _ __ for your vote to count. (make it legible)
PART II (optional) After this year's Championship Series (end of October) and before the next Annual Board Meeting (mid-January), an in-depth questionnaire covering important topics like membership cycle, championship schedule, and rules will be sent to the membership. If you want your opinion to count, express it there. If there is a topic you think should be in the questionnaire, list it here (just list the topic, not your opinion on it... yet...)
PART Ill (optional) The UPA has earned the honor of selecting 10 players to represent the the US at the 2001 World Games, Ultimate's first official appearance in a major international multi-sport event (see page 43). Team selection details are not available at press time. However, member nominations may be part of the selection process, so we'd like to give you this opportunity to dream a little ... List up to 5 men and 5 women you think most fulfill the goal statement below. Your Dream Team Men Name & Team (or City/State)
Your Dream Team Women Name & Team (or City/State)
1.
1. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
2.
2. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
3.
3. -----------------------------
4. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ___ 5. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ___
4. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 5. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
"The UPA 2001 World Games players should represent the best of US Ultimate in play and in sportsmanship. Players will be chosen based on high skill as a prerequisite, with service to the sport, championship experience, ambassadorial qualities, and ability to fit into the team all valued highly in the selection process."
Send POSTMARKED on or before NOVEMBER 7th, 2000 to: UPA Election 2000 3595 E Fountain Blvd, J2 Colorado Springs, CO 80910 You must be a current UPA member to vote. If you are not current, please print the membership form at www.upa.org/joinupa.html and send it in with your membership check. You may write info@upa.org or ca111-800-UPA-GET-H to check your member status and ID number.
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VVORLD GAMES The US teams' combined performance at the recent WFDF World Ultimate Championships earned the Ultimate Players Association an invitation to the 2001 World Games in Akita, Japan. The World Games are an international multisport championship for alternative and aspiring sports, in connection with the same people who run the Summer & Winter Olympics. Ultimate and Disc Golf will make their debut as fully recognized sports in 2001. The World Flying Disc Federation (WFDF) was awarded 60 World Games player spots for Ultimate, therefore 6 countries are invited to send "mixed" (coed) teams of 10. Due to the roster limit, World Games play will be 6-on-6. Ultimate will be played by WFDF rules, as usual , without referees. The six Ultimate countries will be: USA, Canada, Sweden, Germany, Finland, and Japan. The World Games Ultimate schedule is: Sunday, Monday & Tuesday, Aug 19-21: Ultimate games - 6 team round robin + semis & finals. The US Team may have other obligations such as training camp(s) in the US and/or early arrival in Japan, post-tournament tour, etc, depending on funds and time available. See the World Games site at www.wg2001.or.jp All player accommodations, meals, and local travel will be paid for by the World Games Association. Players, expect to be responsible for your own travel to and from Japan and other costs, unless ... Sponsorship Opportunities! If you or your company can
2001
support the UPA National Ultimate Team, please contact Joey Gray at info@upa.org or 719-591-1168 as soon as possible. Donations are tax deductible - the players will be the kinds of folks who have dedicated their lives and their bank accounts to the sport, so it would be nice if the UPA could help insure that the cost of travel does not prevent any player from participating. We understand the event will be televised worldwide. The UPA Board of Directors approved the following goal statement for the US World Games National Team on Sept 13th. Headquarters will design a selection process, based on this vision, that will take a combination of member and/or team nominations, individual applications and/or a selection committee's recommendations into consideration. More detail will be available in the November/December newsletter. In the meantime, you are invited to dream about your dream team - what men and women do YOU think best fit the statement below? Send your list in with your UPA Board of Directors ballot! (See previous page) "The UPA 2001 World Games players should represent the best of US Ultimate in play and in sportsmanship. Players will be chosen based on high skill as a prerequisite, with service to the sport, championship experience, ambassadorial qualities, and ability to fit into the team all valued highly in the selection process."
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World Games
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DISCS FLYING IN
SRI lANKA
by Campbell Ainsworth I pulled out my backpack. Three dozen eyes lit up. I waved my bag around menacingly, and slowly pulled out the object of so much fascination during my two years in Sri Lanka. "Prisbeeeeeee!" They wailed, and for a few glorious seconds I became the rock star in a paddy field as I watched the thin arms scuffle and jostle to be the first to catch the "prisbee" . The introduction of Ultimate to Sri Lanka was actually the brainchild of another Peace Corps volunteer, Tucker McCravy, in 1997. I was placed a year later as an English teacher in the same region and the two of us trained teachers, visited village schools, and attempted to persuade the Ministry of Education to consider adopting such an unusual sport that was centered around a "plate-that-flies". The conditions in the country seemed ripe for the introduction of Ultimate. Most schools were poor, and could not afford sports that required much equipment. There were very few team sports and consequently no outlets for children, especially girls, interested in cardiovascular sports. And there was plenty of available wide open space. Also, Tucker and I shared a hatred for the country's national game, cricket, which we felt gave our students as much exercise as watching geckos scuttle on the ceiling. We made a proposal to the Ministry. Heads waggled and bobbed in an inspired show of non-commitment. We plunged on with our project. One of our biggest challenges was to create a prototype. A plastic company in the capital agreed to work with us, and a bewildered engineer spent several weeks testing the discs we gave him. He spent a surreal afternoon with us in a dusty cricket field as Tucker threw one model after another, cursing as they hooked far short of the intended target, with scores of zealous children chasing after the strange white objects. After several weeks of revision, an acceptable 175g version was created, and the factory produced 1000 discs. We redoubled our efforts to gain acceptance for our "side project" and began conducting workshops around the area and madly handing out discs to all interested parties. A year later, as my service was ending, the Ministry agreed to hold a two day Ultimate tournament for under-15 and under-17 boys and girls. Although in deference to a culture that rigidly separates the sexes they refused to allow co-ed teams, we were elated that they finally gave official
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sanction to this new and unusual sport. On August 12, 1998, fifty teams from schools all over the Ratnapura Province arrived, some from remote village schools, ragtag and barefoot, and others from town schools with matching plaid uniforms. All teams came clutching their "prisbees", and lined up excitedly for the national anthem. And then the rains came. Before I came to Sri Lanka, I had envisioned that all inhabitants of tropical climates were rugged souls that endured all types of weather in stoic fashion. Not so in Sri Lanka. Sri Lankans think in bold, unflinching solipisms: "If it rains, I will get sick." As the clouds opened up, all the children scattered, screaming as they ran for shelter. Tucker and I were
devastated as we surveyed the clumps of groups huddled in various cigarette kiosks, banana stands, or other makeshift shelters. The rain came down harder. At a loss on how to proceed, the two of us finally went out into the storm and tossed to each other, sliding in the mud. Laughter erupted as a few small children came out and imitated us, and we all slipped and dove into the streams of red mud, with or without the frisbee. More kids joined us. Soon we had enough kids diving and throwing around that we began blowing whistles, flapping our arms, and hoarsely directing teams to fields. So amid much chaos and absolutely no semblance of order, Sri Lanka' s first Ultimate tournament was finally under way.
ULTIMATE TYPHOON On my first day in Guam, I went to the local NPR station to land my own radio show. I asked the director if he knew anyone that played Ultimate. I figured these people are progressive and hip, why not try. He said he knew of a few "howlies" (what white Americans are called in the islands) who got together near Talofofo Bay one night a week. I ventured down, and following a local little league football practice I met some of the nicest Ultimate players ever. We played that first night on the coral based field (makes you think twice before laying out!) under the lights as we were serenaded by AC/DC music pumping out of the back of some local chamorros pickups. The Ultimate in Guam is a little rough. Back in Seattle, my role was long. In Guam, I became a premier handler.
Many were learning for the first time and we often had sixes. All were Americans in Guam for various reasons: teaching, science lab jobs, volunteer work and I can' t confirm this but I think a few people were hiding out from the FBI. The most impressive game in Guam Ultimate was played on the island of Rota, where the Guam players met up with the players from the neighboring island of Saipan. Saipan won by two but big hucks, huge layouts and hot D were played by all.
- Bryan Edward Dolejsi If you are in Guam and looking for Ultimate, contad Raphael at 677-789-3727 Ultimate happens in the South Pacific There is not a lot of open fields to play on in those tiny islands, but where there is space people are playing!
IntErnational LEttErs I have been living here in the city jtown of Rovaniemi in Finland for the past six years, and during this time I have organized an Ultimate league (with over one hundred players), a freestyle club, and several nationally sanctioned disc golf tournaments (both during the summer and winter months). Now this would not be any different than anywhere else, if it weren't for the fad that Rovaniemi is located on the Ardic Circle. Now it looks like that by this time next year; there will be a permanent DC course here, making it of course the world's northern most. I must run now, but if you are interested in some pidures and possibly an article about disc sports up-here then let me know Pierre-Andre Forest Rantavitikantie 20 C 96300 Rovaniemi Suomi I Finland Tel/Fax. +358-76-3/0 089 We need your help Iam a returned Peace Corps volunteer who worked with impoverished youth in Sri Lanka. One of the major programs that Iand another volunteer implemented was the introduction of Ultimate. We conducted several training workshops for PE teachers, visited schools, and worked with a local fadory to create a prototype and produced 1000 discs. In 7998, we held a tournament and fifty teams came from all over; even remote villages, to participate. The problem is this: The discs are of inferior quality, and have been breaking at an alarming rate. Because of the war; Peace Corps has pulled out of Sri Lanka, yet despite the lack ofAmerican support the tournament was held again in 7999 and interest remains huge. Among the girls Ultimate was particularly popular; as there are few outlets for women to participate in cardiovascular sports. Ultimate was also a perfed fit for an impoverished country with a lot of open space. So... could you advise me as to what steps I could take to continue to support this projed from overseas?/ have video footage and photos from recent tournaments; the Sri Lankan PE teachers have requested more discs and training materials. Can you give me any names of people that Icould contad or who would be interested in meeting with me? Iam currently working for the Colorado Youth Program in Boulder; CO My phone number is (303)544-7407 and my email is campbellainswo@hotmail.com. Thank you so much for your time and consideration. Sincerely, Campbell Ainsworth Returned Peace Corps Volunteer (Sri Lanka, '96-'98)
LEI I ER FROM A Dear Ultimate Community: For the past year, I have been teaching the sport of Ultimate to at-risk and delinquent youth in a number of programs, agencies, and schools in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. You allowed me to do this by funding me with a UPA Innovation Grant. My original idea was to use Ultimate as a tool to talk with kids about conflict resolution, teamwork and fitness. During the year, I visited a number of alternative schools, residential treatment centers, mental health facilities, drug and alcohol rehab centers, and even a boot camp. Aside from the at-risk population I also did programs for the Boy Scouts and several more traditional school settings. All told, I estimate that I was able to conduct programming for approximately 400 boys and girls during the course of the year, aged 10-18. The educational/therapeutic side of things went very well and I hope I imparted some nice wisdom upon the children. But that wasn' t the most important part as it turned out... Clearly the best part was that it was just plain fun to teach and play the sport of Ultimate with kids , regardless of their situation. The kids play with boundless energy. They never seemed to figure out (unlike my club teammates) that my hucks rarely land in-bounds, and just kept chasing them at full speed. Since they 're all new to disc sports, everyone is a beginner regardless of their natural athletic ability. This generally led to excellent sportsmanship, and really seemed to enable them to find humor in their own mistakes (something these kids normally have a lot of trouble doing). At one program, a boot camp for juvenile delinquents, one of the counselors was a frisbee golf champ. He lined up six guys against my seven and we had a battle royale. I have to admit that at 14-16 (game to 17) I kind of forgot where we were and got
GoT A GREAT loEA? GEl The UPA's Ultimate Innovation Grant program is again looking for creative ideas and programs to help promote the sport, offering funds of up to $500 per project. Many grant recipients focus on increasing Ultimate's reach into new demographics, including projects targeted at kids, women and inner-city populations, while other interesting proposals have added new twists on projects such as instructional videos, tournament formats, cleat recycling, disc production, community outreach and research projects.
A
RECIPIENT
caught up in the game. Bodies were laying out all over the place. Besides handing out a lot of discs to programs and kids around the county, there were some other tangible and potential benefits of the programming. At this year's Philadelphia Area Disc Alliance Mikey ' s Spring Thing Co-ed Hat Tournament (which I directed) we had over 40 juniors players. This was by far the most we had ever had, and was due not only to my grant work, but also by the concentrated effort PADA has made over the last several years to promote Juniors Ultimate in the Delaware Valley. I also used my grant to finance a half club player, half juniors player co-ed team at the fall 1999 Retired to Stud Tournament in Philadelphia. Not only was it a lot of fun, but we won the B Division at the tournament! The most exciting thing for me is that several of the alternative schools in which I conducted the program have incorporated Ultimate into their physical education curriculum, and have expressed interest in participating in local juniors events, or organizing an informal alternative school Ultimate league. I want to take an opportunity to thank members of the Havoc (NJ) Ultimate Club, the Mercer County Ultimate Disc League, Philadelphia Area Disc Alliance, the Schubert family and the Philly Peppers who volunteered to help in some of my programs. Most importantly, I would like to thank the UPA for the Innovation Grant Program for getting me off my butt and getting me out there working for the sport. Thanks UPA!
-Brian Boger Case Manager Bucks County Youth Center Residential Services Unit 1750 Easton Rd. Doylestown, PA 18901
UPA GRANT!
Goals of the Ultimate Innovation Grants Program are to promote growth in Ultimate and Ultimate Spirit in North America, to create links between the UPA and local organizers, to serve members' needs, and to create documentation that will inspire others to further innovation and excellence. For information on how to apply, as well as descriptions of previously funded projects, visit the UPA Web site at www.upa.org/grants, or contact the UPA at info@upa.org or 1-800-UPA-Get-H.
The UPA accepts tax-deductible cash and in-kind contributions in support of the grants program. Contributions may be sent to UPA-Grants, 3595 Fountain Blvd, Suite J2, Colorado Springs, CO 80910.
The next application period will be
Innovation Grants
March 2001. Fall 2000
www.upa. org
IV.IIS«:
DISCS Play Ultimate Discraft White/UV white/black/purple
Videos are $15/members $20/non-members
Ply-D UPA Members
$8 $7
Ultimate Teaching Kit Perfect guide for beginners of all ages. Kit includes: 20 minute instructional video, skills & drills Manual, Teaching Kids guide, Teaching Curriculum, 10 Simple Rules of Ultimate, Complete Rules Handbook, tips to starting a high school team, Ultimate Posters & 2 UPA approved discs. $45 • UPA MEMBERS, $39
Skills & Drills Manual
Sec. Championships
Great book for newcomers to the sport. Throwing, catching, strategy, drills & more are covered in this beginner's Ultimate guide. $10 • UPA MEMBERS, $8
Discraft white/black/purple Ply-D $8 UPA Members $7
UPA Rules Booklet
AVAILABLE
The official rules of Ultimate in a small pocket-sized handbook. Perfect to keep handy in your field bag $3 • UPA MEMBERS, $2.50
tJ•I•I•I,it.fi[,J,It.fi&Mf,VQ[,]1ibj:U¢ ~ow~
Coed- Available Dec. 1st. College Open- Browns Brownian Motion vs. Carleton Cut College Women - Carleton Syzygy vs. UNC Seaweed Juniors boys and girls
'Play Ultimate' bumper sticker gold/white/black $3 • UPA MEMBERS, $2
1999 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS Open- Boston
'I'd rather be playing Ultimate' Bumper sticker, black/red/white $3 • UPA MEMBERS, $2
DoG vs San Barbara Condors
Women-California Fury vs Portland Schwa
Spiri; of th/c;ame
CO-ED- Raleigh Lamas vs Red Fish Blue Fish College Open - UCSB Black Tide vs NC State Jinx College Women-
Discraft green/gold/purple white/UV Ply-D UPA Members
Stanford Superfly vs Carleton Syzygy
1998 NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS
Ultimate Time 2000 Calendar $5
Open- DoG vs Condors Women - Godiva's vs Verge
Women's Ultimate Poster
CO-ED-Red Fish vs Pira Haku
Dog
College Open- Stanford vs UCSB College Women - Stanford vs Carleton
Discraft
white/I.JV 0-D $8 UPA Members
If you have an Ultimate product you'd like to sell through the UPA, contact info@upa.com
QjJ
0 1t
$3 • UPA MEMBERS, $2 Over 5, $1/ea.
white/green/org
Z-Bee
$7
1999 Jockey Nationals Poster
Soft indoor disc
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green or black white/I.JV
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ULTIMATE IN THE NEVVS The Ultimate Disc Drive Washington boasts the second-largest Ultimate scene in the United States, fielding more teams than any place except Boston. As Ultimate has grown, it has attracted more serious athletes, but there is still an alternative feel about it. "It's a hippie mystique," says lwaszko. There are foosball tables on the sidelines , "uniforms" that were made by painting a car's tires and driving over T-shirts and bandannas and ponytails being sported by both sexes. And then there are the monikers. These teams are not called Anacostia, Anne Arundel or Arlington. Their names resemble next month 's lineup of bands at the 9:30 club and include Rumor of Surf, Harshmellows, Big Bad Mother Huckers, Sinister Icy Black Hand of Death, LaMonster, Schmack, Vixen and Pocomoke Fish Kill. ... The co-ed nature of the sport is unique: Men and women playing well together rather than vying for the best fields, equipment or game times is so post-Title IX. Joey Gray, president of UPA, believes playing co-ed "is the best preparation for teamwork in the corporate world you can get," and notes that, unlike other sports with special rules for co-ed, there are no restrictions on men forcing them to stay in zones or play limited positions. "In co-ed Ultimate, you adapt to a wide range of speeds and heights and completely flow together on the field." An excerpt from the Washington Post. In the June 2000 issue of Rocky Mountain Sport they suggest "50 Ideas to Make Your Summer Sizzle" -The Ultimate Endeavor is featured as #25. It has the UPA' s phone (not the 800 #) and our URL is listed as well as a really awesome picture of a (Schwa player?- can only tell by the shorts) laying it out. Very nice!!!! Great work Joey! - Mary Hagler Last Wed. on Public Radio International's "The World," Maurice Curran of Sweden, Finland or ' that other country' over there, was interviewed about the "All Russian Ultimate Champi-
onships," which he was preparing for. I was going to mention it to Joey at Potlatch , but forgot. - Ed Babb Brian Linkfield played his way to a promotion. Linkfield, 28, then a transportation employee at Nike in Beaverton, Ore., likes to play Ultimate Frisbee on the company athletic fields. His competitiveness and tactical instincts caught the eye of Michael Schneider, 33, a manager in the footwear division. When he heard Linkfield was interested in a vacancy on his staff, Schneider set up an interview. "Playing sports together allows you to learn what people are about and how you click," says Schneider, who hired Linkfield last year. These days, workout clothes are practically a corporate uniform-and not just at sporting-goods giant Nike. An excerpt from "Workouts at work can sweeten Sightings - Flying long days, but don't cut loose on the boss" By Mary Brophy Marcus A TNT label generally implies that something is bound to explode on the scene. Tom Clements and his border collie, Taylor, are no exception to the rule. With a quick flick, Clements fires a flying disc. A split-second later, Taylor launches herself, catching the disc in her mouth. As Team TnT, the Nuevo duo will compete in the 2000 Friskies ALPO Canine Frisbee Disc Championships on Oct. 7 in New York's Central Park. Area residents can see them in action Sept. 9 at Valley-Wide Recreation and Park District's first Pet Faire in San Jacinto. ... To keep Taylor excited about the sport and keep the intensity level high, Clements only practices for about 15 minutes every other day. Taylor's reward? She gets to chew up a disc. Clements uses five new discs for each practice session, going through about 500 a year. By purchasing discards from a company that imprints discs with business logos, he usually spends only $1.25 for discs that normally sell for about $5.
... Clements, a member of the International Disc Dog Handlers Association, and others in the sport primarily use Frisbee Fastbacks because they have rounder edges and are softer than other discs. He said they are gentler on the dog's teeth and gums. ... Clements was at a canine event where his wife, Mary, had another of their dogs competing in agility contests. He saw a disc demonstration and decided to give it a try with Scout, yet another of their 10 dogs. "Taylor went crazy. She had never seen a Frisbee before. I threw it about 30 feet, she tracked it, jumped five feet and caught it. It was like a star is born." The Clementses rescue dogs, primarily border collies. Mary Clements, who works at a veterinary clinic, said the dogs are misunderstood by their human companions. Because they are known for being smart, people buy them for the name and the Discs in the Media breed's reputation. "They need jobs, something to do," Tom Clements said, adding that border collies will chew and dig if they are left alone for long periods .... Excerpts from "AN EXPLOSIVE DUO: Team TnT, of Nuevo, headed for canine Frisbee disc championships in New York" by Hali Bernstein Saylor from The Press-Enterprise Riverside, CA 09/02/2000
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Hi, I'd like to report that Ultimate Frisbee was given about six minutes of air time, including four minutes of live filmed action, Friday morning, September 8, in Boston on the WB network. They have a morning news show that runs from 6AM - 8AM, and we were the featured "Fun things to do in Boston" piece. - Raphael Savir . .. To these athletes, the familiar Frisbee that started as a toy more than 50 years ago has become a game enjoyed competitively by at least 100,000 people worldwide, about half in the United States. . .. "The people who play Ultimate
really are virtuous people and play honestly," said Deana McMurrer, co-captain of Portland's only all-women team, Schwa, which last year took second place at a national tournament in San Diego and a world tournament in Scotland. "That's a great quality that we can carry over to our lives." Perhaps because of the game's emphasis on fun and fair play, Ultimate is especially embraced in the laid-back Pacific Northwest. ... Players in recent tournaments have worn black and white cow outfits, large Chinese hats, donned their best formal wear and dressed as biblical figures. "We're a pretty stylish team," said Simon Shapiro, player for Portland's fifth-seeded team, Pigs in Space. "Everybody has hot pink bodysuits and silver, to go with our Muppets theme. We're totally space age. "Often times people would be surprised players could play sports in the things we wear," he added. "It adds to the fun. It's dress-up, a costume party, in a sense." Shapiro said the quirkiness isn' t only for amusement's sake- "sometimes it sort of intimidates your opponent," he said. During casual pickup games, players sometimes even wear no clothes at all. "If you're wearing a skirt or you're naked, it causes trouble for your opponent," Shapiro said. Nakedness aside, competition in the region is thriving .... Exerpts from "Ultimate Frisbee players use skills, spirit of Northwest" by Jennifer Anderson from The Dallas Morning News 08/27/2000 ... The restorative power of forbidden fruit has not been lost on enlightened employers. Some companies go further still. Morningstar, the financial services company in Chicago, gives workers unlimited time off, no questions asked. (So far, Morningstar says, no one has abused this privilege.) Strategy Associates, a Silicon Valley consulting firm, has an employee-run "Culture Club" that schedules monthly hooky sessions for activities like bowling, ice skating, ultimate Frisbee and, yes, an afternoon at the movies. Excerpt from "Playing Hooky, Working Hooky" by LISA BELKIN from The New York Times 06/21/2000
Send sightings to upa-newsletter@upa.org, better yet, send actual evidence to: UPA HQ 3595 ÂŁ Fountain Blvd, Suite /2, Colorado Springs, CO 80910. Ultimate in the news
Fall 2000
www.upa. org
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Diecraft Ultra·S~r111 5portdiec111
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THE ULTIMATE PLAYERS ASSOCIATION NEWSLETTER • COLORADO SPRINGS • COLORADO
VOLUME 20 • NUMBER 3 • FALL 2000 Non-Profit Org. U.S. Postage
PAID ULTIMATE PLAYERS ASSOCIATION 3595 E. Fountain Blvd. , Suite J2 Colorado Springs, CO 80910
Permit #498 Colo. Springs, CO
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YOUR CHANGE OF ADDRESS: The UPA Newsletter is mailed bulk rate and is not forwarded. To change your address, email info@upa.org or mail: 3595 E. Fountain Blvd., Suite J2, Colorado Springs, CO 80910 or call 1-800-UPA-GetH