"You played the typical James game. Some good plays, some bad plays." - Mehmet Karman
Of course I laughed the comment off, and told him I try to keep the other team guessing. After reflecting on it, I completely agree with his assessment. I was getting in cuts at will all scrimmage long, and threw a couple points...but...I also bladed a few incomplete passes, and had a hard time getting off my dump passes.
All in all, I'm happy with that tryout. As predicted, I didn't play anywhere near as poorly as I did in BigFish Tryout #1. If I happen to get offerred a spot, I'll just skip BigFish tryout #2 & #3. If I don't get offerred a spot, looks like it's going to be a Disco Fever (Tuesday) and Urban Sprawl (Friday) summer. Either way, I'm a happy camper....I gotz my game back!
Until next time, happy hucking!
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
BigFish Tryouts - The Good, The Bad, & The Sore
The Good (this will be short and sweet)
- No cuts will be made based on last night and I at least have Saturday to redeem myself.
- The windy/rainy weather didn't affect my game as much as I feared.
- I got a couple D's on the huck drill, and a few decent cuts in the cut in a box drill.
- It's extremely unlikely I'll play worse Wednesday or Saturday.
The Bad (where to begin?)
- Three of the four drills were ones I had never seen before. The corner drill in particular had me confused.
- Our team didn't score in two scrimmages.
- Got my first case of the dropsies in about a year (including a memorable bungle in the endzone).
- Threw two incomplete passes in the scrimmages, including an under thrown long pass, and quickly bouncing a disc off the knees of my handler two feet away.
- Got skyed on the huck drill, but it was by my ex-coach Gord (who tore it up all night).
- After coming off the field on the 3-on-2 drill, I returned a disc to the field by bouncing a backhand off both football goal posts (an impressive feat had I been attempting it).
- Was asked by my favorite evaluator (Julie) why I gave up on defense on a disk that was out of bounds (it hit the bleachers!) during the huck drill.
- Despite handling soundly in two pick-up games last week and getting in some outside throwing last weekend, I lost all confidence in my throws last night. It got to the point where I was surprised when a forehand didn't blade or a backhand stayed straight.
- Since I've lost confidence in my game, I'm dreading the Intermediate team tryout on Wednesday which I was looking forward to a week ago.
The Sore (ouch)
- My right heel is tight and sensitive despite thorough stretching.
- Managed to tweak my right groin so it's now sore again (8 months of physio later).
- I have this huge, ugly, mystery bruise on my left forearm that appeared this morning.
- At the base of my left palm, there's this protrusion that is quite sensitive…also a complete mystery.
- Since I lost all confidence in my throws (see The Bad), I decided to only defend or cut during the huck drill, and was in oxygen debt the rest of the night.
As stated in The Good, it's unlikely I can play worse in the next two tryouts. I have to lose the nervousness, start playing at a more comfortable pace, and maybe try handling or something to calm down. Ugh, what a crappy start. Until next time, happy hucking!
- No cuts will be made based on last night and I at least have Saturday to redeem myself.
- The windy/rainy weather didn't affect my game as much as I feared.
- I got a couple D's on the huck drill, and a few decent cuts in the cut in a box drill.
- It's extremely unlikely I'll play worse Wednesday or Saturday.
The Bad (where to begin?)
- Three of the four drills were ones I had never seen before. The corner drill in particular had me confused.
- Our team didn't score in two scrimmages.
- Got my first case of the dropsies in about a year (including a memorable bungle in the endzone).
- Threw two incomplete passes in the scrimmages, including an under thrown long pass, and quickly bouncing a disc off the knees of my handler two feet away.
- Got skyed on the huck drill, but it was by my ex-coach Gord (who tore it up all night).
- After coming off the field on the 3-on-2 drill, I returned a disc to the field by bouncing a backhand off both football goal posts (an impressive feat had I been attempting it).
- Was asked by my favorite evaluator (Julie) why I gave up on defense on a disk that was out of bounds (it hit the bleachers!) during the huck drill.
- Despite handling soundly in two pick-up games last week and getting in some outside throwing last weekend, I lost all confidence in my throws last night. It got to the point where I was surprised when a forehand didn't blade or a backhand stayed straight.
- Since I've lost confidence in my game, I'm dreading the Intermediate team tryout on Wednesday which I was looking forward to a week ago.
The Sore (ouch)
- My right heel is tight and sensitive despite thorough stretching.
- Managed to tweak my right groin so it's now sore again (8 months of physio later).
- I have this huge, ugly, mystery bruise on my left forearm that appeared this morning.
- At the base of my left palm, there's this protrusion that is quite sensitive…also a complete mystery.
- Since I lost all confidence in my throws (see The Bad), I decided to only defend or cut during the huck drill, and was in oxygen debt the rest of the night.
As stated in The Good, it's unlikely I can play worse in the next two tryouts. I have to lose the nervousness, start playing at a more comfortable pace, and maybe try handling or something to calm down. Ugh, what a crappy start. Until next time, happy hucking!
Monday, April 28, 2008
Pre Tryout Jitters
A warning that this will be one of those self-centered, "me, me, me" type entries. Furthermore, with competitive mixed tryouts a few hours away, the quality of my writing (below average on a good day) will inevitably suffer due to nerves.
After going through the open pre-tryout tryouts, talking to some experienced ultimate players, and swapping emails with one of tonight's evaluators, I have a good idea of what to expect. I think that fitness and drills will be the focus of tonight. Assuming this is true, it actually works to my advantage since I'm in decent shape and know most of the drills. In terms of talking with experienced players, one of the things that has me worried is my Coached League coach from last winter apparently got cut in 2007. Gord is an awesome player, and given some of the BigFish players I've played with and against this past winter, I thought he'd have been a shoe in to make the team.
Yesterday was super windy, which made me worry since wind wreaks havoc on forehand throws (one of my strengths). Today is slightly less windy, but it's rainy. Rain makes the disc slippery to catch, and hard to huck. Then again, anything that discourages me from hucking is a blessing. Having said that, I'd love it if the rain took a break between 9pm and 11pm. If the rain persists, I might have to break out the Nike football receiver gloves for the first time since late last fall.
Didn't sleep too well last night, but it wasn't ultimate related, just one of those nights. I've already taken two extra-strength Aspirins today, since I felt a headache coming on. Ah well, there's lots of time for a short nap after work. On the bright side, neither my sports hernia nor heal injury are bothering me at all today.
In terms of preparation, I'm basically just going through my normal daily routine with a few small additions. Since the tryouts run a little late for my liking, if I don't take a nap, I'll probably eat some dark chocolate to help keep me alert. The plan is to have chicken and rice for supper, which is a good pre-game meal. I've also re-read the Zip Tips today on the bus and at lunch. Re-reading the tips helped me get in the right frame of mind for my IID tryout last fall.
The IID tryouts are the only ultimate experience I can draw on in terms of tryouts. For me, the open pre-tryouts were only about learning the drills and making sure I was in shape. In retrospect, I kind of overshot the IID tryouts last fall, and ended up dominating in the two scrimmages. I'm not expecting to dominate anything tonight, and am just hoping I can "play within myself" and showcase my strengths enough to make it to the weekend tryouts. Even if I get cut tonight, I still have the tryout for the intermediate development team on Wednesday. If I got cut from that, the captain of my Tuesday team really wants me back and I'd be playing with an IID coach (Chris Rootham) on a talented team with a bevy of tall, athletic, attractive beauties. So there shouldn't be pressure on me, but still…
One of the last Zip Tips I re-read over lunch was that champions never give in, they attack. Hopefully I can channel my inner Zip tonight and attack with ferocity. I'll make sure to let you know how it goes either way. Until next time, happy hucking!
After going through the open pre-tryout tryouts, talking to some experienced ultimate players, and swapping emails with one of tonight's evaluators, I have a good idea of what to expect. I think that fitness and drills will be the focus of tonight. Assuming this is true, it actually works to my advantage since I'm in decent shape and know most of the drills. In terms of talking with experienced players, one of the things that has me worried is my Coached League coach from last winter apparently got cut in 2007. Gord is an awesome player, and given some of the BigFish players I've played with and against this past winter, I thought he'd have been a shoe in to make the team.
Yesterday was super windy, which made me worry since wind wreaks havoc on forehand throws (one of my strengths). Today is slightly less windy, but it's rainy. Rain makes the disc slippery to catch, and hard to huck. Then again, anything that discourages me from hucking is a blessing. Having said that, I'd love it if the rain took a break between 9pm and 11pm. If the rain persists, I might have to break out the Nike football receiver gloves for the first time since late last fall.
Didn't sleep too well last night, but it wasn't ultimate related, just one of those nights. I've already taken two extra-strength Aspirins today, since I felt a headache coming on. Ah well, there's lots of time for a short nap after work. On the bright side, neither my sports hernia nor heal injury are bothering me at all today.
In terms of preparation, I'm basically just going through my normal daily routine with a few small additions. Since the tryouts run a little late for my liking, if I don't take a nap, I'll probably eat some dark chocolate to help keep me alert. The plan is to have chicken and rice for supper, which is a good pre-game meal. I've also re-read the Zip Tips today on the bus and at lunch. Re-reading the tips helped me get in the right frame of mind for my IID tryout last fall.
The IID tryouts are the only ultimate experience I can draw on in terms of tryouts. For me, the open pre-tryouts were only about learning the drills and making sure I was in shape. In retrospect, I kind of overshot the IID tryouts last fall, and ended up dominating in the two scrimmages. I'm not expecting to dominate anything tonight, and am just hoping I can "play within myself" and showcase my strengths enough to make it to the weekend tryouts. Even if I get cut tonight, I still have the tryout for the intermediate development team on Wednesday. If I got cut from that, the captain of my Tuesday team really wants me back and I'd be playing with an IID coach (Chris Rootham) on a talented team with a bevy of tall, athletic, attractive beauties. So there shouldn't be pressure on me, but still…
One of the last Zip Tips I re-read over lunch was that champions never give in, they attack. Hopefully I can channel my inner Zip tonight and attack with ferocity. I'll make sure to let you know how it goes either way. Until next time, happy hucking!
Saturday, April 26, 2008
The Perfect Sky
As much as I enjoy handling, there's a seductive siren that draws me back to cutting and striking even on teams that depend on my throwing. That seductive siren, that mysterious minx, that tantalizing tease is the perfect sky. For newbies to ultimate, a sky catch is when you jump and catch a disc, hopefully at maximum extension, and hopefully over an airborne defender. It's the equivalent of dunking a basketball over someone you hate, while simultaneously achieving an intense orgasm after making love to Angelina Jolie (sorry Brad –you were great in Seven).
Although I've had a few memorable skies that I'll describe below, I have yet to put together all the necessary elements to form the perfect sky. For me, those elements would be catching the disc at my maximum extension (1), for a critical point (2), over someone who's also at their zenith (3), who I dislike (4). Although crowd reaction is important, it's a given if the other four essential elements are in place.
1. Nurple's first sky – About two months into my first summer with Urban Sprawl, after being yelled at by our ancient captain for not picking up a runner on defense, and with our team being down a few points, I was pissed. On offense, the captain forced a throw to the front corner of the endzone, where two rather large defenders were ready to gobble it up. Converting my anger at the captain into energy, I cut through the defenders, caught the disc after jumping to a decent height, brought it down for a much needed point(2), while my teammates looked on stunned.
2. See your later Burninator – Half way through my first winter of playing, I was starting to really pursue skies while I was on the Burninators, a hat team with some great handlers. In the latter stages in a blowout game, one of my favorite handlers, Geoff Korpinen, was at mid field and looking for me in the end zone. He led me with a beautiful pass that I caught at full extension (1) over a defender who was also at full extension (3). Since the defender was about 6 inches shorter than me, instead of hating him, I felt sorry for the guy. The crowd (all six of them) did go wild though…
3. Call the foul, I dare you – Mid last summer, during a tier 9 game when my team, the Berts and Ernies, was blowing out our opposition, I kept getting fouled by the same guy while making catches. He was the type of jackass who thinks that slapping your wrist is not a foul because you're taller/faster/better looking than he is. It didn't take long before one of the B&E handlers (possibly Andrew Wigston) threw me a high disc in the end zone. Since buddy was stupidly playing behind me, I took a little run and grabbed the disc high (1), took the foul from idiot boy (4) who jumped into me (3ish), and brought it down strong. He immediately said "foul" to which I replied "call a foul, I dare you". After semi-spiking the disc and walking away, I felt pumped.
4. Beavers beware – Although missing elements 2 – 4, my highest catch was against a team called the Raging Blind Beavers in IID last winter. We were getting smoked, and Captain Stu had given up and started to throw long (a rarity). The disc in question wasn't thrown to me, but was too high for the girl (Sophia…I'm not good with last names…the Yale girl) for which it was intended. I took a run up of about a quarter of the field, used a layup approach from basketball, and grabbed the disc at about 10 feet before it went out of the back of the end zone. This catch stands out in my mind because if the disc was even an inch higher, or if I hadn't eaten my Wheaties, the best I could have hoped for would have been a tip to Sophia.
5. Black Nurple vs. Black Pellets – For anyone who's read my OUHA ramblings, you'll know my penchant for rocking black t-shirts during indoor games (they're warmer than white shirts and psychologically devastating to the opposition). During an IID game against the Black Pellets, a disc was thrown to a particularly crowded area of the endzone, where there was one Nurple, and three Pellets. With my black shirt, shorts, wristbands and hat, I had no fear and chased after that bad boy. The sky high catch (1), over three defenders, including two that were jumping (3), blew open a close game (2). The only missing element is that I genuinely enjoyed playing the Black Pellets, since they had a bunch of players who I admire. An amusing sidenote is that immediately after making the catch, one of the female Pellets on the sidelines said something like "Look at how cocky that guy is". Since I've always struggled with my confidence, I couldn't help but laugh as I walked off the field.
6. Black Nurple vs. Black Pellets x 2 – In a playoff game against the same Black Pellets, in which Jacked Pass was once again rocking our black t-shirts, Captain Cory was catching on that if he threw it high, I'd do my best to bring it down. On successive possessions, Cory hucked and I skyed (1) the same defender who was also jumping for the disc (3). Sadly, the game was lopsided in our favor. Plus, although I don't know his name, I respect the hell out of the tall French guy, who lays out for anything within 20 feet of him (and has a cute girlfriend to boot).
Although I have yet to achieve the perfect sky, rest assured that I will continue to chase after the elusive Eros until my calf muscles crumble. I'm always up for hearing about the skying exploits of others, so please feel free to share. Until next time, happy hucking!
Although I've had a few memorable skies that I'll describe below, I have yet to put together all the necessary elements to form the perfect sky. For me, those elements would be catching the disc at my maximum extension (1), for a critical point (2), over someone who's also at their zenith (3), who I dislike (4). Although crowd reaction is important, it's a given if the other four essential elements are in place.
1. Nurple's first sky – About two months into my first summer with Urban Sprawl, after being yelled at by our ancient captain for not picking up a runner on defense, and with our team being down a few points, I was pissed. On offense, the captain forced a throw to the front corner of the endzone, where two rather large defenders were ready to gobble it up. Converting my anger at the captain into energy, I cut through the defenders, caught the disc after jumping to a decent height, brought it down for a much needed point(2), while my teammates looked on stunned.
2. See your later Burninator – Half way through my first winter of playing, I was starting to really pursue skies while I was on the Burninators, a hat team with some great handlers. In the latter stages in a blowout game, one of my favorite handlers, Geoff Korpinen, was at mid field and looking for me in the end zone. He led me with a beautiful pass that I caught at full extension (1) over a defender who was also at full extension (3). Since the defender was about 6 inches shorter than me, instead of hating him, I felt sorry for the guy. The crowd (all six of them) did go wild though…
3. Call the foul, I dare you – Mid last summer, during a tier 9 game when my team, the Berts and Ernies, was blowing out our opposition, I kept getting fouled by the same guy while making catches. He was the type of jackass who thinks that slapping your wrist is not a foul because you're taller/faster/better looking than he is. It didn't take long before one of the B&E handlers (possibly Andrew Wigston) threw me a high disc in the end zone. Since buddy was stupidly playing behind me, I took a little run and grabbed the disc high (1), took the foul from idiot boy (4) who jumped into me (3ish), and brought it down strong. He immediately said "foul" to which I replied "call a foul, I dare you". After semi-spiking the disc and walking away, I felt pumped.
4. Beavers beware – Although missing elements 2 – 4, my highest catch was against a team called the Raging Blind Beavers in IID last winter. We were getting smoked, and Captain Stu had given up and started to throw long (a rarity). The disc in question wasn't thrown to me, but was too high for the girl (Sophia…I'm not good with last names…the Yale girl) for which it was intended. I took a run up of about a quarter of the field, used a layup approach from basketball, and grabbed the disc at about 10 feet before it went out of the back of the end zone. This catch stands out in my mind because if the disc was even an inch higher, or if I hadn't eaten my Wheaties, the best I could have hoped for would have been a tip to Sophia.
5. Black Nurple vs. Black Pellets – For anyone who's read my OUHA ramblings, you'll know my penchant for rocking black t-shirts during indoor games (they're warmer than white shirts and psychologically devastating to the opposition). During an IID game against the Black Pellets, a disc was thrown to a particularly crowded area of the endzone, where there was one Nurple, and three Pellets. With my black shirt, shorts, wristbands and hat, I had no fear and chased after that bad boy. The sky high catch (1), over three defenders, including two that were jumping (3), blew open a close game (2). The only missing element is that I genuinely enjoyed playing the Black Pellets, since they had a bunch of players who I admire. An amusing sidenote is that immediately after making the catch, one of the female Pellets on the sidelines said something like "Look at how cocky that guy is". Since I've always struggled with my confidence, I couldn't help but laugh as I walked off the field.
6. Black Nurple vs. Black Pellets x 2 – In a playoff game against the same Black Pellets, in which Jacked Pass was once again rocking our black t-shirts, Captain Cory was catching on that if he threw it high, I'd do my best to bring it down. On successive possessions, Cory hucked and I skyed (1) the same defender who was also jumping for the disc (3). Sadly, the game was lopsided in our favor. Plus, although I don't know his name, I respect the hell out of the tall French guy, who lays out for anything within 20 feet of him (and has a cute girlfriend to boot).
Although I have yet to achieve the perfect sky, rest assured that I will continue to chase after the elusive Eros until my calf muscles crumble. I'm always up for hearing about the skying exploits of others, so please feel free to share. Until next time, happy hucking!
Friday, April 25, 2008
OUHA – Alternative Reality at its Finest
After teasing it a few times, it's finally time to summarize my plunge into the entertaining alternative reality that is OUHA. For those of you not in the know (i.e. normal people), OUHA is an ultimate message board set up in the winter as an alternative to the usually boring OCUA forums. The player who erects this wonderful diversion is a kickass player, past league president (or Director…I forget), and has multiple degrees in English. OUHA stands for Ottawa Ultimate Humor Association. Slagging (i.e. poking fun at others) is one of the main purposes of the site.
At first, I used OUHA as a way to keep up with how my team was playing while I was out with an injury. After a few weeks, I noticed the main prognosticator for the indoor intermediate development league (IID), the amusing Rigid, kept picking my team to lose. In jest, I replied to one of his prognostications by relaying Wesley Snipes's advice: "Always bet on black". The next week he picked us to tie, which I thought was an improvement and complemented him on the size of his grapefruits to pick a tie. After coming back from my injury, I noticed that Rigid was mysteriously absent for a few weeks (computer problems as it turned out). Having thoroughly enjoyed his posts, I decided to pick up the slack and write my own series of picks for the week, and then recap a rare victory. He later came back, and pitted his lucky quarter against my shirt color theory in forming our respective picks.
All went well and eventually our teams met. Largely thanks to his skill and good decisions with the disc, his team won a close one. We met after the game, during which time I gave him a special Remembrance Day quarter with a black sticker attached to the queen's head. Thus the birth of the Rigid-Nurple Prognostication System (RPNS)! As we parted, he informed me that since his team had won, I should expect "endless slagging". Of course, I replied "Bring it on!"
During the next couple weeks, Rigid's posts became less regular, while I made sure to take a couple playful shots at him in each post. This culminated before our two teams were to meet again in a playoff exhibition game. The Friday before a Wednesday game, I wrote him a short message asking him if he'd be receptive to some sort of a deal to give my team the "black shirt advantage" (he was the captain of his team). His response was that it was "not bloodly likely" and that I was lucky he had a good sense of humor after some of my comments on the board. In my next set of predictions, I was particularly tough on Rigid, and admittedly went too far. He replied in a post saying he was going to stop posting immediately, he was stressed at work, I was a horrible person (true), etc. Not having read his reply at work, and knowing he was looking for summer teams, I wrote him an email asking him if he'd be interested in playing on a Tuesday team of mine during the summer, since the guy is a talented player who can huck with the best of them. As soon as I read his reply post that night when I got home, I felt awful, deleted the initial post, posted an apology, and sent him another apology via email. He replied to both apologies saying he accepted, but I still regret the incident a great deal. He's such a nice guy, and when we played eachother in the playoffs, he barely looked at me. I felt a little guilty when my team won and I had a decent game.
Anyway, rather than the Rigid incident, OUHA was a nice diversion during my first winter of IID. I met a couple people off the board (sadly not Mr. SOTG…err Marko ), had fun getting out-picked my other players, and learned more about the Ottawa ultimate community. Having said that, I don't think I'll return to the board next winter, and plan to leave Rigid reign over his IID domain. It's actually less the Rigid incident, and more another quick edit I was asked to make late in the season that further proved my lack of good judgment. There are definitely people in ultimate that I'd never want to offend, and I fear the second incident might have cost me a potential friend.
So there you have it, all the gory details of the seemingly innocent, alternative reality site. Be careful on your computron while posting on the Intraweb kiddies. Until next time, happy hucking!
At first, I used OUHA as a way to keep up with how my team was playing while I was out with an injury. After a few weeks, I noticed the main prognosticator for the indoor intermediate development league (IID), the amusing Rigid, kept picking my team to lose. In jest, I replied to one of his prognostications by relaying Wesley Snipes's advice: "Always bet on black". The next week he picked us to tie, which I thought was an improvement and complemented him on the size of his grapefruits to pick a tie. After coming back from my injury, I noticed that Rigid was mysteriously absent for a few weeks (computer problems as it turned out). Having thoroughly enjoyed his posts, I decided to pick up the slack and write my own series of picks for the week, and then recap a rare victory. He later came back, and pitted his lucky quarter against my shirt color theory in forming our respective picks.
All went well and eventually our teams met. Largely thanks to his skill and good decisions with the disc, his team won a close one. We met after the game, during which time I gave him a special Remembrance Day quarter with a black sticker attached to the queen's head. Thus the birth of the Rigid-Nurple Prognostication System (RPNS)! As we parted, he informed me that since his team had won, I should expect "endless slagging". Of course, I replied "Bring it on!"
During the next couple weeks, Rigid's posts became less regular, while I made sure to take a couple playful shots at him in each post. This culminated before our two teams were to meet again in a playoff exhibition game. The Friday before a Wednesday game, I wrote him a short message asking him if he'd be receptive to some sort of a deal to give my team the "black shirt advantage" (he was the captain of his team). His response was that it was "not bloodly likely" and that I was lucky he had a good sense of humor after some of my comments on the board. In my next set of predictions, I was particularly tough on Rigid, and admittedly went too far. He replied in a post saying he was going to stop posting immediately, he was stressed at work, I was a horrible person (true), etc. Not having read his reply at work, and knowing he was looking for summer teams, I wrote him an email asking him if he'd be interested in playing on a Tuesday team of mine during the summer, since the guy is a talented player who can huck with the best of them. As soon as I read his reply post that night when I got home, I felt awful, deleted the initial post, posted an apology, and sent him another apology via email. He replied to both apologies saying he accepted, but I still regret the incident a great deal. He's such a nice guy, and when we played eachother in the playoffs, he barely looked at me. I felt a little guilty when my team won and I had a decent game.
Anyway, rather than the Rigid incident, OUHA was a nice diversion during my first winter of IID. I met a couple people off the board (sadly not Mr. SOTG…err Marko ), had fun getting out-picked my other players, and learned more about the Ottawa ultimate community. Having said that, I don't think I'll return to the board next winter, and plan to leave Rigid reign over his IID domain. It's actually less the Rigid incident, and more another quick edit I was asked to make late in the season that further proved my lack of good judgment. There are definitely people in ultimate that I'd never want to offend, and I fear the second incident might have cost me a potential friend.
So there you have it, all the gory details of the seemingly innocent, alternative reality site. Be careful on your computron while posting on the Intraweb kiddies. Until next time, happy hucking!
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Progressing in Ultimate
One of the more interesting threads on the OCUA forums this winter started with a seemingly innocent question about how to progress in ultimate. A wide variety of players chimed in with their opinion, ranging from the best male player in Ottawa (IMO - John Haig), to veterans who have been playing since the 1980s, to yours truly. The resulting tips and suggestions are summarized below. However, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that a less informative, but much more amusing reply was posted by my idol Mr. SOTG (aka Marko, Conan, etc.) in the OUHA forums.
1. Play more ultimate – A no brainer? Obviously playing everyday would be dangerous, but as Allen Iverson never said "practice makes perfect".
2. Play on better teams – This tip was offered by a few veterans, and proved a tad controversial. In Ottawa, unless you're connected, your chances of picking up on a high tier league team are about as good as my chances of receiving a Christmas card from OUHA's Rigid (I'll get to that story eventually). The original poster took exception to the advice, and is one of the people behind the new "intermediate development team" I'm trying out for next week.
3. Watch high quality ultimate – A Stu Ginn tip that has really helped me. My best game this winter came after watching an elite match immediately prior to mine. Stu says you should watch the players who play your position, and then try to imitate them. I'd also recommend any Ultivillage DVDs, or youtube if you're cheap ;-)
4. Hit the gym – Although there is plenty of workout advice on the OCUA forums lately, I'd still recommend the Zip Tips for specific exercises. Hammering out some interval runs and fartlecks is also advisable.
5. Push yourself – This was my big contribution to the original thread. Playing outside of your comfort zone is a great way to learn new skills. If you're a crappy defender, cover the best cutter on the other team. After you get your ass burned a few times, you'll adjust your defensive positioning and strategy accordingly. Feel uncomfortable handling? Volunteer to handle every chance you get until it's second nature.
6. Ask better players for feedback – Probably the most common advice given to the original poster was to ask for feedback on his game by teammates and veterans. It's amazing how better players can pick up on weaknesses in your game, and how brutally honest and helpful they are in telling you how to improve those weaknesses. In terms of players to ask for advice, in my experience, captains, coaches on competitive teams and league coordinators provide the best specific advice.
7. Go to clinics – No, not the walk in type…unless you have a problem that requires that type of attention…but I digress. OCUA puts on loads of clinics over the course of the year, and I'll personally guarantee that you'll learn something new at every one you attend. My only complaint is that there aren't specific throwing, cutting, defending clinics, since I usually experience overload with the amount of material they cover. However, that's probably just me being slow…
8. Attend competitive tryouts – For the record, I'm not trying out for BigFish with expectations of wowing the coaches and making the team after two years of playing ultimate. I'm following the advice of posters who say that going to tryouts is a good way to learn drills, make contacts, and conduct gap analysis between your game and comp players' games.
9. Drink with competitive players – Ok, so that wasn't in the initial thread, but it's a funny piece of advice offered by Mr. SOTG that actually works. It works since it helps with so many of the other tips. Competitive players have connections on high-tier league teams, they'll happily give you feedback on your game, they can tell you all about tryouts, and some of them will even share their workouts with you.
10. Set goals every game – Granted, this is a Zip Tip, but it's one worth considering. Josh Zipperstein used to set goals every game (i.e. the guy I'm marking won't score on me), every tournament (i.e. no drops), and every year (i.e. win a national championship). If you watch any Brown game (there's one on youtube from 2004), you'll quickly see that Josh must have been doing something right. Although it's hard to dominate at ultimate, Zip was a powerful force. Goals lead to achievement.
C'est toute me amis. Consider these 10 tips a summary of OCUA's collective wisdom, plus a little dose of Nurplism to boot. Until next time, happy hucking!
1. Play more ultimate – A no brainer? Obviously playing everyday would be dangerous, but as Allen Iverson never said "practice makes perfect".
2. Play on better teams – This tip was offered by a few veterans, and proved a tad controversial. In Ottawa, unless you're connected, your chances of picking up on a high tier league team are about as good as my chances of receiving a Christmas card from OUHA's Rigid (I'll get to that story eventually). The original poster took exception to the advice, and is one of the people behind the new "intermediate development team" I'm trying out for next week.
3. Watch high quality ultimate – A Stu Ginn tip that has really helped me. My best game this winter came after watching an elite match immediately prior to mine. Stu says you should watch the players who play your position, and then try to imitate them. I'd also recommend any Ultivillage DVDs, or youtube if you're cheap ;-)
4. Hit the gym – Although there is plenty of workout advice on the OCUA forums lately, I'd still recommend the Zip Tips for specific exercises. Hammering out some interval runs and fartlecks is also advisable.
5. Push yourself – This was my big contribution to the original thread. Playing outside of your comfort zone is a great way to learn new skills. If you're a crappy defender, cover the best cutter on the other team. After you get your ass burned a few times, you'll adjust your defensive positioning and strategy accordingly. Feel uncomfortable handling? Volunteer to handle every chance you get until it's second nature.
6. Ask better players for feedback – Probably the most common advice given to the original poster was to ask for feedback on his game by teammates and veterans. It's amazing how better players can pick up on weaknesses in your game, and how brutally honest and helpful they are in telling you how to improve those weaknesses. In terms of players to ask for advice, in my experience, captains, coaches on competitive teams and league coordinators provide the best specific advice.
7. Go to clinics – No, not the walk in type…unless you have a problem that requires that type of attention…but I digress. OCUA puts on loads of clinics over the course of the year, and I'll personally guarantee that you'll learn something new at every one you attend. My only complaint is that there aren't specific throwing, cutting, defending clinics, since I usually experience overload with the amount of material they cover. However, that's probably just me being slow…
8. Attend competitive tryouts – For the record, I'm not trying out for BigFish with expectations of wowing the coaches and making the team after two years of playing ultimate. I'm following the advice of posters who say that going to tryouts is a good way to learn drills, make contacts, and conduct gap analysis between your game and comp players' games.
9. Drink with competitive players – Ok, so that wasn't in the initial thread, but it's a funny piece of advice offered by Mr. SOTG that actually works. It works since it helps with so many of the other tips. Competitive players have connections on high-tier league teams, they'll happily give you feedback on your game, they can tell you all about tryouts, and some of them will even share their workouts with you.
10. Set goals every game – Granted, this is a Zip Tip, but it's one worth considering. Josh Zipperstein used to set goals every game (i.e. the guy I'm marking won't score on me), every tournament (i.e. no drops), and every year (i.e. win a national championship). If you watch any Brown game (there's one on youtube from 2004), you'll quickly see that Josh must have been doing something right. Although it's hard to dominate at ultimate, Zip was a powerful force. Goals lead to achievement.
C'est toute me amis. Consider these 10 tips a summary of OCUA's collective wisdom, plus a little dose of Nurplism to boot. Until next time, happy hucking!
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Ode to the Ladies of Ottawa Ultimate
To the lovely ladies that make league play fun,
Be assured that men never intentionally look you off while run.
Please don't be surprised that the opposite is true,
Many a male handler becomes distracted with his eyes glued on you.
With your athletic builds, and strong, shapely legs,
Our imaginations run wild with thoughts of fertilizing eggs.
If you catch us staring at your muscular calfs,
We grant you permission to call us an ass.
While we struggle with "spirit of the game", you show us the way
Winning at all costs takes a backseat for you to spirited play.
Your decisions are smart, and your cuts are sublime,
Unlike our post game cheers, your's actually rhyme.
You show sound judgment by telling us to stop hucking the disc,
When we don't listen, incurring your wrath is our risk.
We could learn a great deal from you, our fairer sex colleagues,
Perhaps someday enough, so that we could join women's league.
Be assured that men never intentionally look you off while run.
Please don't be surprised that the opposite is true,
Many a male handler becomes distracted with his eyes glued on you.
With your athletic builds, and strong, shapely legs,
Our imaginations run wild with thoughts of fertilizing eggs.
If you catch us staring at your muscular calfs,
We grant you permission to call us an ass.
While we struggle with "spirit of the game", you show us the way
Winning at all costs takes a backseat for you to spirited play.
Your decisions are smart, and your cuts are sublime,
Unlike our post game cheers, your's actually rhyme.
You show sound judgment by telling us to stop hucking the disc,
When we don't listen, incurring your wrath is our risk.
We could learn a great deal from you, our fairer sex colleagues,
Perhaps someday enough, so that we could join women's league.
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Ulti Goals for Summer 2008
1. Lengthen and sharpen the aim of my backhand
2. Make better decisions when handling (100% throws)
3. Play more intense defense
4. Have fun out there…it's only a game
With the summer season soon upon us, I decided to formalize what I'd like to accomplish in the next 4 months. Afterall, goals help focus effort to facilitate achievement.
The backhand goal might sound strange, so let me explain. When I first started ultimate, I almost exclusively threw backhands. I'd break force to throw backhands, travel to throw backhands, and fake long forehands just to make throwing backhands easier. Fast forward 6 months to when I learned a proper forehand in Coached League, and I basically stopped backhanding. For the better part of a year, with most teams forcing flick, I happily obliged and prospered as my forehand developed. However, once you get to a certain level in ultimate, teams mix up defenses, and even force backhand for games at a time. The problem? My once strong backhand has become a shell of its former self. Although I tried to lengthen and improve the aim of my backhand this past winter, the opportunities were limited unless I made a conscious decision to break force. In warm-up when everyone else worked on their flicks and hammers, I'd try to throw 75% backhands. After throwing last week outside a few times, although my backhand is slightly stronger and more precise, it still needs work. Needless to say, my fellow Urban Sprawlers should be prepared to see a lot of O/I backhands this summer since Friday will be my best night to practice throws.
Making better decisions was my main goal for the winter, and I'll carry it through to the summer. My indoor intermediate coach Stu Ginn was excellent at helping me identify good vs. bad throws. Just because someone catches one of my endzone to endzone cross-field flicks, it doesn't mean it was a smart throw to make. Stu talked about only attempting "100% throws". These are throws you know you are physically able to make, and that the cutter is expecting. For me, this means no hammers or long backhands until I can make them consistently. Stu's point was that as you grow older, you have to play smarter since physically, you won't be able to keep up with younger people. Since I'm pushing 30, this seems like solid, practical advice to follow. Stu also told our team that the biggest difference between intermediate, advanced, and elite players was decision making ability. After watching games at different levels, I couldn't agree more. One of the best Zip Tips is that you should look to advance the disc for the first two stalls, improve field position for the next two stalls, and reset ("dump") the disc with stalls 5 onward. If I can commit to following these pearls of wisdom, I should be playing smart (or at least smarter) ultimate by summer's end.
Admittedly, my intensity on defense is practically not existent. Being tall and semi-fast, I tend to poach just a tad off the person I'm marking, and try for the spectacular defensive play (7 Callahan's baby!) instead of denying them the disc in the first place. I've also been known to give my man in cuts, and then try to force a turnover through an overly aggressive (and illegal) mark. If I get cut from BigFish (likely), but can make the intermediate development team (decent likelihood), the coach is an awesome defender, who I know will serve as a good defensive model for me. Regardless of what happens, I'm committing to putting as much effort into defense as I do on offense.
One of the patterns I have with sports is picking them up pretty quickly, getting "good" at them, taking them too seriously, and stopping them altogether when they cease being fun. I don't want this to happen with ultimate. Regardless of the level I end up playing this summer, I have to continue to enjoy the game. Hopefully the "spirit of the game" and the "community" aspect of the game will help in this regard. However, I know this is largely up to me. As long as I don't get caught up with winning and losing, keeping the game fun on Fridays with Urban Sprawl shouldn't be a problem. It's the potential Tuesday/Thursday teams I'll play with where it might get challenging. Playing with better players, will push me to improve, and get my competitive juices flowing. Therefore, I have to find a way to balance this increased competitiveness with increased levels of fun. Any suggestions in this area would be more than welcome…
Anyway, I'll update with the progress of my ultimate goals throughout the summer. Feel free to let me know if I'm shanking my backhands, throwing low percentage passes, slacking off on D, or taking the game too seriously. Until next time, happy hucking!
2. Make better decisions when handling (100% throws)
3. Play more intense defense
4. Have fun out there…it's only a game
With the summer season soon upon us, I decided to formalize what I'd like to accomplish in the next 4 months. Afterall, goals help focus effort to facilitate achievement.
The backhand goal might sound strange, so let me explain. When I first started ultimate, I almost exclusively threw backhands. I'd break force to throw backhands, travel to throw backhands, and fake long forehands just to make throwing backhands easier. Fast forward 6 months to when I learned a proper forehand in Coached League, and I basically stopped backhanding. For the better part of a year, with most teams forcing flick, I happily obliged and prospered as my forehand developed. However, once you get to a certain level in ultimate, teams mix up defenses, and even force backhand for games at a time. The problem? My once strong backhand has become a shell of its former self. Although I tried to lengthen and improve the aim of my backhand this past winter, the opportunities were limited unless I made a conscious decision to break force. In warm-up when everyone else worked on their flicks and hammers, I'd try to throw 75% backhands. After throwing last week outside a few times, although my backhand is slightly stronger and more precise, it still needs work. Needless to say, my fellow Urban Sprawlers should be prepared to see a lot of O/I backhands this summer since Friday will be my best night to practice throws.
Making better decisions was my main goal for the winter, and I'll carry it through to the summer. My indoor intermediate coach Stu Ginn was excellent at helping me identify good vs. bad throws. Just because someone catches one of my endzone to endzone cross-field flicks, it doesn't mean it was a smart throw to make. Stu talked about only attempting "100% throws". These are throws you know you are physically able to make, and that the cutter is expecting. For me, this means no hammers or long backhands until I can make them consistently. Stu's point was that as you grow older, you have to play smarter since physically, you won't be able to keep up with younger people. Since I'm pushing 30, this seems like solid, practical advice to follow. Stu also told our team that the biggest difference between intermediate, advanced, and elite players was decision making ability. After watching games at different levels, I couldn't agree more. One of the best Zip Tips is that you should look to advance the disc for the first two stalls, improve field position for the next two stalls, and reset ("dump") the disc with stalls 5 onward. If I can commit to following these pearls of wisdom, I should be playing smart (or at least smarter) ultimate by summer's end.
Admittedly, my intensity on defense is practically not existent. Being tall and semi-fast, I tend to poach just a tad off the person I'm marking, and try for the spectacular defensive play (7 Callahan's baby!) instead of denying them the disc in the first place. I've also been known to give my man in cuts, and then try to force a turnover through an overly aggressive (and illegal) mark. If I get cut from BigFish (likely), but can make the intermediate development team (decent likelihood), the coach is an awesome defender, who I know will serve as a good defensive model for me. Regardless of what happens, I'm committing to putting as much effort into defense as I do on offense.
One of the patterns I have with sports is picking them up pretty quickly, getting "good" at them, taking them too seriously, and stopping them altogether when they cease being fun. I don't want this to happen with ultimate. Regardless of the level I end up playing this summer, I have to continue to enjoy the game. Hopefully the "spirit of the game" and the "community" aspect of the game will help in this regard. However, I know this is largely up to me. As long as I don't get caught up with winning and losing, keeping the game fun on Fridays with Urban Sprawl shouldn't be a problem. It's the potential Tuesday/Thursday teams I'll play with where it might get challenging. Playing with better players, will push me to improve, and get my competitive juices flowing. Therefore, I have to find a way to balance this increased competitiveness with increased levels of fun. Any suggestions in this area would be more than welcome…
Anyway, I'll update with the progress of my ultimate goals throughout the summer. Feel free to let me know if I'm shanking my backhands, throwing low percentage passes, slacking off on D, or taking the game too seriously. Until next time, happy hucking!
Monday, April 21, 2008
Picking-up in Ottawa…Ultimate
You've heard all about this wonderful sport and want to give it a whirl. Or maybe you're coming off an injury and need a little game action to test your recovery. Perhaps you're already playing five nights a week, and want to make it an even six. Whatever the reason, there are lots of ways to get yourself some hot, sweet, sweaty, pick-up action…of the ultimate variety.
Pick-up games range from well organized, intense affairs, where teams are carefully selected, to a group of friends who decide that they want to run a little after tossing. Personally, I'm a fan of the latter arrangement, as the former tends to be too taxing for what should be an enjoyable experience. Picking up with a team is an entirely different matter, but I'll explore that as well.
Although the OCUA "Pick-up Games" forum doesn't see much action, there are a couple of regular pick-up games happening in Ottawa. One of the easiest to find is on Parliament Hill on Mondays at around 6pm throughout the summer. A word of warning, the caliber of play is pretty high, and don't think you'll have an easy time if you choose to mark someone who looks to be in their 40s. The guy that "organizes" these weekly tilts, I believe his name is Frazier, can motor circles around young bucks. Having just played in a pick up game last Thursday in front of the Supreme Court, the clerks who work there were saying that they have a pretty regular after work Thursday game. Although the caliber of play wasn't high, it was a spirited affair. Although not quite ultimate, and not quite regular, the Ottawa Goaltimate Facebook group holds games about once a month throughout the summer. You can easily find someone of your own ability to mark, and you'll learn a sport that will make use of all your ultimate skills. Lastly, I remember reading about some regular weekend pick-up game on Petrie Island (Cumberland). I think it was mainly younger people, but playing ultimate on a beach sounds like a blast.
OCUA has a couple of "pick-up" games at Ben Franklin Dome throughout the winter, but honestly, I'm not a huge fan. Sadly, these affairs tend to turn into comp players throwing to comp players, beginners running around aimlessly, and intermediate players trying to do too much to impress the comp players (who don't give a shit). For $10, I guess it's not a bad deal to throw around with decent players for an hour or so. On the other extreme, some of the best pick-up action is stuff you randomly stumble across. I used to throw at lunch with some Industry workers at Vincent Massey while with a previous employer. One day a group of high school students walked past, challenged us to a game, and it was on! I had lots of fun chasing after the energetic little bastards on defense, and the girls I threw with worked the disc up the field like pros on offense. There was another time I went to a friend-of-a-teammate's pick-up game, and was amazed at how a bunch of hippies totally ignored rules to make ultimate even more fun. A Nurple tip - enjoyable pick-up games are easily identified when shoes and bags are used to form endzones instead of cones.
If you're looking to pick-up with a team, your best bet is to ask around, and only use the OCUA 'Teams Looking for Players' as a last resort. Friends and teammates tend to know which teams are looking for players, and if you're the right caliber of player to fit with the group. Posts on the TLFP forum tend to be misleading at best. Captains overstate just how good or how fun their team is, in an attempt to attract players. My only positive experience with the forum was picking up with Disco Fever half way through last summer, when their captain accurately posted that they were an athletic, mid-tier team looking for male handlers. Another Nurple tip - you might want to sub for a team a few times before you officially join them. Think of it as a test drive, from which you can easily walk away with no hard feelings. My last thought on picking up with a team, is that it's pretty easy so long as you don't mind playing low-to-mid tier. Since ultimate players are prone to injuries, with people moving, and relationships deteriorating, there's no shortage of teams that will truly be looking for players at a given time. Just because they don't post in the TLFP forum, doesn't mean they won't be receptive if you offer to play for them.
In conclusion, if you need a little ulti-lovin' this summer, try the pick-up route. It's low commitment, easy, and lots of fun. Until next time, happy hucking!
Pick-up games range from well organized, intense affairs, where teams are carefully selected, to a group of friends who decide that they want to run a little after tossing. Personally, I'm a fan of the latter arrangement, as the former tends to be too taxing for what should be an enjoyable experience. Picking up with a team is an entirely different matter, but I'll explore that as well.
Although the OCUA "Pick-up Games" forum doesn't see much action, there are a couple of regular pick-up games happening in Ottawa. One of the easiest to find is on Parliament Hill on Mondays at around 6pm throughout the summer. A word of warning, the caliber of play is pretty high, and don't think you'll have an easy time if you choose to mark someone who looks to be in their 40s. The guy that "organizes" these weekly tilts, I believe his name is Frazier, can motor circles around young bucks. Having just played in a pick up game last Thursday in front of the Supreme Court, the clerks who work there were saying that they have a pretty regular after work Thursday game. Although the caliber of play wasn't high, it was a spirited affair. Although not quite ultimate, and not quite regular, the Ottawa Goaltimate Facebook group holds games about once a month throughout the summer. You can easily find someone of your own ability to mark, and you'll learn a sport that will make use of all your ultimate skills. Lastly, I remember reading about some regular weekend pick-up game on Petrie Island (Cumberland). I think it was mainly younger people, but playing ultimate on a beach sounds like a blast.
OCUA has a couple of "pick-up" games at Ben Franklin Dome throughout the winter, but honestly, I'm not a huge fan. Sadly, these affairs tend to turn into comp players throwing to comp players, beginners running around aimlessly, and intermediate players trying to do too much to impress the comp players (who don't give a shit). For $10, I guess it's not a bad deal to throw around with decent players for an hour or so. On the other extreme, some of the best pick-up action is stuff you randomly stumble across. I used to throw at lunch with some Industry workers at Vincent Massey while with a previous employer. One day a group of high school students walked past, challenged us to a game, and it was on! I had lots of fun chasing after the energetic little bastards on defense, and the girls I threw with worked the disc up the field like pros on offense. There was another time I went to a friend-of-a-teammate's pick-up game, and was amazed at how a bunch of hippies totally ignored rules to make ultimate even more fun. A Nurple tip - enjoyable pick-up games are easily identified when shoes and bags are used to form endzones instead of cones.
If you're looking to pick-up with a team, your best bet is to ask around, and only use the OCUA 'Teams Looking for Players' as a last resort. Friends and teammates tend to know which teams are looking for players, and if you're the right caliber of player to fit with the group. Posts on the TLFP forum tend to be misleading at best. Captains overstate just how good or how fun their team is, in an attempt to attract players. My only positive experience with the forum was picking up with Disco Fever half way through last summer, when their captain accurately posted that they were an athletic, mid-tier team looking for male handlers. Another Nurple tip - you might want to sub for a team a few times before you officially join them. Think of it as a test drive, from which you can easily walk away with no hard feelings. My last thought on picking up with a team, is that it's pretty easy so long as you don't mind playing low-to-mid tier. Since ultimate players are prone to injuries, with people moving, and relationships deteriorating, there's no shortage of teams that will truly be looking for players at a given time. Just because they don't post in the TLFP forum, doesn't mean they won't be receptive if you offer to play for them.
In conclusion, if you need a little ulti-lovin' this summer, try the pick-up route. It's low commitment, easy, and lots of fun. Until next time, happy hucking!
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Defending Mixed Ultimate
For clarity's sake, mixed ultimate means at least two females on the field at any time, but more likely three (with four guys). In comparison, in open (men's) ultimate and women's ultimate, only one sex is represented on the field. As mentioned in a previous blog, many open players completely bash mixed ultimate as an inferior brand that doesn't deserve it's own championship. I'll declare my bias up front stating that with the exception of a few open tournaments, I've always played mixed and don't plan on changing that anytime soon. The following is simply one man's defense of mixed ultimate.
The number one complaint regarding mixed is that the caliber of play is lower than open. Well duh…the caliber of play is lower by design! Another obvious counter argument to the caliber criticism is that the caliber of play is higher than women's ultimate. Therefore, you get women who want to push themselves and men who don't want to kill themselves playing for an open team. Since ultimate players tend to take the game up later in their lives, not all of them want to make the time commitment it would take to tryout/compete on an open team. I'll admit to being in awe of the endurance, strength, speed, and quick recovery ability of open players. That doesn't mean I have any desire to get into that kind of shape at this point in my life. To summarize, yes the caliber of play in mixed in lower than open, but it's that lower caliber that its participants are looking for.
Another common criticism is that there aren't the same "bonding" opportunities if you're playing with a mixed team. IMHO, this is another bullshit criticism. If you're playing with people who want play at a certain caliber (probably cause they have things going on in their life outside of ultimate), aren't you more likely to bond with someone on your team? Yes, the number of players of the same sex are lower than they would be on an open or women's team, but you probably have more in common with your teammates. Time for a short story. At the Phoenix/Firebird pre-tryout tryout, while walking back to the line after losing a point, I and every other player within a 100 meter radius smelt what could best be described as a sulfur leak. One of the returning players chimes up with "Damn right that was me. It's my glorious man stink. Breathe it in." This one statement reinforced my belief that I have nothing in common with a bunch of people who think farts are funny and getting wasted at tournaments is appropriate.
Another blog I recently read talked about how guys just wanted to play with their wives in mixed, or how single guys want to hook up. Again, I don't see this as a criticism, as much as it is truthful. If you have a wife who is an ultimate player, and want to play together, mixed is an excellent choice! If you're single and are looking to hook-up, your chances are much better on a mixed squad than a same sex team (unless you're gay…in which case open or women's ultimate might be a wiser choice).
The critics of mixed should also consider that pre-college, all of the development programs focus on mixed ultimate. Furthermore, I have yet to read about a high school men's or women's team, only mixed. As players grow up playing mixed, learn the strategy of mixed, and get comfortable playing with the opposite sex, more quality players will keep playing it as the grow older.
In conclusion, stop bashing mixed ultimate until you give it a shot. If you don't want to give it a shot, that's also fine…more fun for the rest of us :P Until next time, happy hucking!
The number one complaint regarding mixed is that the caliber of play is lower than open. Well duh…the caliber of play is lower by design! Another obvious counter argument to the caliber criticism is that the caliber of play is higher than women's ultimate. Therefore, you get women who want to push themselves and men who don't want to kill themselves playing for an open team. Since ultimate players tend to take the game up later in their lives, not all of them want to make the time commitment it would take to tryout/compete on an open team. I'll admit to being in awe of the endurance, strength, speed, and quick recovery ability of open players. That doesn't mean I have any desire to get into that kind of shape at this point in my life. To summarize, yes the caliber of play in mixed in lower than open, but it's that lower caliber that its participants are looking for.
Another common criticism is that there aren't the same "bonding" opportunities if you're playing with a mixed team. IMHO, this is another bullshit criticism. If you're playing with people who want play at a certain caliber (probably cause they have things going on in their life outside of ultimate), aren't you more likely to bond with someone on your team? Yes, the number of players of the same sex are lower than they would be on an open or women's team, but you probably have more in common with your teammates. Time for a short story. At the Phoenix/Firebird pre-tryout tryout, while walking back to the line after losing a point, I and every other player within a 100 meter radius smelt what could best be described as a sulfur leak. One of the returning players chimes up with "Damn right that was me. It's my glorious man stink. Breathe it in." This one statement reinforced my belief that I have nothing in common with a bunch of people who think farts are funny and getting wasted at tournaments is appropriate.
Another blog I recently read talked about how guys just wanted to play with their wives in mixed, or how single guys want to hook up. Again, I don't see this as a criticism, as much as it is truthful. If you have a wife who is an ultimate player, and want to play together, mixed is an excellent choice! If you're single and are looking to hook-up, your chances are much better on a mixed squad than a same sex team (unless you're gay…in which case open or women's ultimate might be a wiser choice).
The critics of mixed should also consider that pre-college, all of the development programs focus on mixed ultimate. Furthermore, I have yet to read about a high school men's or women's team, only mixed. As players grow up playing mixed, learn the strategy of mixed, and get comfortable playing with the opposite sex, more quality players will keep playing it as the grow older.
In conclusion, stop bashing mixed ultimate until you give it a shot. If you don't want to give it a shot, that's also fine…more fun for the rest of us :P Until next time, happy hucking!
Friday, April 18, 2008
Ottawa's Ultimate Community
As completely unqualified as I was to write the "competitive" blog, I'm equally ill-equipped to do justice to this post. Please keep in mind for the first year and a half I played ultimate, my only extra-curricular ultimate activity was going out with my team for a beer the odd time. Being busy with work, introverted, and not much of a drinker, the adjective "odd" might be a tad strong (unless referring to me, where it would be appropriate…and an understatement). However, over the past six months, as ultimate has become less of a pastime, and more of an obsession, my personal experiences in the Ottawa ultimate community have increased.
One of the first observations I made concerning ultimate in the nation's capital is that there tends to be a typical ultimate player. The typical player is athletic, probably transitioning from another competitive sport. The average age of players in OCUA is mid to late twenties. Players also tend to be friendly, sociable, extroverts, who are more interested in having a good time than winning and losing. Although the concept of "spirit of the game" escapes some teams, and there are few creative songs or cheers after the game is over, most players try their best to keep the "spirit of the game" alive. If you need evidence of this, just watch how many times more experienced players provide tips and pointers to new players, and how easy it is for any interested player to pick up on a team.
As one plays more ultimate, on more teams, year round, friendships inevitably start to form. Although these friendships are great, it's really the "acquaintance-ships" that form the base of the Ottawa ultimate community. Even with nearly 5,000 members, when you play enough ultimate, you start to recognize familiar faces who you've tried to defend (or maybe skyed) in various leagues. There's definitely a feeling of connectivity and belonging when you meet someone on a bus, at the mall, or on the street, and realize you have something in common…ultimate! After picking up with a recreational team for a tournament last summer, I spent a 20 minute bus ride with one of their players (who works across the road from me) talking about all things ultimate. This was the same player who invited me into her house and showed me her recent wedding pictures within 5 minutes of meeting, while we waited for our other carpool member to arrive.
Then there's the next step after acquaintances and friendships, relationships. Seeing "ultimate wedding" pictures and hearing about teammates getting hitched used to freak me out. After playing on teams with a high number of attractive, athletic, friendly, single people, I can now see how this sport could lead to engagements. Knowing that the après-ultimate activities are at least as important as what happens on the field, relationships in a sport built on socializing and having fun shouldn't be a surprise. Having said that, after observing the fallout of a few less the successful relationships on teams that I've played on, I'm determined to stick to my "no dating teammates" rule. Of course there are always exceptions to rules, but at this point, the only one I can think of is if I knew there'd be no chance of EVER playing with the person again. I have much more confidence in my ability to break force at will, than in my ability to maintain a successful relationship…or even one that ends amicably.
Another important element of the Ottawa ultimate community is bars. Since I'm a quiet guy whose heavy drinking days were back in high school, my expertise in ulti-bars is limited. However, one easy observation to make is that without ultimate players, certain bars/pubs simply wouldn't exist. Can you imagine the Arrow and Loon staying open without Wednesday and Friday league nights at Frank Claire? Not with their service. How about PJ Quigley's without summer and winter league play at Ben Franklin? Very doubtful. Even the burgers and shake place in Manotick (named 'Burgers and Shakes'?) must eagerly await the summer migration of ultimate players to UPI and SOD. The relationship between bars and players works both ways, since we need a place to relive our past glories / recent failures, discuss "strategy" (huck-and-chase!), and hit on the hotties on our respective teams.
The Internet is another interesting element of Ottawa's ultimate scene. I'll admit to being a lurker on the always entertaining OCUA forums. Although there's probably less than 20 frequent posters on the forums, who hasn't enjoyed a Dave O'Neil rant (really want to meet that guy), a Mike Hall Jones observation (which mean a lot more once you meet that guy), or a Jack Webb-ism (not sure if I could handle meeting that guy)? Quite frankly, some of the recent posts regarding ultimate workouts scare the bejesus out me. Then there's rec.sports.disc newsgroup, where you can read ramblings of local competitive players who take the sport just a tad too seriously. If you need to put some faces to the names, there's always FaceBook. There are groups ranging from Ottawa Goaltimate (highly recommended) to throwing hammers early in the stall count (not so highly recommended). If you're like me, and have searched for subs at the last minute, you'll notice a wide variety of people you kinda recognize as ultimate players show up on your 'Find Friends' list. Lastly, there's the winter "alternative reality site" OHUA, which….I'll cover in a future post so as to temporarily avoid trouble.
An overlooked element of the Ottawa ultimate community is the volunteers who keep things running smoothly. All the league coordinators, tournament directors, OCUA webmonkeys, coaches, and hundreds of other volunteers who make the game enjoyable for us slackers deserve a huge round of applause…or at least a half pint and a pat on the back. One of my goals for this summer is to volunteer at least once in an ultimate capacity, and I'd encourage anyone who reads this to do the same. Having heard one story about a captain who lost his love for the game, I'd also encourage you not to take these individuals for granted. Having personally avoided captaining and even assistant-captaining like the plague, please give these individuals the recognition and respect they deserve. Keeping 14 diverse people organized as a team can be a taxing job.
In a nutshell, Ottawa's vibrant ultimate community is primarily a function of the people who love the game. Until next time, happy hucking!
One of the first observations I made concerning ultimate in the nation's capital is that there tends to be a typical ultimate player. The typical player is athletic, probably transitioning from another competitive sport. The average age of players in OCUA is mid to late twenties. Players also tend to be friendly, sociable, extroverts, who are more interested in having a good time than winning and losing. Although the concept of "spirit of the game" escapes some teams, and there are few creative songs or cheers after the game is over, most players try their best to keep the "spirit of the game" alive. If you need evidence of this, just watch how many times more experienced players provide tips and pointers to new players, and how easy it is for any interested player to pick up on a team.
As one plays more ultimate, on more teams, year round, friendships inevitably start to form. Although these friendships are great, it's really the "acquaintance-ships" that form the base of the Ottawa ultimate community. Even with nearly 5,000 members, when you play enough ultimate, you start to recognize familiar faces who you've tried to defend (or maybe skyed) in various leagues. There's definitely a feeling of connectivity and belonging when you meet someone on a bus, at the mall, or on the street, and realize you have something in common…ultimate! After picking up with a recreational team for a tournament last summer, I spent a 20 minute bus ride with one of their players (who works across the road from me) talking about all things ultimate. This was the same player who invited me into her house and showed me her recent wedding pictures within 5 minutes of meeting, while we waited for our other carpool member to arrive.
Then there's the next step after acquaintances and friendships, relationships. Seeing "ultimate wedding" pictures and hearing about teammates getting hitched used to freak me out. After playing on teams with a high number of attractive, athletic, friendly, single people, I can now see how this sport could lead to engagements. Knowing that the après-ultimate activities are at least as important as what happens on the field, relationships in a sport built on socializing and having fun shouldn't be a surprise. Having said that, after observing the fallout of a few less the successful relationships on teams that I've played on, I'm determined to stick to my "no dating teammates" rule. Of course there are always exceptions to rules, but at this point, the only one I can think of is if I knew there'd be no chance of EVER playing with the person again. I have much more confidence in my ability to break force at will, than in my ability to maintain a successful relationship…or even one that ends amicably.
Another important element of the Ottawa ultimate community is bars. Since I'm a quiet guy whose heavy drinking days were back in high school, my expertise in ulti-bars is limited. However, one easy observation to make is that without ultimate players, certain bars/pubs simply wouldn't exist. Can you imagine the Arrow and Loon staying open without Wednesday and Friday league nights at Frank Claire? Not with their service. How about PJ Quigley's without summer and winter league play at Ben Franklin? Very doubtful. Even the burgers and shake place in Manotick (named 'Burgers and Shakes'?) must eagerly await the summer migration of ultimate players to UPI and SOD. The relationship between bars and players works both ways, since we need a place to relive our past glories / recent failures, discuss "strategy" (huck-and-chase!), and hit on the hotties on our respective teams.
The Internet is another interesting element of Ottawa's ultimate scene. I'll admit to being a lurker on the always entertaining OCUA forums. Although there's probably less than 20 frequent posters on the forums, who hasn't enjoyed a Dave O'Neil rant (really want to meet that guy), a Mike Hall Jones observation (which mean a lot more once you meet that guy), or a Jack Webb-ism (not sure if I could handle meeting that guy)? Quite frankly, some of the recent posts regarding ultimate workouts scare the bejesus out me. Then there's rec.sports.disc newsgroup, where you can read ramblings of local competitive players who take the sport just a tad too seriously. If you need to put some faces to the names, there's always FaceBook. There are groups ranging from Ottawa Goaltimate (highly recommended) to throwing hammers early in the stall count (not so highly recommended). If you're like me, and have searched for subs at the last minute, you'll notice a wide variety of people you kinda recognize as ultimate players show up on your 'Find Friends' list. Lastly, there's the winter "alternative reality site" OHUA, which….I'll cover in a future post so as to temporarily avoid trouble.
An overlooked element of the Ottawa ultimate community is the volunteers who keep things running smoothly. All the league coordinators, tournament directors, OCUA webmonkeys, coaches, and hundreds of other volunteers who make the game enjoyable for us slackers deserve a huge round of applause…or at least a half pint and a pat on the back. One of my goals for this summer is to volunteer at least once in an ultimate capacity, and I'd encourage anyone who reads this to do the same. Having heard one story about a captain who lost his love for the game, I'd also encourage you not to take these individuals for granted. Having personally avoided captaining and even assistant-captaining like the plague, please give these individuals the recognition and respect they deserve. Keeping 14 diverse people organized as a team can be a taxing job.
In a nutshell, Ottawa's vibrant ultimate community is primarily a function of the people who love the game. Until next time, happy hucking!
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Off-season? That's for Suckers...
One of the great things about living in the city with the largest ultimate league in the world (OCUA) is that there is no off-season. If you're up for it, you can play in leagues in the summer, winter, and fall (although I'd recommend PROUF Phaul-leeg instead of OCUA). There are clinics and tryouts in the spring (basically just a month while the snow melts off the fields). Plus, there's an alternative league (OSSC) if you MUST continue to play in the spring. Having said all that, if you're an ultimate addict, one of the bad things about living in the city with the largest ultimate league is that there is no off-season. If you're tired, injured, or busy, but still feel the overwhelming need to get your ultimate fix, you'll probably end up playing through pain.
Admittedly, this is what happened to me last winter after I was diagnosed with a sports hernia. For those of you who don't know what a sports hernia is…consider yourself lucky! Seriously though, it's a small hole in your lower inguinal wall (i.e. your lower abdominal wall) that is irritated when your lower intestine rubs against it or starts seeping through. The hole is caused by a weak core, so remember those sit-ups kiddies! Even after physio-ing my way back to almost normal health (sports hernias never go away unless repaired by surgery), I ended up with plantar faciitis in my right heel, and needed to take another couple of weeks off.
With a hole in my lower right abdominal wall, and a not quite fully recovered right heel, I'm in the unenviable position of trying to prepare my body for two sets of tryouts that are bound to push it to its limits. What kind of exercises am I doing? Glad you asked…
When diagnosed with the sports hernia, I had the luck of walking into the clinic with the best damn physiotherapist in Ottawa. Dave Foley works for the Canadian men's soccer team (who know all about sports hernias) and with a wide range of professional and amateur athletes. Dave immediately assigned me an aerobic program, along with core stretching and strengthening programs. The core stretching (targeting the groin and hip flexors) and strengthening (ball, bands, sit-ups) each take about 30 minutes a day (5 days a week). Aerobic conditioning now consists of 15 minutes on a stationary bike (2 days a week) and 15-30 minutes on the treadmill (3 days a week). I've also substituted ultimate games for treadmill work (so long as I'm not handling for the entire game…which I'm prone to do when feeling tired/lazy).
Beyond the physio exercises, which I plan to continue to into eternity (no more weak core), I've been lifting weights 3-4 days a week as well. After reading some sites and blogs, I've come to realize that lifting is a bit controversial for ultimate players…not so much as "mixed" play, but still questionable. However, I'll refer any skeptics to the (in)famous Zip Tips (if you haven't read these, get on it), where I get most of my weight lifting exercises. By lifting for 20-30 minutes 3-4 times a week, I've been able to improve my strength and muscular endurance…plus I get to enjoy the "scenery" at the gym ;-) There are a couple non-Zip suggested exercises that have worked wonders on my wrists and forearms. Two areas you want to develop if you enjoy hucking the disc *raises hand*. For those of you who are worried about "bulking up", don't lose sleep over it. I've lifted pretty regularly for almost 3 years, and have no trouble maintaining my girlish figure (165 pounds distributed over a 6'1 frame). This reminds of a recent conversation with a guy (Joel something…plays competitive masters ultimate) from a gym we used to belong to, who asked if I was still working out, only to be interrupted by a vocal former ultimate teammate who chimed in with "Have you seen his arms? Obviously not!" In retrospect, that kinda hurt, but, I can take with my broad shoulders…oh wait…
After investing 90 – 120 minutes most days into improving my strength, flexibility, and endurance, I'm still not sure I'm ready for tryouts. I wish my cardio base was better, but my heel simply won't allow that at this point. I also wish I could have incorporated some interval running into my training, but without an adequate cardio base, that would have been risky. The "pre-tryout tryouts" with the Open program might have thrown me for a loop, since the fitness of their players is sooo far above that of any team I'll be trying out for. Anyway, it's almost time to see if all the preparatory and recovery work paid off, since the real tryouts are quickly approaching. Until next time, happy hucking!
Admittedly, this is what happened to me last winter after I was diagnosed with a sports hernia. For those of you who don't know what a sports hernia is…consider yourself lucky! Seriously though, it's a small hole in your lower inguinal wall (i.e. your lower abdominal wall) that is irritated when your lower intestine rubs against it or starts seeping through. The hole is caused by a weak core, so remember those sit-ups kiddies! Even after physio-ing my way back to almost normal health (sports hernias never go away unless repaired by surgery), I ended up with plantar faciitis in my right heel, and needed to take another couple of weeks off.
With a hole in my lower right abdominal wall, and a not quite fully recovered right heel, I'm in the unenviable position of trying to prepare my body for two sets of tryouts that are bound to push it to its limits. What kind of exercises am I doing? Glad you asked…
When diagnosed with the sports hernia, I had the luck of walking into the clinic with the best damn physiotherapist in Ottawa. Dave Foley works for the Canadian men's soccer team (who know all about sports hernias) and with a wide range of professional and amateur athletes. Dave immediately assigned me an aerobic program, along with core stretching and strengthening programs. The core stretching (targeting the groin and hip flexors) and strengthening (ball, bands, sit-ups) each take about 30 minutes a day (5 days a week). Aerobic conditioning now consists of 15 minutes on a stationary bike (2 days a week) and 15-30 minutes on the treadmill (3 days a week). I've also substituted ultimate games for treadmill work (so long as I'm not handling for the entire game…which I'm prone to do when feeling tired/lazy).
Beyond the physio exercises, which I plan to continue to into eternity (no more weak core), I've been lifting weights 3-4 days a week as well. After reading some sites and blogs, I've come to realize that lifting is a bit controversial for ultimate players…not so much as "mixed" play, but still questionable. However, I'll refer any skeptics to the (in)famous Zip Tips (if you haven't read these, get on it), where I get most of my weight lifting exercises. By lifting for 20-30 minutes 3-4 times a week, I've been able to improve my strength and muscular endurance…plus I get to enjoy the "scenery" at the gym ;-) There are a couple non-Zip suggested exercises that have worked wonders on my wrists and forearms. Two areas you want to develop if you enjoy hucking the disc *raises hand*. For those of you who are worried about "bulking up", don't lose sleep over it. I've lifted pretty regularly for almost 3 years, and have no trouble maintaining my girlish figure (165 pounds distributed over a 6'1 frame). This reminds of a recent conversation with a guy (Joel something…plays competitive masters ultimate) from a gym we used to belong to, who asked if I was still working out, only to be interrupted by a vocal former ultimate teammate who chimed in with "Have you seen his arms? Obviously not!" In retrospect, that kinda hurt, but, I can take with my broad shoulders…oh wait…
After investing 90 – 120 minutes most days into improving my strength, flexibility, and endurance, I'm still not sure I'm ready for tryouts. I wish my cardio base was better, but my heel simply won't allow that at this point. I also wish I could have incorporated some interval running into my training, but without an adequate cardio base, that would have been risky. The "pre-tryout tryouts" with the Open program might have thrown me for a loop, since the fitness of their players is sooo far above that of any team I'll be trying out for. Anyway, it's almost time to see if all the preparatory and recovery work paid off, since the real tryouts are quickly approaching. Until next time, happy hucking!
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Competitive Ultimate
As part of my commitment to fill in some gaps, I thought I'd write a bit about the competitive ultimate scene in Canada's capital. Since I'm far from an expert on the subject, this promises to be a much shorter entry.
For us players who are a little too old be called junoirs (18 as at December 31st), and still youthful enough to avoid the masters title (32 or 33+...can't remember), there's six competitive teams that are based out of Ottawa. The "Open" (aka men's) squads are Phoenix (top 10 in Canada) and Firebird (top 20ish). Having been to a couple of open clinics, tournaments, and pre-tryouts, you get a feel for how amazing these players are. The speed and intensity of play is mindblowing. Honestly, there's no way I could keep up to these guys, or match their skill levels, and their fitness is borderline scary.
On the women's side, the two teams based out of Ottawa are Scarlett and Stella. I think Stella just came back this year...which is great. There's also a "Capitals" squad, which combines the best women out of Ottawa and Toronto. A little like the GOAT (Greatest Of All Time?) squad on the open side; although I hear that's mainly Toronto guys.
Then there's mixed. I've read a couple blogs now that totally bash the mixed ultimate concept. I'll try to defend it to the best of my ability down the road, but for now, I'll just stick to the competitive teams out of Ottawa. Bytown Flatball Club finished second in Canada last year, and BigFish is the development squad (as are Stella and Firebird). Since I'm going to be attending the mixed tryouts this year, hopefully, hopefully, hopefully, I'll be able to talk more about those programs down the road.
Last but not least, there's a new "Intermediate Development" team that I'll be trying out for as a Plan B this year. This would be fun since it's geared toward players who want to improve, and make one of the competitive squads in the future. By practicing once a week with an experienced coached, playing in OCUA league one night a week, and attending local tournaments, you can see how improvement would be inevitable.
If memory serves, tryouts for all the teams, including the new intermediate team, start this week. Maybe the next post I'll talk about how I'm prepping for tryouts. Until then, happy hucking!
For us players who are a little too old be called junoirs (18 as at December 31st), and still youthful enough to avoid the masters title (32 or 33+...can't remember), there's six competitive teams that are based out of Ottawa. The "Open" (aka men's) squads are Phoenix (top 10 in Canada) and Firebird (top 20ish). Having been to a couple of open clinics, tournaments, and pre-tryouts, you get a feel for how amazing these players are. The speed and intensity of play is mindblowing. Honestly, there's no way I could keep up to these guys, or match their skill levels, and their fitness is borderline scary.
On the women's side, the two teams based out of Ottawa are Scarlett and Stella. I think Stella just came back this year...which is great. There's also a "Capitals" squad, which combines the best women out of Ottawa and Toronto. A little like the GOAT (Greatest Of All Time?) squad on the open side; although I hear that's mainly Toronto guys.
Then there's mixed. I've read a couple blogs now that totally bash the mixed ultimate concept. I'll try to defend it to the best of my ability down the road, but for now, I'll just stick to the competitive teams out of Ottawa. Bytown Flatball Club finished second in Canada last year, and BigFish is the development squad (as are Stella and Firebird). Since I'm going to be attending the mixed tryouts this year, hopefully, hopefully, hopefully, I'll be able to talk more about those programs down the road.
Last but not least, there's a new "Intermediate Development" team that I'll be trying out for as a Plan B this year. This would be fun since it's geared toward players who want to improve, and make one of the competitive squads in the future. By practicing once a week with an experienced coached, playing in OCUA league one night a week, and attending local tournaments, you can see how improvement would be inevitable.
If memory serves, tryouts for all the teams, including the new intermediate team, start this week. Maybe the next post I'll talk about how I'm prepping for tryouts. Until then, happy hucking!
Saturday, April 12, 2008
The Ultimate Blog For All Frisbee Lovers in Ottawa!
If you stumbled across this blog by chance, you might want to consider hitting the 'Back' button before continuing. Consider this your first, last, and only warning...proceed at your own risk.
Since my el-jay and Facebook seem to be dominated by all things ultimate, I decided that starting an ultimate blog would just be easier. No longer will my el-jay-ians have to read about the sport that is slowly infultrating other areas of my life, nor will my "normal" friends on Facebook be subject to random pictures of me breaking the force, or poaching on defense. Instead, all my thoughts, pictures, and ramblings concerning ultimate, will be conveniently located in one place. Ici!
A little background would probably be helpful. My first exposure to the wonderful world of ultimate frisbee was in grade 9 in high school. Someone came in from some organization or group and tried to teach about 30 of us 14 year old boys how to play ultimate frisbee. Since all of us were more interested in basketball (or floor hockey for the chi's), the collective opinion was 'Who the fuck wants to chase after a frisbee'. Personally, since I was a decent basketball player, and ran cross-country and track to stay in shape, I didn't mind ultimate...but...it didn't grab my attention either. As appropriate as it seems now, I remember being frusterated that I couldn't throw the frisbee far...which I thought would be more exciting than the short passes that the teacher was trying to talk us into.
Fast forward about 10 years, and I was a member of a 24-hour relay team through a former employer. To keep people occupied when they weren't running laps around a mile circuit, the organizers had a volleyball and ultimate frisbee tournament that teams could choose to participate in. Being the only decent volleyball player out of the 20 people on my team, I got pissed when we got beat out of that tournament in two games. My team then proceeded to go over and play the first of our two ultimate games, and that's when the magic started to happen. Looking back, we were playing on a full sized soccer field, so there wasn't much scoring. However, I was lucky to have a girl on my team that was (and still is) pretty awesome. Although she couldn't (and still can't) throw super long, we worked out a nice little sytem of working the disc up the field about 15-20 yards at a time. We won the first game against a group of teens, and then played a team with a few ultimate players. I remember being amazed at how this fat guy (sorry, I should have probably put this up front, but I don't plan to censor my thoughts here since I don't think many people will ever read this) kept getting open when I was trying to cover him. Toward the latter stages of the game, which we lost rather badly, I noticed he had a pair of soccer cleats on. When I asked my knowledgeable teammate about his footwear, she told me that all ultimate players wear cleats, since it allows them to cut sharply. You know, I'm already censoring my thoughts...so I'm just going to say that teammate was Jessica Evans, who's a really solid female player in OCUA. She actually told me how to sign up, and how to pick a decent pair of cleats, so she deserves some credit. Anyway, I loved running after the disc, and decided to sign up to play one night a week the summer following that tournament.
So in May 2006, I started to play for a Friday OCUA team called Urban Sprawl. Most new players sign up for Friday, since it's the lowest caliber night of the week in OCUA league play. However, most new players also sign up to be on a coached team on Fridays, something in retrospect, I probably should have done. Don't get me wrong, I loved playing for Urban Sprawl (and still do), but my game didn't really evolve too quickly for the first six months (summer and fall) since I basically just cut long, and caught a bunch of goals. I got to the point where I wanted to try handling, and knew I needed to improve my flick. When winter rolled around, I decided to try the Coached League at Carleton, and sign up for a hat team (a group of random players of different abilities) at Carleton as well. Coached League was awesome...not only did I learn how to flick (the forehand throw you see players use to death), but I also learned different offensive and defensive strategies. The cool thing about that winter, was I'd learn something new on Tuesday in Coached League, and get a chance to try it out with my hat team on Thursday.
Toward the end of winter, I was really starting to dig the sport. OCUA runs a 'Learn to Play' sophmore clinic in the spring that was basically a continuation from Coached League. Different competitive players teaching you some of the finer points of the game. It was in this four week clinic that I got my first chance to handle, and play against a similar caliber of players. It didn't take me long to realize how much I enjoyed handling, and with a few exceptions, I really haven't stopped doing it since.
Last summer, after a busy winter and spring of ultimate, I started playing for a Monday team (the Berts and Ernies) and a Sunday team (Sushi) on top of Urban Sprawl on Fridays. The B&Es advertised themselves as a mid-tier team, but, turned out to be a low tier team instead. It's really no big deal though, since they were all cool people, and had a few experienced players who'd teach me certain skills. Sushi was a hat team that had a lot of older and extremely new players. This was weird, since I felt like I didn't belong being the "middle guy". Having said that, it turned out to be a great experience since I got a chance to handle with a former competitive player, and also helped teach the newbies the game. On the down side, I constantly had to play defense against the quickest player on opposing teams. About half way through the summer, I got bored, and started to sub for a high-tier Tuesday team. Although I wasn't out of place, there was this girl on their team who I couldn't stand. So, when I saw that a mid-tier Tuesday team (Disco Fever) was looking for a handler, I decided to give it a whirl. That turned out to be a great decision, since I joined at the same time as an experienced handler, and we led the team from being 1-6 to 8-7 at season end. The other thing to note, is I hit every possible clinic last summer that OCUA put on, and found they really helped me improve.
Fast forward to the fall, and it was probably the first time I had to make some tough decisions. As much as I loved playing with Urban Sprawl (I bleed purple), I just didn't think anyone wanted to improve as much as I did. There was actually a point late in the summer, when we were killing another team, that I gave a new girl a tip on how to throw a straighter/longer backhand, that she laughed off. I found that a bit offensive, since I was trying to help her change from being a one dimensional player (she's a good cutter). Couple that with having had such good experiences being part of hat teams, and I decided that was a good way to go for OCUA fall. Big mistake. My fall OCUA team ended up being god-awful, probably since they depended on me to figure out strategy (I actually talked them into a "huck and chase" strategy one windy day lol We lost that game 15-3). On the flip side, I kept playing with the B&Es who put a team in PROUF, and learned sooo much from playing against amazing players in that league. Although the B&Es went 1-16, PROUF got me ready for the tryout for indoor intermediate (IID) and if you don't mind me bragging, I knocked that sum'bitch out of the park. In fact, that tryout was probably the best ultimate I've ever played. The fact that my coach from Coached League, and my teammate from Tuesdays told me exactly what to expect, and what to do (and what not to do) really helped. But yea, I kind of dominated at the tryout...which was sweet.
Which brings us to the winter of 2007/2008. During a PROUF league double-header late in the fall, I noticed some groin pain that got worse after the game. I didn't think much of it, and signed up for IID on Wednesdays (which I made after the strong tryout), Intermediate West on Thursdays, and late night on Fridays. The thing about playing higher caliber indoor ultimate, is that it's super intense compared to outdoor. After my first Thursday game, I knew something was wong with my groin. After the second Thursday game, I went to the Carleton Sports Medicine Clinic, and was diagnosed with a sports hernia (yikes). I immediately quit playing Thursday, since it was the most intense night. I took 5 weeks off to rehab my groin, but kept in shape by biking and lifting weights. That allowed me to return to IID and Friday late nights in January, and be pretty effective on both teams. Although the Friday team didn't do too well in the standings, it was great playing with a bunch of competive players (I'll talk a bit about competitive play in later posts). My IID team was a bit weird, but ended up gelling in the playoffs, and moving from 9th to 5th by going on a 3 game winning streak. However, IID also got me in a bit of trouble, since there's this message board I got a little too involved with...but...that's also a story for another night ;-) Which brings us to...spring 2008...tryouts.
I promise not write another entry anywhere near this long :P I'll tell you more about tryouts, fill in some of the blanks, and get into ultimate related topics in subsequent posts. For now, I'm off to bed...so until I post again...happy hucking!
Since my el-jay and Facebook seem to be dominated by all things ultimate, I decided that starting an ultimate blog would just be easier. No longer will my el-jay-ians have to read about the sport that is slowly infultrating other areas of my life, nor will my "normal" friends on Facebook be subject to random pictures of me breaking the force, or poaching on defense. Instead, all my thoughts, pictures, and ramblings concerning ultimate, will be conveniently located in one place. Ici!
A little background would probably be helpful. My first exposure to the wonderful world of ultimate frisbee was in grade 9 in high school. Someone came in from some organization or group and tried to teach about 30 of us 14 year old boys how to play ultimate frisbee. Since all of us were more interested in basketball (or floor hockey for the chi's), the collective opinion was 'Who the fuck wants to chase after a frisbee'. Personally, since I was a decent basketball player, and ran cross-country and track to stay in shape, I didn't mind ultimate...but...it didn't grab my attention either. As appropriate as it seems now, I remember being frusterated that I couldn't throw the frisbee far...which I thought would be more exciting than the short passes that the teacher was trying to talk us into.
Fast forward about 10 years, and I was a member of a 24-hour relay team through a former employer. To keep people occupied when they weren't running laps around a mile circuit, the organizers had a volleyball and ultimate frisbee tournament that teams could choose to participate in. Being the only decent volleyball player out of the 20 people on my team, I got pissed when we got beat out of that tournament in two games. My team then proceeded to go over and play the first of our two ultimate games, and that's when the magic started to happen. Looking back, we were playing on a full sized soccer field, so there wasn't much scoring. However, I was lucky to have a girl on my team that was (and still is) pretty awesome. Although she couldn't (and still can't) throw super long, we worked out a nice little sytem of working the disc up the field about 15-20 yards at a time. We won the first game against a group of teens, and then played a team with a few ultimate players. I remember being amazed at how this fat guy (sorry, I should have probably put this up front, but I don't plan to censor my thoughts here since I don't think many people will ever read this) kept getting open when I was trying to cover him. Toward the latter stages of the game, which we lost rather badly, I noticed he had a pair of soccer cleats on. When I asked my knowledgeable teammate about his footwear, she told me that all ultimate players wear cleats, since it allows them to cut sharply. You know, I'm already censoring my thoughts...so I'm just going to say that teammate was Jessica Evans, who's a really solid female player in OCUA. She actually told me how to sign up, and how to pick a decent pair of cleats, so she deserves some credit. Anyway, I loved running after the disc, and decided to sign up to play one night a week the summer following that tournament.
So in May 2006, I started to play for a Friday OCUA team called Urban Sprawl. Most new players sign up for Friday, since it's the lowest caliber night of the week in OCUA league play. However, most new players also sign up to be on a coached team on Fridays, something in retrospect, I probably should have done. Don't get me wrong, I loved playing for Urban Sprawl (and still do), but my game didn't really evolve too quickly for the first six months (summer and fall) since I basically just cut long, and caught a bunch of goals. I got to the point where I wanted to try handling, and knew I needed to improve my flick. When winter rolled around, I decided to try the Coached League at Carleton, and sign up for a hat team (a group of random players of different abilities) at Carleton as well. Coached League was awesome...not only did I learn how to flick (the forehand throw you see players use to death), but I also learned different offensive and defensive strategies. The cool thing about that winter, was I'd learn something new on Tuesday in Coached League, and get a chance to try it out with my hat team on Thursday.
Toward the end of winter, I was really starting to dig the sport. OCUA runs a 'Learn to Play' sophmore clinic in the spring that was basically a continuation from Coached League. Different competitive players teaching you some of the finer points of the game. It was in this four week clinic that I got my first chance to handle, and play against a similar caliber of players. It didn't take me long to realize how much I enjoyed handling, and with a few exceptions, I really haven't stopped doing it since.
Last summer, after a busy winter and spring of ultimate, I started playing for a Monday team (the Berts and Ernies) and a Sunday team (Sushi) on top of Urban Sprawl on Fridays. The B&Es advertised themselves as a mid-tier team, but, turned out to be a low tier team instead. It's really no big deal though, since they were all cool people, and had a few experienced players who'd teach me certain skills. Sushi was a hat team that had a lot of older and extremely new players. This was weird, since I felt like I didn't belong being the "middle guy". Having said that, it turned out to be a great experience since I got a chance to handle with a former competitive player, and also helped teach the newbies the game. On the down side, I constantly had to play defense against the quickest player on opposing teams. About half way through the summer, I got bored, and started to sub for a high-tier Tuesday team. Although I wasn't out of place, there was this girl on their team who I couldn't stand. So, when I saw that a mid-tier Tuesday team (Disco Fever) was looking for a handler, I decided to give it a whirl. That turned out to be a great decision, since I joined at the same time as an experienced handler, and we led the team from being 1-6 to 8-7 at season end. The other thing to note, is I hit every possible clinic last summer that OCUA put on, and found they really helped me improve.
Fast forward to the fall, and it was probably the first time I had to make some tough decisions. As much as I loved playing with Urban Sprawl (I bleed purple), I just didn't think anyone wanted to improve as much as I did. There was actually a point late in the summer, when we were killing another team, that I gave a new girl a tip on how to throw a straighter/longer backhand, that she laughed off. I found that a bit offensive, since I was trying to help her change from being a one dimensional player (she's a good cutter). Couple that with having had such good experiences being part of hat teams, and I decided that was a good way to go for OCUA fall. Big mistake. My fall OCUA team ended up being god-awful, probably since they depended on me to figure out strategy (I actually talked them into a "huck and chase" strategy one windy day lol We lost that game 15-3). On the flip side, I kept playing with the B&Es who put a team in PROUF, and learned sooo much from playing against amazing players in that league. Although the B&Es went 1-16, PROUF got me ready for the tryout for indoor intermediate (IID) and if you don't mind me bragging, I knocked that sum'bitch out of the park. In fact, that tryout was probably the best ultimate I've ever played. The fact that my coach from Coached League, and my teammate from Tuesdays told me exactly what to expect, and what to do (and what not to do) really helped. But yea, I kind of dominated at the tryout...which was sweet.
Which brings us to the winter of 2007/2008. During a PROUF league double-header late in the fall, I noticed some groin pain that got worse after the game. I didn't think much of it, and signed up for IID on Wednesdays (which I made after the strong tryout), Intermediate West on Thursdays, and late night on Fridays. The thing about playing higher caliber indoor ultimate, is that it's super intense compared to outdoor. After my first Thursday game, I knew something was wong with my groin. After the second Thursday game, I went to the Carleton Sports Medicine Clinic, and was diagnosed with a sports hernia (yikes). I immediately quit playing Thursday, since it was the most intense night. I took 5 weeks off to rehab my groin, but kept in shape by biking and lifting weights. That allowed me to return to IID and Friday late nights in January, and be pretty effective on both teams. Although the Friday team didn't do too well in the standings, it was great playing with a bunch of competive players (I'll talk a bit about competitive play in later posts). My IID team was a bit weird, but ended up gelling in the playoffs, and moving from 9th to 5th by going on a 3 game winning streak. However, IID also got me in a bit of trouble, since there's this message board I got a little too involved with...but...that's also a story for another night ;-) Which brings us to...spring 2008...tryouts.
I promise not write another entry anywhere near this long :P I'll tell you more about tryouts, fill in some of the blanks, and get into ultimate related topics in subsequent posts. For now, I'm off to bed...so until I post again...happy hucking!
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