No Borders 2008 - A Mule's Perspective

"Jack strikes long and scores once a year....usually at this tournament"

- Dave Brown (after Jack Webb turned on the afterburners to catch a beautiful huck for a point against Demon in our last game)

Playing in the 24th annual No Borders tournament for Mule was an awesome experience. Not only was it lots of fun to play with talented veterans, but getting a taste for the Open game through Ottawa's premier tournament felt like a right a passage as an ultimate player. Below are some brief notes about Mule's six games last weekend.

Double Dragon 13, Mule 6

Double Dragon was a young, fast team from the States (NY or Vermont I think?) that played the theme song from the Double Dragon arcade game on a continuous loop on a ghetto blaster all weekend long. Better yet, they all had two dragon tattoos on their arm (temporary one hopes), and some of the guys even had bands tied around their biceps. For me, this game was about getting to know my team-mates preferences, and figuring out my role on the team (mid-cut or striker). Although I got burned by the young kiddies a couple of times on D, I scored my first competitive Open point on a nice throw from Buckshot.

Roy 13, Mule 3

After jumping out to a 2 - 0 lead, Mule succumbed to the boundless energy and speed of Roy. Roy plays a very disciplined, quick disc movement style, that worked well against a generally older Mule team. Plus, the Ottawa Junoirs from OJ that Jack managed to procure for the prior game mysteriously disappeared before the Roy tilt. Even though I caught another point, I made a note in my little black book that reads "Shitty D". Enough said.

Mule 13, Magma 7

Jack managed to motivate the troops prior to this contest against Montreal's "C-team" by explaining it would be the last game of the day if we won, but we'd have to play another game if we lost. On a totally related note, Jack volunteered to do a beer run, further adding fuel to the team's fire. We managed to pick up a couple of experienced, Mule subs (Jake...and some guy who smokes before/after games and yet manages to outrun almost everyone) that greatly helped out. Despite the presence of the subs, I made a note saying I was on the field for five points in a row. How did that happen? On the bright side, this was probably my most balanced game of the tournament, throwing three scores and catching two. What can I say...I really didn't feel like playing a fourth game on Saturday :P

Outsiders 15, Mule 8

The Outsiders were a mix of Toronto's mixed Zen and Tundra teams, that proved to be far too quick for a group of late rising Mules on a Sunday morning. I'll take responsibility for this loss, as I misread 3 discs that would have been points had I caught them in the early stages of this game. Later in the game, I semi-redeemed myself by catching a pair of points, and throwing one to Pete. It was fun to guard Frogger, who seemed intent on throwing swill to his team-mates once the game was well in hand. It was during this game that I realized that Dave Brown loves to throw breakforce hucks, and took advantage of that knowledge the rest of the tournament. Props to Shawn/Batman from TO if he is who I think he is, as he had a rock solid game on both sides of the disc.

7 Car Pile-Up 14, Mule 13

This loss hurt since it was on universe point, in a game that could have easily went the other way. 7 Car Pile-up had numerous Ottawa pick-ups (including BF team-mate Ahmad who played spectacular as a handler), and a very strong core group of players from upstate NY (I beleive). Mule had picked up some Arrested Development players (including my former coach Gord) and had a pretty big roster including some OJs. It was probably the big roster, and lack of chemistry that held us back a bit. Offensively, this was definitely my best game catching five scores. On D, I had trouble with a big blonde guy, giving him in cuts since he was faster/taller/more talented than me. Anyway, it was a fun game, just wish the score would have been reversed.

Demon 15, Mule 6

Demon is a freakishly fast and tall team out of Montreal. They also play the Open style of quick disc movement, with lots of fast pop passes and give-and-go's. Personally, I was exhausted during this game, but still managed to catch a pair of scores. However, the two high-lights clearly belonged to Jack, who threw a beautiful huck to an Arrested Development player (those OJs bugged off again before this game), and then struck deep and caught a long pass from one of the many talented Mule Handlers. This was a fun last game, and we ended up beating our initial 26th seed, finishing 24th (I beleive?). The obligatory team-picture taken after this game is included below for your viewing pleasure (Who's that dashingly handsome guy standing second from the right?). Andrew Leach, a Mule regular, and talented photographer managed to capture some amazing shots (including a few of me *gasp*) during the tournament. The links are on the OCUA forums, and I have a few in a Facebook album for any of you who are deranged enough to want to see more of me ;-)

Volunteering on Saturday and Sunday with field clean-up, and tear-down was eye-opening. I had no idea how much work goes into such a huge tournament (26 Open teams, 16 Women's teams). Steve (he of the superior blog) did an excellent job as a tournament director, Vanessa filled all the volunteer spots, and then BF captain Sandra worked sooooo hard coordinating all the volunteers on site. As always, there were some minor complaints about things, but these three individuals deserve HUGE props for almost pleasing everyone.

The other high-light of the weekend was watching the Open championship game between Phoenix and Torontula. A 15-14, universe point, thriller of a game, that had all the drama, athleticism, and mind-blowing plays that one expects between two Elite teams (even though Torontula was more or less a pick-up team). The only drawback to the memorable affair was two completely unnecessary fouls between a pair of players on either team. Intensity is one thing, but unnecessary and dangerous plays shouldn't be the result in a sport that depends on 'Spirit of the Game'.

All in all, I loved No Borders, and hope to play it again next year. Rather than finding out how much goes into organizing such a production, I think my biggest personal lesson learned was that I have enough speed to play against Open players (huge surprise for me), but lack the endurance (an equally huge surprise). Physically, I was much more tired than I was after playing more games at Regionals. Maybe it was all the cutting/striking, and guarding faster Open players, but I need to up the running to better prepare for this tourny next year.

Now back to my vacationing. Until next time, happy hucking!