Leonardo's Not-So Clever Ultimate Blog

Psychological Sports Insight/ Field Positioning

2011-10-10T21:21:00.000-04:00

Great Skyd Magazine post by former Sockeye captain Lou Burruss about Sockeye's Regionals collapse. I liked the insight and observations but make sure to read all the comments afterward which shed additional light and open up more discussion.

http://skydmagazine.com/2011/10/tale-stories/

WCBU2011: Mixed finals

2011-09-07T11:32:00.000-04:00

All tournament Germany and USA were on a collision course to meet in the title game. The tall and experienced Germans—a team with key players from the international beach veteran club the Woodies and featuring five who were at WCBU in 2004 (gold) and WCBU 2007 (silver) were captained by Paganello bon vivant Rü Veitl and Janne Lepthin and dominated Pool B with relative ease, their closest games three-point wins over regional adversaries Poland and Austria.

The Americans, culled primarily from a core of the 2010 USAU Mixed Champions Polar Bears and joined by other California stalwarts, were led by beach aficionado Dave Hammond and veteran Steve Dugan and also went undefeated in their pool.

The finals proved the two teams' supremacy.

Sometimes it doesn't matter which team you're rooting for when you get a game like this: Big upwind hucks for scores, layout blocks for Ds and a massive comeback completed with a layout grab leading to the game-winning goal shot.

Still it was a disappointment for many as the role of underdog spoilers belonged to the archetypical favorites—the Americans—who fought back from a 6-2 deficit to defeat a strong German squad and take the championship, 9-8.

Early in the game Germany's ultra-patient and effective offense capitalized on American turnovers to take a decisive 6-2 lead, forcing the U.S. to take a timeout. At that point fortunes changed for both sides.

Scoring downwind, USA pulled upwind to the commanding Germans. Perhaps the Americans changed their defense or maybe Germany just wanted to hit some downwind goal shots but in a decisive series of plays, Germany—uncharacteristically and against their captain's wishes— twice hucked endzone-to-endzone to an open receiver and both times the throw was carried too far by the wind. USA's Greg Marliave then laced a half-field IO forehand to Erol Yildiz for a crucial upwind goal and momentum-builder.

"Definitely [the American's] upwinder at 6-3 was the point to go," wrote Veitl afterwards.

After two upwind chances for Germany, USA converted the down-winder to close it to 5-6. On the next possession a solid pull trapped Germany in their upwind end zone. Trying to break out without the huck, a short up-field shot was instead the victim of a layout D from American June Srisethnil. An easy score from there tied the game at 6s and gave the U.S. a ton of confidence.

Facing the wind, a German short-field miscue gave the U.S. an easy goal and their first lead, 7-6. Again for another downwind Deutschland opportunity the U.S. utilized a defense that all of the U.S. teams were playing—protect the unders, play a straight-up mark and force throwers to bend or hook their hucks. Even with the wind at their backs this strategy worked. Germany's open looks were deep and temptation ruled again as a throw that sailed long was picked up by USA and converted upwind, this time an impressive, forehand rip from Tyler Grant that came out fast and high before seeming to float down like a UFO into the waiting arms of An-Chi Tsou and Sally Mimms for the back-breaking upwinder and an 8-6 lead deep into the match.

Finally Germany recovered behind the strength of their veteran A line. Two goals later, an upwinder from Nicolas Fink to Marvin Horter (one of five on the team to compete in his third WCBU) and downwind Arne Reusch to Daniela Sprunk (another of the five) and the match was tied at 9s, game to 10.

Similar to the Mixed Masters' final, the Germans failed to hear that the time cap had been called. The American's top line then took the field seeking to close out the game—although like his Condors teams of the past, co-captain Dugan utilized an open/non-sub-calling strategy and players went on the field of their own accord. In quick fashion a layout catch by Mimms at half-field gave her two looks to rip an unmarked backhand and the second look found a small spot to hit Adam Raty and just like that the match was over.

This was a thrilling game and I'm sure the Americans were overjoyed with their comeback.

For their part the classy Germans won silver and the Spirit of the Game—no small feat and a sign that the veteran German side was built with precision and passion and an unwavering belief in playing good-spirited disc no matter the circumstances.

WCBU2011: Masters Finals

2011-09-06T19:29:00.000-04:00

My view of the finals is colored by the fact that I was in uniform for USA.

We faced a rematch with the only team that defeated us in pool play: Austria. They took us out three days earlier by playing a smart, motivated match in front of hundreds of cheering supporters on the main beach field, 10-9. It was a good game but we played tight and looked forward to meeting them again.

Finals started at 4pm which gave us time to relax, sleep in and keep it loose. That all changed when we showed up at the Beach Arena at 3 o'clock. The stadium was empty but the Austrians had taken over the sand. They were practicing a variety of throws in the wind and looked more than solid.

All tournament the weather was hot, humid and unbearably still. It seemed as if eternity had consigned Lignano Sabbiadoro to a breeze-less existence—until the Saturday finals. Now the wind was whipping flags and turning over discs. I felt this could be an advantage for Austria.

We did our usual warm-up and then tried to get in as many throws as possible with the new conditions. We did find one sweet spot on the field where the seaside stands blocked the wind and provided a clean release and flight for 30 yards or more. It would turn out useful as we scored two upwind goals from that spot.

Once the game started our adrenaline was strong. We had worked on a new defense to prevent some of Austria's keen bladey forehands and quick-look passes. Add in some nerves, perhaps, on the Austrian side (it also helped that our team had played in the arena before and knew it was a fast track) and two upwind goal shots, from Billy Maroon to Rook and Billy again to Kelly Swiryn and in short order we were in command of the match at 7-2.

The Austrians had their strengths but the Hannes half of the tall, rangy twins Michael and Hannes Zellinger went down with a foot injury early in the match, deflating the Austrian side (he would return three points later and end up with 3 goals in the finals and finish with 46 overall caught and thrown, leading the division while Michael was third overall with 40).

Whenever the Austrian offense did manage to score, the USA O line led by Al DeFrondeville, Ricky Eikstadt, Trey Katzenbach and Jim Parinella would match downwind and score with seeming ease. At no point did Austria get two goals in a row whereas the U.S. was boosted by a five-goal run in the middle.

In the end the we kept up the pressure and won handily 12-5.

It makes me think back to that Wednesday match on Field 1 when they upset us. The crowds were thick lining the field and one side was entirely Austrian supporters, cheering wildly on every pull and once, during a timeout, streaming across the field with three massively large Austrian flags to raucous cheers. It was truly impressive.

We were bitter after the loss, stung by their success and aggressive attitude. They basically took it to us.

We deserved to lose and it helped us, in a sense, focus on getting better as players and stronger as a collective team.

Maybe to some the finals were a foregone conclusion, but I don't think we ever got ahead of ourselves. They beat us once and there was no reason they couldn't do it again. This time we got the breaks, stayed focused and won.

WCBU2011: Mixed Masters Finals

2011-09-06T19:10:00.002-04:00

This was the inaugural year for the Mixed Masters division (defined as players born before 1978) and no one knew what to expect. Would speed be a defining factor? Beach experience? Strategy? Confidence?

Perhaps all. This turned out to be the most interesting of the six finals as savvy and speedy Great Britain surprised the USA 11-7 in a convincing performance before the setting of the sun.

USA had gone undefeated in ten games of six-team pool play including wins over GB and Germany, each twice. They had expected to meet Germany in the finals because Germany had beaten GB in both matches and played the USA to closer outcomes.

But that's where Great Britain staged their first coup, knocking off the Germans in semifinals 11-9. By the time the finals were set the G.B. team was prepared for its final take-down.

Scouting was their first step: they devised a game plan for each of the top USA players. Secondly they disguised their strengths in pool play knowing results there were relatively unimportant. They sat their top player Si Weeks in the first game against USA but in the finals, Weeks was causing trouble everywhere on the field. One of their captains, Lucy Byrne, also sat for games against the Americans to nurse an injury. She too played a key role in the finals.

Perhaps USA underestimated the depth of Great Britain. GB carried core players from three-time Paganello mixed finalists Poughkeepsie, they had two women who won gold at the 2007 WCBU in the Women's Division, several men from the GB Masters team that won Silver at WCBU2007 and they had recently eligible Weeks—a human stat machine at Paganello in 2007, among other tournaments.

In other words, this team was stacked.

Great Britain also changed up their defensive sets and came out of the gates aggressive and confident. Put it all together and what we witnessed on the field was a series of turnovers from the Americans and lightning-fast strikes from Great Britain. The turnovers came everywhere: USA could not find a rhythm. Drops, miscommunication throwaways, overthrows, nothing seemed to work for a team that hadn't been down in a game the entire week. Only a couple of big plays from Kimberly Beach and some solid handling from Rod Hannon kept USA alive.

The ending was unfortunate and seemed to sum up the confusion that reigned on the American side and on the part of the time-keepers. Down 9-6 with a scant few minutes left in the time cap the Great Britain team scored on an easy 12-yard throw up the sideline. But the goal came back on a call and a discussion ensued. Upholding the call meant USA was taking a gamble. They could have let the score stand to get another point of offense before the cap. Instead the time cap was called during the discussion and shortly thereafter GB punched the disc in easily with the same throw to make it 10-6, game to 11. This gave GB a chance to win the game on defense.

To be fair to USA, the time cap was never signaled properly to either team and the Americans never checked so they never knew it was coming.

The U.S. scored on offense, Great Britain did the same and unexpectedly the game was over, 11-7. After a ten-minute delay to explain what happened to a confused American it was decided that GB had indeed won the game.

It was a fair choice by GB who would have won in a game to 11 regardless. To cap it off, they won the Spirit of the Game award for the division, a double peak for Beach Worlds.

My final impression of the Mixed Masters division was that it worked. We saw solid play, quicker-than-expected players and above all, the kind of great play that comes when you've been playing with your teammates for ten, fifteen years. Never hurts.

WCBU2011: Women's Finals

2011-08-30T19:00:00.000-04:00

The setting was certainly unique: the game started is twilight before the evening floodlights filled the beach arena with an eerie glow and a touch of cinematic drama.

But first and foremost: USA versus Canada finals was a heavyweight bout. Both squads came out ready to compete seeking a mental and physical edge over the other.

The sides formed a mirror image: physical marking and chippy handler defense on the USA side was duplicated by Canada as the squads jockeyed for the edge. A massive forehand IO huck goal shot from Canadian star Malissa Lundgren (six goals thrown in the finals, 48 total for the tournament) was countered by a Kathleen Ratcliff forehand huck. The cuts from speedy American Marie Madaras (22 goals thrown, 24 caught) left her wide open for unders and deep goals while the fleet-footed number 42 Kate Jardine for Canada found herself with steps on defenders seemingly at will.

Both teams had their lines set by finals but whereas the United States had enough depth for solid starting O and D lines with second lines in place, Canada had shorter lines due to a lack of depth. The team had top Capitals players and veterans Anja Haman and Anne-Marie Carey but also brought several younger players and beach rookies.

Despite a slew of impressive plays from #55 Lundgren, including two quite improbable deep IO flicks and two run-through blocks on under swing cuts, USA found themselves with a two goal advantage at the time cap, 9-7. It would be a game to 10.

Canada scored on offense and then kept several of their O line players on the D line, moved Jardine over to guard Madaras and benefited quickly when Haman got a block and Canada converted to tie the game at 8s. Pressure was now on the Americans.

With their A line on the field it looked like the game was over when Ratcliff hung out a forehand for a racing Madaras. But the disc fell too fast for a turn in Canada's end zone. It sounds strange to say this on game point, but I believe that the choice to huck was a wise one to gain field position and almost immediately USA got the turnover back at mid-field. They tried to punch it in again and failed but when Lundgren picked up the turnover her cutters were swamped by the Americans' D and the final turn of the game gave USA the disc back with only a third of the field to the goal. After a dump and a swing, co-captain Rohre Titcomb had the disc in the middle of the field and slung an IO forehand to the far side short cone that sailed wide—but a foul was called by Titcomb, marked by Lundgren. It sure looked as if the disc path looked true. But after a short discussion with Titcomb illustrating her throwing motion and Lundgren seeming to suggest that the hit on Rohre's arm had come after the release, the disc was checked back in and Rohre again chose the IO, this time painting the corner but short of the goal. After a quick cut opened up a short dish up the line the coup de grace was made and the game was over with USA's second gold medal of the day.

After the game several of us on the Blockstack TV video crew (I was commentating live for the web broadcast) gathered around Tushar Singh's laptop to replay the critical foul call that so disappointed the crowd and seemed like it could have been bad. Zooming in to grainy footage and stopping the video frame brought us this: In one frame the disc is out of Rohre's hand and in the next frame Malissa's hand hits Rohre's arm. Replaying at normal speed you can see Rohre's arm snap back. But was the hit after the release? It looked like it. Would any thrower be able to know when the hit occurred exactly, especially given that a good IO needs follow-through? Doubtfully. And would a foul call be made even then, considering that at least a short follow-through on an inside-out flick is particularly necessary?

The game was a great one, it had elements of the epic Fury-Uno 17-16 Worlds title game of 2010 in Prague with neither teams ever up by more than two.

In the end Canada had two chances to score and the USA ended up with three chances to score and the third one counted.

Both sides showed some real grit and talent and special props has to go to Canada for getting to the finals with a team many didn't quite see coming.

WCBU2011: Open Finals

2011-08-29T20:15:00.000-04:00

The scores have been posted, the final results tallied and medals awarded: WCBU2011 ended on a high note in the Discraft Beach Arena in front of thousands of players and curious onlookers witnessing six championship games of excellent beach ultimate.

From the beginning to the end Beach Worlds was a memorable experience filled with spirited fun on the beach and top competition on the field. It's no coincidence that the field is the beach and the beach the field… fair-minded spirit and competitive fire were united at this tournament.

OPEN DIVISION
The result can't be a surprise: the United States defeated the Philippines 13-9 in the finals and brought home gold as predicted. The Philippines—primarily represented by the club team Boracay Dragons— are known worldwide as masterful beach specialists and repeated as silver medalists.

Switzerland, led by Paganello stars Lorenz Stauffer and Robin Brüderlin, stifled Italy to claim bronze in the third place game.

The USA-Philippines finals gave fans everything they wanted: spectacular layout grabs, waves of speedy defenders, well-executed offensive sets and two teams prepared to compete for gold.

In the end too many early unforced errors from the Filipino side and too much firepower from the Americans proved the difference.

Twice the Philippines got caught looking for the next pass and dropped easy hammers: Perhaps USA's changing defensive sets and junky zones disrupted the Filipino flow just enough.

On offense the Americans were able to send in lines featuring cutters with just as much foot speed as fleet Filipino defenders Panoy de los Santos and Jeffrey Rodriguez. Coupled with the steady handling and deep-look options from veterans Tyler Kinley, Adam Simon and Webster McBride and a healthy height advantage the American offense proved tough to contain.

Still the Philippines fought: Down three breaks 0-3 to start they tied it at 3s before USA separated again with three straight and the counterpunching began. A spectacular hammer layout goal from Rodriguez closed it to 9-7 but was followed by a score and layout D from American Teddy Browar-Jarus to up the lead to 11-7. A double happiness D and score from Hendrix Manning was matched by a step-back flick huck from Simon to make it 12-8. There was some parity here, even if the Philippines' electric fast-moving "Dragon style" offense of quick passes proved unmatched on the beach and the Americans' calm under pressure rarely wavered. The match finally drew to a close with a Kinley throw to speedy Asa Wilson.

For the USA the tournament ended with a healthy respect for the competition and a satisfying win over a worthy opponent.

It was also notable for the USA's 12-10 showcase loss to Italy that confirmed what was suspected beforehand: even sending a hand-picked All-Star team from a nation of 40,000 full-time ultimate players isn't enough to overcome a steady and determined opponent.

For the Philippines they had to be happy getting back to the finals in what was clearly a more difficult field of competition than WCBU2007—down a break late in their quarterfinal against an upstart and largely unheralded Canadian squad, for instance, the Philippines had to run off two straight to win on double-game point.

In their semifinal against Italy, however—which initially started as a physical call-fest interrupted by a spirit-circle time-out—they strung together five straight scores twice to win in a blow-out.

But WCBU2011 in some ways may be the end of an era for the Philippines and the Dragons. The Filipino team we saw was the same group from four years ago and age may steal away some of their stars for future tournaments. Only a handful of players on this team are in their 20s and if the Philippines wants to get back to the finals in 2015 they will have to start a youth rebuilding process soon.

The Italians looked strong all tournament in defeating the USA and the Philippines in crowd-pleasing Beach Arena showcase games before mysteriously battling nerves and a sense of fear before taking the field in their doomed semifinal against the Philippines. Still the Italians proved their style of play marked by an aggressively opportunistic offense and fearless defense was a solid and successful model.

And finally we have to remember Switzerland as a presence here and a team we can expect to see more of in the future. Their tight 12-10 loss to the USA in semifinals said as much about their talent and savvy as anything.

One final note: as mentioned in the preview, competition-wise, this tournament suffered from its proximity to the European Championships. Grass is still considered superior for most of Europe and players from EUC Open finalists Sweden and Great Britain were not in attendance. GB's best player, Si Weeks, fitted himself on the Mixed Masters team, for instance.

But that takes nothing away from the players that did come to compete and a tournament environment that produced absolutely awesome displays of competition, spirit, fun and entertainment for players and spectators alike.

BULA has made it clear that it wants the ethos of beach ultimate to be different than that of the grass field game and if WCB2011 was any indication they have succeeded.

the Great Delay

2011-08-29T17:28:00.000-04:00

Beach Worlds is over!

By, like, 2 days now. I'm an avid baseball fan. Phillies, if you must know. About 11 minutes after a routine Phillies game ends there's a complete write-up with video recaps, photos and statistics up online.

When an ultimate tournament ends there's a delay because one guy (me) is kinda maybe supposed to—although never explicitly stated—write up the results.

And i'm at a hotel outside the airport in Venice begging for spare change and emailing like a hound chasing a rabbit trying desperately to get photos of the tournament so i can put them up on Skyd.

It's sad but true. But we're getting better and we're getting closer. Any day now, any day.

Did I mention I now have a gold medallion? Traded for it. Traded my SOUL. Just kidding. In actuality I spent 23 years playing this ridiculous game to get it. Not bad, certainly better than playing 23 years without winning a championship of any kind....

USA Women, Great Britian Mixed Masters, USA Grandmasters win Gold

2011-08-26T19:28:00.000-04:00

The beach arena is an excellent location to showcase ultimate. The track is fast, the stands are high and echo the cheers of the many countries there to watch the big games.

The action started this afternoon with USA versus Austria in Grandmasters. With precision offense and big ups the U.S. team hardly had a turnover on offense en route to a convincing win, albeit not a blowout.

In Mixed Masters the upstart Great Britain team led by an unstoppable Si Weeks began the day by upsetting the German team in semis before storming out of the gates on defense and offense against undefeated USA in the finals. It never seemed that USA could find a proper rhythm as miscommunications led to far too many turnovers for the USA O line. GB's squad, bolstered with women who won WCBU Gold in Brazil and Paganello Mixed division winners Poughkeepsie were stacked from the start so the question was how did they actually manage to lose to both USA and Germany twice in pool play—twice?

I talked to them after the game and it turns out that they played the numbers very well, using a large squad to rest top players like Weeks and Lucy Byrne over the course of pool play games before letting them fully anchor the team in the finals. They also saved up energy for the final and used heavy defensive pressure coming in waves to completely dismantle the American O.

The women's final was the highlight of the night. Both teams looked to come out of the gates hard and fast, knowing that the first 2-3 points of a quick 45 minute game can really set the pace. And that they did, blistering speedsters running down on defense, huge hucks from Canada's Malissa Lundgren (who, incidentally, dominated the leaderboard for the weekend with 44 goal shots, an average of 4.4 a game) massive ground-eating under cuts from USA's Marie Maderas and physical marks and hard D: this game was defined as a battle from the beginning.

Breaking the O and D proved not too difficult as turnovers weren't uncommon. But neither squad could find the right D-line handlers to withstand the pressure and more often than not the D would prevail. USA went up a break late in the game, 9-7, and held on as the cap went into effect meaning it was a game to 10 and Canada had the weight on their shoulders to score.

The O line managed to make it happen giving the Americans two chances on O to win. when the first one failed, however, the score was tied at 9s and the pressure returned to the American shoulders. With so much speed out there I felt the defense had the advantage and this almost proved correct after two USA turnovers had given Canada a chance to win the game. But it was not to be -- the defense of the USA proved equally stout and refusing to give in and the Canadians forced up two throws for turnovers. Finally with both crowds of stands roaring, the Americans, bailed out by a foul call on an IO throw that initially looked clean, converted the break after the same IO connected and won, 10-9, a stunning and anticlimactic end to a fantastic game.

WCBU2011: Masters, MixMastas, GrandMasters Semis and Beyond....

2011-08-26T05:40:00.002-04:00

MASTERS

The Masters division here has two things going for it: parity and some serious height. It seems that the taller guys keep playing longer as teams across the board tend to outsize their Open counterparts. Or maybe a little extra girth makes them look taller.

Pool play has finally ended this morning and settled final positions for the playoffs. Perhaps expected, perhaps not, the Canadians managed to defeat the top-seeded Austrians this morning at 9am even though the game meant little to either team. Austria, crafty, tall, perhaps not as good looking as the U.S. Masters team, knew that win or lose they would likely face France in the semis.

France defeated Austria 11-10 and will be fired-up to do so again and make it to the finals. The French team is young, hungry and they run quite well so it will be interesting to see if they can do it again.

With the Austrian loss the U.S. regained the top spot and face off against Spain whom they defeated 13-6 yesterday—although it was clear in some ways that Spain was not putting out their best effort in the game, perhaps holding reserves for the likely semifinal re-match.

Of note is that if the U.S. and Austria win their semis we can expect a raucous crowd for the re-match in the finals. Wednesday's Austrian upset win over USA was punctuated by an energized and active sideline of fans waving flags, cheering loudly before and during plays and at one point rushing the field with four giant Austrian flags during a timeout. It was an impressive display that seemed to rattle the Americans and if they meet again we can expect more of the same—which is great for the game and great for the fans.

Both teams have been warily eyeing each other since that electrifying Austrian win and the scouting ledgers have increased. If this game happens, it will be a good one.

GRANDMASTERS

Following their countrymen, the Austrian GM team rattled of the last two of the game on defense with Johannes Petz connecting with Stefan Pichler to upset the favored Americans on Thursday and tie them for the top spot in the pool. However, USA had defeated Austria earlier by more points meaning they retained their top spot.

Still the Austrian win is a big one for their confidence even if it does motivate the Americans now to seek revenge and come out fired-up. After what should be an easy semi for the Americans against either Great Britain or France and a more difficult one for the Austrians against Germany, we'll find out tonight who's planned better for the expected rubber match to be broadcast live.

MIXED MASTERS
Great Britain upset Germany in semifinals this morning, 11-9, perhaps a shock to the German system and will now face an undefeated USA team in the finals this evening.

USA earlier outlasted Austria in their semifinal 13-6 led by their height, Jeremy Clark, Kimberly Beach and Sarah VanWagenen. In GB they will see a familiar Paganello foe, a team with several ex-Poughkeepsie and Iceni players and some serious goal-scoring from captain Si Weeks.

Thursday Recap of the Week and Semis Preview for WCBU2011

2011-08-25T14:22:00.001-04:00

THURSDAY NIGHT RUNDOWN
As we peek into matchups coming up for quarters and semis let's remember that there's been a fair amount of close games and the parity and spirit here is a pleasure to experience.

Where once it looked like USA might run away with all six divisions the results from yesterday have upset that prediction and placed USA in a weaker position heading towards the finals.

The biggest upset may have been in the Open division as Italy overtook and outplayed the United States in a showcase match at the Beach Arena. Playing loose, relaxed and connecting on wild scoobers and long hucks, the Italians seemed to get in the heads of the tight Americans whose number of unforced errors was remarkably high.

It may have been a good thing for the Americans to knock them down a notch early enough in the tournament to not suffer any real loss of positioning. The next game after the loss the American offense that looked quite shoddy in the showcase match went 8-8 against the Germans to put away a tough opponent.

The upset placed Italy atop the pool, followed by United States, Philippines and Germany and all four teams looked solid on the beach with tight games against each other. The strength of this "pool of death" will strongly test Pool A in quarters as what appears to be a weaker side with Switzerland at the top (but let's not forget they have more than a few Paga all-stars on the team) followed by Canada, Spain -- unexpectedly, in my book -- and Austria.

It's interesting to note that the teams that are closest to Venice -- Austria, Switzerland, Italy and Spain—have been the biggest surprises of the tournament so perhaps a regional advantage exists.

WOMEN
The news is already out that Great Britain squeaked by USA on double game point yesterday sending the Americans to their first loss and propelling GB atop the leader board. It didn't last long however. By the end of the day today the American women re-adjusted their cuts to orient less on massive deeps and unders and more on shorter more economical maneuvering appropriate for the beach. It must've worked as they put up enough points on Canada in a 10-6 win to virtually lock up first place as Canada had earlier defeated Great Britain 9-7.

Fighting to make semis are Germany and Finland, both at 6-3 and both playing 8-1 teams tomorrow (Great Britain and Canada). Germany has the edge with a win and tiebreaker over Finland and Finland is rumored to be losing some of their players tomorrow meaning semis should look like this:

USA (1) versus Germany (4). Pool play result was a USA win 11-8.
Great Britain (2) vs. Canada (3). Pool play was a Canada win 9-7.

These four teams are evenly matched and the GB-Canada game is expected to be quite a battle.

MIXED

Estonia's Sexy Legs, despite their thrilling come-from-behind win over a top-loaded Australian squad, are out of the running for quarterfinals. At 4-4 they appear to have a shot with one more game tomorrow to close at 5-3 and tie Poland if Poland falls to the Netherlands. However, head-to-head Poland wins a tie so they are locked into the fourth seed in pool B meaning Poland—coming out of an initial #17 seeding—will cross over to play the British tomorrow in quarters.

Rounding out pool B will be Switzerland in the second spot presuming they take care of business with Italy. Riding high with an impressive showing and the pedigree is Germany, defending silver medalists and frequent beach tournament winners. Tonight they play Australia under the lights in the highlight match which will certainly be their strongest test yet but one they are expected to overcome.

What it looks like at the moment is this:
USA (1) versus Australia (3)
Germany (1) versus Portugal (3)
Great Britain (2) versus Poland (4)
Switzerland (2) versus Austria (4)

Some note here: Poland's team is based on the club team Grandmaster Flash and their run to success here is somewhat of a surprise and a great thing for growing ultimate in the country.

If my guess at the snake is correct (its what Open is doing) then Australia's mixed team, the one expected to medal, could be relegated to a fight for 5th pretty quickly.

Switzerland's success caught me off guard, I was not privy to knowing what kind of team they put together and have not seen a Swiss mixed team to my knowledge at Paganello in recent years.

Great Britain's resurgence behind the Forth twins is for real and the do have every mean of defending their title.

Germany, you just have a sense, could be the team whose year has arrived. Led by international jet-setter playboy Ruë and his merry band of Munich-stein raisers, they will have a lot of mojo on their side.

Interview with Karen Cabrera

2011-08-22T06:34:00.002-04:00

simple piece

Boracay Interview post game

Make sure to check out the livestream webcasts I will be doing this week from WCBU throughout. Check out the fcebook page for more info

www.facebook.com/wcbu2011

Beach Ultimate: The Place Where the Surf Meets the Sky

2011-08-19T05:50:00.000-04:00

[Note: most of my posts are also simulcast on Skyd Magazine's Beach Blog]

In the late 1990s when the Pacific Northwest-oriented mixed division (then called co-ed) was introduced to the National Championships in the United States it brought with it a high regard—both in principle and regulation— for the Spirit of the Game.

Teams were encouraged to have fun, express themselves and bring back a love of the game that didn't necessitate winning. Spirit scores were tallied assessing whether teams played fairly and "spirited." It seems commonplace now but at the time it was both controversial and neo-revolutionary.

More importantly, the new free-spirited division brought back the joy of play and the camaraderie of the worldwide ultimate community.

Co-ed teams were organized around groups of friends and not captains and juntas making cuts. Costumes, parties and general amounts of silliness were encouraged and rewarded. Co-ed brought a different way of thinking to the competitive North American arena of the Open and Women's divisions and thrust summer fun tournaments to the forefront.

In much the same way, the World Championships of Beach Ultimate—a spinoff of the high-spirited, rollicking beach party tournament Paganello—calls upon that same level of fun and fair play.

It's not a coincidence that WCBU was founded by the Beach Ultimate Lover's Association (BULA) and its leader Patrick van der Valk, an energetic, ebulllient man known for peculiar headwear (a fake horned viking helmet) and playing with a bacchic, pleasure-seking Paganello team that proudly sports sleek banana hammocks when not playing in costume.

So even as beach tournaments have mutiplied around the world in the short decade since BULA's founding (I would estimate perhaps 100 beach tournaments now and less than 10 in 2001) the emphasis on good parties, Spirited play and beach malarkey has remained.

If you've been to Van der Valk's supremely ecstatic Bar do Peixe tournament in Portugal you would see all of this in action as Van der Valk truly believes in the power of the party to expand ultimate's base. He is now the chairperson for the Spirit of the Game committee of WFDF and reminded WCBU teams to keep SOTG high on the priority list with this recent Facebook post:

During the WCBU, at the end of each day, all SOTG scores are evaluated. Teams with significantly low spirit scores will be talked to in order to understand the facts and for them to have constructive feedback to improve.

Teams that do not improve low spirit scores during the event run the risk of not being eligible to play in the semi finals. We think this will not happen, but I wanted to make sure everyone is aware of this BULA rule.

Denying a team a chance to play in semifinals would never happen under Patrick's watch and would be considered shocking at any BULA event. In fact, I doubt van der Valk's sense of Spirit of the Game would even allow such a thing to happen!

Or as Lukas Kahwe Smith posted recently on the WCBU page,
"We meet next week to celebrate sprit of the game, winning medals is just a sideshow. So captains, encourage your players to give it 110% when it comes to spirit. Players speak up if your captains forget and when in doubt .. give a hug .. see you all there :)"

So leave the real world behind and join us on the beach where the surf meets the sky and the horizon is endless.

Uganda Article

2011-08-03T12:57:00.002-04:00

my article on Uganda ultimate is up on Sky'd finally.

Update on the team is that the captain/founder Alex Matovu is going to a meeting at the Italian Embassy in Uganda to see if he can swing a deal to get the team to come.

The question is whether or not some players will defect to Italy/Europe and not return to Uganda. It may be a valid question, I don't know enough of the team or the process to pass judgment. But at the moment that is a sticking point -- the Ugandans need to find a way to prove or insure their return to Kampala.

anyway, here is the article

Seven Hills to the Sands of Lignano Sabbiadoro

All the Wildwood 2011 Results At Once

2011-08-02T19:48:00.001-04:00

if you just click on this one link! Guaranteed!

All Sorts of Sandy: Wildwood 2011

Except for the following bits which I learned in the last few hours about the competitive 2-2 division, parties and USA vs PoNY showcase game.

Party Q&A Number 1: Friday
Was there beer served for the 400+ captains who had to wait hours in line to register? Apparently not. Fail.
Was there a lotta dancing at the Bolero and fun n games on the Boardwalk? Yes.

Party Q&A Number 2: Saturday
Was the tournament video shot on Saturday and edited that night kinda cool? Yep
Did the beer at the beer tent on the sand run out with 400 people waiting? Yep. And one has to wonder: for a tournament gathering in which a staggering $143,000 is generated just by team registration (and an equally unsightly low number representing expenditures is conjoined) how is it humanly possible to run out of beer? There should be 150 kegs just on standby. There is simply no excuse for that. This tournament used to have free and very tasty food after the games and that's gone and the expense is the same. I would wager tournament organizers are pocketing 10-15K easily from this tournament. Turns out that capitalism and ultimate DO go together, who knew?

USA vs PoNY Showcase Game
During the aforementioned beer freeze and, I guess, some of the beer consuming too, the tournament set up a showcase match between USA and a gathering of New York PoNY players who were down for the weekend competing on various different teams. This would be USA's first and only real 5-on-5 open game before Italy as sand events preceding had either been coed (Sandblast, Wildwood), scrimmages (versus us, Team USA Masters) or 4-on-4 (Wildwood again). but in this game they extended the field to BULA 5-on-5 and brought out the big guns and wow -- what a difference. The conservative give and go offense that looked, at times, ineffective for USA at Sandblast and WW was nowhere to be seen. Instead nothing but streaking deeps, massive under cuts and huge field length bombs for scores by both teams but far more effectively by Team USA. Their defensive speed and pressure was also highlighted as they put a thorough beatdown on PoNY and impressed all watching and the video crew filming it [full discretion: i was a commentator for the action and if it ever sees the light of day you can heckle me for my miscues].

Except for those at the beer tent because they were blocked from watching the game by ugly plastic neon orange terrorist fence material used at Guantanamo Bay. So you either had the choice of drinking beer (at least it was good beer -- Magic Hat came from one of the taps) or watching the showcase game but you couldn't do both. Or if you were wise you waited until the $143,000 worth of beer ran out and ran over to watch the action.

Competitive (called the Open division) 2-2
Here's what I got from Kim Tischler and Drew Jones who played in this division on the team People I Like (Plus Drew Jones)

Drew: "We lost in semis to Hennessy [at Halftime] 13-16. Stout, Teddy and Cal were tough to overcome."

Kim: "We lost in the semis to Hennessey. Great game. Mostly everything we did ran through our women. They mainly used their men namely Stout and Calvin. O-Pig bested them [Hennessey] in the finals in a big way. Fans were denied a third game."

Coming Up: The Ultimate Scenes in Kampala, Uganda and Chennai, India

2011-07-24T19:03:00.000-04:00

For this years WCBU11, aka, Beach Worlds 2011 in Italy this August, I have been interviewing two unique teams coming to the tournament for the first time: the Kampala-based Team Uganda and the Chennai-based Team India.

Their stories are similar but different and will be recognizable to all who have played ultimate in developing nations. Typically, expats and NGO workers from UK, USA, Canada, Australia and the like support ultimate in local "international" schools and show up for informal pick-up games in towns and cities.

Eventually local players start to fill out the ranks and build up viable clubs, leagues and traveling teams.

Team Uganda, long-time leader Alex "Queenie" Matovu explained to me, used to be 70% expats and NGO workers but is now reversed with 90% Ugandans (with a few Kenyans and Rwandans in the mix).

Team India founder Narayan has a twist on this story however, as the Chennai team was founded by Indians who studied in the United States and played ultimate, returned to India and started up the scene.

This week look for full interviews with both Queenie and Narayan on the WCBU11 site and the Beach Blog on Sky'd Magazine.

“Even Shameless, Pathetic Losers Occasionally Bumble Their Way to The Top"

2011-07-13T23:56:00.002-04:00

One has to ask -- when does age disqualify you from success in Summer League?

If you have an 80 yard bomb in your arsenal and a savvy knowledge of throwing lanes why can't you dominate a seasonal series filled with part-timers, college undergraduates and parking lot drunks? My guess from both experience and from this particularly noteworthy roster--

Westchester Summer League (NY) - Team White Open Draft Division

-- suggests that, well, most readers here, even those on this team, have a few generations to go before age prevents them from playing at a sustainable summer league level.

But therein lies a conundrum. Can an aging core (conveniently labeled [core] in this roster) get by with skills and thrills in a league where speed is cheap? From my experience playing Open league WSL there's a ton of wheels out there and trying to cover all of them is like trying to eradicate graft in Afghanistan.

So even if Team Red has been labeled a bunch of shameless losers by a veteran war hand who knows how to put down an insurgency or two, will it matter in the end?

I don't know a single name on the Red roster. On White I've played with half of them and at 38 I pre-date that half. Put that White roster circa 1996 up against PoNY circa 2006 and I think White's got more than a chance. But maybe, just maybe, an ungrateful shameless foul bunch of losers like Red circa 2011 have more than a shot against the aging former champs.

Only time will tell.

Chicago Sandblast Sunday Finals

2011-07-10T22:29:00.000-04:00

Sandblast Final Results

Sandblast finals Sunday

The clouds came in the afternoon today making for a temperate finals with a touch of wind. Great weather for watching.

As expected, top seed Team USA was in the finals with their deep bench and bounty of speed. They matched up against Drazba XX, presumably a team going back to the Southern Illinois days or at least named in homage to the SIU captain killed in a car crash in 1985.

Now a Chicago-based core who has played together for more than ten years, Drazba added Ron Kubulanza and Alicia White to the mix, formidable pickups for any team. The combination proved effective as Drazba took half 8-7.

Team USA finally reeled in Drazba by converting giveaways and looked to close it out at 14-11 before Chicago rebounded with two straight to make it 14-13. Finally a Jared Inselmann forehand down the line to a streaking Brett Matsuzaka provided the win for the Beach Worlds team.

In semis, it was Drazba over Team USA2, aka the Masters team, 15-12. A sloppy game for the most part on both sides but Drazba proved more up to the task, completing the big plays and buckling down when needed. It ended a nice run for us (Team USA 2), playing together for the first time and initially seeded 11th.

In the other semi Team USA defeated Red Stripe. Red Stripe then removed their Speedos, donned velour tracksuits, set up the loudspeaker, and live commentated/heckled the finals entirely in Italian. To understand more, you have to see the DVD.

Beachface, the ND alumni team always sporting the camouflage, took the betty pool with three straight in the morning to win out for 9th and an overall 6-1 record.

In the Sky'd writers versus Sky'd writers II (who knew so many Chicagoans?), Team USA 2 defeated Randy Graves and the Kansas-Deerfield combo team Beach for America in quarters. This was the game I learned the bro-smash and hope to employ it as a psych-up tool at the next tournament.

As usual tournament director Twirly provided plenty of giveaways for everyone. Spirit winners Drunkards and Dragons received some nice schwag, the tournament champions on Team USA got shirts and a free bid for next year (!?) and everyone got plenty of drinks from Fuze, 5 Hr. Energy and Cruzan Rum at the Saturday night party.

No, actually, no one paid me to write that. I just thought it would be nice if I did.

Chicago Sandblast Saturday

2011-07-09T21:30:00.000-04:00

Sandblast Saturday

First, some answers from Thursday's preview.

1) Team "Threat Level Magna" is actually a typo as the team is supposed to be Threat Level Magenta. In the high-stakes action on the beach today the defending champions TLM were upset by Scottie's Revenge, a team entirely outfitted in Scottie Pippen #33 Chicago Bulls pinnies. Led by some monster with huge ups named Tyler, the Scotties rolled as TLM faltered badly.

2) Team USA – will they lose in the semis like that Potlatch year or win the whole thing like several other iterations? Right now their number one seed looks spot-on as they rolled. Their speed is just too much for most teams and when you realize it's Team USA Open + Team USA Women's then you kind of get how good they are with very little fall-off top to bottom.

3) Team USA 2 found themselves in the aforementioned pool with TLM and the Scottie Pippens and finished 4-0 fairly easily, ending the day with a thrashing of the TLM defending champions who never looked comfortable. "On second thought we shouldn't have gone with a roster of 21," reflected captain Matt Davidman afterwards. The USA2 win also ended a personal challenge as I defeated Sky'd founder Elliot Trotter and he owes me a six-pack.

4) Number of teams representing the Midwest with an over/under of 48. This is a tricky one. Of the 20 teams I polled, only four weren't local. You do the math.

In other news, in the Spirit division the Teenage Mutant Ninja BUFF squad, alumni and undergraduates from Bradley University playing in the D5 position and dressed entirely in Donatellos, Leonardos, Michelangelos and Raphaels, won 13-12 on double game point in the last game of the day.

Euro-themed Red Stripe sporting swank banana hammocks underneath their Euro-styled velour warm-ups, finished 3-1 with a win over the 2nd place team to advance. I think this is actually the same group of guys from the original Speedo team I remember from 2005.

Notre Dame alumni Beachface fell to North Park (Chicago-based, likely alumni) in a reversal of College Regionals past. Beachface may have a chance to advance to quarters based on point differential.

Party tonight is at a rather large bar eatery called Mad River on North Sheffield. Much drinking to be had by all as wristbands get competitors free beer for some amount of time.

Sandblast 2011 Preview

2011-07-08T12:45:00.000-04:00

This may also be posted on Sky'd Magazine as we are doing a cross-promotional beach tour '11.
---

My last trip to Sandblast was in 2005. That year I shot, edited and commentated the finals for the tournament DVD and played with Hurt Locker. Back then there were several teams that could make finals but you couldn't tell who they were. The crew wearing thick tans and thin Speedos? Bunch of guys and girls in button-downs and ties? And there were friends you didn't recognize because you weren't used to seeing them on sand.

I'm back for 2011 and have to wonder about the tournament and how much it's changed or remained the same. Here's a few questions I am asking myself for the overdue return to Chicago.

---

Defending champions Team Esquire changing their name to Threat Level Magna — mistake, typo or savvy marketing? (answer tomorrow from captain Matt Davidman).

Team USA @ Sandblast – Potlatch semis losers or Poultry Day champions?

Team USA 2 – First losers, second-tier winners or the age-defying 2011 Dallas Mavericks?

Number of teams representing the Midwest out of 60 total across both divisions. Over/under: 48.

Quantity of Fuze drinks given away by Fuze, the Official Sponsor of Chicago Sandblast 2011. I'm gonna guess 750.

A question we've all wanted to find out the answer to: who plays better on the sand, Milwaukee, Grand Rapids or Sheboygan?

Beach etiquette: should I call that travel or just maybe hold it back because the sand is really deep today and heck, it's only beach?

Looking at the pools I see eight teams with dirty, double entendre names referring to adult situations. How many more can there be?? The eight I have are: Ski Unit, Highlighter Nation, Labor Party, Hoffman's Mom, Big Fun, Crunkzilla, Team USA2 and Beach for America. Gnarly stuff.

Crystal Ball: Looking to the future USA Ultimate is starting a Beach Division in 2012. There's a theory that the beach game could go big like beach volleyball's raging success in the 1980s. Let's say the ruse works and beach ultimate is the hippest activity on the planet. Does Zima provide the first major sponsorship? Or Kangol?

How many months away is the 2011 World Championships of Beach Ultimate this August 21-28?

If something happens on the beach, does it stay on the beach?

---

Answers to some of these questions, a Q&A with Davidman and other burning answers tomorrow sometime.

Team USA's Beach Tour 2011 -- Chicago Sandblast

2011-07-06T12:25:00.000-04:00

my return trip to Sandblast is just around the corner. It's been far too long since I've experienced the tournament. THe giveaways, always a treat in this low-profile sport.

The radio station at the fields. The effervescence of Tournament Director Adam "Twirly" Levy. The team that plays in speedos. The warm water. Heck, Chicago is even in its early summer glory.

Six years have passed since my last trip to Chicago for the tournament. Last time I got to throw down with a pretty good bunch of Wisco and CUT guys and girls. This year I have the privilege of playing for Team USA in the masters division at Beach Worlds and one of our "training" tournaments is Sandblast.

Of course Sandblast doesn't have age-specific divisions and is 100% mixed male and female. So it's not quite so much a practice in terms of strategy and structure. More like a chance to get out on the sand, comingle with teammates, and TAKE DOWN REIGNING CHAMPS ESQUIRE!

There. It's been said. Bring it.

College Nationals Turns a Corner

2011-05-29T11:00:00.001-04:00

Simply put, there are some kinks to be worked out,but the coverage of Nationals is the best yet and the concerted effort from USAU and Skyd and others is paying off for viewers and anyone with internet access.

thumbs up.

Badminton Tries the Toad Method

2011-05-27T10:28:00.000-04:00

For years certain member of the ultimate community, like badly-trained dogs, have insisted, among other things, that ultimate ought to have cheerleaders. You know, to bring some fans to the game. Like the NFL, Toad would insist. Like ultimate and the NFL are even in the same stratosphere.

Well, maybe Toad should watch badminton!!

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/27/sports/badminton-dress-code-for-women-criticized-as-sexist.html?_r=1&hp#

Cheerleading Dances on Our Gravestones

2011-05-26T12:27:00.000-04:00

well, you know, there's lot of competition out there to hit the big time. Here's another.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/23/sports/gender-games-born-on-sideline-cheering-clamors-to-be-sport.html?_r=1&hp

Removed Portion of Article on Skyd

2011-05-26T00:45:00.002-04:00

This email came to me this evening:

Hey Tony,

FYI, USAU has requested that a portion of the article be taken down. You are welcome to reword it but you'll have to check with Andy Lee to see what they want out there -

This was removed:

And once again the semifinals and finals will be broadcast (not live, of course) on a television network, CBS College Sports. Since the niche cable outfit College Sports Television (CSTV) and the UPA worked out a deal in 2003, broadcasting the Championships has been an awkward affair.

There really aren't a lot of spectators out there for the game despite all of ultimate's best attempts. The UPA kept the details of the CSTV deal under wraps but suffice to say the UPA paid for that coverage, which sort of undermines the common perception of how the business model works for sports and broadcasting.

But ultimate is surely not the only niche sport to pay for its own broadcasting and if you think the sport is popular enough to sustain media interest, think again.

"The last contract we had with CBS College Sports expired this fall. So we took the opportunity to test the market. We pitched to Versus, Fuse, NBC—there was no interest. CBS was the only show in town," spoke USA Ultimate's Marketing Director Andy Lee in a recent conversation.

"With CBS it's a barter deal. We cover production costs and in return we get inventory which is advertising time," explained Lee. "CBS wont give out ratings of their shows but it was a good sign that the deal got significantly better. This year was one-quarter the cost and three times as much coverage."

Polar Bears go Nationwide

2011-01-31T17:53:00.002-05:00

As we know now from reading the USAU Magazine, the national-champion mixed team Polar Bears got their name from the pickup line:

PICKUP ARTIST: How much does a polar bear weigh?
PROSPECTIVE MATE: I don't know.
PICKUP ARTIST: Enough to break the ice. So, what's your phone number? Let's have sweaty Eskimo sex.

I added that last line about sweaty Eskimo sex because it gets to the point and here in New York that's the point.

It's a creative, albeit hackneyed and perpetually silly pickup line, but when paired with an ultimate team of giggling 20somethings egging on teammates to use the line (the team did not take it seriously) then you've got a good story and at least some legitimate context.

And then came Hollywood. Coincidence? Of course not. Hollywood knows all about ultimate. Joel Silver, one of Tinseltown's most famous mega-producers, co-founded and helped popularize the sport. He knows what's up.

So the movie trailer for the latest cheeseball flick "Hall Pass" should come as no surprise. I've looked for links online and found this below:

Hall Pass

But oddly enough, it doesn't have the "Polar Bear" pickup line (i've seen a different version on TV ads) yet it does contain a scene with some chicks throwing frisbees.

Make your own judgment call on all this.

Hollywood + ultimate. It's happening. Be prepared.

Some Basic Lei-Out Results

2011-01-18T21:18:00.000-05:00

To follow will be more tales from the sea and Santa Monica.

But for the meantime, here are the results.

Semifinals in A bracket was Strawberry Love, not sure where from but I recognized Jared Inselman from DC/Truck Stop on the team, against Sb Antimony III -- a Santa Barbarba/Condors-based team with Husak, Dugan, Steets, Burfiend, Regetz, others I am sure.

And apologies for not knowing the women. I recognized a few of them but not as much as the guys. Strawberry goes up 2 or 3 but eventually loses by 2 I think?

Other semifinal was Woodies in LA in their Munich-gear and random pickups (Kimberly and Rocky Beach conjoined! No relation, however, except for perhaps one category) versus San Fran outfit Crazy Go Nuts University with 3 PoNY guys and others. CGNU basically crushes in this game to make finals.

Finals was good. i missed the first half to watch the Jets take down the Patriots at a bar on Muscle Beach with some NY teammates and let me tell you, this was a good call. Tallboy PBRs, a bunch of meatheads and those upstanding Patriots getting faced was primo.

Anyway, second half I get back and SB Antimony is up a couple. Husak making a bunch of plays basically. Some dicey turnovers from CGNU and also some good plays on D. SB Antimony wins by three eventually and Hollywood Husak, according to Corey Sanford, becomes the winningest Lei-Out player in its 12 year history.

In B pool the competition seemed pretty good. We escaped a team called Straddle with some Huck Finn players on it by making some pretty dicey in/out calls apparently (I really can't say much except that one of our players was very insistent on a few calls so the disc went back to thrower) to get to B quarters at 6-0. We played Mustache Rides, an Austin-based team with Straw and a bunch of dudes and dudettes from Doublewide, Showdown, Dirty Birds, Chewbacca, etc. Basically all Nationals talent. Not sure how we even kept this close although I think me, Babbino, Tucker and Tisch held the fort as long as we could before falling 11-9.

B-pool semis was then Mustache versus an A-bracket descender, Pandangerous. Pandangerous seemed to be winning. Other side was Guns of Westwood (presumably ex-UCLA?) versus PieMo (presumably Pie Queens + Ugmo, the two sides of Cal Berkeley). I think PieMo won this one.

Shenanigans in next report.

Scripts in Santa Monica: Lei-Out 2011

2011-01-16T11:59:00.000-05:00

There's been much to write about about and little effort to do so. From New Year's Evening celebration with some ultimate dignitaries and a few purposefully unpublished photos.

After that: New Year's Day hat tournament in the snow when some Swedish guy skyed me and then left during the third game on cross-country skis. Lots of snow. Great tournament, as always, as its a great way to start the new year.

But one thing you cannot get in the new year 2011 in New York is a prescription for medical marijuana which is something that come very naturally if you walk down a street in Santa Monica and run into a guy holding a sign that says "4:20 doctor." If you ask the doctor for s script you will have to go through a checklist and sign off: name. reason you are requesting a prescription. are you a resident of california. what is your medical condition?

apparently all you have to do is answer all the questions pretty much straight-up except the residency status. you want to say "california" for that one. go for ADHD as your illness, talk the guy down from $100 for his doctor's consultation to $65.

then pop on over to one of the green pharmacy sign/dispensiary and get a recommended strain/dosage, fork over $55 for a 1/8th and voila! You have medical relief for your troubled ADHD.

And that's the day before Lei-Out. The results of the tournament and some other tidibits will follow.

Holiday Bonanza Smorgasbord Hullaballoo

2010-12-05T22:23:00.005-05:00

People complain all the time about, well, everything. Anything. I think that humans communicate in exactly four ways: by bartering (business-speak) by boning (speaking though the hips, baby) by being humorous (as the data age is the new industrial age, humor is its coinage) and, finally the most common, by bitching about the state of affairs in the world.

Fox News is an entire network with millions upon millions of followers who have nothing else to do but complain about shit.

The very foundation of journalism is built on criticism and critics mainly serve to complain. OK, look, there are exceptions of course.

But then comes a month and a half of Thanksgiving to Christmas and then New Years (and assorted related semi-religious non-Judeo Christian holidays and various days of merit like Festivus) in which it seems the entirety of American culture is primed to sell sell sell! And buy buy buy! And unveil shiny new cars. And belts. Shiny belts, or purses, or clutches.

Celebrate touchdowns on Thanksgiving by passing the turkey! Go out on Black Friday, stay in on Cyber Monday. Hit your holiday party for the office. All three of them if you're a freelancer like me.

The action is hot and heavy! Deals on plane tickets to warm places like Reno, the Bahamas, Ecuador. My neihgbor is going to Sri Lanka for Christmas and he's Jewish. Viva America!

People complain about this lengthy stretch of consumerism like the plague has finally descended upon Earth. Worse, they are comedians using the holiday stretch as a punchline. The buy-sell, buy-sell, buy-sell routine that marks the high point of our high capitalist culture is cause for concern! Or comedy! Or business-speak (but not so much on the bonin').

Well screw those people. Them. You know who you are. The complainers. So we have a 6-week stretch of car ads, Christmas lights, snowball fights on TV, spam emails trying to sell you things, etc etc. Why not?! Better than stretching the madness over, say, four months. Better than sitting around in mid-January bored mindless by gray skies and cold weather, waiting for Mardi Gras.

Hey, I live in Brooklyn. The holiday stretch in New York City is actually kind of nice. The streets are lit, the shopping is the bomb, the partying holds off the cold. The city gets scenic. It's a great time, a perfect city for that action.

Basically I'd like to officially register my complaint about the complainers. They're the losers and all their complaints are tired. They are complaining because they need something to complain about. Because they believe in a dead age, as if life in the 1950s in America was free of strife and anguish (ok, maybe it actually was). They complain about capitalism, the right-wingers complain about socialism, the pundits complain about each other. So very unnecessary.

Just give it a whirl. The holiday season. Why the eff not?

Oh, and you can buy my book if you haven't already. A gift for someone. Hot holiday action.

All of that was a set-up to post this link:

Ultimate: The Greatest Non-Bitchin' About Sport Ever Invented For Holiday Gift-Giving and General Fun n' Games

* * *

The Inverse Blog Post Relationship

2010-11-12T18:04:00.000-05:00

A consideration to part-time blog'o'spheres, as this one is. If you're just half-assing and randomly throwing up posts, well, you may be doing more harm than good.

If you're a full time bog'o'rama then by all means, go for all that action and post away!

Otherwise it behooves one to think of a few inverse relationship rules. I made these up, half-assedly, so no need to buy into them.

The more posts one makes to a blog the less effect they will have.
The more serious your blog sounds the more people will think you're all serious and shit.
The more you write, the less you will be understood.
Blog frequency is inversely related to blog popularity.
Popularity is inversely related to perceived intelligence.
Most blog posts, when re-read by the author, sound whiny, self-involved and totally wrong-headed

Selling Out: A Reader's Guide

2010-11-09T14:05:00.000-05:00

Ultimate isn't selling out. We tried to sell out, or rather we tried to sell-in, during the early 1990s with Cuervo Tequila but it wasn't a good fit. Just didn't work.

That's mainly because Cuervo wanted the sport to sell-out not sell-in.

How can you define "selling-out" for a sport? Well it's not that difficult actually. It means to take something organic and try to monetize it. it means letting sponsors and advertisers define success in the sport. It means pretending to be something you're not.

Here are some great examples of what won't happen to ultimate

1) Tough Mudder/ Warrior Dash
Chris Cline sent me this link to a competition modeled on what looks like Cyclocross (mountain biking mixed with an obstacle course) and the set of Braveheart.

http://toughmudder.com/

So is this "sport" a sell-out/ First, it's a competition, not a sport. Second, its website screams "enjoy life! drink alcohol like ~~Cuervo Tequila~~ Dos Equis!" Third, ihe website is clearly not organic. You can tell it was put together with one goal in mind: to make someone somewhere some cash.

here's a direct quote from the Wikipedia page. i'm not going to get into the credibility argument about Wikipedia at the moment, decide for yourself if it's accurate.

"Tough Mudder was founded by Englishmen Will Dean and Guy Livingstone. Dean came up with the idea while at Harvard Business School, and it was a finalist in the Harvard Business School’s annual Business Plan Contest. He brought on Guy Livingstone to act as Chief Operating Officer."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tough_Mudder

2) Flip Cup Guys

You know flip cup, I know flip cup, utlimate players have been playing flip cup as far back as the late 1990s if I recall. Early 2000s? I'm sure someone here could pipe in with the first time they played in college. I don't recall playing in 1995, my senior year.

Regardless, two guys in New Jersey, ie, "Two White Guyzz In New Joisey" decided at some point to try and make some cash on the event. And i'm sure they succeeded. They've tried to monetize an organic drinking game and are probably sitting at home in a mini-mansion in Ridgewood wearing T-Shirts that say, "Suckers!" and "I Love Taking Advantage of College Chicks When They Drink too Much Playing In My Flip Cup Tournament."

http://www.flipcupguys.com/index.php?p=home

3) World Series of Beer Pong

You know it's a sell out when they stage it in a shitty new York City bar, borrow the design of a major league sports logo (in this case, the north Carolina-based New Ultimate Association, founded by Toad and others) and make sure to hire strippers in thongs to show up. Add in prize money, trips to las Vegas and a "documentary" and you've got the makings of a total unadulterated sell out.

http://www.bpong.com/

4) Quidditch

I'm not sure where to qualify this one. I'm thnking they are trying to "sell-in." Amusing that they are trying to go the NCAA route. Good luck with that fellows!!

http://fitperez.com/2010-11-08-student-wants-to-make-harry-potter-sport-quidditch-into-a-legit-ncaa-recognized-sport/?from=PH

So what's the point? The point is that thank God we're not like these jokers, all four of them.

Crystal Ball: A Player's Union for USA Ultimate?

2010-11-02T19:33:00.000-04:00

Free beer is gone from nationals, a telling and damning sign. The apocalypse is surely at hand! No, not really. Plenty of fun times were to be had and I don't think the elimination of free beer is going to ever end those.

However, the National Championships, which if you're keeping at track at home have gone from "Nationals" to the "UPA Club Championships" in order to indicate the inclusion of Canada and pump up the UPA brand, now to the "USA Ultimate Club Championships" with a logo/design actually featuring a map of USA, Canada not included (even though Canada was well-represented here as usual, of course) which means they might soon be called "Nationals" again -- anyway, the Championships are now one step closer to corporate.

Not such a bad thing and we've been going that direction for a long time and this is really what players seem to want: increased media, increased tournament size, observers, accountability, etc etc. In order to do this the UPA had to evolve into a non-profit entity and soon they will become an Org with sponsorship and advertising and this isn't a bad thing.

ESPN.com was at the tournament, CBS Sports paid a visit as well as many potential (and lucrative?) sponsors and advertisers.

If we get there, this is a good thing. The sport will grow up. But remember something unique: the Ultimate Player's Association no longer exists. It's true the Board, elected by the membership of USA Ultimate, chooses the CEO which is Tom Crawford and i think Crawford is great for the role. The Board is almost exclusively made up of ultimate players and this may never change.

But the captain's meeting at Nationals this year wasn't a traditional captain's meeting at all that I could tell. Captains didn't get to choose rules or come to agreement on terms. They don't usually at Nationals and perhaps this might have been done online but in the rules of the game the "Captain's Clause" allows for just about any rule of the game to be voted on and agreed to by captains. Heck, they could have voted for free beer, yes?

Yes, I believe they could have.

But that didn't happen. And this is fine. But someday if sponsorship comes and advertising comes might there be the return of the UPA but this time the UPU -- Ultimate Player's Union? For the players, that is, and not the administrators?

Would be many years in the future. There aren't going to be Ultimate Team Owners in the near future, or at least I doubt it, but it's something to think about.

the End of the Season

2010-10-31T17:04:00.000-04:00

Panda Bears versus Polar Bears was the last matchup at Regionals... but here in Sarasota it was West Coast vs East Coast.

Mikey from Five says hi

Big Controversy? Polar Bears win 15-11.

2010-10-31T16:23:00.000-04:00

whoa, a high hooking forehand caught by the wind tails away fast and a Polar Bears player make s huge grab ON THE LINE. Korber from D5 is on the play, both players went up and.... a slight delay, oversver rules "in"

Where I am out, very hard to tell, i would say out, who knows. But next to me is a veteran observer. On the field were two observers and one from crossfield ruled out and one near sideline ruled in. The "in" call stood even after Korber discussed it.

The observer by me said:

"I would much prefer to be 30 feet away than 6 feet away, that was a really really close call, i hope they got that right"

but thats your ball game! exciting way to finish

14-10 game point Polar Bears

2010-10-31T16:18:00.000-04:00

D5 has disc. Seabirds are flying over the fields so every now and then I will look up and see something in the air, could be a disc, and its a bird floating past instead and the disc is on the ground or something like that.

Well, the end is nigh.

D5 scores downwind to RAFE (check his Facebook page, it's all caps) and they get it to 14-11. But the Polar Bears sidelines are all "mon mon mon!" and "rawr rawr rawr!" and are good to go right now

Zone in Effect

2010-10-31T16:16:00.000-04:00

D5 has put on the zone while Bears are going downwind. But the comfortable handling of #22 Matty Sung, Liu and Tsou make it look easy, fast, quick movement and Bob Liu throws the goal to make it 14-10.

before the goal, an up/down call was called up by Bears, down by D5 so they went to the observer, who can make rulings but not ACTIVE rulings on such calls.

call was ruled down so D5 had yet another chance and yet again, failed to get yardage, making a short turnover that paid off for the Polar Bears.

Bears in Zone D with D5 Going Downwind

2010-10-31T16:10:00.000-04:00

One thing to note is the Bears' use of the zone going both ways. While D5 was playing man, the Bears zone both directions is totally in the heads of D5 and affecting their throws and concentration. They manage to score, Redding to Segool as Segool sneaked around behind the deep in the zone to make it 13-10.

Now on D, while D5 do the same and go Z? they need to mix it up, it has been too comfortable for the Polar Bears.

12-9 Polar Bears, now 13-9

2010-10-31T16:07:00.000-04:00

So basically what we have here is that D5 needs to do what they did in the first half to come back from two upwind breaks to get on serve, here in the second half.

It's a tough spot to be in. If the NorCal Bears score downwind and trade they will win easily.

While D5 can bring the pressue by scring upwind. They get their first chance after a PBR hucks sails long, but a turnover on a bad throw gives the Bears their downwinder to 13-9.

Running out of time and facing the wind and their own lack of mojo, D5 has to now be chilly and score on O

Big Plays try to Revive lackluster D5

2010-10-31T16:03:00.000-04:00

but they're falling behind...

Polar Bears are basically in command after scoring the downwind at half and then converting the upwinder after a short-field turnover mistake from D5. That made it 10-7 and grim looking for D5. Several big plays from Justin Segool, a d-block in the Polar Bears attacking endzone, a hammer reception and hammer goal catch get them the upwinder, but then Polar Bears come right back with Liu for the goal up-wind to negate the advantage.

Once that happens they make the downwinder break conversion count and its 12-8 for "da Bears" now.

Patient Upwind Handling Nets Timeout fo Polar Bears

2010-10-31T15:36:00.000-04:00

They've got the disc now 5 yards to the upwind break. A score here would change the balance in their favor for the net of the first half. Timeout call gives them a new set.

They come in vert stack with ho handlers. First look short corner hot cut is shut down but the _second_ cut is not and at high stall count the forehand connection is made and Polar Bears take half 8-7 and will receive to start the second half.

Mazur Push Pass to Korber, 7-6 D5, back on Serve

2010-10-31T15:31:00.000-04:00

After a smart timeout call from Chris Mazur on D5 following an easy Korber block, they work it around to within 5 yards and Mazur finds Korber in the end zone to hold serve now, not surprisingly i feel, at 7-6 them.

You had the feeling, and the past results, that this game was going to be close and neither team had some intangible advantage. Both are new, both are collection/combos of players and not defined cores of players from college units of long-serving clubs.

neither are heavy with Open and Women's crossovers and both teams can find talent on the Coasts.

The wind too, would provide an advantage to a team with some old man veteran huckers like we saw in Masters, guys who chuck it up wind for goals with ease. But neither team has this option.

D5 gets the final break back

2010-10-31T15:22:00.001-04:00

upwind makes it look easy, pretty pass into the wind, 6-6 tie game.

Sean Laing Fails Physical to be Observer

2010-10-31T15:20:00.000-04:00

He passed the written exam, but the Slow of Slow White couldn't keep his clown feet running fast enough

ClayZ provides pipe and baggage to me because he's getting on a plane soon. I am now the secret SAG squirrel.

Meanwhile, "Bob" Liu, so-called at home in Ames, Iowa, throws two nifty lefty backhands for a score. D5 answers back, 6-5.

Big Upwinder to restore Sanity

2010-10-31T15:13:00.000-04:00

Redding from D5 jacks a forehand that speedy Justin Segool baits beautifully with a huge right-ward swing before easily coming back around to the disc.

The timeout call by D5 works. They convert the downwind break to Korber to make it 5-4. The wind seems to increase every point so we'll see how that works out.

Downwind turn d5

2010-10-31T15:07:00.000-04:00

But not short field.

but 82 An-chi Tsou on Polar Bears makes a sweet layout catch on a tough upwind huck for a HUGE goal and break, 5-2, as the wind increases

4-2 Polar Bears non upwind break and downwind conversion

2010-10-31T15:04:00.000-04:00

OK, so its been a long couple of points and I'm sure you can watch the live video commentary with the peppy commentary, so i am just now catching up.

it's been sloppy hucks from D5 and a bottled-up offense. Polar Bears seem to have more composure. But with the wind and the chances both teams are taking this could be a game going to the wire

1-0 D5

2010-10-31T14:43:00.000-04:00

I'm sitting with half D5 fans and the Chad Larson Exp team who played both teams at Nationals, losing twice to Polar Bears and once to D5 in a DGP game in their power pool

Right now after about 4 turnovers apiece at the start in what's shaping up to be a long point there's a timeput call.

Chad Larson is telling me that the main guy for Polar Bears, #1 Michael Bob Liu, who according to Matty Spillum the Mixed reporter is the key man for the team "the entire team runs through him, if he rocks it, they win, if he makes mistakes they're doomed."

"they probably got tired from breaking us all week. Their break muslces are worn out," jokes CLX.

This point is hellish

Live Mixed Finals

2010-10-31T14:13:00.000-04:00

i will live blog mixed finals between D5 and Polar Bears.

A basic preview: D5, named after a reference in the movie Mighty Ducks, is sporting rather garish Hockey-style teal-and yellow jerseys whch have to be distracting as hell. The team is the first from Connecticut to rock Nationals even though many on the team have come from veteran units like Slow White, Puppet Regime and others. Still, the team was put together just to represent a section.

Polar Bears i ran into this morning, they are staying next to me on Siesta Key. A very mellow NorCal team comprsed of men's players from former SF team YR and graduates from college in the area and across the nation.

The team name comes from a joke they would ask, "How much does a polar bear weigh?" but I can't remember the answer. The shirts respond, however, by depicting a polar crunching on a penguin and the words "mon mon mon!"

And "Rawr!!" which is cool.

Both teams are nationals first-timers so looking forward to some action and glory--

Old Style- Real Huck - Surly: Masters Correction

2010-10-31T13:56:00.000-04:00

from Tim DeBayl, after reading my coverage of the Masters division for USAU, which can be found here:

http://www.usaultimate.org/news/surly-claims-masters-title-over-boneyard/

"The aforementioned Surly-Real Huck semifinal, a rematch of the central region finals, hinged on the first two points in the second half. Surly was up a break, 8-6, and pulling."

Actually we (Old Style) have been in the Regional Champ game the last 2 years, beating RH on sat both times. This year we lost to RH after being up 8-5 at half in the 2-3 game after a blown observer call at 12-12. We also were the only team to take Surly to half 7-4, only to lose 13-11 (score reporter has this wrong). Sorry just setting the Record straight :) Sorry your writeup just brought back bad memories, since we thought we might be the 2 or 3rd best master's team and got stuck at home....again....

--

so my bad to Old Style, who I believe not only represents Milwaukee, but also another great beer.

oops, lost signal

2010-10-31T13:50:00.000-04:00

heh heh.

so here's the low-down. Ironside kept making unforced errors. They basically could not keep up their confidence. They started to unravel a bit, the O line particularly, and became a collection of players rather than a team.

Revolver never changed their mein.Never slowed down. Kept making throws and catches, and won out with ease, 15-10.

The double is theirs! Winning Worlds and Nationals is extremely difficult. You have to be very smart, disciplined and yet relaxed about it. No doubt Mike Payne's guidance helped them tremendously.

chicken throws it to sherwood, on revolver

2010-10-31T12:55:00.000-04:00

ill-advised throw to two defenders results in predictble. conert attempt is a foul call in end zone

revolver sends Garcia deep

2010-10-31T12:53:00.000-04:00

Out of the handle position, Garcia runs the play and gets 10 yards deep an Watson another unmarked backhand for the easy score, 11-8.

Mahoney gets block and score

2010-10-31T12:51:00.000-04:00

on hammer throw from Neff after he gets a layout block on an in-cut. i've seen that before. 10-8, revolver

Will Ironside D win game?

2010-10-31T12:46:00.001-04:00

they have to but now the O is tight. Flow not grat bur Crcket punches it in, 10-7 revolver

Live Open Finals

2010-10-31T12:45:00.001-04:00

ok, tsting this out -- after 8-6 half, revolver gets score to 9-6 then forces a turn from Ironside and sends an unmarked backhand huck for a goal, 10-6. their game to lose

Nationals Day 1

2010-10-28T21:07:00.000-04:00

Well, there's a lot to say. It's also, unfortunately, very exhausting to play three games, write the recap for USA-U and then go bloggin' around so bear with me a bit if you're hankerin' for some intel.

Quickly the two most notable things at Nationals today.

1) the era of unabated partying, the clubby camaraderie of belonging to "Nationals" and slamming down unlimited beers from the beer tent in grand appreciation of friends, the wonderful Florida weather and sun, and a great many toasts to the intrinsic fun of playing ultimate -- is over. Many a beery evenings spent with many lower-seeded teams, volunteers, writers and just damn good partiers will likely never return. It was a simple thing, made sense, and was probably needed for insurance purposes (ahhh, that evil but necessary insurance thing) but the new USA Ultimate officially nixed free beer. Now, it's 2 bucks. Budweiser and Modelo Especial, in very small cups. In a specific area.

Basically it's over. It's ok, we've been going to this split for awhile: fun, party tournaments and competitive, non-partying tournaments. In my memory it first took root at Regionals in Devens, outside Boston. There's a clubhouse there and the parties were great. Abut 8-9 years ago, they stopped, and Regionals became the only tournament I knew that withheld the time-honored Saturday-night party.

Well, you can add the USA-U Club Championships to that list. It's been a gradual process and the writing was on the wall. Last few years the beer-drinking was ghettoized. Now it's effectively gone.

Of course you can still drink cans of beer on the field so its not like we've totally gone down the rabbit hole.

2) The big fun matchup tomorrow may be the top scorer from Worlds, the unstoppable force Matsuno from Buzz Bullets playing on Furious George, playing against the only man known to have actually stopped him, Beau Kittredge from Revolver, in the upper pools tomorrow. Should be exciting!

Nationals: Report from USA Ultimate

2010-10-27T23:39:00.000-04:00

hung out at the captains meeting for the USAU Championships. Fairly remarkable, in my opinion

New director of the USA-U, Tom Crawford, basically confirmed that the mainstreaming of ultimate has fully been set in motion. Changing the name from the Ultimate Players Association to USA Ultimate was a clear step to make the sport more appealing, less cult-ish, and more in line with Olympics sports.

What surprised me was how fully behind the name change Crawford (and by extension, ultimate) really is. So far this year he's tackled just about every major issue head on and he's done so with vigor.

Last week USAU announced the Beach was going to be a division within ultimate for 2011. Thats a pretty big step.

At the captains meeting, he presented the fact that USA-U is actively enticing sponsors (he named but didnt name a confectionary company, a sports-beverage company, and others), that the numbers of Youth participants has, for the first time, out-numbered all others combined, has convinced CBS Sports to come down and take a look at the Club Championships with an open eye towards acquiring broadcast rights, signed an extension with CBS College Sports to continue and increase the coverage of College Nationals, and announced that the USA-U would host the "U.S. Open" which would invite international teams to compete against (presumably) top U.S. teams.

All of this, frankly, is a long time coming and all of this makes perfect sense. But it's being ramped up now, super-fast and it's impressive.

There are two things now in play which haven't been in play for ultimate in 20 years at least.

First is the Olympics -- this is a long-held dream of many an ultimate player. It makes sense on the most basic level: the Olympics sell the idea of sportsmanship and fair competition for all men and women from all countries. Sort of a basic principle of humanity thing.

Yet the Olympics has been about much more than that, it started as a geopolotical event and remains so. The Olympics is concerned with money and TV ratings, money to feed the every-hungry revenue stream for Olympic cities and the worldwide media coverage. And ultimate, we knows, has no truck with money (or advertising, or any of that).

But I will say this: Crawford has that dream of Ultimate in the Olympics wrapped inside his head. As he and members of the new USA Ultimate team have for a long time served on Olympics sports boards (Volleyball, Cycling, others) the Olympics is more a reality to them than to us.

And they are trying to bring it to the sport and they seem to really mean it.

The Olympics was debunked by the head of the UPA in 1990 (Nob Rauch) who sat in on USO meetings and actively pursued what it might take for ultimate to make it. All signs pointed to "no chance" (for various reasons, the most prevalent being -- its a team sport and the IOC cant pay for team sports, it doesnt have refs, it isnt in enough countries, it doesnt draw revenue or advertisers and other team sports are "ahead" of it).

So can Crawford revive, for real, the dream? It's in his head and he's running at full speed. It's interesting.

Second is the holy grail/cursed sword of ultimate: money. We've never had it, we never will. That's my perspective and and it's been tried trued and tested for 40 years.

But everything here has a subtext. Beach Ultimate. The US Open. CBS Sports, increased advertisers and sponsorship. All this either needs money or creates money.

It's there somewhere, the money. Paid athletes? Maybe just maybe something is happening and we don't even quite know what it is.

A Nationals Preview

2010-10-26T21:06:00.000-04:00

I actually posted this to rec.sport.disc but because it's so priceless I am re-posting here to fill up space in preparation for the Big Show.

This is not actually a preview of the USA Ultimate Club Championships. In case you were wondering.

it's an example of one of the worst articles ever written on ultimate, and that's saying something because there are plenty to choose from. I found it in my archives while doing research for the mockumentary script on ultimate soon to be, uh, finished!

Bonus points if you can count the number of errors: grammatically, stylistically and factually. I stopped counting myself.

----

'Flatball' Wizards
BY JIM MERRITT, Newsday

May 23, 2004
Remember when Frisbee was a rite of spring as cool and undemanding as catching rays in the campus quad or hanging out at the rathskeller?

Well, hold onto your hackysacks: Now, Frisbee is a fledgling intercollegiate sport at Hofstra University in Hempstead and Adelphi University in Garden City, and its players are clamoring for respect.

"I don't think [people] appreciate how hard it is to throw a Frisbee well, and the conditioning it takes," says Aaron Bjerke, 21, of Alexandria, Minn., a junior communications major and member of Adelphi University's Frisbee team.

The 25-member Hofstra team, formed last fall by A.J. Pave, 22, a history major from Holliston, Mass., prefers to call the sport "ultimate disc" or flatball. The team matched discs against Northeastern in Boston and Penn State before ending its first season earlier this month.

Ultimate disc "is fun and very, very competitive," says Michael Chan, 22, of Baldwin, a Hofstra player who specializes in airborne grabs.

The laid-back rules set by the Seattle-based Ultimate Players Association prize sportsmanship over winning. (For those keeping score, Hofstra beat Adelphi in three out of four games this year.) Players toss the disc down the field and score a point in the end zone, not unlike soccer. Disputes on the field are settled by the players themselves, but clashes - and crashes - are inevitable.

"I get really bad turf burns just from diving," says Seth Dellon, 20, the Hofstra co-captain with Amy Ostroff, 20. Dellon says this disc deserves respect - and maybe even equal footing with other varsity sports.

Whoa, dude, say varsity athletes.

"More power to these guys that they are really excited about their sport," said Thomas McCormack of Rockaway Point, a senior sports management major at Adelphi and guard for the varsity men's basketball team. "But, in all honesty, collegiate basketball and football can't be compared to Frisbee."

Which goes to show you, Dellon said, "We don't get respect from anybody."

Heading Back to Sarasota

2010-10-26T13:36:00.000-04:00

Soon to be live from Sarasota: the 2010 USA Ultimate Club Championships.

Or what we used to call "Nationals."

I will be there with the Masters team Rumble in Pool B and covering the division for USAU. Expect some posts regarding Masters and other divisions as well, not to mention ephemera and anecdotes, as per the course.

37 over 27 and 44 + 44

2010-08-13T15:43:00.000-04:00

For those who've known me for a while this won't be surprising. I'm the ripe old age of 37 which means I'm well into Masters territory. After 22 years of playing ultimate I should be worn down. However, i think i am unquestionably a better player now than when I was 27. I'm faster (this is oddly true), smarter with my decisions, I get most of the 50/50 discs, I can guard people better and I never suffer from a lack of confidence. For me, 37 is the new 23 and the 27 year old me was just plain lousy.

There are numerous factors in my reverse-aging process. First I was diagnosed with an old man's colon disease about 4 years ago. Doctors told me to prevent the attacks that sent me to the hospital I would have to change my diet. Fatty foods would have to go.

In about a year and a half I lost 35 pounds. Furthermore I started eating healthier foods which helped my energy levels and my overall fitness. For instance, i eat grilled chicken instead of hamburgers and I stay away from cheese sauces, pizza and fried foods. After 30+ years it is hard to change your diet and lifestyle but I had to do it.

As this happened I started to notice I was quicker on the field, faster even. Certainly I was as light as my senior year in high school, yet unlike high school where I was more on the gangly side I have come to "grow into my body." Also I wasn't getting tired as often. I could run longer and play more points.

My mind and body work in sync now, my delay time on hand-eye coordination has been reduced. I understand how my body works best and how I can get the optimum on the field. Furthermore after all these years I have a great understanding of the action on the field, when and where throwing lanes are appearing, how to position myself on hucks (both O and D) and other such things.

I still make plenty of mistakes -- old habits can be hard to break -- but overall there's no doubt that my game now is better than it's ever been and this has been something of a renaissance time for me.

While I'm on the subject of numbers, two days ago number 44 Roy Oswalt pitched for the Phillies who won over the Dodgers 2-0. And then in my somewhat cheesy, somewhat pointless, and perhaps typically unnecessary post of a week ago, number 44 Kenneth "Free Kate Newburgh" Dobyns evidently accepted my facebook friend request along with 20+ others.

Honestly, just writing that is so silly, so I think i will stop.

Just remember one thing: you're never too old to improve in ultimate and never too old to keep trying new things. And if you haven't already changed your diet, give it a shot. It's difficult but rewarding.

Time Out, Time In

2010-08-11T11:39:00.000-04:00

For two weeks now, and I wonder if I could count the days, likely if I tried, I have not played any ultimate. It's a time out.

I had played something like 4 or 5 weekends in a row, including a ten-day tour of duty at Worlds. Followed by the hat tournament in Austria and then Wildwood -- both of which tournaments have shorter games -- and I computed my July 2010 record to have been 21-10, not counting two forfeits in my favor, a television appearance on Austrian TV which I am declared one the greatest players in the world, and the game of mini mini won by myself, X and Q at the Five tent.

When you play that much ultimate, you need a break. But when you play that much ultimate you also have the drug in your system. You're going to need to play again.

And soon.

And how.

This weekend I have nothing on my ultimate calendar and it is starting to gape at me, wide-eyed, barren, my cleats lie in wait. My body starts to get antsy -- I do try to keep up with the joneses by riding in alleycats from time to time or just pretending to when I haul into the city on my mudder, the Gary Fisher -- but it's not quite the same. There's little reciprocity. Not much sideline jocularity. No crossfield hammers to Coe alone in the endzone.

I'm not running, jumping, jacking the pull. It hurts to even write about it in the summer and not do it.

Well it is New York and options abound. I've got other things to do, plenty to keep me busy (my short film won a film festival this past weekend, so that career path may materialize and push ultimate further away). I've got family coming in next week, friends from out of town this week, and a puppet movie to help with in two weeks.

All that being said...still.... cleats are ready, disc is at hand....

Time In.

Number 44 Not Yet my Facebook Friend

2010-07-29T20:26:00.000-04:00

In my world, there's two number 44s which sounds like a church schism. There's the legendary number 44 worn by my friend and former teammate Kenneth Dobyns and then there's the new guy: Roy Oswalt, bringing his small frame but outsized stature, his will to win and the number 44 to play for the team I was raised on, the Philadelphia Phillies.

Keneth44 lives a few scant blocks away from me in South Brooklyn. He's in Bay Ridge and I'm just on the other side of the expressway in Sunset Park. It's a minor distinction. If I had thought about it in advance or been made aware, I might have joined the Westchester Summer League this year because I could have gotten rides from Bay Ridge to SUNY Purchase. It's a haul, believe you me, and the main reason I am not playing summer league this year is that drive-time. But Ken is there and in WUDi, I discovered later this summer. It could have been so easy.

I'm not sure if Ken would say we're friends. Close friends -- certainly not -- but we've spent some quality time together and he has been a mentor to me and many others. I consider him someone to look up to, someone who's seen more of the world and isn't afraid to tell us what the view is like.

We've been in phone contact, email contact, we share close friends on both coasts.

But when it comes to Facebook, this apparently isn't the case. We aren't friends on Facebook. I checked again today. I check everyday, every hour, every time I can, waiting slavishly to get the notice "Kenneth Dobyns has accepted your friend request!"

There's that picture of Ken right there on FB, wearing a fedora at a Yankees game. He always loved the Yankees, was a die-hard fan. I am speaking in the past tense, of course, because I feel I have lost a friend. Next to Ken's smiling visage it says, "awaiting friend confirmation"

We have 37 friends in common, including a certain Jose Invencio who I'm not sure anyone in New York has actually met and whose stated goal in life is to help start a referee-type ultimate league on the East Coast separate from the Mike Gerics/Toad Leber triangle of shame. It's a positively quixotic quest and it's comically doomed to obsolescence.

But I digress. See, Facebook doesn't make Ken and I friends or non-friends. That's a little silly. It's Facebook. I have friends I've never met, Friends of Friends I've never met. I'm a bit of a friend whore, racking up 800 people in my own little niche of the world.

I don't mind the numbers. I like people, I enjoy Facebook, i like stories and seeing snapshots of different people's lives. This entertains, inspires and grounds me all at the same time. It's a simple thing.

My opinion of Ken will not change if he never accepts my FB request or if he reads this post and accepts me tomorrow (ok, honestly, if he reads this blog post and accepts my FB request tomorrow, my opinion of Ken WILL change -- for the worse).

Kenneth44's blog titled "You DIdn't Here It From Me, But..." has long been a great read. I love how his posts aren't just ramblings. They are stories with a beginning, a middle and an end. They are smart, sometimes savage, and they are precise. Reading Ken has always been an enjoyable experience, dating back to the last time I played summer league with him, in the 90s. He wrote insightful and analytical profiles in the WUDi newsletter, a double-sided one-sheet photocopied 60 times and handed out in the parking lot after games.

I wanted to fashion my infrequent blog after Ken's style of writing. I'd like to be clear, concise and sometimes controversial. Perhaps throw in a 50 cent word from time to time and to always have a beginning, middle and end.

With or without that Facebook confirmation. Because in the meantime I have a new number 44 friend in Roy Oswalt, with or without Facebook...

Wildwood 2010

2010-07-27T19:18:00.000-04:00

You come for the party, you leave with an empty wallet.

You come for the sand, the boardwalk, the walking legions of wiz-made bodies, the SpringShot, the taffy (ok, that's a lie, no one comes for the salt water taffy anymore) the 99 cent pizza, the rollercoasters, the drinking, the mild debauchery, the water parks, the rusty nails, jam bands, monster trucks and this year's top-line shirt (a pinnie, aka a reversible sleeveless basketball-style mesh jersey) that read in big block letters COME AT ME, BRO.

Startin' fights on the boardwalk at Childwood? Naw, too much fun to be had otherwise.

I've had my share of good times and good stories to tell from the annual beach extravaganza that is Wildwood, now with 436 4-on-4 teams this year. My father lives just down the road, i've been to this tournament with two ultimate girlfriends over the years, I've been on near-championship teams and championship beer bracket teams. This year was more of the same, i suppose, but different.

I didn't party much. I played well with the ATL boys and girls, a good bunch of folks. The tournament got a carton of my books, 68 of them, and sold none. I played, i think, in 11 games over the weekend which ties a record for me. The goal, of course, is to play as often as possible. It is sand after all, even if the sand was baking hot (99 degrees in the air on Sunday, hotter on the surface) and my feet got shredded on Saturday so badly that I had to wear tennis shoes, but STILL -- it's Wildwood. It's fun in the sun and it shouldn't end.

But everything comes to an end.

And then when you leave there goes the $200 a night hotel room, minimum 3 nights. The $25 SpringShot ride. The countless dollars spent trying to win a SpongeBob SquarePants stuffed animal at the basketball carney game. The $26 Shrimp Bonanza (George Carlin would call this one out) that had 6 pieces of battered and fried shrimp and 6 naked shrimps from a supermarket platter. The cases of beer, the gas and tolls to spend countless hours on interstates an the Garden State Parkway, the $300 tourney fee split between ten teammates. The money, it goes, usually, but this year I stayed clear of all that.

It's a beach town and a beach summer and you're there for action. The action was had.

Up Next: Wildwood

2010-07-22T08:57:00.000-04:00

I guess it's good to get out of the house in July. Especially during a multiple-continent heat wave.

So I played in hot Prague, then to steamy southern Austria where Zen and the Art of Team Building got us a first-place talisman and little bit of good karma. More on the Zen later.

And now to Wildwood, again, playing with two teams who picked me up at the very last minute -- this week. I wasn't going to go, I even told people I was canceling my team (which I did). My knee is a bit wobbly, a lateral muscle strain from the last tournament. I've played 20 games on grass in the last 20 days.

But its Wildwood. Sand. The circus atmosphere. Family and friends will be there and everyone from New York and Philly, not to mention half of Boston and half of DC.

I'll put a knee brace on and try my luck. I could end up with glory, or I could finish with regrets.

But hey it's good to get out of the house...

Blauer Burgunder wins Pig Me Up 2

2010-07-19T19:47:00.001-04:00

As advertised, the Styrian-style pig roast was tremendous. The large hog-on-a-spit was expertly turned by a man of similar color and demeanor as the pig and received a standing ovation for his slow-cooked masterpiece.

Outside of that, the team I ended up on called "Blauer Burgunder" after a local red wine, somehow and somewhat improbably, won the tournament. As per usual hat-tournament protocol we had a melange of players.

Soni was 16 and heading to U-23's the next day, as was Ami. Vale, 14 years old with money throws and quick cuts. Frischi, the veteran engineer from Vienna. Izi, our co-host for the tournament and a wonderful handler. Flixi -- his first tournament ever and now his first tournament win. We worked out the forehand before the second-to-last game on Sunday. We had Martini, a short quick handler-type woman who we called in as a handler, only to find out at the Saturday-night party that she had been playing ultimate for now her 5th month. Richey, a burly flag-football player with "the heart of a lion" according to Tommy, my friend from back home who has been living in Vienna now for a year.

As you can tell, we decided at the first game to have everyone's name end in the "y" or "it" sound. So that made Veronica a Veronicky which became "Key" which when I called her in the wing of the zone never quite worked because I don't think she had ever been called "Key" before, but that was ok. Flixi was really a Felix, Ami an Amadeo and Martini a Martina. It was nice. We were a team!

We had Andrea (Andi) for a half-day and then there was René, whom I called either Reeny or Rene or something like that. And there was James who we had to call Jamey of course, a lanky lefty from Australia. I hope I am not missing anyone. Will have to look at the pics.

We played zone the entirety of our last two games on Sunday which ended up being a semifinals (winner of that game would make the finals) and then the finals. In the finals we played a team that went up on us 6-2 and won 6-4 in a sloppy game which they clearly got the upper hand behind a basically un-guardable Erik Doesburg, also known in certain circles as "that tall blonde Dutchman from Mouthful of Sand/Gronical Dizziness." He won MVP/MBP (Most Beautiful Person) at the tourney, and deservedly so. I tally up to 6’4 and change but hand to hand he had a full hand on me and rang up as 6’6” at least.

We won the finals on double-game point, 7-6 on a sweet lefty backhand deep huck from Jamey to Ami. It was a nice way to end the trip to Worlds and meet some super fantastically cool, fun, vibrant and new-to-the-game southern Austrian players. It was like a mini-Poultry Days, with teams camping out, the pig roast, the beer and wine, the communal atmosphere. Wonderful.

Up Next: Austrian Hat Tournament

2010-07-13T18:34:00.000-04:00

Lots of good stories at Worlds, from Colombia, Japan and Mike O'Dowd and the Long List of Whores (previously just a legend that I heard from Rick Collins). I met Elroy Jetson from the Polish team Grandmaster Flash, i met Tushar Singh, got to talk to WFDF prez Potts for a bit, Tom and Sandie and Peri from USAU and of course the Five crew (note: World Champions in mini Mini are the team of me, Xtehn and Qxhna after spotting Lucas, Adam and Mike a 4-goal lead).

The Czech organizers did an amazing job in my opinion. My broadcast partner and GOP founder Bryn Perkins, Lucia, Carlos, Honza, Jana the TD, Bart, the Strizna TV crew -- i am still not sure how they managed two gigantic field complexes in two totally different locations but they did. The buses ran, the fields were all lined, the schedules were effective, the score keepers (did you see the stats?!) were nice and they took their jobs seriously. It sounds like a small thing but it made a big difference.

I heard the dormitory-style dorms were less than swank, but when your team signs up for the "dorm option" at a European tournament you should expect to be in a dorm. So hey, in this case they were Soviet-built. Welcome to Prague!

My next stop is the self-styled Styrian hat tournament in Southern Austria. I'd like to promise updated blogs about the 9 teams but its a camping tournament in a town called Kirchberh-am-Raab so I'm not really counting on wifi from the fields or anything. And thank god for that.

Thanks to everyone who complimented the broadcasts we did. It can't be said enough that the Strizna TV/webcast crew was ultra-professional and very much on the ball. I heard the cameramen and crew came out to a Czech team scrimmage before Worlds to learn how to cover ultimate. It really shows -- they got the pulls, they followed the d's and nailed the instant replays. They were so good it was almost invisible -- but if you've watched the state of ultimate videos in the last, uh, 42 years you won't see anything like this.

It was always an unproven theory that ultimate would be exciting to watch if it was shot properly. Well, i think that theory was proven true. Again -- you can click on the links on the right to watch the videos. They will be up for some time, a month or so...

And finally a shout-out to my team O.L.D.S.A.G. aka One Last-Ditch Shot at Glory, Philadelphia masters. This may have truly been the team's last-ditch shot. With a thin squad of 20 that was whittled to 16 by the end, with four players added just for this tournament, and without a set offense or defense that you could identify, we beat seed and finished 5th. Disappointing perhaps that our 5-2 pool play record tied us with Munich (who we beat) and Helsinki (who we lost to) but lodged us in 4th because of point differential, thus sending us to quarters against Surly and an early exit from our attempt to return to Finals.... but hey, i think we left it on the field and can be proud.

That last sentence was poorly written but it's late at night and Styria is coming up. It just means more to come I reckon.

Competition is Over: All that is left is T-shirt Trading and Ceremonies

2010-07-10T10:51:00.000-04:00

the kind where the winning Gold, Silver and Bronze medalists basically hang around aimlessly on the fields for pictures, cold beers and colored necklaces with tinted medallions.

In the stands everyone eyes everyone else's shirts with envy. Can i get a Sockeye shirt? What about that Magon one? Who got lucky with the Vigi 2006 shirts? Is there a Buzz Bullets shirt without the Bunka Shutter logo?

etc etc.

Most of all, already, I miss the competition. It's been great to play at this high level with a good bunch of guys who competed every day on the field and never gave up. We finished 5th overall, one ahead of seed, and won our last game so we can leave the tournament with our heads up.

I hope to be back four years from now for another Worlds but it's never easy getting here and i'm sure there will be more things going on in my life.

Right now the cheers and the medalists are still going -- Buzz Bullets get a hearty cheer for their third-place finish. Basically, no one wants to leave. Why would they? Free entertainment, cheap beer, cool shirts everywhere, cute girls and guys, a nice stadium -- we're all just waiting to crash, basically, or at least throw down some more good pilsner before an early rest.

Revolver wins 17-13 over Sockeye

2010-07-10T10:01:00.001-04:00

basically trade out to win the game --

Trading: Sockeye 9 Revolver 13

2010-07-10T09:30:00.001-04:00

excitement slowing down, teams trading, we shall see if sockeye can get their second wind.

Sockeye gives up 4 in a row: Revolver 9, Sockeye 6 half

2010-07-10T09:04:00.001-04:00

that sums it up pretty well -- Sockeye can't get a groove as Revolver converts and is now looking good. Question is: will Sockeye have another burst of energy left in them for the second half?

2-2 Revolver Sockeye

2010-07-10T08:26:00.001-04:00

on serve

Sockeye Revolver Rematch

2010-07-10T08:09:00.001-04:00

in 10 minutes we have a big game coming up. post your comments to get live comments

Fury wins 16-15

2010-07-10T07:34:00.001-04:00

Interviews with players will be coming before the Men's finals

Universe point 15-15, Fury receiving

2010-07-10T07:27:00.001-04:00

Thrilling plays on O and D from Manu Argili and Fury is on the verge. They get the disc on O but the Japanese D has been superfast and really tough. Its anyone's game.

14-14 Game to 16, Fury-Uno

2010-07-10T07:19:00.001-04:00

four layout blocks last point....

13-13 Figuring out Time Cap

2010-07-10T07:07:00.001-04:00

Tie game, break advantage to Uno if they trade out to the time cap. Great game so far.

Game Action CLX Onyx

2010-07-10T04:25:00.000-04:00

Ok, so here's the deal: Onyx cannot stop Chad Larson on D as captain kevin Seiler and main target Keith Brorsen for CLX are open at will on the unders and big hucks.

CLX uses their men and height to great effect and are rolling through this game right now with ease. Onyx looks behind by 2-3 steps on every cut

Live Mixed Finals

2010-07-10T03:10:00.000-04:00

is coming on now-- comment as you wish and we will get it on air if possible

Starting the Day: the Mixed Finals

2010-07-10T01:44:00.001-04:00

Begins in 1 hr, 15 minutes. Time to get on the horse. Post comments if you want commentary.

tony

mini Mini World Champions

2010-07-09T20:05:00.000-04:00

Adam, Mikey and Lucas "Noon" Murphy lost in a three-on-three match with me and Xtehn and Qxhna from Five Ultimate in mini Mini even after we spotted them 4 goals, and now they owe us dinner.

Anyway outside of that I have to crash now to get up and ready and prepared for tomorrow's 9am mixed finals start and live broadcasting

as always, if you email/blog post comments i will try to bring them up during the broadcast

hella, its 2am right now

Time Cap Comes Quick: Troubled Past wins 13-11 over Surly

2010-07-09T13:45:00.000-04:00

Troubled Past got back the lost two breaks in the second half and before anyone knew it, the cap was in effect and a tight game at 11-10 was game to 13. TP strode to the finish line behind a bunch of d blocks and a lot more energy to take a well-deserved win, 13-11.

If you missed the live broadcast, you can watch it again because i believe they will still be up online afterwards.

Live Masters Finals

2010-07-09T11:41:00.000-04:00

am broadcasting live for the Master finals -- check the links to the right for the Czech site

1-0 Surly

post for comments and I will respond on-air

Away for now - Back to Action

2010-07-09T08:09:00.000-04:00

My team, One Last-Ditch Shot at Glory has a 5/6 game to play in Masters against Wolpertinger, so I am off to play right now, back to broadcast the Masters at 5:30

Onyx doing Live phone interview for Quebec TV Morning SHow

2010-07-09T08:07:00.000-04:00

I just talked to Onyx, who are being interviewed right now over the phone by a Quebec Province TV show about their surprise run to the finals. So that should be pretty cool.

They told me they have about 1000 people in their Ultimate association, 50 summer league teams in Quebec City alone and 100 winter-league teams, and winter is indoor and 8 months a year just about.

CLX- MTF game

2010-07-09T07:39:00.000-04:00

OK, so here's how the Chad Larson Experience/ Mental Toss Flycoons game ended.

First thing to say is that MTF has the break advantage, receiving in a tied game with the time cap. But a lyout block by CLX gives them the disc at a critical juncture and they convert with, what else, a huge hammer to #77 for the score, 14-13.

Receiving, MTF moves four passes but then i think 77 for CLX makes a layout block and now Iowa has the disc with 20 yards for the game. But after a swing, tall guy #01 for MTF gets a two-handed layout lunch and MTF can tie it up. After working halfway downfield, an IO floaty deep huck is put up -- why not, and seems to track perfectly into the hands of the receiver in the far back left corner for a goal.

Double game point, CLX receives, they work it and then captain Kevin Seiler unleashes yet another hammer, about half-field, never quite turns over and stays bladey instead, going to #77 who is covered, but he can get this disc. instead it sails through his hands and into his chest like Terrell Owens dropping a deep ball and its MTF's disc on their goal with the field ahead of them. No timeouts are called. Instead the work it, but up the sideline I think CLX gets the block somehow. Disc gets back to Seiler who throws it to a wide-open Christine Rosen for the game-winning goal.

Sockeye 16-15 over Chain, Revolver 17-14 over Buzz Bullets

2010-07-09T07:28:00.001-04:00

8:30 simultaneous semis on strahov fields means I wasnt there, so i got no info for ya

No Details, but Fury 17-14 over Riot, Uno 17-10 over Brute Squad

2010-07-09T07:17:00.001-04:00

for womens semifinals, played at same time as Mixed, on different field site.

will find out more later perhaps, but Fury and Uno in finals, as expected (and seeded, i believe).

Hucks, Layouts and Scoobers: Onyx and Chad Larson Advance

2010-07-09T07:14:00.000-04:00

Great matchup between Northeast foes Onyx and Quiet Coyote who last played at the Bell Crack coed tournament in Philadelphia, QC losing in Quarters and Onyx in the finals.

But I digress: at 12-11, Onyx got another break, working dishy upfield passes to a lefty 5 yard score shot to keep the lead comfortable and take a 13-11 lead. QC receives, works downfield and then with about 15 yards to score, Judy Winglee is trapped on the sideline by a creative and aggressive quasi straight-up to forehand mark by Onyx's #10, Jessie. On stall 9/10 Winglee has to chuck it into the endzone and she does but Kate Beaulieu gets the layout block and suddenly Onyx has the disc with a chance to end it.

After several swings, facing a long field too, a short under cut by Jessie is baited by Winglee and she gets her disc back with a brilliant catch block. After a dish, she gets it back in the endzone for the score, 13-12 now.

For ultimate strategists, the next point is a reminder. QC pulls, down one, game to one, and it never comes close to staying in bounds. Onyx starts with a very, very short field and lines up in a ho stack. As usual, with the pressure of a late game in the air, its hard for poachers to be active, lest they get burned and embarassed, so the ho stack leaves room for cutters and the green lawn beckons like a wide open sea. At about a 6 stall, the Onyx handler who took the brick rips a low forehand zinger that is tracked down and caught by #5 with about 5 yards for a score.

mark gets on him quickly, stall 1-2-3-4-5-6 and no one is moving in the endzone, especially Jessie faceguarded by Judy Winglee (apparently a good matchup both ways) and so #5 unleashes a scoober over the top and Jessie with the 5-6 inch height advantage, two-hands it and the game is over.

On Serve both games, MTP and Onyx

2010-07-09T06:26:00.001-04:00

I have to be about 2 fields over to post, but you can hear the roars.

CLX (i have the full name story now, will come later) and MTP are identical teams with very exciting styles of play, big, rangy players both men and women, and fearless huckers sending it deep out of Horizontal stack varieties.

The vuvuzelas sound off after scores. Big layout after big layout, neither team tired.

On serve, MTP now up 12-11. QC player Eric Stevens makes an impossibly sticky super-high sky grab in the endzone on a floaty huck to tie it at 10s and hold serve, Onyx receiving but the excitement from the grab might provide some momentum

Semi-live Blogging of the Mixed Semifinals

2010-07-09T06:05:00.000-04:00

the games are a bit too far to capture the signal from the sidelines

but Mental Toss Flycoons went down 6-1, tied it at 7s, Chad Larson Exp (CLX) took it to half at 8-7, MTP got a break off the half, 8s, then CLX scored for 9-8

Tim Murray of MTP says "we are very similar teams"

Onyx from Montreal versus QC from Boston: also similar score, was 8-7 Onyx when I left. Will find out more soon

Semifinals Womens or Mixed

2010-07-09T04:37:00.000-04:00

I am going try to cover women's semis at Strahov if there is internet access again and if i can properly move in the next few hours. Am fairly exhausted after 4 days of play, the sun, the beer, walking all over Prague in flip-flops, etc.

I just have to figure out what mode of public transportation to get there and then it's Fury-Riot (!) and Brute Squad versus Uno (Japan)

Basically, as expected, it's UPA/USA semifinals to a tee.

It holds up across all divisions: Mixed is a NE regional battle between two surprise contenders in ONYX from Montreal and Boston's Quiet Coyote, a team that's been peaking. I remember playing them several times over the past several years and defeating them and then they kept getting better and better it seems.

Chad Larson Experience versus Mental Toss in the other semi, sort a Western battle (Iowa + surrounding states versus Montana + several states). I may actually try to cover Mixed instead of Womens. I guess we'll find out with the next post from me,

Andrew Fleming's layout for Sockeye

2010-07-08T14:24:00.000-04:00

Andrew Fleming is a pretty nice guy, I've talked to him several times on Sockeye sidelines, even back when they weren't so good (or he played for Portland?) He's one of the oldest guys on that team and he made the defining play of this game, and maybe the tournament.

Sockeye wins now, 17-15, on a huck and dish but Fleming with the grab was tremendous.

Sockeye's got the Tude

2010-07-08T14:21:00.000-04:00

looks like Ironside's still-developing identity isn't developed. They're a bunch of very good players, but are they a team yet? Same can be said for Sockeye, but they have owned this second half and are displaying a lot more swagger. Ironside as the nice guys? Ironside as the brainiacs? Ironside as the talented ones?

they need that identity it seems. Even if it's "we're a great mix of players from everywhere and this we relish" then that's cool. but they need something. without money in this sport, you can't build around a lackluster brand, and Sockeye's brand is better.

they do score to make it 14-15, however, Trey (a ringer recruit for the last few years) toe-ing the line.

but THEN i think andrew fleming makes one of the greatest layouts anyone has seen in a long time for Sockeye, one of those ones where he hit the ground first sliding head first and the disc somehow lands in his hand

Sockeye Spikes, Ironside Gets a Score

2010-07-08T14:10:00.000-04:00

A spike by Aaron Talbot on an Ironside player after a score by Sockeye, Ironside trades, it's 13-12 Sockeye, then Sockeye with a catch-spike score to make it 14-12.

Crowd begins its disinterest phase. The vuvuzelas sound off from time to time. But its a good size group here: 2-3,000 perhaps, maybe more? Hard to tell, but its packed with players from 30+ countries, that is quite clear.

This is a different field site than the other games and one playing live at the moment (Riot vs Huck look at the link on the right).

Turnover on Sockeye's goal by Ironside (missing an easy chance to stay on serve but down a break) but they get it back on a half-field huck turn by Sockeye and its 14-13 Sockeye

Boston nervous?

2010-07-08T13:59:00.000-04:00

Yet another turnover after a pick call on a huck, and a huck that was turned down, but finally they score at least. 12-11 sockeye.

12-10 Sockeye

2010-07-08T13:55:00.000-04:00

Well after a throwaway by Boston, Sockeye slowly (with a timeout) works it downfield and gets the score and are now firmly in control of this game with Ironside stuck in, ahem, ironsides. The game is to 17, don't forget.

Wiggins or Holt

2010-07-08T13:49:00.000-04:00

Not sure which, the distance is too great, but either Adam Holt or Ben Wiggins, off the pull, rips a perfect 60 yard backhand that is very pretty. Short of the end zone. Swing comes to Wiggins/Holt who makes a froggy layout one-handed stab to preserve possession on the side line, then dishes it into the endzone where it ends up in an Ironside player's hand -- but a strip is called, agreed to and a goal is had. Tremendous excitement.

Next possession is a huck too far by Boston followed by the same for Sockeye. Its 11-10 Sockeye now.

Sockeye with the big Mo and a sudden lead

2010-07-08T13:43:00.000-04:00

The halftime lead has evaporated, as teams traded, then Sockeye with two breaks, the first a nice up in the air D on a medium-length Ironside huck, the second on a floaty Ironside huck to Danny Clark that was D'd up by Ray Illian, the almost-full-fielf huck from Sockeye's Spencer Wallace, then Joe Sefton cut across the throwing lane playing the unders on Ironside's Peter Prial and suddenly Sockeye is up! 10-9, remarkable turnaround.

Rebholz to Stubbs

2010-07-08T13:27:00.000-04:00

Big huck across about 2/3 of the field, tracked down very quickly by a speedy George Stubbs (who i think went to UM and beat my alma mater ND at Regionals again -- yet for the last time) for halftime to Ironside, 9-7.

By the way, I picked Ironside by 1 or 2 in this game.

Why People Should Throw More Scoobers

2010-07-08T13:20:00.000-04:00

Nasser with the nifty lefty dump dish pass. Trey swings the disc. Ironside works it. Many passes against man-to-man, Jacob Goldstein to Teddy, it looks like.

"because nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition" is the answer from Al from Columbus, Ohio, backpacking through Europe right now and spectating at Worlds, although she is flying to Boulder THIS weekend (leaving tomorrow) to play women's masters with Mojo.

Question from Paolo to Al: "you're going to miss the finals?"
"yeah, but I get to play next weekend, so i'm all for that!"

O score and a Break for the Fish

2010-07-08T13:12:00.000-04:00

uh, yeah, that sums it up basically. 6-5 Boston.

the guy in front of me with a video camera is taping the event as part of a doc following two Chinese ultimate players who gave up their banking careers to pursue ultimate and promote the Spirit of the Game.

yes, this is true. And so he is following them for maybe a documentary that will go to Sundance one day. As a filmmaker, i can suggest that this is highly unlikely, but strangely possible.

In any case, teams trade, 7-6 Ironside