AUDL Team Logo Updates

Both "wind"-monikered AUDL teams have recently updated their brand.

Windy City Wildfire converted to its city name (Chicago), and updated their logo. See below for the new 'Chicago' logo compared to the former 'Windy City' logo.

Minnesota Wind Chill added an alternate "chill" logo with their existing "wound up" main logo.

RELATED: 2013 Logo reviews of Windy City . Wind Chill .

December 3: DC Ceremonial Resolution Honoring Scandal

Washington Area Frisbee Club (WAFC) announced via their membership e-newsletter that Scandal will be presented with a Ceremonial Resolution by the D.C. Council on Tuesday, December 3, 2013. This resolution is in addition to DC Mayor Gray's Proclamation recognizing Scandal for winning the 2013 USA Ultimate National Championships.

When: UPDATED 10 A.M. on Tuesday, December 3rd. The ceremonial presentation of the resolution will take place at the beginning of the Legislative Meetings, around 10:45 A.M.

Location: D.C. Council chambers @ Wilson Building, 1350 Pennsylvania Ave NW.

Request: WAFC requests attendees wear an ultimate jersey, and show DC councilmembers that "the DC Ultimate community is strong and large."

In early November, the Council of the District of Columbia unanimously passed a ceremonial resolution recognizing Scandal's 2013 USA Ultimate National Championship. The resolution was introduced by Councilmembers Yvette Alexander (Ward 7), David Grosso (At-Large), & Tommy Wells (Ward 6). The City Council honored the Washington Nationals in a similar way this past April.

AGENDA

Freakonomics is Freakin Awesome

Freakonomics Radio is always so good, though their portrayal of Ultimate is FREAKIN' AWESOME!

What Do Skating Rinks, Ultimate Frisbee, and the World Have in Common?

...The sport of Ultimate Frisbee offers another interesting lens on how people self-police. In most cases, the game has no referee, instead relying on players to make all the calls. Even the official rules refer to players being "morally" bound to uphold "Spirit of the Game" when they play.

Jody Avirgan, a self-professed Ultimate fanatic who plays for PoNY & NY Rumble, coherently walks the host Stephen Dubner through the particulars, and talks about how the sport might be different if it did have refs.

The entire podcast (46 mins:38 sec) is worth a listen as the host asks other sports leaders to consider how Ultimate's ethos would work for soccer and basketball. LISTEN AT: Freakonomics podcast [11/21/2013]

Updated Thanksgiving Tradition

Hi, Lois & the whole Flagston family, rightfully, honor the Frisbee (née Frisbie) on Thanksgiving.

Thirsty Thurston: "I thought touch football was the family tradition."

Hiram [tossing a righty toss to Chip (in red), or overthrowing Ditto (in blue)]: "Not anymore. The Flagstons play Ultimate Frisbee on Thanksgiving."

[via VC Ultimate]

Cutting Advice

Decent ultimate advice for a cutter getting open...

Private Zero to Beetle Bailey: "I suggest you run at least an arm's length ahead of him (or her)."

TRYptophan PLAYING Ultimate

Gobble up plenty of Ultimate playing time in DC*...

Thursday, Nov 28
10am @ Polo Fields [pickup]

Friday, Nov 29 
10am @ Polo Fields [WAFC's annual Turkey Digestive]

Saturday, Nov 30
10am @ Polo Fields [pickup]

*weather permitting

UltiCoach App at your Fingertips

Now everyone can be a qualified coach at Ultimate practice! Proven coaching drills for Ultimate, literally, at your fingertips.

UltiCoach App [iTunes]

Info: "There’s a Drill for that." Created and designed by world and national champion Ultimate players and coaches, UltiCoach brings you the best Ultimate training and drills available. View over 50 detailed drills in 7 categories, each expertly detailed and explained. Includes 24 built-in custom practices for league teams, club teams, full day clinics, and pairs. If you want to improve your Ultimate game, this is the only app that you need. Beautifully designed with an easy to use interface - with this app on your phone, you’ll be a force on the field.

Price: $2.99

Very important App 'Terms & Conditions'

Reinstated Blog!!!

Eight days ago, I received this disturbing (& perplexing) email:

The blog was inaccessible by anyone, including Sludge. Moreover, there was a threat of deletion. During this ordeal, many people have supported the blog's return. 

And, finally today, Blogger reviewed Sludge's appeal & "determined your blog was mistakenly marked as a Terms of Service violator by our automated system, and as such, we have reinstated your blog." 

THANK YOU to Blogger, Ultimate Problems, The Hot One, Brian Reilly, Craig Stephen, Get Horizontal, Bama Secs, Boomer, Glenn Poole, Trey Katzenbach, Jimmy Leppert, Philadelphia Phoenix, UltiCards, Ultimate Rob, SKYD magazine, and countless others who supported the reinstatement.

Major League Ultimate on FOX Sports 1

Major League Ultimate was a featured sport on The Jones and Moseley Show, which is . The "JoMo Show" runs on Fox Sports 1 (FS1) - a direct competitor to ESPN - is a sports-oriented cable channel which launched in August 2013.

The November 17 episode of "JoMo Show" featured MLU's Championship game from July 13, 2013. The Jones and Mosley Show, hosted by ex-NFL player Dhani Jones & Olympic gold medalist Jonny Moseley, recapped game footage with concentrated bits of info in the sidebars. Sidebar topics ranged from history, lingo, specific professional ultimate rules to random factoids. See below...

The History

Flying Disc Creation: 1938. Walter Morrison. Invented after tossing a cake pan back and forth with his wife.
Actually, it was a popcorn tin lid that the Morrisons flung.
Invention of the Rules: 1968. Joel Silver. Developed the rules at Columbia High School in Maplewood, NJ.
1st Intercollegiate Game: November 6, 1972. Rutgers University vs. Princeton University
November 6, 1972: Was also the 103rd anniversary of the 1st organized football game. Which was also played by Princeton and Rutgers.

The Inside Info / Game

Play: Player can advance disc by throwing complete pass, or Tipping disc without the disc first touching the ground.
Average game score is 15 points.
MLU games are officiated, opposite of many other self officiated leagues.
If a Frisbee is thrown out of bounds, the in-bounding player must touch the ground with the disc before throwing it back in.

The Lingo

"Invalid Pass": When player hands off pass without throwing the pass.
"Marking": Guarding the thrower within 10 feet of the thrower's pivot spot.
"Stall Count": 7 seconds permitted to the thrower before they must release the disc.

The Rules

Back Pass: If the goalie picks up the ball after receiving a back pass from a teammate, their opponent is awarded a penalty kick.
THERE IS NO GOALIE nor BALL IN ULTIMATE!!! Wrong sport...soccer.
General Manager: Jeff Snader. 2012 Philadelphia Spinners split from the American Ultimate Disc League. Created the MLU.
Snader wasn't just the GM of the 2012 Spinners, he was the owner & coach.

The Inside Info / Popularity

Participants: Almost 5 million people participate in Ultimate Frisbee in the US alone.
Popularity: Over 7 million players in 80 countries.

The Inside Info / Random

World Event: MLU has yet to be entered into the Olympics. Has been a medal earning sport at the World Games since 2011.
Er, Flying Disc (Ultimate); not MLU.
Distance: In one match, some players run 5+ miles.
Seems like a lot of running! Data source?
175 Gram Frisbee Weighs the Same as: 3 tennis balls. 70 pennies. 310 goose feathers.
Awesome!

WAFC Tournament: 11.16.13

While 495 traffic delayed arrivals to Lake Fairfax, playing down one player allowed for less traffic in the cutting lanes. Sludge played 5:1 for the first 8 points and kept competitive; 4-4. Joe's low loft to Rachel, Henry to Matthew, Matthew to Chris. At 5:2, Sludge continued playing sticky defense in the first half. Yet, break chances were not capitalized on.

Down 6-8 at half, Sludge was now at full (4:3) strength. Sludge forced their multi-throw zone which was countered by Furry Tractor's new found patient offense. Except for one point against a zone defense, brown could not find a good flow on offense.

Sludge's forward progress was impeded as if the traffic jam had spilled onto the ultimate field. After scoring 4 points in the first 8 points, Sludge managed only 5 scores in the last 16 points. Loss 9-15.

Notable quotes from the sidelines:
"Playing with only 6 players might reduce our chances to advance" - Chris H.

"There's not enough wind to play person defense." - Mike F.

"See you at pickup!" - Unknown

TMZ Conversation with Joel Silver

TMZ Sports caught up with Joel Silver for a 30-second conversation about Ultimate Frisbee. Props to the interviewer who knew his Ultimate history and ESPN's coverage.

Mega Producer Joel Silver -- 'Hell Yes I Invented Ultimate Frisbee' - Watch More Celebrity Videos or Subscribe

Here's a transcription of their cordial conversation.

TMZSports: Is it true you invented Ultimate Frisbee?

Joel Silver: (slight pause) Um, more or less.

TMZS: At Columbia High School?

JS: Yes, I did.

TMZS: How did that happen? Did you kinda...

JS: I mean, it's on the internet. You can read the whole story. But, I mean...it's a long story. But, we kinda put that game together, and, I'm proud of that. I'm proud of that.

TMZS: Every college that has it should erect a statue of you. I love that! I love watching on ESPN...the Championships.

JS: Well, thank you very much.

TMZS: Do you watch it?

JS: Absolutely!

TMZS: Have a good night.

Originality of Team Names: AUDL

Sam Shoyer, an Ultimate player for Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School in Maryland, researched how many pro ultimate team names are truly original and shared his findings.

American Ultimate Disc League - West Division
The Flamethrowers name is definitely, um, original.

Vancouver Riptide . Seattle Raptor(s) . San Jose Spiders . San Francisco FlameThrowers (represented by Flames) . SLC Lions.

American Ultimate Disc League - Midwest Division
The Radicals name is totally original. The Wind Chill is semi-original and the spelling of Mechanics is, well, different.

Minnesota Wind Chill . Madison Radicals . Windy City Wildfire . Detroit Mechanics . Cincinnati Revolution.



American Ultimate Disc League - Northeast Division
The Empire name is truly unique. Had to go international for a Phoenix match, while Montreal's name matched with some assiStance.

DC Breeze . New York Empire . Toronto Rush . Philadelphia Phoenix . Rochester Dragons . New Jersey Hammerheads . Montreal Royal(s).

Club Ultimate Teams as European Soccer Logos

Inspired by the excellent logo redesign of NFL teams as European soccer clubs, what if Ultimate team logos were transformed using soccer (football) teams?

Taking two completely random club teams - Pride of New York & Florida United - here's how their "soccer'd" logos would probably most certainly look...

ManU (left); FlaUnited (right)

KNVB (left); PoNY (right)

Hypothetical, of course.

Hamburger Frisbee

Hamburger Frisbee
Similar to Angry Birds, except the birds are burgers & you're throwing them like a Frisbee, not from a slingshot.

How to play: To win points, throw (backhand) hamburgers (discs) onto the grill before the gas runs out.

To play the game:
1. Select the difficulty.
2. Turn on the gas.
3. Start throwing burgers by swiping screen were shown.

4. Turn off gas before it runs out.

Game Ends: Either when player turns off the gas, or when gas runs out.

Game Help: There are 2 devices to help decide when to turn off the gas:
1) The pressure gauge on the tank.
2) The PropaneGasGenie(R) on the side of the tank.

--> Play Hamburger Frisbee online or on smartphones.

Weird-kneed griller with a follow-through 

Reaction after landing a backhand on the grill.

Alternative Logo: Boston Whitecaps

Boston Whitecaps alternative logo

As if the professional sport of Ultimate wasn't alternative enough. The Major League Ultimate Shop unveiled a new product with an "alternative" logo for the 2013 MLU Champion.

Per an MLU rep, alternative logos were recently designed for the Puma jerseys, to be worn in the upcoming 2014 season. More logos are expected soon, but for now, only one team's alternative logo has been released - Boston Whitecaps cap. Get it...? A white cap for the Whitecaps!

RELATED: Review of Whitecaps' 2013 logo

5 Rejected Nicknames for Toronto Rush

Toronto Wildfire? Toronto Wizzards?? 

This old online survey - Professional Ultimate Coming to Toronto - reveals the Toronto Rush considered the 'Toronto Wildfire'. As we know, Wildfire became the team name for AUDL's Chicago (Windy City) and Toronto was inspired locally, taking the Rush name.

First question: How do you feel about the following names for the new Toronto AUDL Professional Ultimate team?

• Toronto Winterhawks
• Toronto Wildfire
• Toronto Wolfpack
• Toronto Skyhawks
• Toronto Wizzards 

[Screengrab] online survey for AUDL's Toronto team name

The survey was recently discovered, yet its distribution is unavailable/unknown. If valid, then it's estimated to have been created prior to April 2012.  Besides the Wildfire name, the survey shows other possible names Toronto considered. There are two potential names with "hawks," which somehow later nested with MLU's Vancouver Nighthawks.

Survey Intro: Professional Ultimate is coming to Toronto! The American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL) is expanding and we'll have an expansion team playing in the 2013 season. We want your help in selecting a great team name and choosing a venue to call our home field. Thanks for taking a few minutes to give us your feedback!

[The Rush played their inaugural 2013 season at Varsity Stadium.]

Question 7: Thanks so much for your feedback, can you tell us a little about you?

[Answer is limited to male or female.]

Montreal Royal Logo

The sole expansion AUDL team east of the Mississippi River - Montréal Royal - unveiled their pro Ultimate team logo. And...

Royal logo (center), surrounded by the 4 MLU teams.

the AUDL team's logo looks very shield-y, in a MLU Eastern Conference kind of way.

WAFC Pool Play: 11.09.13

:Game 1:
0-0, 1-0, 4-2, 4s, 6-7, 8-7, 8s, 9-10, 10s, 11-10, 13-11, win 14-11 versus Ultimallers.

Sludge began with a break which buoyed the low expectations entering the game. Morning wind conditions plus fresh legs favored Sludge's defense forcing of multiple throws. The one and only time the D changed to person (3-2), created a turn and a score.

Cuts to open space during point and efficiency near the end zone powered Sludge O. David-to-Matthew-to-Rachel, 1-0; Brian's zippy flick to Nigel, 2-2; Russ' rundown shoestring catch, 5-4; Michael's "honey pass"[HP] to Rachel, 6-4; Bucci and Christy assisted for the next score, 7-7.

Up one at half (8-7), Sludge traded points until Sludge went up 12-10. David's denials of deep throws facilitated the next brown points, win 14-11.

The next two games were rematches from spring 2013 pool play...

:Game 2:
0-0, 0-1, 2s, 4s, 6-4, 7-8, 8s, 9s, 11-9, 12s, 13-12, loss 13-15 versus Sundays at Six.

What a close game throughout - a tied score 9 times. While Sludge's early cuts were denied, red zone execution was excellent. Nigel's tip catch, 1-0; Mike's "HP" to Christy, 2s; Matthew's backhand to Sarah, 3s; Andrew score to Brian, 4-3; Charlie to Sarah; 6-5.

The diminished wind and S@6's catch-and-throw movement perplexed Sludge's zone. Plus, the inability to contain and defend downfield throws hurt Sludge.

Sludge took its first second-half lead with a score from Steve to Nigel, 9-8; Brian snagged a Callahan, 10-9; Nigel threw a BACKHAND to Rachel, 11-9; Michael to Mike; 13-12.

At 13s, Sludge turned over the disc and, eventually, the lead. Loss 13-15.

:Game 3:
0-0, 6-0, 6-3, 8-3, 9-6, 11-7, win 15-7 versus Pignition.

Playing a mix of 4:3 & 5:2, Sludge flowed to a 6-0 lead. Nigel to Sarah, 2-0; Charlie's high-release two-handed helicopter to Russ, 3-0; Mike's no-spin hammer to Michael, 5-0.

After David's S-curve pull and Russ' 1-yard incompletion into the turf meant for Christy, Sludge dropped the next 3 points. Steve righted the ship by throwing a score to take half; 8-3.

Sludge carved up Pig' thanks to open receivers - Andrew to Henry to Bucci, 10-6; Michael to Henry to Russ, 11-7. Win, 15-7.

:Outcome:
#2 out of 4 in Pool C. Advance to next week's tournament.

Ultimate Article Bingo

What's more fun than reading an Ultimate magazine article? Playing Ultimate Bingo, of course!
Play along as you read along any article (The Economist. Time. Hemispheres . SBNation, etc.) about our beloved sport of Ultimate. Pick your Bingo card from the following choices:

Coverage of the First Intercollegiate Frisbee Game

The day after the very first intercollegiate Ultimate game in 1972 was played, here's how a few newspapers covered the historic event the next day:

Rutgers Holds Off Princeton to Win -- In Frisbee [NY Times; Nov 7, 1972]

NEW BRUNSWICK, N. J., Nov. 6 -- On the same site where, 103 years ago to the day, Rutgers and Princeton squared off in college football's first game, the same two colleges clashed today in what was billed as the first intercollegiate game of Ultimate Frisbee.

Screenshot of article abstract

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Now It's Frisbee [The Dispatch; Nov 7, 1972]

NEW BRUNSWICK, N. J. (UPI) - Princeton and Rutgers, the universities which played the first intercollegiate football game 103 years ago, met Monday in a roped off parking lot in the nation's first organized intercollegiate frisbee match.

History was repeated - Rutgers won the match 29-27. On Nov. 6, 1869, Rutgers beat Princeton 6-4 on a New Brunswick football field.

A crowd of about 400 gathered around the parking lot behind the Rutgers gymnasium to watch the frisbee match, played between seven-person teams according to rules developed by Columbia High School of Maywood, N.J. Princeton asked for a rematch - this time on grass and on its home turf.

Screenshot of newspaper clipping

Ultimate Prescription

For those diagnosed with chronic Ultimate playing, this is for you:

Rob Ford's Ultimate Admission

Rob Ford said Tuesday that he loves his job and will stay on as mayor of Toronto despite admitting for the first time of a regrettable act on the Ultimate field.

[Photo/quote captured via WaPo Express; description by Sludge]

No DC Sports Team Name Unturned

After the D.C. Council passed a resolution to rename the Washington Redskins NFL football team on Tuesday, they continued with their DC sports agenda.  Responding to complaints submitted by disgruntled constituents, the legislative branch then addressed DC's professional Ultimate team names.

"The Breeze term is very weak for a team name," a Councilmember (Ward 9) said. "My niece's youth soccer team name - the Puppies - are on par with gentleness."

Asked about the DC-area's other pro Ultimate team, an At-large member said, "The Current is just nondescript. If District residents wanted abstract, we would visit an art museum."

The bottom line for the D.C. Council is neither of these teams can be represented by a mascot, and therefore hurts job creation.

A resolution seeking to improve names of Washington, DC-based pro Ultimate teams expects to pass, after which it will be forwarded to teams owners Aaron Foreman (Breeze) and Mark Evangelisto (Current).

[spoof]

USA Upgrade

USA Ultimate's announcement about an upgraded website using AmericanEagle.com, included these words of improvement related to the antiquated, unpopular Score Reporter:

"...After the initial launch of these benefits and services next month (December 2), USA Ultimate will continue and complete testing on phase two, which for the first time ever will include USA Ultimate's own tournament builder and score reporting function. This is one example of a technological component that has never been owned, operated or serviced by the national governing body and is reliant upon a single individual. The forthcoming tournament builder will be synched with team databases, player profiles, and registration and payment functionalities, giving organizers of sanctioned events a platform on which to administer and promote their tournaments.

Once phase two is live, the full benefit of the currently planned elements for this new technology platform will be fully realized. A new event management system will integrate team rostering and event registration with public team and event pages. The second phase will also offer public team profiles complete with stats, logos, pictures, schedules and rankings, as well as enhanced event information pages and game tracking elements like scoring and statistics."

Hopefully, the upgrade will include excellent visuals for the game tracking elements.

:Recap: 
The forthcoming USAU tournament builder will:

• sync with team databases, player profiles, and registration 
• accept payments
• allow organizers of sanctioned events to administer and promote their tournaments
• display team profiles complete with stats, logos, pictures, schedules and rankings
• provide enhanced event information
• offer game tracking elements, like scoring and statistics

Scandal & Backhanded Women's Hat Tourney

What: Women's Hat Tournament hosted by women club teams DC Scandal & Baltimore Backhanded

When: Sunday, November 10.  Games at 10:30am, 12pm & 1:30pm

Where: Catonsville, Maryland

Price: $20 ($10 for college/H.S. players)

DC Current's Ultimate Clinic

Flyer distributed for DC Current -sponsored youth Ultimate clinic 

What: Youth Skills Clinic
For middle school players (ages 10-14) to learn Ultimate skills from DC Current players.

When: Sunday, November 10 12:15 - 3:15 pm
Clinic, plus a 5-vs.-5 mini-tournament.

Where: Washington-Lee H.S. in Arlington

Price: $5

Skyd Fund 2014

Holy Flying Disc! The online Ulti resource - Skyd Magazine - has been dumping worldwide Ultimate news for THREE YEARS. Now, Skyd seeks to crowdfunding $12k to cover the costs of a website redesign & their 2014 coverage of the Ultimate sport.

Sludge already has thrown some cash to support Skyd, so consider all the swag perks when, not if, you support them.

--> DONATE NOW.

What She Said

So true! Ultimate (aka Flatball) is amazing.

Ultimate frisbee was amazeballs yesterday
— SkylerThatsMe (@Skyler_Thats_Me) October 30, 2013

Frisbee Poet

There once was a poem about Ultimate; decades later, a Frisbee poem by a poet.

Let's Not Play Frisbee with that Poet Anymore by Stephen Collins
Unloosed, unheralded.
You soar toward me
Across the dying afternoon.
Bright disc of childhood,
Long since thrown wide
Of youth's green imaginings,
Your slow declining arc
Figures a sky-written truth:
We will all succumb, and soon
To earth's hard oblivion.

Do Over: October 2013

Catch up on last month's noteworthy posts you may have missed...

Better than the Honor Roll.

PLAY Participate in ULTIMATE!

Age of players for top Club teams

'I Hucked It' (Parody Song)

DC Mayor's Proclamation Honors Scandal

Washington, D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray recognized DC Scandal's 2013 USA Ultimate championship with an official proclamation whereas October 20, 2013 was "Scandal Women's Ultimate Frisbee Team Day" in DC.

Proclamation image:

DC Mayor's proclamation of "Scandal Ultimate Team Day"

Full Proclamation PDF:

Proclamation text:
SCANDAL WOMEN'S ULTIMATE FRISBEE TEAM DAY
2013 USA ULTIMATE NATIONAL CHAMPIONS
OCTOBER 20, 2013

WHEREAS, founded in 2007, Scandal is the District of Columbia's elite women's Ultimate Frisbee team; and

WHEREAS, Scandal won three competitive tournaments during the 2013 regular season and earned the #1 seed in the Mid-Atlantic Regionals - the second stage of the of the USA Ultimate Club Championship Series; and

WHEREAS, Scandal won the Mid-Atlantic Regionals to qualify for the USA Ultimate National Championships and Scandal went undefeated at the 2013 USA Ultimate National Championships, to clinch the women's national title; and

WHEREAS, on October 19, 2013, Scandal upset the Seattle Riot, 15-7 to advance to the finals and on October 20, 2013, defeated the seven time national champions - the San Francisco Fury 14 - 7, to clinch the women's national title; and

WHEREAS, the District of Columbia are proud and honored to have players who displayed good sportsmanship, teamwork, and determination throughout the season and who are role models for other youth in the city and surrounding area:

NOW, THEREFORE, I, THE MAYOR OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, do hereby proclaim October 20, 2013 as "SCANDAL WOMEN’S ULTIMATE FRISBEE TEAM DAY" in Washington, D.C. and call upon all the residents of this great city to join me in wishing them continued success on and off the field. <Vincent C. Gray>
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