E.R.I.C. Speak Up Tour 2016-2017

The Early Recognition Is Critical (E.R.I.C.) school clinic begins its 22-city tour today in Dallas, home of the Roughnecks. Last week, Beau Kittredge announced the tour last week which is meant to:

• Teach youth to be healthy, active and aware of their bodies
• Educates youth on cancer symptoms in non-scary way
• Learn a new fun, non-contact sport and the importance of Spirit of the Game
• Teach them to speak up and call their own fouls (because ultimate at that age doesn't and shouldn't have referees, which helps them understand the incredible important skill of conflict resolution)
• Apply what they learned to life, respect and help others and to SPEAK UP when something feels wrong

Map via SKYD, updated by SLUDGE

Not cited in the E.R.I.C. tour details is the overlap with AUDL cities. According to the list of Am-E.R.I.C-an tour locations, the clinic plans to visit American Ultimate Disc League cities. Though, the map shows 20+ locations including 3 stops in North Carolina while there are just Charlotte and Raleigh  AUDL teams. E.R.I.C. and the AUDL have a partnership that was announced in November 2014. 

TOUR SCHEDULE

2016 

8/29 Dallas

9/6 Austin

9/12 Minnesota

9/19 Madison

9/26 Detroit

10/3 Chicago

10/24 Nashville

10/31 Charlotte

11/7 Raleigh

11/14 Jacksonville

11/28 Atlanta

2017

Jan 

San Diego

Los Angeles

3/6 Indianapolis

3/13 Cincinnati

3/20 Pittsburgh

3/27 Washington

4/3 Philadelphia

4/10 New York

Where Are they Now? Team E.R.I.C. All-Stars Edition

Team AmE.R.I.C.a was handpicked to play in a 2-game exhibition series in the Philippines last year. The mixed team from the USA went undefeated (2-0). Where are the men's players now, you ask?

Four of the men - Beau, Mickle, Dylan & Peterson - are all on the new AUDL team Dallas Roughnecks. The other 3: Perston (Stags, MLU), Rehder (Cascades, AUDL) and Nethercutt (Flyers, AUDL).

Five of the 7 men players will be playing tonight's as the Raleigh Flyers (4-0) host Dallas Roughnecks (3-0) in the AUDL's ESPN3 Game of the Week.

Team AmE.R.I.C.a

Fourteen players on USA All-Stars ("Team ERIC") - let's call them Team AmE.R.I.C.a - play in tonight's mixed exhibition ultimate game versus Philippines.

Eleven club teams are represented on the U.S. ultimate roster; zero from the mixed division. Five out of 8 USAU club regions are represented - Northwest (5), Southwest (4), South Central (3), and both Mid-Atlantic and Southeast (1). Nearly two-thirds of rostered players are from West Coast club teams.

Watch the game tonight at 8pm ET, presented free by Ditch.

Ultimate Got 99 Problems but Ditch Ain't One

Out of the ashes of NexGen Network, which ceased operations on December 31, 2014, rises....

Ditch.

[As predicted, this media venture was not a combination of company names.]

Reportedly financed by the E.R.I.C. founders, the new media company called Ditch introduced itself with a proclamation which does not address the sport of ultimate directly, but refers to a "unique community united by disc":

Welcome.
Ditch is for those who think about sports a little differently.
To us, your success on the field is not a value judgment of who you are as a human being. If you are tuning into that doctrine, we're not here for you.
We play for the chance to travel while competing with friends.
We play for the experience of belonging to a globally unique community united by the disc.
Ditch encourages unconventional spirits. We lionize the adventuring wanderer, we glorify the weird. We relish those that thrive when pushing the status quo.
We never know what the future will hold, but you can bet that we'll have a good time when we're there. With our lifestyle, the potential roads are limitless.
We are Ditch. Thanks for joining us.
Grab a bag.
Pack light.

screengrab via Ditch facebook, bolding & highlighting by SLUDGE 

Ditch's first live-streaming of games will cover a USA All-Star team vs Manila Spirits in Manila, Philippines on November 11 (vs Philippines) & 13 (vs Japan).

Dig ditch at: @ditcheverything . http://ditchmedia.tv/

awERICness Day

Today is Early Recognition Is Critical (E.R.I.C.) Awareness Day.

E.R.I.C. aims to educate youth about cancer symptoms and body awareness through Ultimate Frisbee which they describe as: a "gentleman's sport" in that all players work on the honor system and games are self-regulated and scored. Ultimate Frisbee teaches life lessons because Spirit of the Game is paramount in the rule book. It is the perfect sport for teaching self-respect and body-awareness.

FACT: Skin cancer is the most common of all cancer types. More than 3.5 million skin cancers are diagnosed each year in the U.S. – that’s more than all others cancers combined!

FACT: Nearly 1 in every 2 males will develop cancer (~1 in 4 will die from cancer); 1 in every 3 females will develop cancer (~1 in 5 will die from cancer). [ACS]

FACT: Early detection of cancer greatly increases the chances for successful treatment.

Ultimate players, remember: slip, slop, slap, seek, slide. For the slap, DIY a "Frisbee Hat," or use an ultimate disc as a hat.