Ben Wiggins Returns to Seattle Rainmakers

The 2016 roster for Seattle Rainmakers was announced in March and on the 30-player list is none other than... 

via Seattle Rainmakers 2016 team

Dr. Ben Wiggins.

Wiggins was the inaugural coach of the Rainmakers in 2013. He even gave himself some playing time during that first season of Major League Ultimate.

Spike Friedman Reaches Verdict in Ultimate Discovery

Did Spike Friedman like ultimate*?

Ripped from Friedman's article via SKYD magazine (winter 2016 issue), here are some of his reasons for liking ultimate during his discovery of the sport:
1. "The personality of ultimate as an event."
As any ultimate player can attest, ultimate is fun. Spike learned the game ought to be fun, the people ought be more fun, and the vibe between game and people ought to be the most fun.

2. "When played at the highest level ultimate is a forum for players to creatively display their athleticism."
Well said, Spike. Ultimate players are athletes with similar skills seen in other sports.

3. "Ultimate looks like football without the collisions." AND "...a more rigorously coached professional ultimate league is arguably the perfect methadone for a nation of football junkies."
Well, injuries still happen in ultimate, but certainly not at the rate of football players. Plus, youth enjoy playing ultimate (and so do their parents)!


Friedman also cites areas that ultimate could improve. For example, tweaking the rules to make pulls more interesting and feeling like the defenses were too "lax" and offenses were "rote" at times.


So, did Spike Friedman like ultimate?  Yes.

* Mostly via Seattle Rainmakers (MLU) games.

Seattle Rainmakers Co-Coaches Announced

Seattle Rainmakers announced their head coaches will be Kate Kingery and Fiona McKibben - both assistant coaches from the 2015 Major League Ultimate season. Kingery and McKibeen were on the 2015 Seattle Riot (women's club ultimate team) roster, with Kingery captaining Riot in 2015.

KK and McKibben join the ranks of women Co-Coaches in the MLU along with New York Co-Coach Eileen Murray, who was announced as Rumble's Co-Coach in January 2016.


[Photos via Riot roster page]

Rainmakers Attract Seattle Musicians

Last weekend's sighting of a popular musician at the Seattle Rainmakers' pro ultimate game is not new. For a music hotbed like Seattle, it should be news when a rock star is not in attendance.  Hey, SUPPORT KEXP!

In April 2014, Chris Ballew (Presidents of the United States, Caspar Babypants)...

Chris Ballew (left).

And in May 2015, Dave Matthews + family took in a Seattle MLU game...

We have the best fans in the MLU! So awesome to have Dave Matthews and his family in the audience! #superfans pic.twitter.com/8FPsTWlt0R

— Seattle Rainmakers (@SeaRainmakers) May 3, 2015

Partnership News from Seattle Pro Ultimate Teams

To explain this further...

Background: Both Seattle pro Ultimate teams made recent announcements about a partnership - Cascades (AUDL) announced their partnership with Sockeye club team; while, the Rainmakers (MLU) their partnership with Point6 wool sock company.

Top 5 Pro Ultimate Team Halloween Costumes

Let professional Ultimate Frisbee teams inspire your Halloween costume.

1. L.A. Aviators

This costume has character, plus provides an opportunity to don a mustache. Feel free to add a bomber jacket to punctuate your costume.

SUPPLIES: Goggles, pilot aviator hat, scarf, mustache.

TIP: Bring along a battery-operated portable fan to create a wind effect so your scarf flaps in the current.

2. Nashville NightWatch

This costume is for those looking to dress up wearing a mask, yet still be able to enjoy breathing (or a drink).

SUPPLIES: Wide-brimmed black hat, mullet, goatee, eye mask.

TIP #1: Avoid being mistaken for Dread Pirate Roberts (Princess Bride), don't wear a puffy pirate shirt, or carry a sword.
TIP #2: Avoid being mistaken for The Undertaker (WWE), don't body slam anyone.

[UPDATE: Nashville upgraded from this identity, but the ghost of the original Nashville Nightwatch is still an option.]

3. Seattle Rainmakers

This is a truly minimalist costume. To stay in character, you must wear the hood over your eyes.

SUPPLIES: A rain jacket with a hood.

TIP: Bring a water spray bottle and occasionally squeeze some mist into the air like you just don't care.

4. Indianapolis AlleyCats

A cat outfit is kind of cliche for Halloween, so it will take some dedication to nail this one.

SUPPLIES: Only the head, tail & one paw of a cat costume, green contact lenses.

TIP: You're a American Wirehair breed alley cat, not a domesticated black cat.

5. San Jose Spiders

There can only be so many Spider-Man costumes. Geek out to reboot this spider costume.

SUPPLIES: Four black socks/stockings, black pants and shirt, labels of search engines (Google, Bing, Yahoo!, etc).

TIP: You're to be an internet world wide web crawling bot, not a web-slinging superhero nor arachnid.

Club Rosters on Western Conference MLU Teams

The 2014 MLU regular season, like last year, is before the 2014 club season begins. The primary source of MLU players are from club teams, and here's the breakdown for each team in the west:

Primary Club Team Feeder on each Western Conference MLU Team Roster
72% (18 of 25) Vancouver Nighthawks roster  = Vancouver Furious George
46% (11 of 24) Portland Stags roster = Portland Rhino
33% (10 of 30) San Francisco Dogfish roster = Bay Area Boost Mobile
40% (12 of 30) Seattle Rainmakers roster = Seattle Sockeye + Seattle Voodoo

Compare to 2013 Rosters: Seattle. San Fran. Vancouver. Portland

{Thanks to @ultimatepulse for contributing to data collection.}

NOTES: 2014 is a Worlds year.
Portland is the only Western MLU team without a competing intra-city AUDL team.
Some Sockeye players decided not to play for Rainmakers, affecting Seattle %
Two new Bay Area pro Ultimate teams (AUDL) started up in 2014, affecting S.F. %
A Vancouver AUDL franchise also started in 2014.

[SOURCE: Published MLU 2014 rosters and 2013 Club Rosters]

Make It Rain, Seattle

After last night's Seahawks victory in Super bowl XLVII, here's an "update" to Major League Ultimate's Seattle Rainmakers logo...

[Inspired by: the Gatorade bath]

The Greatest by Sam Harkness

"The Greatest" happened in the first quarter of Saturday's Vancouver Nighthawks vs Seattle Rainmakers MLU game.

Watch video of "The Greatest" saved/thrown by Seattle's Sam Harkness and caught in the endzone by teammate Donnie Clark.


Tino Tran Photography captured the event on camera...

via Tino Tran

Review: Seattle Rainmakers (MLU)

Part of the series critiquing the professional Ultimate team logos and nicknames.

Team: Seattle Rainmakers

Web: http://SeattleRainmakers.com // twitter: @SeaRainmakers

Representation: City // League: MLU

Disc within logo?: No. // Ultimate element in team name?: No.

Background: As any Seattle resident is happy to keep secret, Seattle is more "overcast than rainy." A rainmaker is: One who is known for achieving excellent results in a profession or field, such as business or politics. In slang, to "make it rain" is an inappropriate term as used in Make It Rain (2006), Fat Joe featuring Lil Wayne. Read MLU's name rationale.

First impression(s): An REI advertisement for rain gear. Also, the past Rainmakers logo looks very much like the DarkSide Emporers.

Eli's Eval: (Nicely drawn and the face resembles Bill Belichick.) I have a little voice in the back of my mind telling me I've seen this before. In my experience that either means: 1) I have seen it and this drawing is a copy of something that is already out there, or 2) it is new and iconic and timeless. 

I looked and looked and couldn't remember where I'd seen it. Then, in a flash, it came to me: the Providence Friars. The Seattle Rainmakers logo is highly derivative of the look + feel of the Providence College Friars' logo, with only the colors changed; possibly, even, a direct ripoff!

I expect PC lawyering up and throwing a Cease & Desist toward the Rainmakers, and a new Rainmakers logo in the near future. 

Side-by-side Comparison: Providence College (left) vs. Seattle Rainmakers (right)

:Eli's Grades:

Grade: F
On Logo: F
On Typography: F

Thoughts on this MLU's team name & logo?

MLU vs Club Roster: Seattle

With Major League Ultimate's season being scheduled before the Club Ultimate season, it makes sense that teams would draw from Club-level players. Over half of Seattle's roster is Sockeye players.

Seattle Rainmakers 2013 roster was compared to Seattle Sockeye's 2012 roster. Out of the 26-person MLU roster, 14 are Sockeye players (54%).

Sockeye players on the Rainmakers' 2013 Roster

Related Rosters: DC. Boston. San Fran. Vancouver.