Ultimate - As Explained by a Chucker
“When a ball dreams, it dreams it’s a Frisbee”
- Stancil Johnson
Captain Devin Donnelly resting on the sidelines.
Photo courtesy of Kevin Peters
“3…2…1…ULTIMATE!!” Yelled down the field
by the puller during every throwoff, this phrase is a common one heard during
an Ultimate game.
Although Ultimate is not as widely publicized as other sports such as soccer
and football, it still places amongst the most popular sports, both at the
collegiate level and around the world. ASU has its own club teams, the Appalachian
State Nomads, the men’s team, captained by sophomore Devin Donnelly,
and the Appalachian State Nonads, captained by senior Stacey Waldrup. The
Nomads are in their 10th college season, the Nonads in their 8th.
This past November, the teams hosted the 10th annual Blue Ridge Blowout, with 16 open and 8 women teams from as close as Asheville and as far as Virginia Tech attending. The Nonads came away as the champions of the tournament, which was a great accomplishment for the team. And on February 24 and 25, the Nomads will attend the 4th annual Chucktown Throwdown in Charleston, SC, and receive some excellent experience there. Although a fairly new and somewhat inexperienced team, they are quickly gaining skill and prestige within the Ultimate community.
Many people refer to the sport of Ultimate as “Ultimate Frisbee,”
or “Frisbee Football.” This, however, is incorrect. In 1958,
Wham-o released a plastic flying disc that it officially termed the Frisbee,
and officially patented the name. Thus, it is technically not legal to refer
to Ultimate as anything but Ultimate, and is only played using “discs,”
not “Frisbees”.
The sport of Ultimate is comprised of elements from soccer, football, and
basketball. Developed in 1968 by a group of students at Columbia High School
in Maplewood, NJ, Ultimate is now played in more than 42 countries by hundreds
of thousands of men and women. Taking the continuous movement and athletic
endurance of soccer, the aerial passing skills of football, and the transition
style of basketball, Ultimate is a fast-paced yet easily learned game of
skill and excitement.
Sophomore Alissa Shannon prepares to pull the disc.
In Ultimate, there are two teams of 7 players each, played on a field 40
yards wide by 70 yards long, with a 25-yard end zone on each end. The object
is to score points by catching the disc in the opponent’s end zone,
each score being worth one point. A game usually lasts until 15 points are
scored, which takes about 2 hours. A change of possession of the disc can
occur from a dropped pass, a pass thrown out of bounds, an interception,
holding onto the disc for more than 10 seconds or scoring a point.
Teams usually attend one to two tournaments a month, and some also choose
to host tournaments as well. The host team tries to make the tournaments
as fun as possible, and usually incorporate either a rookie game, in which
rookies from each team join up to play each other, or something crazy such
as a Naked Point, in which, obviously, the whole point is played completely
naked (except cleats). The Naked Point is rarely seen, however, and does
not happen at every tournament.
The 2nd annual Thawout, the spring tournament hosted by our very own Nomads
and Nonads, will take place March 31 to April 1. Held on the local State
Farm Intramural Fields, the tournament will start at 9:00 a.m. each morning,
and last until 5:00 p.m. Anyone is welcome to come out and enjoy the event.
It is free of charge and promises fast-paced action and intense competition
between the teams.
Story & Photos by Jacob Young