I first started playing Ultimate in high school, where we were required to take two P.E. classes or we would have to take gym. Rather than face the horrors of a bi-weekly gym class, I began a search for a second sport to play (I already play squash -- the sport, not the vegetable). Spring sports options were very limited. I had already tried my hand at lacrosse and figured out that it is even harder to aim throwing a ball with a stick than it is throwing a ball by hand. Soccer brought back too many memories from my kindergarten soccer career where I was known for my dancing on the field than my actual playing. My other choice was Ultimate Frisbee, a non-contact sport that consists of seven players trying to make the disc down the field into the end zone. As time passed, it proved to clearly be the correct choice.

In my high school, Ultimate Frisbee was not seen as a sport; mostly because everyone who played on our team was either a science nerd or a theater geek, which meant that we clearly weren’t athletes. We took a lot of flack from the other teams that we were a cop-out for the sports requirement and didn’t do “real” exercise. In reality, we ran and trained more than most teams. Not only that, but most of the team balanced it with winning sciences fairs and performing Shakespeare. The people on my high school ultimate team were some of my closest friends and also some of the most amazing people I have ever met. Even though we all loved playing Ultimate, it was a great excuse for us to just hang out.

Ultimate was one of the main things that helped me transition to college. To put it plainly, I was terrified of being alone at college; but those fears drifted away after my first practice with our Ultimate team, the Greenshirts. We practiced three times a week together. Most people came to practice even if they were injured, just to cheer their teammates on. I think some of my best memories from college will be of traveling with the Greens to and from tournaments. Because we all have diverse interests, we make up an interesting, but tight knit group who will go above and beyond for each other on the field and off the field, which is important for ultimate. I don’t think I have meet any other team that systematically goes to people’s performances and presentations just to cheer people on (what we refer to fondly as Greens Crashing).

I love that ultimate is a self-refereed sport, because it not only encourages knowledge of the rules, but also a sense of honesty of one’s self. There is also something that is called spirit of the game, which really means being an honest player and trying to make the game fun for everyone. Ultimate is not a game where you can follow a set of rules to score a point. It requires cooperation, trust, and a bit of a whimsical attitude. People in Ultimate take things seriously, but also know how to make things fun. This is reflected in the attitudes of everyone who plays Ultimate. Everyone I have met at tournaments have been fun-loving people who just want to play Ultimate. It provides a unique environment; one that everyone should experience.

Image credits top-down: Merritt Gohn, Marianna Heckendorn, Marianna Heckendorn.