Saturday, May 31, 2008

Summer Ultimate

I hold that summer ultimate is one of the hardest seasons.  Yeah, springtime is where it's at, competitively; but there's a whole team support system that helps maintain the intensity.  It's so east to feel a huge letdown going into the summer, to stop training and basically give up any standards one had about performance. And then there's you non-athlete friends who just want to smoke and drink every night.

Don't get me wrong, I love getting down and partying over the summer - I play frisbee.  But yo-yoing your body between pack fitness in the spring to complete cardiovascular destruction in the summer, only to restarting fall training is a recipe for disaster.

To play spring ultimate, you have to be physically strong.  To play summer ultimate, you have to be mentally strong.

Saturday, May 3, 2008

Pick Up

I got to play as a ringer for an inter-cluster game of ultimate yesterday.  Originally, I felt bad about being sporting my Zoo jersey and basically being the best player on the field, but the opposing team had a 6'5" beast.  Anyways, playing pick up helped me remember some of the reasons why I started playing ultimate in the first place.  While I do yearn to play for a competent team over the summer, there's still a soft spot in my heart for goofy, hucktastic disc.

Thursday, May 1, 2008

Now what?

With nothing left to play for, is there any real way for a B-team to keep practicing.  Throughout the season, we justify our struggle for turnout on the basis that there are tournaments to play for, and any amount of practice is better than no practice at all.  But at this point, finals is on and we're lucky to get 6 guys for some 3 on 3 boot.  It sucks but the same 4 guys can't just keep showing up, knowing full well that they'll be taking their cleats off in an hour.

Wednesday, April 30, 2008

labor of love

For ZooDisc B, the season is effectively over.  We're still calling practices, but without much to practice for.  The weaker and more apathetic players have picked up on this, and the numbers have seriously dropped off (and we didn't have that many to begin with).  The A-team is heading to regionals this weekend, and but has a hemorrhaging roster due to injuries.  They're having trouble fielding a 6 on 6 scrimmage, which is abysmal for a team aiming for nationals.  

For a team like UMass, I just don't see the sense in splitting the squads.  The team can't rely on having a sweet freshman class every year (although our last two recruiting periods have been fruitful).  If the team wants sustained success, I really believe it needs to combine squads at least for a portion of the year.