by Elizabeth Lemond
here are those
who are content to spend their summer evenings on the couch eating Chee-tos
and watching QVC. Then there are members of the Memphis Ultimate Team, the
Prairie Squids. These Frisbee throwers get exercise, sunshine, and excitement
-- all in one dose.
For
the fourth consecutive year, the team is running a summer league in which
male and female players of all ages and levels of experience come together
for a few nights a week to savor the game, which is comparable to playing
football using a Frisbee. Expert Ultimate players as well as novices benefit
from the heightened camaraderie and good-natured competitiveness that the
summer league has to offer.
"You can play a co-ed game like we're going to play today, with a lot of new players," says player Darryl Drogula. "Or you can play at a really high level with mostly all guys, all in shape, everyone's got the rules down pat -- you know, a testosterone festival."
Drogula, a six-year veteran of the game, got involved with the game almost by accident.
"I was riding my mountain bike through the park one day, and someone asked me to play. I played for about six months in the park, and then I went to a couple of tournaments and got hooked," says Drogula.
The team hopes to add to its year-round membership roster by recruiting new talent through the summer league. But one of the Squids' main goals for the upcoming months, as always, is to have fun.
"There's always a fine line between running hard drills and getting on to people for being late and just making sure everyone has a good time. We really try to find that balance," says Paul Recht, an organizer of the summer league.
Player Tim Hartline joined the team several years ago after friends told him about Ultimate.
"I'm a pretty competitive person," says Hartline, "and the game's kind of competitive. But everyone is still really friendly. That's the best part about it, meeting a whole bunch of different people."
Typically, the summer league features four teams of about 15 players each, though organizers say a rise in participation could allow for the formation of five or six teams this summer. These teams face off in games on Tuesday nights and hold practices every Thursday and Sunday.
"The city has been really great about giving us field space," says Recht. Regular games and practices are held at Overton Park on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 6 p.m. and Sundays at 3 p.m.
In addition to playing each other, members of the Ultimate team frequently travel to other cities for tournaments, as well as sectional, regional, and national competitions. Several members of the Squids will also be attending the world championships in Vancouver from July 27th to August 2nd.
"If you really like it, you can go anywhere. Any weekend you can go and play somewhere," says Hartline.
Throughout the summer, members of both the summer league and the regular traveling team look forward to the large tournament that the Memphis Ultimate team hosts in the middle of August. More than 20 teams from around the country flock to Memphis for a two-day Frisbee showdown. This year's tournament will be the sixth one that the Squids have hosted.
The Squids' lighthearted attitudes shine through, even in the potentially cutthroat atmosphere of a tournament. Last year's tournament was titled the "Fifth Annual Memphis Ultimate Sideburn Impersonator Dead Elvis A Go-Go Pint-Low Hotter Than Hell Jelly Donut Tournament." The spirited attitude of the team in no way interferes with their success, however -- last year the team made it to the regional competition.
Although many members of the summer league have been playing for years, newcomers need not be discouraged or intimidated when first learning the game.
"A lot of my friends think, `I can't play because I can't throw the disk,' but once you start playing it doesn't take a month and you have it pretty much figured out," says Hartline. "Learning to throw the disk is the hardest part and you can get past it ... unless you can't run."