My Ulti-ventures: Canadian Ultimate Championships 2010

Bishop's University in Sherbrooke hosts CUC2010. Photo by BU.

Sherbrooke, QC - a small city or a large town roughly two hours east of Montreal, is a beautiful place to play Ultimate. The rolling hills and the endless forests of this city of 200,000 define the unique region of the St. Lawrence lowlands. From Thursday the 12th to Sunday the 15th, this city was completely overrun with Ultimate players. One could walk into any given restaurant and find a team enjoying dinner and drinking it up after a long day of 'throwing around the pie plate'.

The Canadian Ultimate Championships (CUC), perhaps the greatest event within Canada, brought together sixty-five teams in five divisions from all over the nation for four days of competition. CUC2010 was my first national conference outside of the University series and it exceeded all my expectations severalfold. I felt like a kid in a candy story. Thrilled by the possibilities, and coming face-to-face with teams I had followed online for the past several years, I could barely contain my excitement.

We had prepared for this moment all season and every game we played would reflect on our capacity as a team. During our last practice on the Tuesday before Nationals, we went over all the basics and the plays that we had practiced the entire season. Sort of like the final review before an exam, we paid close attention to details and walked through the strategies that were engraved in our minds.

Captain Andy Milne (6) throws a break-force backhand up the field against Mayhem. Photo by Tushar Singh.

Rahil Suleman (74) bids for the disk. Photo by Tushar Singh.

On the bus, I received an update that Tundra had won one and lost two games in the first day of pool plays. A 14-10 loss against Mayhem and a 12-11 universe point loss against Spawn, a team from Fredericton, forced Tundra to focus harder on the prize. The very next game was against Hard, where Tundra played their heart out and won on a 12-11 universe point break.

After three buses and a cab, I arrived in Sherbrooke on Friday at noon. A day and a half of Ultimate had already passed.

Tundra's Marc Hodges (27), throws a beautiful flick under a Mayhem defender's leg. Photo by Ed Kung.

When I arrived at Bishop's University, I proceeded straight to Paterson Hall to check-in to the dormitories. One of our teammates had wisely booked several rooms on campus since we would be at the epicenter of all the fun (especially the parties!). Mackinnon Hall is a three-storey single and double room dorm with a large lounge and aged furnishings.

Christian Parsons (83) in action against BFC. Photo by Corry Berghout.

After dropping of my stuff off in my room, I rushed to the satellite fields at Atto Beaver. Tundra had already played two games that morning: a 12-11 universe point win against Tobasco and a 16-5 loss to RIP. There was a two hour break before we faced our friendly rivals, Bytown Flatball Club (BFC), in the second round of pool plays.

We wanted to forget about our game against BFC at Mixed-Up and play hard Ultimate to earn a solid victory.

Michelle "Wangers" Wang (16) snatches the disk. Photo by Corry Berghout.

BFC was able to take the game to half, but we were determined to come back. After some amazing long plays, especially a huck from Rahil Suleman (74) to David Shimoda (11), we became more confident in our abilities. Unfortunately, we couldn't keep up our attack and BFC continued to play their best. We ended up losing the match that would put us in the top eight by 14-8.

Although it was disappointing to lose out the chance to be in the top eight, we reassessed our goals and wanted to top the 'ninals'.

We decided to stick around for a while after our game to observe the match between Maverick and Grand Trunk on one side, and between Phoenix and Q on the other.  Phoenix, who had lost to Grand Trunk 12-11, was able to take a quick 15-6 win against Q. Grand Trunk asserted themselves against Maverick in 12-11 win, but would go on to lose to them 14-10 in the playoffs.

Phoenix's Derek Alexander (9), shreds his mark and throws an amazing flick. Photo by Corry Berghout.

On the Saturday, we faced Natural Born Spinner (NBS), a team from Sherbrooke, in our first playoff game. The field at Sylvie Daigle was turf and the day was hot. The flames of determination scorched our hearts as the waves of dry heat burnt our skin. NBS gave us a scare as they we went point-for-point in the first half. The slight crosswind made it difficult to read the disk at times and we were suffering because of it.

"Let's get our heads out of our as-es and play some fr-gging Ultimate! We should be burning them!" said one of our captains. We needed that kick to nudge us back on track as we took the game 13-9.

On the field beside ours, F-Bomb was playing Short Bus. We heard a lot of cheering from the F-Bomb side so I assumed they must have won, and they did win by a considerable margin 13-6. Now we'd have to face F-Bomb.

The game started of strong as we took the early lead and maintained that lead for the rest of the game. There was a point in the game which stretched for well over twenty minutes. Looking at the scoreboard on the field beside, I saw that BFC had scored five points against Hard in the time it took for that point against F-Bomb. One could see the exhaustion in the faces of all the players on the field. I overheard one of the F-Bomb female player voice her tiredness: "I can't go on anymore!" There were many turnovers that point as a result of the wind and miscommunication. But, we persevered and took the match 11-5.

Hard won against BFC in a close 11-9 game. BFC had pulled a "greatest" in that match and set the pace for the rest of the game. But, Hard never relented.

After a two hour break, we faced Hard just as the sun was right above us. The heat left our feet blistered and burnt, but we maintained our composure and played on. We looked to play the perfect game: focusing on tight containment on defence and no risk passes on offence. It was unfortunate that Hard suffered several injuries during the game but never relented.

We got the break and Joel Landy (19) got an amazing layout D up the line, picked up the disk and sent a beautiful flick to Norman Lew to win the game 12-9. Thus, we took 9th place in the Mixed Division.

The Juniors finals took place on Saturday evening and was definitely one of the greatest matches. Toronto's Overdrive and Vancouver's West Coast Reign showed the Ultimate world that they are the future of the sport. Overdrive's Brandon Lusty, brother of my teammate, Caitlind Lusty, was a star player and played a pivotal role in both offence and defence. Tundra decided to stick around and play the role of Brandon's personal cheering squad.

It was a tough loss for Overdrive as West Coast Reign took gold with a commanding 15-6 lead. There were tears and an overwhelming sense of disappointment in the eyes of all the Overdrive players. However, it was one of the greatest matches I have seen in my Ultimate career, and they should be proud of their accomplishment.

That night's party was surely one to remember, if I could remember it at all. I vaguely recall there being a band, a stage, a lot of drinks, and people dancing uncontrollably and without rhythm. If you were there, you'd savour it, if you weren't, then I'd rather not say. I'll leave the rest to your imagination.

ONYX and fans cheer as they win 14-12 against RIP in the finals.

Sunday was the finals match in all the other divisions. The Mixed finals was first with ONYX (2nd in Worlds) facing RIP (10th in Worlds). The match started at 9:30 a.m. sharp and ONYX was making quick work of their opponents. ONYX had gone undefeated in the pool plays and the playoffs thus far. They looked to finish strong and maintain their first place seed. RIP gave a scare to ONYX as they scored several points in a row and looked to make a comeback. ONYX's skyscraper, Mathieu Bordeleau (5), had two amazing points. They were able to capitalize on their quick transitions from defence to offence and maintained their hold on first place with a 14-12 victory.

Next up, the Women's finals between Stella and Storm. Both teams played really well in the finals match and I got to learn a lot from watching their match. The thing that distinguishes Women's Ultimate is their reliance on clean cuts and solid throws. It's less of a huck game, although there were some beautiful huck points. I paid special attention to the handlers who made the most of the space they were give to work with and moved the disk quickly. Storm played a four-person cup on some of their points and it was difficult for the Stella handlers to move the disk upfield in the gust.

Stella (green) versus Storm (violet) in the Women's Finals.

Storm eventually got a good lead on Stella and the crowd in the stands erupted as they took the championship match 15-6. 

Phil Watanabe (far right) giving important words of advice and encouragement to the Moondoggies.

Inian (33) supporting from the sidelines after his injury.

The Open finals was an interesting match. The game went back and forth between Toronto's Moondoggies and Montreal's Mephisto. Moondoggies took the early 4-1 lead, but gave up the upwind point and the scores were even at 4s. Mephisto took the half 8-5 and the Moondoggies had to do dig deep to overcome the deficit. After, a quick huddle, Mephisto was back and ready to dominate.

In the stands, a small crowd of Torontonians supported the Moondoggies with howls and cheers at every point. One supporter, having no clue of the sport and obviously drunk, decided to chant "Go Leafs Go!" for the duration of the game further perpetuating the stereotype of the "obnoxious Toronto folk" in the minds of the peaceful Quebecers. Albeit, it provided entertainment and a conversation topic for the ride home.

The Moondoggies are the CUC2010 Open Champions. They shake the hands of their opponents in Mephisto.

With sheer hustle and precision throws, Moondoggies got the score back and were now tied up at 12s. John Hassell (38) put up a near full field huck which was chased down by Phil Watanabe (16) and the Moondoggies went up to 13-12. Moondoggies became the champions after a perfect layout point to seal the deal at 15-13. Unfortunately, Inian (33) injured his hand and was forced to assist from the sidelines, but his contributions were the foundation on which Moondoggies built their victory.

Overall, this was a great experience and definitely a great close to a wonderful season. As a personal goal, I had strived to not turning over the disk and that remained true even till the very end. I love my team and I will surely miss playing and practicing with them. I want to thank my team for always supporting me and taking care of me. I want to thank Andy, Neil, and Eric for seeing potential in me and allowing me to join the team.

Twenty-five practices. Five tournaments. Two tryouts. One training camp. And one solid team!

This was my first touring experience and I'm sure it won't be my last.

CUC 2010 Seedings and Schedules

Seedings for CUC 2010 in Sherbrooke, QC. Click to enlarge. Courtesy of CUC2010.com

Seedings

After the exciting run at Regionals in Burlington last month, Tundra qualified for Nationals along with five other strong teams from Ontario. Mayhem, a team which went undefeated at Regionals, is currently seeded third. ONYX holds on to their first place, closely followed by another World's contender, RIP.

Schedule
Mixed Division

Tundra is in Pool C, along with Mayhem, Hard, and Spawn (a Prairie team). It'll be interesting to see if Tundra holds true to its revised goal this season and turns more than just heads in Sherbrooke this year.

Open Division

The Open teams will play their games later in the day. In the first set of games, Phoenix versus Grand Trunk ought to be one of the more savoured ones.

Women Division

Looking for a Lotus-PPF finals match.

Masters Division

Juniors Division

West Coast Reign, formerly called Blackout, will likely face OVERDRIVE, formerly D.I.R.T. in the finals. After the successful season that D.I.R.T. had in 2009, it was bittersweet to watch most of the team dissolve as they players graduated from the junior system and moved on to tour with mixed, women's and open teams in the region. This year's Toronto Junior's team, OVERDRIVE, has shown that they can retain the excellence of their predecessors. After taking first place in the Juniors division at Mixed-Up and bagelling RessureXion, OVERDRIVE is more confident than ever on its chances at glory.

Development: An insight into my growth as a player

Several years ago, as I searched YouTube for its infinite wisdom, I was amazed by the Ultimate videos. I was just starting out in Ultimate and couldn't imagine a game at higher levels than what I was exposed to in the high school league. Hearing of teams like ROY, GT, and GOAT made me feel very small and fragile. That was my way of marvelling at their greatness. I was putting them on the proverbial pedestal, if you will. Looking at those videos brought up several questions in my head. How are they all so good? Where'd they learn all those throws? How are they able to create so much space? How are they not clogging up all the lanes like in all my games?

GOAT players. Photo by Jaleel Paje.

In the high school scene, as long as one is able to throw a flick, they are considered a superstar. That's understandable. The lower the level of game, the greater the distribution of skills amongst players. Think of it like the IQ for the measure of intelligence. British psychologist Liam Hudson wrote, "It is amply proved that someone with an IQ of 170 is more likely to think well than someone whose IQ is 70." "But," wrote Hudson, "the relation seems to break down when one is making comparisons between two people both of whom have IQs which are relatively high." He concluded that, "A mature scientist with an adult IQ of 130 is as likely to win a Nobel Prize as is one whose IQ is 180."(Gladwell, 79-80).When we compare this concept to the skill level in Ultimate players, we can safely say that a GOAT player is more likely to play better than a high school player. However, an entry level GOAT player is just as likely to bid for a disk as is one of his more experienced teammates.

Throwing a low release flick. Photo by Heather Gilmour.

As a handler in my high school team, I focused mainly on mastering my low release flick (albeit it was more of a flick bounce). In my senior year, I continued to develop my throws and discovering new ones. My teammates were somewhat captivated by my ability to bounce all my throws (this is bad, especially in windy games!). It came to a point where I had lost the ability to throw a normal backhand and resorted to air bounces for my backhand and flick. It wasn't until I was properly coached in university that I gained a quicker release and a less obvious bounce.

Another low release flick to "green space". Photo by Ed Kung.

As I progressed further in my games and leagues, a question of spacing became more and more relevant. After learning the HO (Horizontal Offence)-stack, knowing where the cutter will cut became a lot more obvious to me. I banked on my ability to break the mark (usually forcing me flick) with an I-O (Inside-Out) flick.

A vertical stack in one of my high school games. Photo by Vivian Shan.

"Throw to green space!" yelled my coach from the sideline. Green space? But there's no one there. Why would I intentionally turnover possession?

Spacing was a big issue for me. It took me a long time to understand why I, even as a handler, had to clear out and create space for others. Handler cuts in high school league consisted of running in circles around the player with the disk. When I started playing for my university team, I made some of the worst decisions as a handler. Often and unknowingly, I would cut off other handlers from making throws to the open cutters.

"Get the f--- out of there! Clear that space!" I'd hear from the other players.

Space? Not that again! What am I doing wrong?

Me (5) with my team, Tundra. Photo by Gavin Thompson.

My bad habits followed me into the touring scene. While playing with Tundra, even in practice, I would make the wrong cuts. We had probably ran through the dump-swing drill numerous times already, so I knew what cut I had to make. But in the heat of the moment, I'd forget there are other players on the field and just make my cut to no avail. In games, I noticed a large "sag" or poach on my position as the far handler from my defender. In order to engage my defender and move him away from the cutting lanes, I would yell "Poach!", but nothing more.

"You have to move to where you can be a threat." said a veteran of Tundra as he positioned bottles on the ground to show me which cuts were feasible options.


It came down to discipline and focus for me. "You have the throws, but you don't have the timing yet. Clear your mind of all distractions. Throw to where they're going, not where they are," was one piece of advice that stuck with me. Another was, "You have to hustle on defence and what ever you do, DON'T GET BROKEN!"

"Remember the three rules of defence," I'd hear every time I was beat on defence. "One, don't get beat upline. Two, don't get beat force side. And three, don't get broken."

It was with Tundra that I found these simple and effective concepts. I figured, those teams I look up to so much, they're just doing the same thing that they've done countless times before. It's consistency and completion. Efficiency and execution. 

I'm not saying I've stopped looking up to these teams, rather I've developed even more respect for them. I no longer feel small and fragile, instead I look forward to my games against tougher opponents. This is the only way to learn and my appetite for that will probably never be satisfied.

Performance is as much a mental game as it is a physical one in this sport, or any for that matter.


References:

Gladwell, Malcolm. Outliers. Toronto: Penguin Group, 2008. 79-80. Print.  

My Ulti-ventures: Mixed Up 2010

ONYX celebrate their 15-7 victory over Monster as they hold on to top spot two years in a row.

We left Toronto late at night on the Friday before the tournament hoping to avoid the late rush of traffic exiting the city. I was as yet unsure about my living arrangements in Ottawa, but thanks to the generosity of one of my teammates, I wasn't left stranded in the nation's capital. "This is it," said one of the captains on our drive up to Ottawa. "Our tune-up time for Nationals!"

He was right. Throughout our entire season, regardless of which tournament we were at, our main goal as a team was the qualify for Nationals. We'd done it. Now what?

For the most part, I can only comment on Tundra's games as my full concentration went into supporting my team. Here's how it reads.

The Saturday games were to thirteen. Our first game was against Silver Fish Hand Catch, a pick-up team of sorts. They put up a pretty good fight, but our chemistry and teamwork persevered as we won the game 13-7.

Our D-line charges down the field towards Silver Fish Hand Catch.

Our captain, Andy, brings his maturity and crisp throws to every game. Photo by Gavin Thompson.

Next up, ONYX. After watching them play at WUCC in Prague this year, I knew this was going to be our hardest game. They had just defeated Hard, a team from Montreal, 11-8 in their first game and looked pumped and ready to go for round two. We could hear the "On... Nyx" chants from the field beside ours during our first game and we knew we'd have to play the best we've ever played just to keep up. 

Zone defence on a crucial equalizer point in the game against ONYX. Photo by Gavin Thompson.

A word of motivation from le petit commandant. Photo by Gavin Thompson.

The ONYX game began and we were excited to be going point for point against them. The sideline erupted every time we scored and we made sure to support each other through this uphill fight. Our petit commandant, as he was identified by the ONYX players, kept up the intensity and set an example for each of us to follow. We thought we'd mix up our defence and decided to play zone. They were able to break through our cup with some difficulty, but took advantage of our transition from zone to man defence near our endzone. Despite our best efforts, we were unsuccessful in taming the beast that is ONYX. We lost the game 13-6.

We cleared our heads and prepared for the next match against Plogg, a team from Sherbrooke. We were quickly able to capitalize on our speed and good decisions to win the game 13-3.

Tight line force. Photo by Daniel Bergson.

Our defence was spotless during the second half. Photo by Daniel Bergson.

The last game of the Saturday was against Hard. Our loss against ONYX had every player determined to work harder. With the will to win strong, our D-line never relented as they didn't give up a single point in the second half. Hard had great flow and worked well in their down field plays, but we won 13-4.

Our D-line converts a quick point after forcing a turnover. Hard is hit hard. Photo by Daniel Bergson.

Later that night, we congregated at one of our teammate's place near the fields and feasted to our heart's content. Through sweat and blood we earned each and every point on the field that day. The second day would soon show us that it takes a lot more than just a strong will to win.


The Sunday began with our game against MuD, a strong team from Guelph. Our entire team was on the field, cleated, and ready to go long before even a line of MuD players were visible. Our determination and focus could be felt in the air around us.

The game was back and forth as each point scored was answered with equal force. The score was 8-7 for MuD at halftime. "We're doing great guys! But there isn't an elevator ride to the top," said one of our captains. "We've got to climb up one step at a time, one point at a time."

In the second half, with the disk in LBR's able hands, there were no less than three travel calls and two fouls from the same person at the same point. We would rush the fields in premature celebration thinking that a point was scored, when in fact a call was made. The monotony of that point left every player on edge and the success of it that much sweeter as he made a breakforce throw to an open player in the endzone.  However, after MuD got a break point, they were up 13-10 as the soft cap horn went off. We kept our celebration to a minimum as we rushed to even the scores. A minute later it was 13-11. We sent out our strongest line to try and force a quick turnover and score. That point stretched for almost eight minutes as we heard the two heart wrenching sirens that signalled the playing of the last point. It didn't matter if we would lose this game anymore. MuD scored the last point and won the game 14-11. "We all gave it everything we've got even though we knew we would lose the game. And that makes us winners," said a veteran player as we gathered up. "It's all about heart and hustle."


Moving over to the next field, we were faced with our most upsetting match against Bytown Flatball Club (BFC). We had defeated this team at Regionals and knew what they were capable of if given the opportunity. They started scoring on us one point after another and we were left scratching our heads. Perhaps the charm of home-field-advantage brings with it an unrivalled resilience. What else could explain the score, 8-1, at halftime?

"We've got to forget about all other things and play Ultimate!" said one of our captains.

"Play what we know, what we've practiced. I'm seeing nothing that we've practiced," said another, moments before he went on the field. That point he successfully defended the possession as he battled two opponents in the air and rushed down the field to the other endzone where he scored an amazing aerial point. But our efforts were to no avail as we lost the game 15-3.

"It doesn't matter who scored what against who," commented a captain. "All that matters is what's at hand: a game of Ultimate. We forgot that out there."

Our last game of the weekend was against SeVen, an Ottawa team with a few pick-ups from Phoenix and Big Fish. In previous games, I caved under the pressure to perform and felt my concentration slipping. In this game I threw down all that I carried on my shoulders and felt a moment of inner-peace. None of the other games mattered anymore. They seemed distant and irrelevant. I focused on the now and cut myself off from my thoughts.

The captains decided to cap the game off at thirteen so that we could watch the finals between Monster and ONYX. They were agile and quick on turnovers, but we easily took the game 13-4.

A beautiful huck from Monster's Albert Wu (13) inches the score closer to ONYX's.

Beers and cheers at the finals game.

The finals match between Monster and ONYX had already begun by the time we settled on their sidelines. Our cold beers kept us relatively comfortable in the near-Saharan temperatures that scorched the field.
There were amazing plays from both sides as Monster tried desperately to catch up to ONYX's lead. Albert Wu caught what seemed to be an impossible to read push-pass from a teammate in mid-field and converted that into a huck-point. However, ONYX's pressure brought the disk close to the Monster endzone at game point. With the photographers ready to snap the game-winner, ONYX set up a vertical stack in the endzone. Monster held their force for a while, but were broken by a Inside-Out break pass to a female ONYX player in the endzone. Thus ended the tournament.

We beat our seed to Nationals, but most importantly we beat our inner-selves to perform better than ever. 

Monster cheer ONYX on their victory.

Despite getting two "amazing" D's, my favourite moments from this tournament were the connection I felt with the team. After missing two tournaments, I wasn't sure if I was as close to the team as the other rookies. This was the first time I felt very attached to the team.

Regardless of what other teams did or didn't do, our team had an emotional rollercoaster ride that, as a result, brought us closer to one another. I feel we're more of a family now more than ever before not only because we celebrated our victories, but also because we stuck together and supported one another even in defeat. There was a level of mutual understanding in which every member of this family knew what role they had to play and worked hard towards accomplishing it.

Tundra: not just a team, but also a concept.

Tundra is not just a team, it's a concept. One which exhibits a unique team spirit and the strength and determination to overcome monumental challenges. Our team is a blend of veterans and rookies, different playing styles, and different life experiences. But we all stand united under this name: Tundra.

Tree growth may be hindered on this land, 
but our growth is infinite where we stand.

We may not sustain vegetation,
but we sustain ample determination. 

Our subsoil may suffer permafrost,
But before the game begins, you've lost!

Now we're set for Nationals. With a few more practices left before the Sherbrooke Ulti-matum, discipline and fitness will run its course.