The first double header is over and I survived pretty well I think.

The first game was a lot of fun. The other team played very well and there were a lot of very long points. I was handling very well. Throws were crisp and precise and very few didn’t end up at their intended location. My energy level felt awesome and I kept up a very good activity level. There was only 1 sub so I didn’t sit off very many points. In the end we lost 13-2. 🙁 Still, I really enjoyed playing with the other team.

Since the game was over quickly we had a big break.

A big break that allowed us to cool down.

And we lost our sub due to an injury.

Second game started and the other team was immediately over powering us. We seemed lethargic and couldn’t get our act together. Throws were nowhere near their mark, and they zoned us pretty effectively. It was frustrating, and not at all enjoyable. Eventually they stopped zoning us, perhaps out of pity. It didn’t help and our playing never got better. We lost that game 13-0 🙁

It was pointed out after the game that just have a big problem finishing points. We can march the disk up the field no problem, but we just can’t get it caught in the end zone.

Next week is another double header. We’ll see how we do. After that is the playoffs.

I realize that I am almost a week late with my Ulti post, but here it is anyway.

Last Wednesdays game was an odd one for me. The game started at 6, but for some reason I had it in my head that it started at 6:30. I arrived to the game late, got my cleats on, and jumped in without any warmup at all. I tried to take it easy the first couple points to get my hands warmed up but I really felt slow and uncomfortable. It took me a long time to get into the game.

Of course it was windy so the other team was zoning us. I am usually a pretty good handler, so when calling the play, I was put in as a handler. I felt like I played pretty bad, and when I could finally feel a sweat being worked up, I was getting into the game.

Still, I was having problems with my forehand throwing, and couldn’t get them to arc nicely, nor be speedy and accurate. I was constantly worried about a bad throw causing a turnover. On one play I made the rookie mistake of not watching the disc to my hands. The throw was near and I looked away to make a connecting play. This was the time that the disc was higher than I thought and I turned it over.

Nearing the end of the game we neared our opponents end zone. We were a couple yards out of the endzone near the right side, the wind was picking up, and I had the disc. I made eye contact with one of my teammates and I could see his check wasn’t looking at me. I pointed to the sideline and tossed the disc, hoping to arc the disc around his check. It sailed out of bounds and wasn’t looking good. Thankfully the wind picked up and brought the disc back inbounds and into my teammates hands for the point. I got lucky on that one, or was it skill 😉

I had another throw that a teammate dove for. I put it out for him a little low, and I fully thought he was going to get it. When he didn’t get back up right away I was a little concerned. Turned out to be a dislocated shoulder. I helped him get to the hospital and looked after his dog while he got worked on. 2.5 hours later he walked out with his arm in a sling. 🙁

Keep it safe kids. The ground is so dry right now that it is very easy to injure yourself.

Great Ulti game tonight. It was a little warm out, but there was nooo wind! It was cloudy making it easy to see down the field, but the tradeoff was that it was muggy.

I had a great time at the game. I felt like I was running well, playing well, making good hard cuts. I caught a couple points and threw a couple points.

We were zoned a couple times which was an interesting tactic in calm weather, but we managed to march the disc up the field consistently, then unfortunately it would get thrown away or dropped near the end zone.

We were so close to winning for a while. We were down a few points, then managed to claw back to an 8-7 score.

During one point I was in the stack and one of my teammates made a cut and the throw to her was made. It sailed high and wide. I sprinted off after it, and managed to track it down to prevent the turnover.

Another point we were doing a lot of give and go’s right up the sideline. The score then was 2 points apart. I caught the disc and knew I was close to the line. I looked down and to my dismay my left foot (the one I landed on) was very close to the line and my right was even further out. I did a double take and called myself out. We were close to the end zone too.

Throughout the game we could see lightning in the distance and hear the occasional grumble of thunder. I was kind of hoping it would open up and pour on us, but that didn’t happen. 🙁 The fields are drying out quickly and tonight the ground was pretty hard.

Now I am home, needing a shower, then it will be time to hit the hay. I have to miss next weeks game, so in two weeks I will be out there again.

Had an early ultimate game tonight. We were short a few players which meant more field time for everyone which was great. It was windy (as usual in Victoria) which made for a lot of turnovers and a lot of long points. Surprisingly very few zone defense points since the other team was short players.

I felt I played pretty good despite many, many bad throws. My cuts were good and I was often getting clear of my check and catching the throw. My defense tonight was pretty good too, even though half the points I played I was checked/checking a woman.

I had one defense move that I have to relate. I could see who the handler was going to throw the disc to but I was pretty far away. I saw the handler wind up and heave the disc so I started running. Right on the sideline I jumped as high as I could, but I mistimed my jump. I jumped too early, yet it felt like my hangtime was extra long for some reason, and I actually managed to knock down the disc. Awesome.

My pre-game prep is working well for me too. I try to eat well throughout the day and drink lots of water. I then try to eat something resembling dinner sometime around 2 hours before gametime. During the game I drink very little water. I stick to small sips just to wet my mouth. Riding to the game helps me warm up too which I know is good for me.

I’m really enjoying this season and when it is done I might see about playing pick up on Sundays. I definitely notice an increase in my cardio.

Ulti tonight was fun. I felt like running for some reason, and run I did. The first few points I stayed away from being a handler so I could do some cuts. When time came for defense though I was playing a little lazy. Once I poached my check to help out a teammate and got burned. Another point I wasn’t on top of my check as much as I should have been. Later in the game I was on the wrong side of my check (I was shallow and should have been deep). I was watching him to see what he was going to do. I saw him point to the open side of the field, and totally fell for the fake. He deeked to the open side then doubled back after I committed. Aargh.

Then I redeemed myself. I had a wicked point where I was all over the place making plays. I was a handler and was throwing well, but there were a lot of turnovers. On defense I was blocking, running down the disk, and generally causing mayhem for the other team. I wanted that point bad an din the end we didn’t get it 🙁 I was disappointed, but a few people commented on how well I played.

We lost the game 13-4 and still played an extra point which we won. All in all I had a great time tonight. Now I am cooling off then will have a shower before bed.

A great night for Ulti tonight. Very little wind, and you could almost call it warm. Bonus points for the team jerseys arriving tonight too.

The game itself was pretty good. The team played pretty good, but we still need to work on the basics like stacking, cutting, clearing, and holding the force. It is still a lot of fun though. I was handling quite a bit tonight but my throws weren’t as accurate as I would have liked them.

There was one controversy too. As my check caught the disk close to the sideline, I could see one end zone and I thought he looked out. I asked him to check his feet, and as I looked to the other end zone, he passed the disk on to one of his teammates. Turned out he was in, but this caused a bit of a debate on the rules. I agreed he was in, but I asked him to check his feet and there was no time in which he did that. Not only that, but after catching it he stepped out of bounds, and threw it from there. In the end he got the disk back and we played on with their team in possession still. The ended up scoring anyway, it was just a little weird, and tense for a bit.

Back to the jerseys. We were told our color was salmon. I ask you, is this jersey salmon colored?

Ulti last night was awesome. We lost the game 11-9 but as a team we played great.

I was very happy with how I played too. I was able to pace myself so I didn’t run out of gas, but I was still very effective in the game, making cuts, handling the disk, and being strong on defense.

One specific play I was happy with we were pulling. Actually I was pulling, and we were planning to throw on the zone defense. I actually volunteered to be the top of the cup, so with me pulling I had to book it down the field.

I gave the disc a whirl and it floated down the field. It was an awesome pull and gave the whole team to get down field and set up the zone. As I got set for a lot of running I saw the handler getting ready to toss the disc to my right. I went to block it with my hand but it was pretty low to the ground. Then I felt an amazing sensation of disk hitting the pad of my hand and I saw it fall to the ground.

Turn over on the line. Gotta love that.

Another Ulti game last night. The ride there was longer due to a change in location. This afforded me a longer warm up which suits me well actually.

The game itself was good. We played pretty well, and scored a few points. The zone was thrown on us quite a bit (still windy), so we got to work on breaking the zone. I was a popper this time instead of a handler, and I wasn’t doing a good job of it either. My timing was off from the other popper and I was frequently in the wrong place, or just a few steps off from being able to break the cup.

Then when I was handling, it seemed I did poorly at that too. My throws were getting caught by the wind and lifted way too high and out of bounds. I also missed a couple catches. Not my best showing, but I still had fun.

The ride home was hard. I kept a brisk pace the whole way home, but with a headwind and always facing into the sun, I was glad when I reached my garage.