Tournament 2 - Opinion 1 - More of the double edged sword

This weekend was another weather disaster in my Ultimate books. It reminded me of Goosebowl 2006 in Kingston, Ontario. It was wet, windy and cold, but it wasn't as cold as Kingston...close. With a stiff wind and destroyed fields (like CUUC 05 in Montreal where we destroyed the fields), Tour 0 in the U.K. was another tough weekend. That with a sprained slight ankle from a guy laying out on my leg made the Ultimate tough. I'm, however, reasonably happy with the experience.

Pictured Above: In white, ABH's Derek Stordahl flies through the air and Neil Humpage plays some D against Two of Newcastle Brown players (photo courtesy of Mathias Karady a.k.a. MadK).

The Ultimate over the weekend was poor with the exception of what I saw from the GB masters. In most cases, drops and throw aways marked most of the game play, which isn't shocking given the wet and windy weather.

The double edge sword is something I've talked about before. It is allowing developing throwers to throw upfield as opposed to never looking and always dumping. My opinion before is that you need let developing players and allow them to make mistakes.

On a weekend like this, I think my opinion is different. In the end, I think there is nothing learnt by throwing away disc after disc, and a team is better off moving the disc in good hands instead of fighting a game of back and forth yards where a quick turn near an end zone results in a point. Of course, smart handlers that don't have a team full of competent hands will quickly rely on a huck and pin style of game. All in all, still bad ultimate.

Your team style, like any decision, is a team decision. Regardless of the team plan, it is still a challenge to develop patience and the desire to dump in these developing players. You not only need patience, but the skills to get off top quality reset throws. I've known many a player who've made an Ultimate career on a 100% game of quality cuts and dumps. Over time there decision skills have been incrementally developed and they move the disc upfield with great efficiency. I wish more would follow in those steps, but glory, like greed, is a path we all tend to take - it's like the dark side for Ultimate nerds.

PJ