Wednesday, July 6, 2011

Ultimate Frisbee Is Not A Sport

I was speaking with my mom yesterday and she told me one of her co-workers wanted to quit because the company wouldn't change his schedule to accommodate ultimate Frisbee practice. I started laughing uncontrollably for 4:19. After I finally calmed down and caught my breath I was able to process what I had just heard. There are people out there that take ultimate Frisbee so seriously that they would jeopardize the opportunity to stay game fully employed (in this economy) if it interfered with their ultimate Frisbee preparation time. Really?

In my estimation ultimate Frisbee isn't even a real sport. Sure there's a governing body and sanctioned events worldwide, but it's Frisbee for God's sake! Frisbee is more associated with picnic's at the beach and stupid pet tricks than athletic competition. Anytime an activity is more exciting when dogs participate there's a problem. If you have to share the spotlight with a Golden Retriever what does that say about the activity you're engaging in?

I'm all for people getting exercise and staying in shape. Most people (including myself) are fat, lazy, and overweight. It's great to see competition and team work carried out in a constructive manner, but ultimate Frisbee is a recreational hobby not a sport. Maybe if I lived in a warmer climate other than South Alaska I would feel differently about it. Maybe citizens of California, Arizona, and Florida completely disagree with my opinion. Maybe I'm just old school. Any ways it goes I can't take ultimate Frisbee seriously or move it to the sports side of the ledger. Sorry.

24 comments:

  1. you talk about dog-disc, not ultimate frisbee..
    cheers

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  2. You call yourself a "self proclaimed expert on all things related to sport" and still continue to associate ultimate frisbee with dogs? Then you clearly don't deserve that title. Watch some videos and instruct yourself http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aAyEti-_lR8

    Ok, fair enough. You shouldn't put your hobby in front of your career. However if there is a job that is so demanding that doesn't allow you to have a life and follow your passions in your spare time, then it is fair enough to consider looking for a job that makes you happier. Life should be all about finding the perfect balance between work and leisure

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  3. Nothing like the old internet to embarrass oneself, Mr. Expert :-)

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  4. Thanks for the read. I appreciate your passion for frisbee. Thanks for taking the time to send the link.

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  5. Sir, I think the phrase you intended to use in the first paragraph was 'gainfully employed'.

    I agree that what you are referring to is not a sport. Standing around throwing a Frisbee to each other or to a dog is no more a sport than tossing a football back and forth. However, you should do a little more research, because Ultimate is a sport, and as a previous comment shows, there are lots of online resources to find out more. One of the best and simplest sites is this one: http://www.whatisultimate.com/

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  6. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  7. @Dave: Thanks for the comment. I must admit I underestimated the backlash I would receive for not giving ultimate frisbee its proper respect. Just for the sake of argument can you tell me who the top ultimate frisbee player in the world is?

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  8. I don't know if he's the best, but certainly the most famous player by a long way is Brodie Smith. Henry Callahan is another famous Ultimate player from years ago, and has a specific type of play named after him. It's hard for Ultimate players to reach celebrity status outside their sport, but Brodie Smith through his YouTube channel and viral videos seems to have managed this.

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  9. you sir (shithead who wrote this article) are a shithead

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  10. you sir (shithead who wrote this article) are a shithead

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  11. throwing a Frisbee back and forth between some friends is not a sport. throwing a football back and forth between some friends is not a sport, throwing a baseball back and forth between some friends is not a sport. Kicking a soccer ball back and forth between some friends is not a sport. Shooting hoops with your friends is not a sport. Ultimate, Football, Baseball, Soccer, Basketball are all sports.

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    1. Thanks for the read. I'm guessing you're a hardcore ultimate frisbee player. I admire your passion and enthusiasm for the game. Next time the ultimate frisbee world championships is on ESPN please feel free to send me an e-mail re-iterating my shit headedness would you?

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    2. https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwinmO7Q2-LQAhUM4yYKHYeIBsMQFggkMAE&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.espn.com%2Fwatchespn%2Fsitemap%2F_%2Fsport%2Fgames%2Fleague%2Fusa-ultimate&usg=AFQjCNEtFCbfs-yh5zPZmQjRwxA3wSFzNA&sig2=iWiDcFHa6TD9e0pdZsSCbg
      https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=3&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwinmO7Q2-LQAhUM4yYKHYeIBsMQFggpMAI&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.espn.com%2Fwatchespn%2Fsitemap%2F_%2Fsport%2Fgames%2Fleague%2Famerican-ultimate-disc-league&usg=AFQjCNGmY9utQJJfbNXAxW270JjR3acahQ&sig2=RWz0jemXPF-yQoOKn3UXKA
      https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=4&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwinmO7Q2-LQAhUM4yYKHYeIBsMQtwIILjAD&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DsNMGOaSGI-c&usg=AFQjCNGebPWrZ44YwPvJc_C6Pz0_rvayLA&sig2=z9SApb0NyW74Pvq3ulooeA ESPN Does not cover the worlds competition because ESPN can't earnt the right to broadcast it becasue it is privately owned by WUGC. But I'm sure the fact that even College Ultimate is on ESPN (disregarding that Club, AND Pro, Ultimate are too) I'm sorry you feel disconected being from Alaska (I was born there and raised in Fairbanks) But that is no excuse for your ignorance. Thanks for the read, I look forward to future pieces.
      Respectfully,
      Harry

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  12. Hi Cleavie Wonder,

    "Next time the ultimate frisbee world championships is on ESPN please feel free to send me an e-mail re-iterating my shit headedness would you?"

    I'd just like to take the time to inform you that even the USA College Championships have been on ESPN this year. It's also recently entered the list of Olympic recognised sports. Of course the World's aren't on ESPN yet, but considering the College Champs have been, it wont take long.

    Have a nice day.

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  13. I think I'm late to the party, but I found ultimate frisbee by watching ESPN a few years ago. It's been on ESPN3 or ESPNU for a few years now based on their old videos. not just the world championships, but a lot of their tournaments.

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  14. It's on espn, it's been around for 30-40 years there's an official governing body, professional leagues, recognized by the Olympics, requires elite fitness, strategy, skill running, jumping, catching, throwing, set defined rules. How does this not qualify in any way as a sport, please tell me.

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  15. It's fuckin gay and lame as hell. Fairy frisbee is where the kids that wouldn’t get picked for the kick ball team end up.

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  16. I would like to ask you beforehand, if you are going to reply, please use actually contradictory evidence to what I am saying, because honestly I don't see how knowing who the top Ultimate player is has anything to do with this, besides random trivia.

    I'm going to start off by agreeing that your example of skipping work for Ultimate is weird. However, there are die-hard, obsessive fans like such in every sport. Having fans like that only reinforces how large Ultimate really is.

    And what is your definition of a real sport? By the dictionary's definition, a sport is an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against one another or others for entertainment. By that definition, Ultimate is a sport. Even the Olympics recognizes it as a sport. Saying anything else is extremely arrogant and biased, and you should have a better reason for doing so than it being boring.

    And why do you keep connecting Ultimate Frisbee with playing fetch with a dog? Using the man/dog stereotype to disaffirm Ultimate's eligibility as a sport is like comparing football to playing catch in the backyard with a couple buddies.

    Finally, Ultimate Frisbee is like any other sport; backyard Ultimate is a recreational hobby, but when you are playing in a league, it is about as far from that as NFL is from non-contact. Just because you hear about middle-aged fathers throwing the disk around with their kids does not mean that is what it consists of.

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  17. By the way that was for a school report so I really don't care.

    Peace out.

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    Replies
    1. I appreciate the comment and feedback. Over the years I must admit that my stance on the subject has softened a little. As you mentioned, bhy the technical definition ultimate frisbee could and should be considered a sport, however I don't think this is the kind of "sport" that should be broadcast on ESPN. Fair?

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