New Years Blogolutions:
-No Death Cab lyrics in post titles until March at least jeez
-Blog weekly, frisbee content or no
That's it really. Blogging is awesome. It keeps me focused on improving my frisbee game and is a good outlet for writing of various kinds. Can't lose there. Last year's new year's resolution was to write more, and in 2012 I've written a ton actually, but not all that many blog posts. Once a week would be cool.
See ya in twenny thirteen ya shmucks.
Sunday, December 30, 2012
Monday, December 3, 2012
Priorities
I've barely picked up a disc in the past month, despite the unseasonably warm November.
That's sad.
I always imagined it would be existentially difficult to train in the off season after college, but knowing that and actually experiencing it have been totally different animals. However, I suspect that as post college life levels out, it will become easier to budget my time for more training, as long as I don't lose focus completely in the meantime.
That said, need to rev it up or else there is no reason in signing up for nocturnal, at the very least. Also MLU tryouts, it would be cool to go to those and not suck.
Basically just missing ultimate. Its a hole in my otherwise very satisfactory life. If I can budget in more training I will be a very happy Benjamin.
In other news, spambots found my blog recently. Thanks for reading, spambots, and it sure is nice to get comments, but I really can't afford any french fashion accessories right now.
That's sad.
I always imagined it would be existentially difficult to train in the off season after college, but knowing that and actually experiencing it have been totally different animals. However, I suspect that as post college life levels out, it will become easier to budget my time for more training, as long as I don't lose focus completely in the meantime.
That said, need to rev it up or else there is no reason in signing up for nocturnal, at the very least. Also MLU tryouts, it would be cool to go to those and not suck.
Basically just missing ultimate. Its a hole in my otherwise very satisfactory life. If I can budget in more training I will be a very happy Benjamin.
In other news, spambots found my blog recently. Thanks for reading, spambots, and it sure is nice to get comments, but I really can't afford any french fashion accessories right now.
Thursday, November 8, 2012
The Mixed Blessing of Gym Room Mirrors
Gotta correct my posture to get rid of "computer boy" round shoulder status.
Guess I'm blogging again?
Guess I'm blogging again?
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
LOL Bonus Post
Two things that get me jacked out of my skin to get going with life:
Obama's acceptance speech and Kurt Gibson winning a club title.
Once you go blag, you can't stop posting over and over.
Bichotte, Fired up!
Obama's acceptance speech and Kurt Gibson winning a club title.
Once you go blag, you can't stop posting over and over.
Bichotte, Fired up!
Can't Quit You Baby
Just can't. Compulsive ultimate blogging keeps me honest, and focused in a weird. sometimes barely tangible sort of way. I'm putting a lot of time into planning my 2013 campaign, not just ultimate but life, and its only natural to want to write about it.
In the meantime, off season workouts are starting to pay off. Played my best yet at fall league, ran hard nearly savage (jogged during zone d though, loldeepdeep) and kept turnover minimal. Throws are a tiny bit rusty. Backhand needs a couple weeks of work but I have more power than ever on either side.
It was fun to play in the cold. We had the 7:30 game slot, and Sandy pushed us back a week into the depredations of daylight savings time so it was thoroughly dark and already a layer of frost coated the ground. By the end of my warmup jog I was over the cold though and ready to roll.
Working hard on my mentality. That will be the key. This off season is the most crucial of my career. That's all. Got plans, we'll see. Missed this blog thing maybe I'll keep going, maybe not. In any case, life feels pretty damn good right now.
PWE, all.
In the meantime, off season workouts are starting to pay off. Played my best yet at fall league, ran hard nearly savage (jogged during zone d though, loldeepdeep) and kept turnover minimal. Throws are a tiny bit rusty. Backhand needs a couple weeks of work but I have more power than ever on either side.
It was fun to play in the cold. We had the 7:30 game slot, and Sandy pushed us back a week into the depredations of daylight savings time so it was thoroughly dark and already a layer of frost coated the ground. By the end of my warmup jog I was over the cold though and ready to roll.
Working hard on my mentality. That will be the key. This off season is the most crucial of my career. That's all. Got plans, we'll see. Missed this blog thing maybe I'll keep going, maybe not. In any case, life feels pretty damn good right now.
PWE, all.
Thursday, September 27, 2012
Terrified of Nothing
I feel better than I have in a while.
While running among the darkening sky and rapidly reddening leaves, I had an epiphany of sorts. I've been depressed lately because I've been trying to live my college lifestyle and adapt to the realities of post college life at the same time.
But I'm not college Ben anymore. I'm post college Ben, and it is up to post college Ben to decide what post college Ben does.
Tell you one thing, I need to live a more active life, and find some long term goals to latch onto now that the arbitrary pressures of education and college ultimate are removed. I have to make my own goals.
This was a weird club season. I had a hard time making ultimate a priority, focusing instead on my comic book and dreaming about the future. I also did not get to play anywhere near enough, lacking wudi and missing college practice. Ergo, I lost momentum I had gained midway through the college season, and feel short in terms of cardio fitness. I did get my throwing game together by the series, and feel better than ever about my throwing fundamentals. I was throwing better in the wind at sectionals than at the begging of the season at less windy tournaments.
Falling short of making regionals hurts, but if we consider this the first year of a new team, it is not an end but motivation for next year. To paraphrase someone on some team, championship teams usually have to lose together for two or three years before they can win. We did not have enough chemistry, but with one season under our belts we can come back stronger next year.
The biggest failure of my season was the failure to focus on my fitness. That's been the story of my ultimate career. Now that college ultimate is over, I need to rebuild myself as an athlete as I cannot count on the "free" fitness of college practices and tournaments. I will have to do a lot of training on my own, a weakness in the past.
Another area where I struggled was handling in the ho stack. I've never played a disciplined ho stack where I was not trying to get the reset almost every possession. I was often spastic or lost, and really need to figure out that position.
My greatest success this season was my mental game. I spent a lot of time working on my field vision. In the past, I would often turn the disc over due to a failure to see a poach or errant defender. That was largely because when I had the disc, the field would blur. I would narrowly focus on one or two targets, and ignore other factors. The higher the stakes of the game, the worse that was.
At white mountain, I made a conscious effort to always have "eyes wide open" and see every player on the field and their relationship to one another. It paid off, and since then I've had better and better field vision. I also worked very hard to be mentally tough and not get nervous for big games. I threw a lot less turnovers due to poor field vision, nearly all of my turnovers this season were due to execution errors. It is a work in progress but the increased field vision and confidence will pay off down the line. It completely changed the way I play ultimate.
It was frustrating seeing people make simple execution errors in the final game at sectionals, seemingly because they were psyched out by the momentousness of the "game to go". I spent so much time working on my mental game to ensure I would not get pysched out by those kinds of situations. My new philosophy is that there is no reason to get worked up over a game of ultimate - nothing to be scared of, ever, no reason to ever lose confidence. Easier to say than do, but still. Mental game.
At least in part due to my increased field vision, my best points of the summer were all zone offense. There were times where our offense simply shredded zones, moving the disc down the field at will. Our zone o got into trouble near the endzone, and also when handlers were reluctant to break the mark or continue swings. You can nearly always break the mark. Its not that hard.
This might be my last post in this blog. I need a post college blog now, that is about more than ultimate. Not to denigrate ultimate's role in my life, but to integrate it with my other interests, to balance my actions and create a full picture of who I am as a man, and who I am working to become.
Its been fun, thanks for reading.
While running among the darkening sky and rapidly reddening leaves, I had an epiphany of sorts. I've been depressed lately because I've been trying to live my college lifestyle and adapt to the realities of post college life at the same time.
But I'm not college Ben anymore. I'm post college Ben, and it is up to post college Ben to decide what post college Ben does.
Tell you one thing, I need to live a more active life, and find some long term goals to latch onto now that the arbitrary pressures of education and college ultimate are removed. I have to make my own goals.
This was a weird club season. I had a hard time making ultimate a priority, focusing instead on my comic book and dreaming about the future. I also did not get to play anywhere near enough, lacking wudi and missing college practice. Ergo, I lost momentum I had gained midway through the college season, and feel short in terms of cardio fitness. I did get my throwing game together by the series, and feel better than ever about my throwing fundamentals. I was throwing better in the wind at sectionals than at the begging of the season at less windy tournaments.
Falling short of making regionals hurts, but if we consider this the first year of a new team, it is not an end but motivation for next year. To paraphrase someone on some team, championship teams usually have to lose together for two or three years before they can win. We did not have enough chemistry, but with one season under our belts we can come back stronger next year.
The biggest failure of my season was the failure to focus on my fitness. That's been the story of my ultimate career. Now that college ultimate is over, I need to rebuild myself as an athlete as I cannot count on the "free" fitness of college practices and tournaments. I will have to do a lot of training on my own, a weakness in the past.
Another area where I struggled was handling in the ho stack. I've never played a disciplined ho stack where I was not trying to get the reset almost every possession. I was often spastic or lost, and really need to figure out that position.
My greatest success this season was my mental game. I spent a lot of time working on my field vision. In the past, I would often turn the disc over due to a failure to see a poach or errant defender. That was largely because when I had the disc, the field would blur. I would narrowly focus on one or two targets, and ignore other factors. The higher the stakes of the game, the worse that was.
At white mountain, I made a conscious effort to always have "eyes wide open" and see every player on the field and their relationship to one another. It paid off, and since then I've had better and better field vision. I also worked very hard to be mentally tough and not get nervous for big games. I threw a lot less turnovers due to poor field vision, nearly all of my turnovers this season were due to execution errors. It is a work in progress but the increased field vision and confidence will pay off down the line. It completely changed the way I play ultimate.
It was frustrating seeing people make simple execution errors in the final game at sectionals, seemingly because they were psyched out by the momentousness of the "game to go". I spent so much time working on my mental game to ensure I would not get pysched out by those kinds of situations. My new philosophy is that there is no reason to get worked up over a game of ultimate - nothing to be scared of, ever, no reason to ever lose confidence. Easier to say than do, but still. Mental game.
At least in part due to my increased field vision, my best points of the summer were all zone offense. There were times where our offense simply shredded zones, moving the disc down the field at will. Our zone o got into trouble near the endzone, and also when handlers were reluctant to break the mark or continue swings. You can nearly always break the mark. Its not that hard.
This might be my last post in this blog. I need a post college blog now, that is about more than ultimate. Not to denigrate ultimate's role in my life, but to integrate it with my other interests, to balance my actions and create a full picture of who I am as a man, and who I am working to become.
Its been fun, thanks for reading.
Sunday, August 5, 2012
Eyes Wide Open
Have a lot to write about after white mountain but I don't feel like doing it now. Wrote some fairly comprehensive notes so hopefully it will get done later in the week. In the meantime, have a lot to think about. Good tournament.
Thursday, August 2, 2012
I looked for you on the Trident
Red is my color. 18 and 0, boom dat.
Playing today got me really pumped for white mountain. Playing summer league with a good bunch of people, no stakes really, is a great way to remember why ultimate is so much fun.
It also made me really excited to play with people who know how to play really, really well.
Goals for the weekend:
Fit into the system. Only make throws that are easy and open.
Have fun with it, keep it weird.
T Flexin.
Edit yo also winning is awesome. I am a champion.
Now gotta work on helping our team be champions, at a much higher level. Gonna learn mad shit this weekend, yes. Love.
Playing today got me really pumped for white mountain. Playing summer league with a good bunch of people, no stakes really, is a great way to remember why ultimate is so much fun.
It also made me really excited to play with people who know how to play really, really well.
Goals for the weekend:
Fit into the system. Only make throws that are easy and open.
Have fun with it, keep it weird.
T Flexin.
Edit yo also winning is awesome. I am a champion.
Now gotta work on helping our team be champions, at a much higher level. Gonna learn mad shit this weekend, yes. Love.
Friday, July 20, 2012
1st Session Redux
Been a while, blog old fellow old blog.
Not really sure what to write about. I tried out for a team and did not get cut. Nice streak to break.
Clinic with the youngsters is going well. At this point I am very comfortable teaching throwing mechanics, and the development the kids have had, particularly the 8th graders, has led to some really good games.
Today a seventh grader tagged along and showed them all up, though. Those kids have been throwing for a lot longer and it shows.
Workout time.
Not really sure what to write about. I tried out for a team and did not get cut. Nice streak to break.
Clinic with the youngsters is going well. At this point I am very comfortable teaching throwing mechanics, and the development the kids have had, particularly the 8th graders, has led to some really good games.
Today a seventh grader tagged along and showed them all up, though. Those kids have been throwing for a lot longer and it shows.
Workout time.
Friday, June 15, 2012
Just do it
I had a really good blog post in mind but I lost it. Something about motivation and success, not even directly frisbee related. Huh.
Sometimes if you don't blog em, you lose em.
What can a guy do.
Feeling fit and good. On, summer.
Lots of shit to get accomplished.
Go.
Sometimes if you don't blog em, you lose em.
What can a guy do.
Feeling fit and good. On, summer.
Lots of shit to get accomplished.
Go.
Thursday, June 14, 2012
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
Twenty Three (Trying to Find a Balance)
Working out feels so good. I am at least 30% happier since I got back on the grind, and while there's a while to go until I feel in the swing of things again, this is a positive sign. While the last month of bodily neglect paid off for my artwork, it has not done much good for myself esteem.
Also I may have a broken throwing finger. It is making it really hard to throw accurately, and it hurts a reasonable amount which is just as well because it is telling me to stop doing stuff with it until I get it checked out.
Frustrating but so it goes. This month is hectic and since I can't make ultimate my number one priority I have to compensate in small ways.
Small ways:
Hydrate more! More water more.
Throw and catch more! Everyday. Lefty, I guess. Euugh.
Getting my train on track, getting my ducks in a row.
Onward into the future.
Oh PS while it is hard to throw because of my finger, my form is not helping. It is not consistent because I have caught the lazy bug. Well joke's on you lazy bug, you will be crushed. Balance.
I don't like this blog post. Yeah, balance. Balance is the key. I need to balance my arrogance with my psychosis and figure out what to project to the world. Insecurity or confidence? Does it matter?
Confidence.
Nunchuck Gecko.
Just keep adding until it makes sense.
Also I may have a broken throwing finger. It is making it really hard to throw accurately, and it hurts a reasonable amount which is just as well because it is telling me to stop doing stuff with it until I get it checked out.
Frustrating but so it goes. This month is hectic and since I can't make ultimate my number one priority I have to compensate in small ways.
Small ways:
Hydrate more! More water more.
Throw and catch more! Everyday. Lefty, I guess. Euugh.
Getting my train on track, getting my ducks in a row.
Onward into the future.
Oh PS while it is hard to throw because of my finger, my form is not helping. It is not consistent because I have caught the lazy bug. Well joke's on you lazy bug, you will be crushed. Balance.
I don't like this blog post. Yeah, balance. Balance is the key. I need to balance my arrogance with my psychosis and figure out what to project to the world. Insecurity or confidence? Does it matter?
Confidence.
Nunchuck Gecko.
Just keep adding until it makes sense.
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
I know we'll be just fine
Was scrolling through past blog titles and noticed PWE. At first I could not recall what that meant. It only took a second to spark, and of course Emily remembered even quicker, although I'll cite her sobriety's edge and her wonderfully quick brain for whatever repressed aspect of my ego needs to win at everything.
Practice. Winning. Everyday.
That was my mantra in my last college semester both for ultimate and life. Lately it has been more PDE which is a lot less productive, although we've been making the most out of our last weeks in New Paltz and it has been fun.
Home soon, and it will be a mad dash to organize my life for the summer and beyond. When the dust settles, I will have a life plan and projects to work on in spades, and I need to make sure I adjust my attitude for many reasons, not the least of which being that I need to work more on my ultimate game so I can be a baller contribute to the club team, and also so I start feeling good about myself as an athlete.
At the very least, my baseline athleticism going into the season is the highest it has ever been, my ultimate is the highest it has ever been, and the game is making all kinds of sense to me in ways it never did before. But in the midst of all the craziness of my threee weeks at home, if this is going to be a successful season for me, is putting in the hard early work to shake off the rust, finding the motivation to run when it hurts more than normal and that little insecure part of me starts slinging mean words to dampen the fire.
Have a good Thursday, all.
PS THIS is hilarious, brings back the funny memories from surgery. Never had to deal with anything like a torn mcl or worse though, hope ya'll join me in wishing Brodie a speedy recovery. Ultimate needs him.
Callahan Redux
While Nick Lance of course walked away with the Callahan, Alex Thorne showed his caliber in the finals. No two ways about it, he crushed Wisco with his throws. All props to Pitt's impressively athletic defense, they made it nearly impossible for Wisconsin to reset the disc. Pitt's downfield defenders relentlessly pressured all unders, knowing Tyler would bail them out on the deep looks (he was at least 50/50 in the air on O and D, and against a team like Wisco that's an amazing stat. Dude is a monster). Pitt's overall athleticism, defense, and ruthless cutting are top notch.
But at the end of the day, without Thorne that game is a dogfight, and I think Wisco would take it with their experience. But Thorne's throws were so on point that Wisco never had a chance to build their characteristic defensive momentum. Zone on a windy day? Looks like fifty yard bladey flick hucks to his wide open brother with no chance to the defense. On a day when Wisco's bread and butter hucks were not clicking, Thorne was nearly perfect. As shown when other Pitt players put it up big, he was the only one on either team with the composure to put it up big repeatedly with success.
Almost more impressive than Thorne's hucks was his demeanor as the game approached its final moments. On the end line up big, close to the win, Thorne did not try and force the disc into the endzone with a tough but flashy throw. He trusted the same system that got him there, swung the disc unselfishly to his teammates until a cut was wide open. And throwing the final point to his freshmen brother? Icing on the cake, cementing Pitt's multi season road to finals as a narrative the ultimate community will not forget. And the best part? Pitt is not even close to done. With all the press their young players have deservedly gotten, cumulative in a national title, with hard work and dedication to the program Pitt (and Oregon for that matter) can and should stay in the mix of title contenders for the foreseeable future.
And then we have Wisconsin. The Hungry Hungry Hodags, who have now been denied two years in a row from taking home the gold. The nature of being a casual fan of ultimate is that we follow a more abstract notion of our favorite teams than fans of more recognized sports. And given that coupled with ultimate culture, it is almost trite to follow one of the perennial contenders. But the Dags play with a heart that is both fire and ice, and they are a fun team to root for. This season and last, they defied expectations and made it to finals at the expense of early season favorites. The current Hodag squad now has a monkey on their back of sorts, only to be thrown off with a finals victory. I have no doubt they will approach next season with renewed dedication to bring home the gold to Madison again.
Congrats to Pitt for the win and Nick Lance for the Callahan. Well deserved and well fought.
I may have spent the better part of the finals game yelling profanity at my laptop screen, but despite dispatching my favorite team in finals Pitt won my heart with Alex's relentless awesomeness. Meanwhile, we have the upcoming club season, and another Callahan winner on an always hungry Chain Lightning. Should be a good one, a worlds year with experimental tournaments, the US Open, AUDL champs, you name it. It is an exciting time to be an ultimate player. Me, I'm just hoping the shakeup in the mixed division leaves our section with the same number of bids as last year. With the Hudson Valley/Connecticut merger and Doober's Albany liaisons, regionals looks ripe for the picking and this team, and season, is looking to be a lot of fun.
But at the end of the day, without Thorne that game is a dogfight, and I think Wisco would take it with their experience. But Thorne's throws were so on point that Wisco never had a chance to build their characteristic defensive momentum. Zone on a windy day? Looks like fifty yard bladey flick hucks to his wide open brother with no chance to the defense. On a day when Wisco's bread and butter hucks were not clicking, Thorne was nearly perfect. As shown when other Pitt players put it up big, he was the only one on either team with the composure to put it up big repeatedly with success.
Almost more impressive than Thorne's hucks was his demeanor as the game approached its final moments. On the end line up big, close to the win, Thorne did not try and force the disc into the endzone with a tough but flashy throw. He trusted the same system that got him there, swung the disc unselfishly to his teammates until a cut was wide open. And throwing the final point to his freshmen brother? Icing on the cake, cementing Pitt's multi season road to finals as a narrative the ultimate community will not forget. And the best part? Pitt is not even close to done. With all the press their young players have deservedly gotten, cumulative in a national title, with hard work and dedication to the program Pitt (and Oregon for that matter) can and should stay in the mix of title contenders for the foreseeable future.
And then we have Wisconsin. The Hungry Hungry Hodags, who have now been denied two years in a row from taking home the gold. The nature of being a casual fan of ultimate is that we follow a more abstract notion of our favorite teams than fans of more recognized sports. And given that coupled with ultimate culture, it is almost trite to follow one of the perennial contenders. But the Dags play with a heart that is both fire and ice, and they are a fun team to root for. This season and last, they defied expectations and made it to finals at the expense of early season favorites. The current Hodag squad now has a monkey on their back of sorts, only to be thrown off with a finals victory. I have no doubt they will approach next season with renewed dedication to bring home the gold to Madison again.
Congrats to Pitt for the win and Nick Lance for the Callahan. Well deserved and well fought.
I may have spent the better part of the finals game yelling profanity at my laptop screen, but despite dispatching my favorite team in finals Pitt won my heart with Alex's relentless awesomeness. Meanwhile, we have the upcoming club season, and another Callahan winner on an always hungry Chain Lightning. Should be a good one, a worlds year with experimental tournaments, the US Open, AUDL champs, you name it. It is an exciting time to be an ultimate player. Me, I'm just hoping the shakeup in the mixed division leaves our section with the same number of bids as last year. With the Hudson Valley/Connecticut merger and Doober's Albany liaisons, regionals looks ripe for the picking and this team, and season, is looking to be a lot of fun.
Friday, May 25, 2012
Lines
Been playing in a local summer league for a laugh. Playing on a team with some friends from New Paltz pickup. Good bunch of people on the team, varying skill levels.
Playing against worse teams can encourage a lot of bad habits but it has been a chance to play, to run around. Also a chance to focus every point and try to reinforce good habits in a low pressure situation. So far I've really thought about my field positioning on both offense and defense.
I'm starting to see the lines of the field a lot better. Where you have to put the disc to get it to the cutter. Two lines intersecting. Very pretty.
I was average at geometry but I'm getting better.
I want to be able to see the lines on defense better. I need a complete mentality shift so that I can better see the lines of the defender and the disc, how I can intersect with the disc before my mark does.
Anyway, working on it.
Also working on my coaching. Feeling more and more confident as a throwing teacher. I dream of a day when I could get a job as an assistant coach for a big frisbee program, just working with players on their throws.
Who knows.
AUDL would be pretty cool too...
Playing against worse teams can encourage a lot of bad habits but it has been a chance to play, to run around. Also a chance to focus every point and try to reinforce good habits in a low pressure situation. So far I've really thought about my field positioning on both offense and defense.
I'm starting to see the lines of the field a lot better. Where you have to put the disc to get it to the cutter. Two lines intersecting. Very pretty.
I was average at geometry but I'm getting better.
I want to be able to see the lines on defense better. I need a complete mentality shift so that I can better see the lines of the defender and the disc, how I can intersect with the disc before my mark does.
Anyway, working on it.
Also working on my coaching. Feeling more and more confident as a throwing teacher. I dream of a day when I could get a job as an assistant coach for a big frisbee program, just working with players on their throws.
Who knows.
AUDL would be pretty cool too...
Saturday, May 19, 2012
Callahan Thoughts
Nick Lance as an absolute monster, undeniably. Probably the best player in college.
However, I am voting for Alex Thorne. He seems like the best leader, and is also a monster player. Also I am taking into consideration how his leadership has impacted his program. Without Lance, GT does not qualify for nationals, but without Thorne, Pitt would not be a title contender this year and that seems fairly important.
People tend to discount good players on deep, top teams because of the strength of their supporting cast, but I am more impressed by the players who can bring together a group of talented players and play and win as a team.
If the Callahan is an mvp award, Lance should win. In a talented group of throwers, he is a monster. But Thorne is almost as impressive a thrower, and as has been proven before, the award is not strictly an MVP award. It is about leadership and integrity, and Thorne shows that in spades. Lance does too, and it is a tough choice. I expect Lance to win but Thorne is the player I am most impressed with.
Who knows though. The Callahan award means different things to every person who votes in it. I think it is time for an overall MVP award in addition to the Callahan. Maybe name it after some legendary player from years past. The Stork award would be funny.
That would create a less ambiguous voting system, an recognize the extra dimensions inherent in the Callahan award.
Kurt and Brodie would have (should have) won MVP, for instance. Certainly merited.
Vote Alex Thorne! (or don't. America is in love with Nick Lance's scoober and I don't blame us a bit).
However, I am voting for Alex Thorne. He seems like the best leader, and is also a monster player. Also I am taking into consideration how his leadership has impacted his program. Without Lance, GT does not qualify for nationals, but without Thorne, Pitt would not be a title contender this year and that seems fairly important.
People tend to discount good players on deep, top teams because of the strength of their supporting cast, but I am more impressed by the players who can bring together a group of talented players and play and win as a team.
If the Callahan is an mvp award, Lance should win. In a talented group of throwers, he is a monster. But Thorne is almost as impressive a thrower, and as has been proven before, the award is not strictly an MVP award. It is about leadership and integrity, and Thorne shows that in spades. Lance does too, and it is a tough choice. I expect Lance to win but Thorne is the player I am most impressed with.
Who knows though. The Callahan award means different things to every person who votes in it. I think it is time for an overall MVP award in addition to the Callahan. Maybe name it after some legendary player from years past. The Stork award would be funny.
That would create a less ambiguous voting system, an recognize the extra dimensions inherent in the Callahan award.
Kurt and Brodie would have (should have) won MVP, for instance. Certainly merited.
Vote Alex Thorne! (or don't. America is in love with Nick Lance's scoober and I don't blame us a bit).
Sunday, May 13, 2012
Two Letters
Whoooboy.
It must be spring. That time of year when everyone kind of stops caring under the pressure of finals and the sweetness of impending summer. When everything gets a little frayed around the edges.
When I can't tell whether I want to stay here forever or burn the place to the ground.
Gotta love it though, its beautiful all the time, albeit humid.
No matter what, I will miss this, these easy crazy days.
Whoooobuddy.
What should I do with this blog - is it strictly speaking a chronicle of my college frisbee career or is it my lifelong frisbee career or is it just a blog about life?
Guess time will tell. Whether or not I keep writing here.
Just a little bit unsure about everything at the moment. That's probably the nature of college ending for basically everybody.
This could go on but nah.
PS ultimate this week yay!
It must be spring. That time of year when everyone kind of stops caring under the pressure of finals and the sweetness of impending summer. When everything gets a little frayed around the edges.
When I can't tell whether I want to stay here forever or burn the place to the ground.
Gotta love it though, its beautiful all the time, albeit humid.
No matter what, I will miss this, these easy crazy days.
Whoooobuddy.
What should I do with this blog - is it strictly speaking a chronicle of my college frisbee career or is it my lifelong frisbee career or is it just a blog about life?
Guess time will tell. Whether or not I keep writing here.
Just a little bit unsure about everything at the moment. That's probably the nature of college ending for basically everybody.
This could go on but nah.
PS ultimate this week yay!
Monday, May 7, 2012
301st
That's a lot of posts.
Threw today. The best thing about tryouts this past weekend is that I am feeling good about playing ultimate for the first time since conference champs. However in the intervening three weeks I've lost a bit of my edge. On the one hand, I am poised to level up my throwing game. I can feel it, big things are coming. On the other hand I am at risk of that level up being hamstrung by inconsistency. Bottom line, I need to throw every day to improve my focus. When I focus on form, I can generate more power than ever before.
But if not, I am travelling a lot and throwing weak shit.
Work work work, back to fucking work.
From 2010, post surgery:
"Note to self: next time you can run again but decide to do something stupid instead of working out, remember how much it sucks not being able to and act accordingly. Kay?"
Finding my fire again. Need to become a mutant.
Threw today. The best thing about tryouts this past weekend is that I am feeling good about playing ultimate for the first time since conference champs. However in the intervening three weeks I've lost a bit of my edge. On the one hand, I am poised to level up my throwing game. I can feel it, big things are coming. On the other hand I am at risk of that level up being hamstrung by inconsistency. Bottom line, I need to throw every day to improve my focus. When I focus on form, I can generate more power than ever before.
But if not, I am travelling a lot and throwing weak shit.
Work work work, back to fucking work.
From 2010, post surgery:
"Note to self: next time you can run again but decide to do something stupid instead of working out, remember how much it sucks not being able to and act accordingly. Kay?"
Finding my fire again. Need to become a mutant.
Creature Fear
The first cut...is the deepest? Thank you for your interest, but...
Oh fickle summer what do you have in store?
I need to define myself as a player, post Gunx. A player without the ease of college practices and the luxury to spend a majority of my time thinking about and playing frisbee.
Although for now I still have the time.
Just no structure.
Without a team, the motivation to train is fickle and fleeting. Without training, the edge gets dull, and when the edge gets dull it lessens the motivation to play.
Don't lose the motivation to play.
But how? Who am I playing for right now?
I don't have an answer to that yet.
One more summer of...childhood? Something like that. One more summer of living at home and going to camp. Realistically speaking, even if I make it onto an established team it is unlikely that I will be able to put my all into it. Without the money to travel, there goes basically everything. And what meager funds I can scrape together from camp and selling art are mostly spoken for, absolving past debts and making future rent payments.
By next summer I will be established, with a job and a life. In the city, even. If that works out, it will be a lot easier to commit to a solid team. I'll be able to pay my own way and carpool with teammates that I can get to know because I will be close enough to not only practice with them but hang out with them.
I can't commit to that this summer, and since I'm not an absolutely ruthless stud player not too many teams are probably going to want to take me on. Can't necessarily get myself to tournaments or even practices.
So what happens now? Taking a season off is not a good option. I don't know if I'd be able to bounce back from that unless I found another way to keep in shape.
Building a team is an enticing idea, but its so much work.
And there lies the main problem with post college frisbee. A problem that is easily solved by caring a lot.
But right now, I'm not sure that I do.
Building a team could be amazing. It will definitely be frustrating and difficult. It will be a lot of work when it would be a lot more fun to just play. But it is looking like I have to choose between working to hold together a group of people or not play any sort of competitive ultimate.
The team I want to play for is committed to playing for one another and enjoying it. To playing with lighthearted swagger and cutthroat confidence. To hanging out and goofing around.
I don't want to play with people who would rather shit talk their teammates than work on their own game. Had enough of that.
In any case, if I am to continue my ultimate career I need to find or build a team. Or find another reason to train so that I can break out of this mental catch 22 bullshit of "need a team to work hard need to work hard to be on a team".
Can someone give me a reason to play?
Who am I?
Oh fickle summer what do you have in store?
I need to define myself as a player, post Gunx. A player without the ease of college practices and the luxury to spend a majority of my time thinking about and playing frisbee.
Although for now I still have the time.
Just no structure.
Without a team, the motivation to train is fickle and fleeting. Without training, the edge gets dull, and when the edge gets dull it lessens the motivation to play.
Don't lose the motivation to play.
But how? Who am I playing for right now?
I don't have an answer to that yet.
One more summer of...childhood? Something like that. One more summer of living at home and going to camp. Realistically speaking, even if I make it onto an established team it is unlikely that I will be able to put my all into it. Without the money to travel, there goes basically everything. And what meager funds I can scrape together from camp and selling art are mostly spoken for, absolving past debts and making future rent payments.
By next summer I will be established, with a job and a life. In the city, even. If that works out, it will be a lot easier to commit to a solid team. I'll be able to pay my own way and carpool with teammates that I can get to know because I will be close enough to not only practice with them but hang out with them.
I can't commit to that this summer, and since I'm not an absolutely ruthless stud player not too many teams are probably going to want to take me on. Can't necessarily get myself to tournaments or even practices.
So what happens now? Taking a season off is not a good option. I don't know if I'd be able to bounce back from that unless I found another way to keep in shape.
Building a team is an enticing idea, but its so much work.
And there lies the main problem with post college frisbee. A problem that is easily solved by caring a lot.
But right now, I'm not sure that I do.
Building a team could be amazing. It will definitely be frustrating and difficult. It will be a lot of work when it would be a lot more fun to just play. But it is looking like I have to choose between working to hold together a group of people or not play any sort of competitive ultimate.
The team I want to play for is committed to playing for one another and enjoying it. To playing with lighthearted swagger and cutthroat confidence. To hanging out and goofing around.
I don't want to play with people who would rather shit talk their teammates than work on their own game. Had enough of that.
In any case, if I am to continue my ultimate career I need to find or build a team. Or find another reason to train so that I can break out of this mental catch 22 bullshit of "need a team to work hard need to work hard to be on a team".
Can someone give me a reason to play?
Who am I?
Friday, April 27, 2012
Bingo Bango
After five years of college ultimate, indeed DIVISION ONE college ultimate...
..my push pass is game ready (and battle tested in PICKUP GOALTIMATE SCENARIOS no less).
Don't be alarmed if you are feeling extremely jealous right now.
College is pretty close to over.
Okay.
..my push pass is game ready (and battle tested in PICKUP GOALTIMATE SCENARIOS no less).
Don't be alarmed if you are feeling extremely jealous right now.
College is pretty close to over.
Okay.
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
This should not be an issue
In relation to the catching issue is confidence and swagger. Need to be more confident in game, so I don't drop a disc (and so that when I do, it does not adversely effect later play).
Confidence or else.
Confidence or else.
Humpday
I had some uncharacteristic drops in the scrimmages last saturday. From the ones I remember, all were pancake grabs, and I think the reason is that I used a lot more force than necessary with my top hand, causing the disc to wobble away. Given that they were all really routine, easy catches, I panicked and did not recover the disc when it started to slip.
For that reason, I've been practicing using even force and using a gentle upper hand to make sure that that shit becomes muscle memory. I feel really good about my one handed grabs with both hands, better with right though because I usually carry things in my left hand. Need a backpack.
It is definitely that point in the semester where the usual combination of panic and complacency sends me into a tailspin for a month or so before I recover what can be saved in a flurry of finals week bullshit. Can't do that. Got a workout plan, got a lot of art to do, have to do both every day.
Gunx love, all.
For that reason, I've been practicing using even force and using a gentle upper hand to make sure that that shit becomes muscle memory. I feel really good about my one handed grabs with both hands, better with right though because I usually carry things in my left hand. Need a backpack.
It is definitely that point in the semester where the usual combination of panic and complacency sends me into a tailspin for a month or so before I recover what can be saved in a flurry of finals week bullshit. Can't do that. Got a workout plan, got a lot of art to do, have to do both every day.
Gunx love, all.
Sunday, February 19, 2012
The Perfect Week
Thoughts from today
We need better sideline presence, and a big part of that is teaching everyone what their role is on the sideline.
It comes down to focus, at all times. On a related note, I sometimes lose focus on my defensive roll on the field when trying to help someone else vocally. Got beat deep by Pat because I was too focused on telling another Gunx defender to sprint deep with his man and layout for the block.
Point is, I need to work on focusing on my role at all times and not try to do the sideline's job. And we need our players that tend to lose focus on the sidelines to work on their focus so that we always have that support system. Part of the problem is people post up by their things and will talk to the D while the action is near them, but become less effective when the play is down the field. Getting people to spread out will help.
Still working on adjusting my throwing form. I can generate a lot of power, but I have to adjust my muscle memory so that I always do it.
Today was pretty cool. I had a ton of fun, wouldn't know it if you saw me afterwards though I was in a bit of a funk about losing. Wah.
Practice tomorrow let's go.
We need better sideline presence, and a big part of that is teaching everyone what their role is on the sideline.
It comes down to focus, at all times. On a related note, I sometimes lose focus on my defensive roll on the field when trying to help someone else vocally. Got beat deep by Pat because I was too focused on telling another Gunx defender to sprint deep with his man and layout for the block.
Point is, I need to work on focusing on my role at all times and not try to do the sideline's job. And we need our players that tend to lose focus on the sidelines to work on their focus so that we always have that support system. Part of the problem is people post up by their things and will talk to the D while the action is near them, but become less effective when the play is down the field. Getting people to spread out will help.
Still working on adjusting my throwing form. I can generate a lot of power, but I have to adjust my muscle memory so that I always do it.
Today was pretty cool. I had a ton of fun, wouldn't know it if you saw me afterwards though I was in a bit of a funk about losing. Wah.
Practice tomorrow let's go.
Friday, February 17, 2012
Friday, friday, gotta post blogs on Friday
Dang its been a week. I thought I fixed my nocturnal sleep schedule fast, but it crept up on me all bad.
Anyway though, here's some things I've been mulling over this week.
At our last men's practice, I made some bad offensive turnovers due to poor field vision and old thinking. The same occurred at nocturnal - made some crazy throws trying to do everything on the field. The difference is, nocturnal was a hat tournament. My crazy stupid throws got us and lost us points in relatively equal measure, but in the grand scheme of things we were a hat tournament team with no chemistry, playing for ourselves.
It is important to note that the winning team, while having solid 'star power', won because their chemistry and unselfish play allowed them to take advantage of enemies weaknesses without presenting weakness of their own.
Ultimate is a team sport. If I am going to help the team suceed this year, I have to put aside the high risk gunslinger's mantle of yesteryear and embrace a philosophy of humble play and good decisions.
The discipline to dump it when the stall count gets in the 4 - 5 range. The field vision to look off a streaking deep cutter when I don't have an easy throw, or see the poach behind my mark that will destrudo the sick io break flick.
Brian talked to me about my role on the team changing, not having to make crazy throws to make the offense work. I've been preaching playing within oneself for years, now I actually have to learn to do it.
Oh and Dave, you were right about the air bounces. Working on it.
Gunx love all.
Anyway though, here's some things I've been mulling over this week.
At our last men's practice, I made some bad offensive turnovers due to poor field vision and old thinking. The same occurred at nocturnal - made some crazy throws trying to do everything on the field. The difference is, nocturnal was a hat tournament. My crazy stupid throws got us and lost us points in relatively equal measure, but in the grand scheme of things we were a hat tournament team with no chemistry, playing for ourselves.
It is important to note that the winning team, while having solid 'star power', won because their chemistry and unselfish play allowed them to take advantage of enemies weaknesses without presenting weakness of their own.
Ultimate is a team sport. If I am going to help the team suceed this year, I have to put aside the high risk gunslinger's mantle of yesteryear and embrace a philosophy of humble play and good decisions.
The discipline to dump it when the stall count gets in the 4 - 5 range. The field vision to look off a streaking deep cutter when I don't have an easy throw, or see the poach behind my mark that will destrudo the sick io break flick.
Brian talked to me about my role on the team changing, not having to make crazy throws to make the offense work. I've been preaching playing within oneself for years, now I actually have to learn to do it.
Oh and Dave, you were right about the air bounces. Working on it.
Gunx love all.
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
After this weekend I will put my sleep schedule together again
When I first started following competitive ultimate it was in the wake of the Hodag repeat and there was an unprecedented amount of ultimate video media available. The Hodag blog and game highlights helped me get into following the sport.
2011 saw a tremendous increase in the quality and professionalism of ultimate coverage across the board, so its been a while since I've gone back to the grainy highlight reels from previous seasons. But I'm on some old flow tonight, mainly because I don't feel like sleeping for whatever reason (#nocturnaltraining!).
Just can't root for CUT, ever. Even in 2010 when you were supposed to root for them to beat Florida. I mean, who roots for Goliath? But whether its the Hodag bias or some sort of deep seated anti intellectual - privilege jealousy thing, I just can't get down with Carleton even though they are probably the most impressive team in college ultimate. They have 1/10th - 1/20th the enrollment of the other perennial powerhouses, I mean goddam.
Its the same thing with Revolver - I have tremendous respect for what they've done and their team culture but I can't root for them. And all things considered, its probably because of those old Hodag videos.
Saturday, February 4, 2012
Two quick things
Need to just layout for everything so I can finally get defensive layouts on the regular. No reason not too, they are often within reach and as Stiggles pointed out I just watch them go by. Fuck that.
I can't remember the second thing. Dangit.
I can't remember the second thing. Dangit.
Friday, February 3, 2012
The Mask
Heck of Jim Carrey Movies are on tv tonight.
Field vision was a little difficult, compounded by everyone's desire to cut everywhere. Rushed a lot of throws, and throwing upwind hucks was difficult. Also threw some stupid bullshit, basically in indoor mode. Playing outside this month will put us in the best position we've ever been in. Stated.
#pushups
Thursday, February 2, 2012
I'm learning to push pass
Why not? Its the only throw you can really practice effectively while walking someplace by yourself.
Cons and Pros of today's workout
Cons: did not posses the necessary fortitude to finish snertz by myself. Let the cold sap my motivation. #weakbitchshit
Pros: ran into Will afterwards and got a good half hour of throwing in, tightened up the wind game a bit and worked on his form. Dude is going to be the truth.
Don't fall into the indoor trap of doing it all with your wrist! My first 30 throws were ridiculous because I was either airbouncing backhands or throwing them with wrist only. Forehands were alright, but backhands improved a lot more.
Basically, need to get a group together that can throw and workout outside. I can do that five days a week if I really want it.
Aiiiiiight
radio edit: when I am attacking the disc, if I think about how high it is I give up on it much easier. I can jump a lot higher than I think I can. #mentalgamewtf, #COURAGIO #hastags #manupnextime
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Post deleted blues
Done been struggling with a weighty blog post for some time and I finally wrote it. Then it got deleted because I was signed into the wrong gmail account and an error done did follow that.
Dang yo.
Anyway though, the point is that I had a moment of personal catharsis last Sunday, triggered by running penance sprints with Tom (Tom and I together should win on offense) until my gorge rose. The gallon of water exploded out of my mouth and nose into the bathroom garbage can was an excellent physical counterpoint to a significant chance in how I view what is important in life and what kind of man I want to be.
Having written it already, I feel the weight of inability to express lift off my chest, and even better, don't need to bore all ya'll with the rest of it. However Ya'll know I love talking. Talk to me. Life is amazing.
At practice I also learned some important stuff, quite a bit about dictating physically on d (I'ma be rocked up by sectionals so using that body is a must) and also that whenever I throw I stand and watch it fly instead of immediately making my next move. That is whack!
The counter point to the latter point is that when marking, as soon as your mark throws, put your body in his way before he starts moving. Dictate where he can go. I knew that one already but I never do it enough.
Anyway, Gunx love all.
Saturday, January 28, 2012
Coalition Victory
Today I am overwhelmed with the beauty of life, the sadness, the struggle, the majesty.
The grand spectacle.
We are a part of something that is massive and amazing.
It is paramount that we do something with it, use all of our myriad abilities and faculties and gifts.
I could go on. It is wizard times.
In ultimate terms, to accomplish our goals this year we have to change the team culture to one of work ethic and mutual support. The main challenge, now that we have Brian to steer the ship, is to get everyone to buy in on an individual level.
That's the captains' job. Okay.
We can go to regionals this year. We have the tools, we need to put them together in the right order.
"you can build a perfect machine out of imperfect parts"
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Shiny Times
This time of the semester is so bright and wonderful, when expectations are high, goals are set and pressure is low. A few weeks in it tends to fall apart, analogous to playing a game of monopoly. A few turns in and your money is gone, your cards are bent and your friends are probably in jail.
My mom came up with that one.
Anyway, things are off to a good start. I feel fit and sassy.
Let's go.
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Coming Home
Season almost starting. Wowie zowie. I'm almost happy with my baseline fitness. Running regularly will help. The combine showed me that it will be useful to focus on sport specific motions and running situations to train - plyos, serpentine for cutting, short hard sprints, etc.
Want to get into olympic lifts as well. We get once a week in the weight room.
This semester is it - if I am going to achieve my college frisbee goals, it is now. It would be easy to take a backseat role on the team this semester to focus on my thesis. I could justify it, but I won't because I will never get this chance again.
Go time, now or never.
I've double majored in frisbee for this long, now that I actually have a schedule where I can give my artwork 100% academic attention, it ought to be easier than ever to balance my time to train and play with the team. Why the fuck not.
"I'm just trying to be a better man, damn. I'm just trying to be somebody I can talk to in the morning with a smile."
PS pretty sweet write up of CC tryouts. See if you can spot cap'n David!
And a sweet post tryout video of Tim Morrill demoing jump technique, among other things.
Sunday, January 15, 2012
Energy Beans
Connecticut Constitution tryouts lit my goddam fire! Dang I am so pumped.
After a short break, new stations were created for group discussions, a 300 yard shuttle run (that hurt - not up on my cardio), a big dick variant (hella fun) and serpentine.
Walking into the dome was a veritable who's who of NY club and Connecticut college ultimate, with a smattering of good New England players. I'd put myself around the middle of the pack, that might be self aggrandizement but I'm surely guilty of worse.
The tryouts were split into 12 small groups (6 0r 7 each), each group having a pair group that it did most of the exercises with. My group started out playing a half hour of mini (each activity had a 15 minute time slot) so we were in on the action right away.
That was followed by the 40 yard dash, vertical jump measuring and a throwing drill (throwing breakmark passes to in cuts from a vert stack, with some sprinting similar to big dick).
After a short break, new stations were created for group discussions, a 300 yard shuttle run (that hurt - not up on my cardio), a big dick variant (hella fun) and serpentine.
The tryout was tremendous motivation and fun. Met some of my personal heroes in the game, and wasn't even too awkward about it.
What helped it be a positive experience was my resolution going into the tryout to play it casual - I was not invested in the result, only the experience. That helped me to play confidently.
It also gave some insight into the thought process and plans of the people running some of the audl teams. Talking with the owners of the Connecticut and Rhode Island teams made it clear that they are professional, focused and willing to work with the established ultimate community to create a new and important stage of the game's development. I really hope they are successful. Let's go to a game, all.
Meant to finish this post last night, but the energy bean crash was too much. Heck of sore today, hiked in the woods for a while which helped a bit.
I got cut, fair enough. Was hoping to make it to the next phase so I'd get another chance to mix it up, but my stats are just not good enough. Great motivation to become a better athlete - my throws and gameplay were pretty strong but my athletic stats were not even close. I saw Hus jump 43" - holy crap.
ENERGY BEANS
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
Holes
Planned to start air alert yesterday, that did not work out due to the septic tank exploding and having to dig giant holes in the yard. Kind of a throwback to my early aspirations of paleontology.
Started today instead with the double up tomorrow. Boy was the first day less rough than it was last year. Not sure what my goal is for air alert, not as interested in completing it as I was last year but will definitely use it was a supplemental work out for at least the first five weeks of the season, maybe longer. We'll see how that goes.
Throwing is fun.
Sunday, January 8, 2012
January Wedding
Yeah so, after killing my best ever performance on eight minute abs, I might want to do more for my obliques since they are integral for the torque of throwing big passes. This is cool : http://www.youtube.com/user/passion4profession#p/u/31/-vVOfsdwqaY
Saturday, January 7, 2012
Grapefruits
Grapefruits are juicy and delicious. They are the perfect size so that you feel just a little full after eating one. As a bonus, the juice helps you find every tiny cut on your hand, in case you want to connect them to make a picture.
Slowly but surely I am getting my spring season fire. To succeed as a player and captain this semester, my LAST semester, I will have to concentrate on:
Goal setting
Mental focus
Practice (Winning) Everyday
There are no more grapefruits left in my house.
Goal writing time.
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