Our Middle School team took 2nd place in the league tournament last Fall and we’re hoping to top that performance this Spring at the state championship. This year we’re planning to participate in 2 divisions. Middle School Open and High School D2 Open. These leagues are open to both boys and girls. Keep inviting your friends and helping grow the sport. Let’s make South Davis county an Ultimate powerhouse!
Chimera?
The Chimera is a mythological beast. It’s fierce. It’s a freakish hybrid. It’s name strike’s fear into the hearts of it’s enemies. Like our team it derives it’s strength from the uniqueness of it’s component parts.
What is Ultimate?
Ultimate is an exciting, fast paced, non-contact, field sport played with a Frisbee™. Two teams of players take the field and essentially play keep away from each other, passing the disc between players and attempting to score in the end zone the other team is defending. A turnover occurs when one team drops the disc, catches it out of bounds, or delays more than 10 seconds between throws. The opposing team immediately takes possesion and tries to score in the opposing end zone. Play continues until one team scores by catching the disc in their opponent’s end zone at which point substitutions may occur and the team which just scored ‘pulls’ the disc to their opponents (similar to a kickoff in Football.)
Spirit of the Game
One of the defining characteristics of Ultimate is it’s emphasis on a principle called Spirit of the Game which is defined in this way:
Ultimate relies on a spirit of sportsmanship that places the responsibility for fair play on the player. Highly competitive play is encouraged, but never at the expense of mutual respect among players, adherence to the agreed upon rules, or the basic joy of play. Such actions as taunting, aggression, intentional infractions or other win-at-all-costs behavior are contrary to Spirit of the Game and must be avoided.
This is why I love Ultimate. Even at the highest levels of play games are self-refereed. Players are expected to make calls, discuss them, and attempt to resolve on field disputes without devolving into shouting matches between coaches. In fact, coaches and bystanders (whether players or fans) must not attempt to influence these on-field discussions. The rules are designed to help resolve inevitable disagreements in a fair manner. If you watch professional sports the general attitude is “get away with whatever you can when the ref’s back is turned”. That’s not sportsmanship, it’s gamesmanship. Ultimate teaches kids what true sportsmanship is.
Coaches
Head Coach Lee Jensen: I’ve been playing Ultimate for the last 10 years or so. About the time my first daughter was born I realized I wanted to get in better shape but I found it boring to go to a gym alone or jog mindlessly on a treadmill. I’d played some Ultimate with friends as a kid and wondered if I could find a group of people to play with near me. A quick google search led me to a local pickup group who played on their lunch hours not far from my home where I was working at the time. I joined them, started learning the sport, and eventually joined Salt Lake County leagues and other club teams.
4 years ago I found out about a Middle School league and decided to sign my kids up for it but there wasn’t a team near us. We started commuting to Salt Lake several times a week to play with the West Krakens Middle School team. They were in need of some coaching help and being the only parent who knew much about the sport I volunteered. Now that that team is in a more self sustaining place I’d like to build something a little closer to home.
I’ve got a serious passion for Ultimate. I see it as a vehicle to promote a healthy active lifestyle, teach kids discipline and sportsmanship, and do it all in a supportive/positive environment. I’m excited to build the sport here in our home town!