Lincoln Ultimate Disc Association
 
We'll post more history and links soon, but in conjunction with our recent post on sportsmanship, and the beginning of summer league, the upcoming youth league, and the Cornhusker State Games, here is what the rules have to say about Spirit of the Game and Etiquette:

"Spirit of the Game" is one of the overriding concepts of the entire sport. Now, all sports value sportsmanship, and most sports have various traditions and practices that rely on etiquette, but many people claim that Spirit of the Game is what makes Ultimate unique. This is actually controversial in some circles, and the concept of SOTG is easily abused and often correlated directly to the fact that Ultimate is self-officiated. I personally think that SOTG is simply level of sportsmanship that we should all strive for, especially with the history of the sport in mind (the grass-roots growth, the hippy connection, etc.). Whatever your opinion of SOTG is, it is an important concept, and even as Ultimate struggles to gain legitimacy as a sport, we should still remember where it came from and where it currently is. Yes, competition and intensity are good, but so is peace and love, baby! This is how SOTG and etiquette is spelled out in the rules:

RULES OF THE WEEK:

I.B. Spirit of the Game: Ultimate relies upon 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 competitors, adherence to the agreed upon rules, or the basic joy of play. Protection of these vital elements serves to eliminate unsportsmanlike conduct from the Ultimate field. Such actions as taunting opposing players, dangerous aggression, belligerent intimidation, intentional infractions, or other win-at-all-costs behavior are contrary to the spirit of the game and must be avoided by all players.

XIX. Etiquette
A. If an infraction is committed and not called, the player committing the infraction should inform the infracted player or team of the infraction.
B. It is the responsibility of all players to avoid any delay when starting, restarting, or continuing play. This includes standing over the disc or taking more time than reasonably necessary to put the disc into play.
C. On a stoppage of play, if it is ever unclear which of a team’s members are the current players or where they are on or off the field, they should identify themselves when the opposing team requests.
D. If a dispute arises on the field, play stops and is restarted with a check when the matter is resolved.
E. If a novice player commits an infraction out of sincere ignorance of the rules, it should be common practice to stop play and explain the infraction.
F. When a call is made, throwers must stop play by visibly or audibly communicating the stoppage as soon as they are aware of the call and all players should echo calls on the field.
G. In addition to the assumption that players will not intentionally violate the rules, players are similarly expected to make every effort to avoid violating them.

http://www.usaultimate.org/resources/officiating/rules/11th_edition_rules.aspx
 
 
When it comes to developing the Ultimate community in Nebraska, and playing the sport in general, I often speak about sportsmanship and unifying the entire community into a big happy family. Few people preach as much about good mojo and sportsmanship as I do. However, I have come to realize that I also need to set a better example, not because I’m a jerk (well, maybe, I don’t know), but because my sense of humor may often be questionable. I’m the kind of guy who quickly becomes comfortable joking around with others, often before others feel the same comfort with me, especially on the Ultimate field. Sometimes I crack jokes that are more strange than funny to some, or I am sarcastic, or I spike a disc, or I say or do something that I don’t really mean, albeit in a joking manner. When I do these things, I assume that my opponents and teammates will know that I am joking, but in reality, it doesn’t always come off that way. 

The other night during league play, an amazing player whom I have had the privilege of playing pickup games and tournaments with on past occasions made a phenomenal play against my team. This player also happens to be one of the nicest, coolest guys you will ever meet. After the play, I gave him what I thought was a good-natured shove in the chest, but apparently I didn’t look as friendly as I intended to. I tried to make a joke instead of simply congratulating him on his amazing efforts, and he was surprised at my actions. Rightly so, I shouldn't have done it, even in jest. I apologized and heaped praise on him, but I also now realize that if I truly want to achieve the goal of good sportsmanship and unity, I need to practice the part every moment, joking or not.

Especially as we strive to bring in new players to the community and grow our youth division, even jokingly spiking a disc, making a sarcastic comment, or worse, is inappropriate. I wouldn’t want our youth players, the future of the Ultimate community, to do those things, and I especially wouldn’t want my own young son, who I like to bring to my Ultimate games, to act that way.

From now on, I will curtail the silly cracks, digs, and spikes and congratulate all of my opponents and teammates for their efforts. LUDA wants to make sure that all players, regardless of skill or experience, feel welcome at our events and come to love the sport and the community as much as we do. I also invite everyone else to show great spirit and sportsmanship on and off the field as the community continues to grow. And play Ultimate!

Thanks,
Baer
 
 
Our Summer League is set to begin on Thursday June 10 with our regular welcome/pick-up night and will continue throughout the summer on Thursday evenings. Included with your $20 registration fee will be a free official game disc, champion shwag, and a league party. In addition, LUDA will be creating special jerseys that you have the option of purchasing (at a great price!) to further enhance your Ultimate experience.

Most exciting to many of us is that we will be playing in a new location on East Campus of the University of Nebraska. Folks, the fields here are smooth, even, soft, green, plush, and beautiful. They are some of the best fields in town, and now you get to lay out across them for Summer Ultimate! 

Sign up now! Tell your friends! There is a ton of Ultimate action cooking in the summer sun this year, don’t miss it!