Ultimate Frisbee. Think back to the moment you learned how to throw a forehand or to the moment you saw (or made) your first defensive bid or to the moment that you saw two players talking about a foul without getting into a fight. It's a thrilling, marvelous, awe-inspiring game. Watch this video to be amazed at the sport’s athleticism.
We have dozens of high school and middle school teams in Utah. The U, USU, UVU, and BYU all have teams. We now have both womens and mens professional ultimate teams in the Utah Wild and the Salt Lake Shred. Ultimate in the state has been growing each year. Our Utah Swarm youth all-star teams have become more competitive every year, all three placing in the top 3 in their respective divisions last year (U17 Boys 1st, U20 Boys 2nd, U20 Girls 3rd).
Some would say Ultimate is the fastest growing sport in the world. I believe this is false. Pickle Ball, Soccer, and Lacrosse are all growing faster. But Ultimate could be the fastest growing sport. And it should be.
Ultimate is incredibly accessible: all you need to play are a few other players, a 175g disc, and a field. It’s also a participation sport. All the players on a team get a chance to touch and throw the disc. And similarly, Ultimate organizing is a participation activity.
Why doesn't my school have a team? Why aren't there more girls teams in Utah? Why do some colleges and universities in Utah not have teams? Why haven't we been able to field a mixed club team. The answers to questions like that are more simple than they might appear. We need more people to do the work.
When great things happen in Ultimate, it's because someone had an idea and someone (or likely multiple someones) organized people to make the idea a reality.
Ultimate needs you. You can be a part of helping this sport grow.
So what can you do?
First, if you don't know how to play, learn how to play. Throwing a disc maybe seem hard at first, but with the right resources and a little practice, it can be easy. There are so many resources on the Internet for learning how to throw. Make sure you have a disc. You can buy one here or here. Check out this video. Or this one on throwing a forehand. Or this one on throwing a backhand. Or this one practicing indoors. Or so many others! It’s hard to teach others to play if you can’t throw. Learn how to throw!
Secondly, try to play. Try to go out and throw with friends or family. Encourage others to play! Most of the year, there are pickup games, 3v3 tournaments, city leagues, or just hat tournaments, where everyone of all skill levels is invited to play together. If you've got kids, try to get them out to the activities above, or sign them up for Ultimate Play or Cache Valley Ultimate. Or get them on a Utah Ultimate spring league team. Utah Ultimate is a resource for knowing what Ultimate is happening around the state.
Third, please volunteer. We always need coaches. If you have an interest in coaching, please send an email to info@utahultimate.org and info@ultimateplayut.com. Perhaps more importantly, we need people to volunteer to organize. The community needs people to stand up and create new teams, at all levels. We have several colleges or universities in the state that don't have Ultimate teams. We have many high schools and middle schools in the state which don't yet have a team. You can help start one! Or keep one going! If you're trying to help a youth get started, you can start by going to ultimateplayut.com and registering the player. It's easy. And you can really help by volunteering to organize or coach. Once you have a team organized, you can play spring league at Utah Ultimate.
This sport is thriving, and we can really accelerate its growth. We have an amazing game and a whole state full of kids who would love the opportunity to love it.
We just need more volunteers and we hope you’ll be one.