QUDA Gets a Trailer

Forgive the rough photo - the usual camera is overseas at the moment.

But yes, after many years of borrowing the McNaughton family trailer, Ultimate TD's can now borrow this here tricked out QUDA Trailer, which will be kept with our gear at our JFOG storage facility.

Feeding the Masses

While we here at the stately Brisbane Ultimate Blog mansion are big believers in 'doing what works' and 'sticking with the tried and tested', we're routinely disappointed with tournament food. Fair enough if you're running Nationals and you've got 32 teams of highly motivated whingers coming to town ... we mean, you've got other things to do. But aside from Badman's gourmet pub burgers, and the occasional standout Halibut's of the past, there's not a lot going on at the food level at most Australian tournaments (we also partly blame Pat and Stick for not being flown out to more events).

There are a few simple options of course. Throw a variety of bread rolls into the basket. Some unusual lollies, or dips. Spend any spare cash on iceblocks. Throw some bacon and pineapple on that BBQ. Add some seasonal fruits to the usual apples and bananas - lychees, mangos, and all that.

All these thoughts came to us as we stepped from the mansion's vast kitchens into the library, and paused to examine Cooking for Crowds for Dummies by Dawn and Curt Simmons, and got a few new ideas to share. At the every least, remember, there are books out there that can help you estimate quantities ... often the hardest piece of guesswork any TD has to engage in.

Food dudes you see are markets are also worth approaching. Like the Churros guy in Brisbane. Now, don't ask them to set up shop and sell. Its too risky for them. But give them $x to come and provide 200 or so serves, and your players will be pretty impressed.

One thing we'd love to see more of at tournaments, and again are surprised it doesn't happen - home made desserts. Get four or five people to do some baking a few days before the tournament - you'd be surprised how easy it is to get baking volunteers!

48 Brownies (3-4 teams of ravenous frisbee players)

1. preheat oven to 180c
2. Combine 8 squares cooking chocolate and 375gm butter. Microwave for 2 minutes and blend it together well.
3. Stir in 1kg sugar (mmm, sugar) and blend it nicely
4. Mix in 8 eggs and stir in 500gm flour
5. Line all the pans you have with baking paper (leave the ends of the paper out, so you can remove the brownies).
6. Fill the pan with the mix to about 2-3cm deep.
7. Bake for about 50 minutes, or until its firm to the touch.
8. Remove from oven and allow to cool in the pan.
9. Run a knife around the edge of the pan and remove the succulent brownies.
10. Carve up and store in airtight container.
11. Pick up large stick.
12. Give brownies to frisbee players.
13. Use stick to beat back frisbee players, while retreating to safety.

Brisbane oh Brisbane - Australia Day 2010

Bruce: "This here's the frisbee - the emblem of our land. You can stick it in a bottle or you can hold it in your hand."

Happy Australia Day all, especially to those sons and daughters who've departed Godzone to spread the word.

So here at the stately Brisbane Ultimate Blog mansion, we like to spend part of Australia Day enjoying quality Aussie music (alas, the TripleJ Hot 100 has way too much foreign tripe on it). Bit of a list below.

But for those Brisbanites of a certain age, or for those rightly curious about the history of this town, aside from reading Pig City (essential really, particularly if you want to truly understand how Buzz and Gen play their Ultimate), you could set aside some time to watch this 1988 doco on the Brisbane music scene.

These aren't necessarily Brisbane related below, but some Great Australian Music, often forgotten.

So Bad Yet So Good

The Townsville Ultimate blog may have cornered the market on Ulti-porn, but we here at the Brisbane Ultimate blog can direct you so something that's so bad its almost good (go and look - we'd love to keep this guy's traffic high).

Correcting an Error

So, somehow or other we missed the villains from Townsville driving their old FJ falcon up and down the street outside the stately Brisbane Ultimate Blog mansion. Perhaps it was our regular distractions in the Dojo garden? I'm not sure. But here's the six month old Townsville Ultimate blog.

http://townsvilleultimate.blogspot.com/

Second Hand Shirts?

With the addition of the Gold Coast based Slamtown Ultimate Club (and rumours of a possible seventh team now starting to circulate) to the Brisbane Premier League, there’s likely to be some added impetus to the movement of a few players between teams, as well as the usual recruiting of new talent to the League.

Some teams are prepared for this, and have a few spare shirts in the Captain’s car, and good on them for their foresight. (Remember our mantra kids – chipping in a few extra dollars to ensure there are a few extra shirts adds value to your own shirt, as you’ll be able to use it for longer).

But one question that always comes up to us who think too much about the wrong things, is to wonder why there seems to be no second hand Ultimate shirt market (leaving aside the souvenir market – see Camby’s current ebay efforts).

Which is the answer? Why is there no second hand shirt market, particularly in the BPL?

1. Ultimate shirts are great and well designed and people want to keep them forever, even if they never use them. So they don’t sell them.

2. Ultimate shirts are cheap and players are wealthy, so nobody is interested in getting a second-hand one cheaply. At $50 new or say $20 second hand, there's not much price difference. So they won’t buy second hand.

3. Its generally not important enough that you have the right shirt. You just chug around in something of roughly the same colour until the team decides that everyone needs new shirts. So they don’t care.

Your thoughts welcome, readers!

ps if you are a cheap-arse and joining a new team this season, why not post a comment asking around to see if anyone will sell you a shirt?

pps we have an XL Plastic Scourgery shirt we'd be happy to sell to anyone, player or fan.

Rego Opens for Season 1 2010 Women's Ultimate Frisbee League at Toowong

Here's the goss:

Hello to all the lovely ladies of Brisbane Ultimate,

The next season of the Brisbane Women's Ultimate Frisbee League (aka WUFL)
starts Tuesday the 2nd of February.

This season will be an 8 week league, so plenty of play time.

The format is the same as last season, so sign up for the team you played with last year or if you're new sign up under the "I need a team" bracket and we'll sort you out.

Who: Ladies, ladies, ladies!
When: Tuesday nights 2 February - 23 March
Time: 7 - 9pmWhere: Oakman Park, Toowoong
Cost: $30 - including BBQ, lights, AFDA, and QUDA fees
REGISTER NOW!!http://www.afda.com/rego/showcompetition.php?competitionid=784

Thanks.
Laura and Colette
WUFL Directors

That Tournament List Again ...

We've been asked to put a summary of that big Open/Women's season tournament list again, as some folks are considering just how many out of the 10 they'll try to get to, and want an easy checklist. So here it is.

1. 30-31 January - Golden City Classic, Ballarat

2. 14 February - Share the Love, Sydney

3. 21-22 February - NZ South Island Championships, Christchurch

4. 27-28 February - Brisbane/Canberra Invitational, Brisbane

5. 6-7 March - NZ North Island Championships, Hamilton

6. 13-14 March - North/South/ East/West Regionals

7. 27-28 March - NZ Nationals, Christchurch

8. 3-4 April - Border Classic, Albury

9. 17-18 April - Bashionals, Brisbane

10. 24-27 April - Nationals, Adelaide

Sensible Internet Rant - Promoting Events and Using Links

Sensible Dan Blacklock recently posted this very sensible rant to an Ultimate administration email list, which we think is well worth sharing, particularly at this time of the year:

Hello all,

It is surprisingly difficult to find the AFDA registration links for some leagues/tournaments.

Here are the causes as I see them:

1. AFDA has two lists under the Tournaments link (Calendar and Register).
This becomes very confusing as the Calendar list doesn't always provide you with a link on how to sign up for the tournament/league. These should be consolidated into
one list as the information they contain is almost identical. I have heard that AFDA is getting redesigned so this may be redundant.

2. Blogs frequently require you to go hunting for the registration link.
Blog engines usually allow you to setup a links list/page, put the league/tournament registration links there. If you can’t setup a links list/page make sure you include the registration link in every post.

3. Emails that talk about the league/tournament but don’t link to the registration page.
Every email advertising the league/tournament should have the registration link in them. If you decide you want to redirect people to your blog first so they can get to the registration page from there make sure you comply with my previous point.

That’s my little rant for the year.
See you all soon.

Regards
Dan

Emminently sensible Dan. A few quick thoughts from Brisbane Ultimate Blog central:

1. The AFDA knows about the problem and hopes to sort this with the major upgrade due this year. It stems from the days when many folks didn't want to use the registration system, but did want to list their events on the calendar system (and the progressive way the site was built). Since these days TDs and LDs *have* to use the rego system (for insurance purposes), almost nobody needs it to be separate.

2. Blogs? That wouldn't be us of course ...

3. Our tip - whenever you're sending an email about your event, start by 'replying' to your previous email. This way all the information posted earlier is included, for all those people who missed it the first time, and it saves you repeating yourself.

For those of us who do lots of Ultimate organising via email and the web, its easy to think everyone else is like us - reads every email, remembers everything that's going on, etc etc. The reality is that most everyone isn't. So you need to repeat the key bits of information over and over again and again.

Tournament Season - Looking GREAT!

In case you’ve been living under a rock, here’s the good news about the 2010 Open/Women’s season, all in one place (and we're happy to edit if you've got some extra stuff to tell us ... [which we now have!].

Since the introduction of Regionals in 2005, there has been an occasional moan from folks who remember the days of leading into Nationals with a few warm up tournaments – Seeds of Doom, the Border Classic and so forth.

Regionals was a necessary addition to the season, but it seems its only been in the last year or two that folks have looked up from organising their clubs and aiming at Regionals/Nationals, and started to organise a few events and plan for their club to make it more of a season again.

This is great news, recalling as we have ranted elsewhere that some clubs were getting to the point of having 40+ training sessions to play a handful of games at Regionals and 6-7 games at Nationals!

So here’s how the calendar is playing out:

30-31 January – Golden City Classic – Ballarat, Victoria
http://www.afda.com/rego/showcompetition.php?competitionid=744
While its hard to call an inaugural the second year of an event a ‘classic’ as yet, Simmo and the mob in Ballarat have led the charge with getting the Open and Women’s season going, and that's classy. This tournament is going to make a name for itself, with strong support from the Victorian clubs (Chilly, Heads of State, Honey and Sporting Athletico all sending two teams), and the clever enticement of some interstate teams (Brisbane’s Sultry in the Women’s Division, and Adelaide’s Ultimate Evolution in the Open) will make the event all the more attractive for any last minute local and interstate gangs to get together.

[late edit] 14 February - Share the Love - Sydney, NSW
http://www.afda.com/rego/showcompetition.php?competitionid=722
Late mail - the Sydney-siders figured they'd better do something ... this one-dayer has a maximum 10 mens and 6 womens teams. Registration will open in January 2010. More info to come. Be there to become the "most loved player"!
[end edit]

27-28 February – Brisbane-Canberra Invitational – Brisbane, Queensland
http://firestorm.quda.org/?page_id=211
Now in its second year (after 2009 in Canberra), the BCI is probably now the primary warmup event for the elite going in to Nationals. The eight Open teams who’ve accepted the invitation (Firestorm (Brisbane), Fyshwick United (Canberra), Chilly (Melbourne), Heads of State (Melbourne), I-Beam (Newcastle), Karma (Adelaide), the new Sydney club, and Auckland) will in all likelihood fill out the top eight or nine at Nationals. Six Women’s teams have also been confirmed, equally talented: Black Betty (Brisbane), fACTory Girls (Canberra), Honey (Melbourne), KAOS (Perth), Indies (Adelaide) plus a new club from Sydney. This will likely be the biggest tournament in Queensland in 2010, and a great opportunity for Brisbane locals to get down and do some spectating.

13-14 March – Northern / Southern / Eastern /Western Regionals
The largest weekend in the Australian Ultimate calendar, as upwards of 50 Open and Women’s teams descend on four venues around the country, all vying for an increasingly tighter number of slots for Nationals 2010. Simmo has done a full rundown of the slots available and his tips on who's likely to go.

27-28 March – New Zealand Nationals – Christchurch, New Zealand
http://www.ultimate.org.nz/pages/tour/2009-10/OpenWomen.htm
Becoming a great and fun way for Aussie clubs to prepare for Nationals, and generally delivering quality games against unfamiliar faces. There’s also the NZ South Island Championships on 20-21 February in Christchurch, and the NZ North Island Championships on 6-7 March in Hamilton – these latter two are also great tips for the burgeoning ‘B-Team’ season.

[late edit] 3-4 April - Border Classic - Albury NSW/Vic
http://vfda.asn.au/index.php/Clubs-Men-s/Chilly.html
Late mail - Victorian Club Chilly have announced the return of this fine tournament. Mostly a date claimer, with interested teams asked to get in touch by 21 February, with more info to come. [end edit]

17-18 April – Bashionals – Brisbane, Queensland
If you missed out a Regionals, there’s still a season to be played and a trophy to be won, as we here at the Brisbane Ultimate Blog bring you Bashionals (which we’ll be blogging separately about).

24-27 April – Nationals – Adelaide, South Australia
That big tamale, with the 32 qualifiers from Regionals in the Open and Women’s division heading south south south for battle and the finale to the season.


Some might say “that’s a lot of Ultimate”, to which we reply “EXCELLENT!”. They may then add “it’s expensive to get to all that!”, to which we reply in three parts:

“a) Having a club of upwards of 25 regular players (many clubs how have 40-50
players) means that the Club should aim to go to as many events as it can – its
not about fielding the same players at every event, its about your Club having a
great time and building all your players and waving your Club’s flag. You only
need 11 people to go. Be ambitious! Follow your dreams! You can reach your
goals!

b) Instead of relying on player’s back pockets, why not fundraise –
making money as a group strengthens your club too

c) Playing tournaments is a seemingly forgotten but great way to prepare your team for Nationals – far more valuable (and fun) than training!”

The great thing too, is that in between all this, there are still u19 and u23 Australian team training camps, groups preparing for World Clubs 2010 in Prague, plus some other great tournaments like the Terrigal Towel http://afda.com/showtournament.php?tournamentid=630, and whatever else we can come up with.

BPL 2010 Registration Open

Just in case you missed it, registration for BPL 2010 Season 1 is open.

And the Dojo Mojo are already making exclusive invitations to the best players.

Bashionals 2010 is Booked

We in Brisbane are pleased to let you all know that the fields are booked for the inaugural Bashionals tournament, to be held on 17-18 April 2010 (the weekend before Nationals)!

Why are you doing this?
With an increasing number of teams now making a run at Regionals but missing out on a trip to Nationals, we're excited to offer a second event to build your season around. In 2009, around 27 Open teams played Regionals, competed for 16 Nationals spots, and many folks had their season over in March after a handful of games. Bashionals is here to help!

What's Bashionals again?
Bashionals = B-Nationals, but with much more fun and Ultimate that's just as competitive. Moreso perhaps, because the teams will be much more of a similar level of skill and talent.

Why should I consider Bashionals?
More excitingly than Nationals, the field at Bashionals will likely be wide open. And better than Regionals, teams are likely to be of a similar level of talent, skill and depth. The winner of the inaugural B-Nationals event could indeed be YOU and will no doubt be held in high esteem!

Plus, Brisbane is a fine spot to come and play some Ultimate at. We'd love to have you visit.

Who can come?
The tournament is open to any team that isn't going to Nationals 2010. We will consider requests from any individual Nationals-bound player who wants to play in support of non-Nats team - eg a senior player or two leading/coaching/organising a developing or new team or club.

How will you confirm who's coming?
Invitations will be further sent out immediately after Regionals results are reported, with team deposits due by Friday 19 March. Bashionals will go ahead if at least six Open teams commit to playing, and confirmation will be made by Monday 22 March to allow people to plan etc.

We are also willing to run a Women's division if four teams are interested.

But you can register now if you want, at: http://afda.com/rego/showcompetition.php?competitionid=779

But I'm such a good player that I'll never be going to Bashionals!
We would also ask experienced/elite Nationals-bound players to get behind promoting Bashionals in your local area. The sorts of players who'll benefit from going to Bashionals rely on your support, encouragement and leadership. Your region or club's "B" team (and "C" team, and local league players) need you to get them going that step further than just 'making up the numbers' at your local Regionals - this is how you convert them into A team players! And of course, maybe one day you'll find yourself coming to Bashionals too!

What's this about a trophy?
Finally, there will be a sweet and perpetual trophy presented to the winners by the very important Secretary of the AFDA and the also very important President of QUDA - so yeah its serious and good!

Looking forward to it. More info as we get closer to the event, but we wanted to get everything onto everyone's season planning.

50 Discs

Just noticed that Discraft have lowered their minimum custom disc order to 50 discs (down from 100). Discs must be white with one colour of printing on them. Not sure of price, and of course the postage per disc is more the less you get.

With the Aussie dollar high, this may be of interest to people hosting smaller tournaments or wanting club discs.