Flying high: Ultimate Frisbee's popularity leads to school teams

LAUREN OYLER photos/Hurricane

Hurricane High School's Andrea Rectenwald, Alex Salazar, and Claire Rogan - members of the school's ultimate Frisbee team -- warm up before a practice. Ultimate Frisbee is a non-contact sport that combines elements of Frisbee golf and football.

By Lauren Oyler
Hurricane High School

Who can dislike a sport named after its own sheer awesomeness?

Arguably the most interesting of the non-contact sports, ultimate Frisbee -- commonly referred to as "ultimate" -- is a combination of Frisbee golf and football. The game originated in the late 1960s at Columbia High School in Maplewood, N.J. The term "ultimate" was likely coined on the grounds that it is the "ultimate sport."

Players score points by passing the disc into the opposing team's end zone. They cannot run with the disc in hand. Ultimate is a sport that requires excellent hand-eye coordination as well as a laid-back attitude.

"Some people may take it as serious as any other sport, but it's the creativity and randomness of ultimate that really make it great," said 17-year-old Andrew Hankins, a senior at Hurricane.

One of the things that contributes to the sport's relaxed nature is the lack of referees, even at the national level. Although Hurricane did utilize unofficial referees when the school sanctioned an ultimate Frisbee game for its annual Battle of the Classes during Homecoming week, most of the school's games are self-officiated.

However, despite the low-pressure atmosphere, ultimate players can become intensely competitive. Hurricane senior Olivia Morris, 17, ripped a muscle in her neck during a blocking maneuver made by an opponent. However, two weeks later she was on the field again.

Top: An inventive defensive player, Rectenwald attempts to block Nathan McCray as he lobs a pass past A.J. Mallory. Bottom Left: Senior Ben McCray is one of the founders of the team. Bottom Right: Rectenwald blocks Alex Salazar as he attempts to find an open teammate.

"I absolutely love ultimate Frisbee," Morris said. "There's not as much stress as there is in other sports. It's all about the fun while kicking some butt."

Thanks to the efforts of senior Ben McCray, Hurricane's resident ultimate Frisbee guru, the sport is now easily accessible to students at the school. During the 2004-05 school year, McCray and fellow Frisbee enthusiasts started Hurricane High School's first ultimate Frisbee club, making the once underground sport a popular after-school activity for many students.

McCray, who has been playing ultimate since he was 6 years old, also plays on a club team tentatively called "The Layout Kings." His club coach, Mike Cambell, helps train the Hurricane High team, teaching basic plays and offensive and defensive strategy.

The Hurricane team plays year-round, practicing on a vacant soccer field at Valley Park in Hurricane. Though winter may seem like an unorthodox time to play Frisbee, inclement weather does not stop these counterculture athletes.

"We actually played in the snow once," Morris said.

As far as competition goes, Hurricane has played games against teams from Huntington High and Capital High School. McCray, who plans to play ultimate in college, is hoping to schedule a game against Marshall University's team in the future.

Speaking of the future, though many of the team's core members graduate in June, McCray doesn't foresee a decline in the sport's popularity at Hurricane.

"I think that the entire team helped start [the club], and the younger players are just as active as the original members," he said. "I hope it will be better than ever next year."