In 1968, a group of high school students in Maplewood, New Jersey started tossing around a flying plastic disc, also known as a Frisbee. Soon, they started writing rules and regulations and eventually it developed into an athletic and competitive sport: Ultimate Frisbee.

The sport can be best described as the athletic ability of soccer mixed with the handling skills of football. The field layout is very similar to a football field; there are two end zones and field space in between. Every time a player catches the disc in the end zone, one point is awarded to that team. Once a player catches the disc, he or she cannot run with it and has ten seconds to throw the disc to a teammate. The ten seconds is counted out by a defender or “marker.” Ultimate is a fast-paced game, and multiple turnovers can occur before a point is scored. A turnover occurs when the disc is thrown out of bounds or hits the ground, a player has the disc for more than ten seconds, or the defending team intercepts the disc. While the fundamental rules are relatively simple, there are many more specific rules that also regulate the technical aspects of the game. To read more about Ultimate rules, please visit the USA Ultimate webpage.

The most important part of the game is arguably the spirit. Ultimate is a non-contact sport (other than the inevitable incidental contact) that demands the highest level of clean, physical competition from players. Every High school and college Ultimate match is refereed entirely by the players. Any dispute on a foul or call must be settled by the players on the field before play can continue. The players are tasked with knowing the rules well and being righteous in their use of their knowledge. This creates one of the friendliest, most competitive sports on the planet, where the distinguishing factor between a good player and a great player comes from experience, physical ability, and nothing else.

“The integrity of Ultimate depends on each player’s responsibility to uphold the spirit of the game and this responsibility should remain paramount.” This quotation appeared on the “USA Ultimate Spirit of the Game Award” that is issued to a team every tournament. In the Ultimate community, it is almost as important to win the Spirit Award as it is to take first place in the tournament.

It is the uniqueness of the sport and the spirit of the game that makes Ultimate so popular across the country. While it is still a relatively unheard of sport, Ultimate has started taking the country by storm, particularly along the West Coast, in Colorado, and in most major cities in the East. The Colorado Ultimate community is especially large, including many tournaments and several different leagues spanning all four seasons. Most leagues and tournaments will accept players of any athletic skill level or Ultimate experience. The best way to join these leagues and tournaments is to find the information from word of mouth or by doing a simple online search.

At Arapahoe, Ultimate is one of the most popular clubs. Last year, Arapahoe Ultimate had its best finish out of ten years at the school, taking third place at the 2014 Colorado High School Ultimate State Championships. The sport has seen a large increase in the number of participants in the last five years, becoming one of the largest clubs at Arapahoe. Arapahoe Ultimate is currently 2-2 with 3 games left in the season. The club hopes to one day become a full-fledged sport at Arapahoe, but that remains on the horizon for the time being.

Come catch the Arapahoe Ultimate team at the Monarch High School Invitational October 11 and 12 at Monarch High School.

To get involved with Arapahoe Ultimate, please contact team captain Max Geise for more information.