Read that quote one more time. Let it really sink in.
The quickness of a point guard. The finesse of a hockey center. The blocking of a football guard. The reactions of a soccer goalie. And the willingness to hit the dirt, teeth first, without pads.
That is Ultimate Frisbee. That is the sport you are about to fall deeply, permanently in love with. And this book is going to be your guide to every beautiful, sweaty, exhilarating part of it.
The Day My Left Hand Scored Twice
I remember exactly where I was standing when it happened.
Indoor Ultimate. Half court. The stall count climbing. My defender had figured me out. He knew my right handed flick was my weapon, and he had positioned himself perfectly to shut it down. His feet were set. His hand was up. He was daring me to try.
So I did not.
I switched the disc to my left hand, took one quick step, and released a high release flick before he even realized what was happening. The disc floated across the court and dropped perfectly into my teammate's hands in the end zone.
Touchdown.
Two points later. Same situation. Different defender. Same result. Left handed flick. Touchdown number two.
After twenty years of playing Ultimate Frisbee in the DC area, after thousands of throws with my dominant right hand, after interviewing legends and coaching my sons and studying this sport from every angle, that moment with my left hand felt like I had finally unlocked something I did not even know I was missing.
Here is what nobody tells you: being ambidextrous in Ultimate Frisbee makes you virtually unguardable.
And the best part? Getting there is not some impossible dream reserved for elite athletes. It is a path. A real, specific, step by step path that anyone can walk. I know because I walked it myself, starting at age 48, with a sore right arm and a left hand that could barely throw a disc 15 feet without wobbling it into the ground.
What Changed Since I Started Writing
I want to be honest with you about something. When I first sat down to write this book, it was going to be one giant volume. Everything from your first throw to tournament strategy, all in one place. But as I wrote, the book kept growing. And growing. And eventually it became clear that this needed to be three books, not one.
Book 1 covers solo practice. Everything you can do by yourself with a disc to build your skills from the ground up. The Hula Hoop Drill, the Gravity Flick, throwing mechanics, body training, and the Discathlon to measure your progress. If you have not read it yet, I encourage you to. But this book stands on its own even if you start right here.
Book 2 covers partner practice. Finding people to throw with, what a real tossing session looks like, and why 45 minutes in a park with a friend will accelerate your development faster than any solo drill ever could.
Book 3 is where it all comes together. The full game. Offense, defense, cutting, catching, strategy, tournaments, coaching, and the culture that makes Ultimate unlike anything else in sports. This is the book most of you have been waiting for. And I am thrilled to finally share it with you.
But here is what makes this moment especially meaningful to me. In the three months between starting this project and finishing it, my own game transformed in ways I did not expect. And I want to share that with you because it proves something important: this stuff works. At any age. At any level.
Three months ago, my left hand was a liability. Today, I throw left handed flicks and backhands with real confidence during games. Not perfect. Not as strong as my right side. But good enough to score touchdowns and good enough to make defenders think twice about overplaying my dominant hand. I got there by doing exactly what I teach in Book 1. The Hula Hoop Drill on my left middle finger every single day. Finger extensions. Wrist rotations. Writing with my left hand. Using scissors with my left hand. Moving my computer mouse to the left side. Throwing left handed flicks at the park over and over until my arm remembered the motion without my brain having to remind it.
One of my favorite things to do now is carry two discs. I throw a floaty left handed flick into the air and then immediately fire a full power right handed flick to knock it out of the sky. It is ridiculously fun. It is also a drill. Every time I do it, both hands get better.
I also discovered something I am calling the Tornado Pull. Most players who do a 360 degree spin pull will brake their rotation right before they release the disc. They slow down, let go, and stop. The Tornado Pull is different. You spin a full 360 degrees, release the disc at the point of maximum rotational velocity, and then continue spinning through another full 360 degree follow through. Your body never decelerates. The disc leaves your hand at the absolute peak of your spin, like letting go of a rubber band at full stretch instead of easing it back. The result is 10 to 20 extra yards of distance with more consistency than I have ever had on a pull. I believe every serious puller will eventually adopt this technique. It is just physics. But for now, it is something I stumbled onto and I am proud to share it with you.
And my life in Ultimate has expanded far beyond pickup games. This year I was accepted onto the DC Breeze referee crew for the Ultimate Frisbee Association. I trained on all the UFA rules, I will begin shadowing games in May, and I will be an official judge for DC Breeze versus New York later this season. I was also approved as a coach for the WAFC middle school league here in the Washington DC area, starting next month. My son Luke is starting practice with the Blair High School team while also playing on the middle school A league team that I will be coaching. And I have been invited to my first practice with the Black Cans, a well known Ultimate club out of Rockville that competes in the Great Grand Masters division. You have to be 48 to qualify. I turned 48 this year. So the timing could not be better.
I am telling you all of this not to impress you but to show you something: this sport keeps giving. Twenty years in and my relationship with Ultimate is deeper and richer than it has ever been. I am not winding down. I am ramping up. Playing, coaching, refereeing, writing, and learning something new about this game every single week.
That is what Ultimate does to people. It grabs you and it does not let go. And it does not care how old you are when it happens.
Who This Book Is For
I wrote this book for you. Wherever you are. Whatever your age. Whatever your experience level.
Maybe you are a 12 year old who just discovered this sport exists and you cannot stop thinking about it. Good. That feeling is real and it is going to carry you a long, long way.
Maybe you are a parent whose kid came home raving about Ultimate and you want to understand what they are talking about. Even better. This book will help you help them, and you might just end up playing too.
Maybe you are a 47 year old former basketball player or soccer player or tennis player who is tired of contact sports tearing up your body but still craves competition. Ultimate is calling your name. Everything you learned in those sports transfers. Your footwork, your court vision, your athleticism, your competitive fire. Ultimate takes all of it and gives it a new home.
Maybe you threw a disc at a barbecue once and thought "Wait, this is actually fun. Is there more to this?" There is so much more. You have no idea how deep this rabbit hole goes.
Maybe you are already an intermediate player who has hit a plateau and does not know what to work on next. This book will show you exactly where to focus.
Maybe you are a coach looking for drills, philosophy, and a framework for teaching young players the right way. I have an entire chapter waiting for you.
Maybe you are thinking about refereeing or volunteering or organizing your first tournament. This book covers all of it.
Or maybe you are like me. Someone who has been playing for decades and still wakes up on Sunday morning excited to drive to the park and chase a disc through the air with friends. Someone who knows this sport is special and wants to help it grow.
Whoever you are, this book is for you. And I genuinely care about you getting better. Not in some abstract motivational poster way. I mean I want you to throw a flick next Sunday that surprises you with how clean it comes off your hand. I want you to make a catch that you would have dropped last month. I want you to read the field and see the open space before your defender does. I want you to experience the joy of this sport the way I experience it, with full lungs and a racing heart and a grin you cannot wipe off your face.
That is why I wrote this book.
The Legends Who Shaped These Pages
You are not just learning from me. Throughout this book, you will hear from some of the greatest players, coaches, and pioneers this sport has ever produced.
Jerry Mindes, co captain of the original Columbia High School varsity team in 1972, the very birthplace of organized Ultimate. He still plays every Sunday morning. He is in his 70s. He still uses his signature chicken wing catch.
Ben Jagt, two time AUDL MVP with the New York Empire, who told me that Ultimate scratches every athletic itch a person can have and no other sport comes close.
Khalif El-Salaam, six time World Champion, who grew up where most sports cost too much but Ultimate only required a fifteen dollar disc and the desire to play.
Harper Garvey, professional handler for the New York Empire, who taught me that the best throws happen when you stop thinking and just trust your body.
Seth Martin, 57 years old and still dominating in the Great Grand Masters division, whose coaching philosophy begins and ends with fun and fundamentals.
Eric Knudsen, who has been playing Ultimate for over 50 years and taught more than 10,000 people the flick using nothing but a tee shirt and patience.
Alex, a professor and handler at our DC pickup games, who showed me that training your non dominant hand does not just give you a second weapon. It makes you a better teacher.
Ryan Morrison, head physical therapist for a professional soccer team, who proved that sleep, nutrition, and simple gym work can give any player 20% improvement almost overnight.
Bill Nye, yes that Bill Nye, who played Ultimate at Cornell in 1973 and still calls it the best game on the planet.
Their words, their stories, and their wisdom are woven into every chapter. When you read this book, you are learning from decades of combined experience at the highest levels of this sport.
The Promise
I am not going to promise you will become a professional player. I am not going to promise you will win every game. And I am definitely not going to promise that your left handed flick will be perfect by the time you finish this book.
But I will promise you this: if you read these pages and apply what you learn, you will understand this sport at a deeper level than most people who have been playing for years. You will know what to practice and why it matters. You will see the field differently. You will make throws you could not make before. And you will love this game even more than you already do.
That is a promise I can make because I have watched it happen. With my sons Luke and Eric. With the beginners who show up nervous at Hyattsville on Saturday afternoons. With the experienced players at Nolte on Sunday mornings who are still refining their technique after decades. With myself, at 48 years old, scoring touchdowns with a hand that could barely throw a disc three months ago.
This sport rewards the people who keep showing up. This book will make sure you know what to do when you get there.
Mentor's Closing
I learned to throw a backhand with my dad in Oklahoma. A big black disc and a pink one with a hologram that I thought was the coolest thing in the world. We did not know the flick existed. We did not know about spin or the kinetic chain or the Webbing Whip. We did not know anything about Ultimate Frisbee. We just threw.
And that was enough to start.
Today I throw with both hands. I coach kids who remind me of myself at that age. I referee professional games. I organize pickup games that bring together 55 people through a simple text message. I interview legends. I write about this sport because I believe it deserves to be understood and celebrated and shared with as many people as possible.
Ultimate Frisbee is the best sport in the world. I believe that with everything I have. It is accessible, it is affordable, it is self officiated, it is played by people of every age and every background in over 80 countries. It demands your body and your mind and your spirit. It gives back community and joy and health and friendships that last decades.
And it all starts with a disc and a decision to get better.
Welcome to Book 3. Welcome to the full game. Everything you built in the solo practice chapters and the partner practice chapters is about to come alive on the field with real teams, real strategy, real competition, and real magic.
I am so glad you are here. Let's go play. :)