I must have tossed around a frisbee growing up as a child, but I never did take it to be any more that an infant’s toy. That is until I was introduced to it as a sport in Manipal by Sundar Sarukai and his batch of philosophy students. I presently own one made by Triboard. I bought it from Decathalon, a sporting goods store in Hyderabad - for about 200 rupees. It is light and red, made out of plastic. One first learns how to throw it with a backhand toss. The axis at which it is thrown determines which side it will spin to. A heavier frisbee tends to be slightly more stable in flight, though I suppose it may be harder on the hands while catching.
As a sport, ultimate frisbee is formally played between sides of five to seven depending on whether it is played indoors or on grass outside. It is also one of the few mixed gender sports currently practiced. It came intuitively to me, I remember jumping and catching the disk high above my head and throwing it to a friend about 25 to 30 meters from me in my first try. Manipal had lovely lush green fields for its mostly student population. I was a student at the Manipal Centre for Philosophy and Humanities then. The year was 2014, just after my B.A - and I was an enthusiastic philosophical theoretician looking forward to re-writing the history of the discipline.
The teams line up on either side of the field, at the further edge of their respective end zones. The defending team throws the frisbee to the other side. This is called a pull. Once the disk is released, the defending team sprints up the field to occupy as high a position close to the opposition as they can. Within a side, a player can pass to another, but can never move with the disk in possession. They have three steps to come to a halt in case they were running to catch it. Once the disk is grasped, the opposition often rushes to the player to shield passing angles. Only one opponent is allowed within a three meter radius of the player in possession of the disk, unless a teammate also happens to be within the circle in which case a member of the defending side may try blocking them.
The disk can be maneuvered in its flight quite dramatically. It is possible to bend it around defenders, and into the arms of an onrushing teammate. The distance that it can travel, at least by the strength of my arm is about 45 meters. Catching a disk moving with such velocity, often while sprinting in the attempt to intercept the trajectory of its flight is challenging. Diving to catch the disk inches from the ground often draws ooos from the players.
For the disk to change possession it only needs to be knocked out of the air by the defending team; the interception of a pass. Then it is their turn to try and score a point by catching the disk in the opposition’s end zone.
Physically, it does require speed and stamina, to be able to run and catch the disk in short sprints. Official games last between 75, 90 and a 100 minutes. It also calls for skill and dexterity in throwing the frisbee so as to avoid defenders and find advancing teammates. As well as hand and eye coordination to be able to catch it. Playing this game is one of my fondest memories of my time at Manipal, apart of course from the opportunity to study and write about philosophy. The first amateur team has already been formed in India - Sloppy Disks, from Bangalore. It would be great to see this sport grow in Hyderabad (where I presently live) and in other cities.
- Sunday, August 9, 2020
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