In my opinion, the coed series (also known as the "mixed" division) embodies the greatest aspects of the game of ultimate. Trust, focus, fun, and teamwork are critical to the success of a coed team. Madison is fortunate to have a wealth of players interested in finding that magical blend of spirit, fun, experience, and talent.
I'd like to help organize an effort this summer to establish a competitive coed team that would represent Madison at tournaments within the region. I truly enjoy coed ultimate (this will be my 4th year in the coed series, my 10th year of playing) and I'm happy to get the ball rolling in Madison. Hopefully I can continue to assist with administrative duties during the season, but I've learned from experience that establishing a team can be a daunting task, so I welcome your thoughts, concerns, and encouragement. In other words, the following vision for Madison Mixed ultimate is completely, entirely, 100% open for debate. I look forward to hearing your thoughts and opinions in the coming weeks.
The nitty gritty details:
- First, We should incorporate players from all segments of the local ultimate community. The most successful coed squads in this region are comprised of a mix of skillful veterans and athletic young players. I like this formula. If you know of players that will help us achieve this balance, please invite them to join us for practice.
- I believe that the competitive goal of the team should be play respectably at regionals this fall. Anything above and beyond this would be wonderful, but it really should not be our focus. Fun will be the top priority and quality play will be a very close second (admittedly, this is a popular thing to say and a little harder to accomplish). The chemistry that we establish this year will be a springboard for bigger and better things in 2004.
- As you can see by the schedule posted elsewhere on this site, we will probably participate in approximately one tournament per month. In addition, I expect that we will have practice only once per week. Translation: We have lives outside of ultimate and we should continue to live them. Making a commitment to a team should not involve giving up all of your free time. (And if you are a complete ultimate junkie, like me, then you can join me at the regularly scheduled pickup games around town.)
- I think that the ideal roster size is 16-18 players, half men and half women. This is a nice number to work with strategically and it also builds in a nice cushion for conflicts, injuries, or other circumstances. It is possible that more than 18-20 people will be interested in this team, which would allow us to form a second squad (my preferred option) or, if necessary, require a person/coach/democratically-elected-group to make some roster decisions. I would expect that excellent spirit and consistent attendance at practice would be factors in any decision that may come about.
- Cheering is a big part of the coed scene. I'll be the first to admit that cheers are occasionally painful to construct and endure, but they can also be fun, hilarious, and they lead to a great deal of camaraderie with the other teams in our region. If you absolutely hate to cheer and think it should be banished from ultimate, I recommend that you find another team.
Many people have asked, "Will the team be competitive?" My answer is yes - but NEVER at the expense of excellent spirit and team chemistry. This should be a team where we push each other to be better all-around players. I sincerely look forward to playing with my friends, learning more about this wonderful sport, meeting new people and, most importantly, having a lot of fun. Please join us.