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2008 Olympia Co-Ed Traveling Team |
Last year, O, was the first Olympia co-ed traveling team to receive guidance from the Washington South Sound Ultimate Players. We played competitively with a season record of 18 wins and 9 losses over four tournaments. We plan to follow those successful footsteps this year, but we've added a few modifications to improve our team.
The people who came up with and approved the ideas for the 2008 season: Beth Drake, Mike Santana, Pam Drake, Shannon Claeson, and Clint Catron.
Mission: The objective of the co-ed team is to play at the best of our ability as a unit. The team is dedicated to success through practice, commitment, camaraderie, and good spirit. Individual players will function in a capacity for the betterment of the team through dedication of improving individual skills.
Spirit statement: Players are expected to maintain spirit of sportsmanship at all times. Good spirit will never be sacrificed for individual players, teammates, or opponents. Team camaraderie and support is expected of all players on and off the field. This year, we added Kathy Young as our official Spirit Leader. Players are still responsible for good spirit, cheers, and tournament gifts (Potlatch), but Kathy will coordinate this effort in order to ensure our team has top-notch spirit.
Commitment: Players must commit to playing in at least 50 percent of all tournaments and 75 percent of all practices for a given tournament.
Open invitation on a first come, first served basis. Currently, a cap does not exist, but this will be discussed by the Co-ed Committee if need be.
Tournament Playing Time: The 2008 co-ed team is competitive team with a focus on playing at the best of its ability. This means that playing time (for each tournament) will be based on the following:
What exactly does this mean for me? Individual playing time will strongly depend upon the roster for a given tournament. But, as a general idea, the top 8 men and the top 6 women can expect to play no more than 50 percent individual playing-time for a given tournament. Teammates who are not in the top 8/6, at a minimum, can expect to play on average a few points of a game for the tournament.
When: Practice begins Tuesday, April 1st at Evergreen at 6pm, sharp. Practice runs weekly until Potlatch then we take July off. Practice will likely resume at the beginning of August, but this is still to be determined.
Who: Practice is open to anyone and everyone, regardless of whether or not you're officially on the team. We strongly encourage all people interested in the team to attend practices regardless of how much playing time you think you'll get at a tournament. We suggest this for two reasons. First, we simply cannot guarantee who and how many people will attend a tournament. Second, it is important to foster team development and growth.
Expectations: Players are expected to attend 75% of practices in the weeks leading up to a given tournament. For example, players must attend at least 5 of the 7 practices for Wenatchee. The 75% rule resets for every tournament. A player who does not satisfy this requirement may have his or her tournament playing time reduced. However, we recognize that players are participating on the team as a hobby and that family, work, or school responsibilities may interfere with practice. Please keep your Captains informed so that this practice requirement can be waived when valid reasons prevent you from attending practice. Also, note that practice will begin promptly at 6pm. We ask that you please be as prompt as possible so we can do what we need to do in a timely fashion. Tardy people delay practice, which means timely people have to wait longer before we can get through the material.
Below is the list of tournaments for the 2008 Season. Players who decide to attend a tournament must commit to the tournament (by informing Beth) no later than 3 weeks prior to the tournament. Because individual playing time will strongly depend upon the roster for a given tournament, it is important your teammates know the roster in advance.
| Month | Tournament | Date | Location |
| May | THAT | 17/18. (bid accepted) | Wenatchee |
| June | Log Jam | 21/22 (bid in process). | Estacada, OR |
| July | Potlatch | 4/5/6 (bid accepted) | Redmond |
| August | Spawnfest | 2nd ish weekend (not confirmed) | Mt. Vernon/Burlington |
| September | Geofest* | TBD | Olympia |
| October | Hanford Howl | end of October (not confirmed) | Tri-cities |
*Several Olympia-based teams may attend Geofest (including two equal-skill O teams and possibly and Evergreen or a high school team). If you play in Geofest for an Olympia-based team, this counts toward the requirement of commitment to at least 50 percent of all tournaments.
In order to get on the official team roster, players must pay $100 to Lisa Harrison by April 29th. Please note that "up-front" costs have increased from $50 to $100 because we had a difficult time paying off our "investors" in a timely manner. Here's how our treasury works. Lisa tracks the balance of each individual player depending on which tournaments you attend. As your balance reaches zero, you "deposit" money into your account; likewise, excess money in your account is returned to you at the end of the season.
Players must pay $50 to Lisa Harrison by April 25th to officially be on the team. Lisa will keep track of each player's individual balance depending on which tournaments the player attends. As your balance reaches zero, you will need to "deposit" more money into your account. This up-front cost goes directly to our first few tournament fees, which are already being collected. This pool of money ensures that (in the unlikely event the team forfeits a spot we have already financially obligated ourselves to) the entire team absorbs the cost not just one individual. If you have an issue with the up-front cost; for example, you'd like to make payments, please talk to your captains and we can arrange something that works for you.
Up-front costs go directly to our first few tournament fees, which are already being collected! This pool of money ensures that (in the unlikely event the team forfeits a spot we have already financially-obligated ourselves to) the entire team absorbs the cost not just one individual.
We do not want to lose players because of up-front costs. If this is an issue for you, for example, you'd like to make payments, please talk to Lisa to make arrangements. Also, if you know you can only attend 50 percent of the tournaments, please work with Lisa to determine what you should pay into your account.
On average, tournaments cost about $20 to $40 per player depending on the tournament and how many players attend (excluding Geofest, which is generally $5 per person). This does not include incidental costs, such as food, gas, and hotel. Please note that the team camps for at least three of the tournaments.
Joining the Team: If you are interested in being on the 2008 Olympia Co-ed Traveling Team, or want more information, email Beth no later than Friday, April 11th ( ) or just show up to practice on April 1st. Please do not assume you on already on the roster even if you have spoken to your Captains about your intent to join the team. It's difficult to track everyone so our official roster-building begins....now.
Thanks to WaSSUP; ultimate players who attended the annual meeting to give us feedback; and everyone who dedicated time, on and off the field, to our success!
"Put your entire team in the spotlight. Thanks to them, you're able to experience a level of success that you wouldn't have been able to achieve on your own. Remember that when it's your turn to help one of them out."
