Mr.FcuK Snapshots & Lessons of My Life

New jersey, new confidence?

Help Ultimate Open tomorrow, 8 AM, at University Malaya Varsity Green Field. Oops…

dy/dx = 0?

Ultimate Frisbee, it has given me something special in life. Something that I have longing for, but unaware of what it is. Probably is the joy of exercising with friends, probably it’s the excitement of scoring/assisting and the effort for scoring every point. Maybe it’s the teamwork required for the sport which makes it special, maybe it’s the opportunity for me to travel to various places, meeting new people and making friends. Or it’s the thought of being the first few to play a sport that could potentially develop into a staple one in Malaysia.

It could be some, if not every, of the reasons above. I really enjoy travelling to different places to play Ultimate and meeting new people, especially those who can give you advice on improving yourself in the game. I am really thankful that there’s a sport that make me feel so passionate about, even Basketball wasn’t enough for me to feel that way.

As Zac Hill feels what Magic the Gathering has given him in his life, this is what I feel Ultimate Frisbee has given me. Every run, every throw and every catch help to take my mind of things, and well, it increases my serotonin level at least….

Photos courtesy of Chong and Ren Yi.

It was in the month of March 2008, when we had our first Ultimate Frisbee in conjunction with our Nottingham Games. A 3 day period, with a little fiery temper, rain, and laughter, made Ultimate somewhat a success. Even though the sport didn’t had a good reception and is unfamiliar to many people, there were 6 teams sent by students and 1 team from staffs.

Format was 5 aside, with 8 in a team, with the field size smaller than actual size. It was kinda hard for each team to find players as the University divides teams according to courses and faculties. But nonetheless, everyone had fun. The gold member went to Chemical Engineering, Silver went to Pharmacy (they have tall guys) and Bronze went to Business School (that’s us). Looking forward to the next Nottingham Games…..

Our Business School.

Cheering before matches.

Our captain, Sean, with his strong 2 handed throw.

Again in action.

Gan, after scoring. Very delighted.

Sometimes, these things do happen in Frisbee.

Rain was pouring hard and strong during one of the days. But we are hardcore players.

Saiful enjoyed scoring in the rain.

Everyone enjoyed themselves despite the rain.

Bronze it was for us.

In reference to the previous post, here is the summary of what I did in Kedah for the past 3 months, with mainly spreading the love of Ultimate Frisbee at Sungai Petani, Kedah. Man, I got to say, it was tiring, exciting and just pure fun. To be finally able to play Ultimate at your hometown makes it not boring anymore whenever you get back. Yeah, there were ups and downs over there, and boy I have to say, one of the downs really pissed me really bad, but seeing the students enjoying themselves helped me to take my mind off it. They are passionate about it too, but too bad they are being hold up by exams.

I went to 3 secondary school, with 2 being Kebangsaan and 1 being Chinese. Plus, I have been to UiTM Merbok, Kedah too, but that didn’t turn out really well due to time constrain. Nonetheless, we had our Sungai Petani pickup every Friday, 8.30 AM, for about 5 weeks at a public field, Jubilee Park. Just hope they will continue the pickup session when I’m not there anymore.

Note: if it’s raining, it’s most probably cancelled.

Students from Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Ibrahim, my previous school.

Students from Sekolah Menengah Sin Min, the Chinese school.

Students from Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Sungai Pasir, the last school that I went.

Students practising their throws.

UiTM Merbok, Kedah. They already had some players there who learnt how to play Frisbee before. The guy in the center is Azlan, from UiTM Shah Alam (Sungai Petani dude too).

Our pickup spot, Jubilee Park. Field isn’t 100m but this is what we have to make do with. Every Friday, 8.30 AM.

The youngest student, standard 5, Mr. Chew.

Drill sessions during pickup.

Just like this shot.

Ultimate game time.

There are many people whom I want to thank for helping me so much, morally and physically. Shoutout to my parents and sister, Doug, Kuan, James, John, Mr. K.K Lim, Azrin, Alvin, Sean, other Nottingham Knights/Oops members too, Azlan, Bani, Mr. Soma and also my students from all the schools. You guys were, are and always will be great. So I guess that’s the chapter of my Ultimate life experience during the past 3 months, and a new chapter begins back at Nottingham, with more exciting training days to come and also tournaments to join. Can’t wait…..

*Updated: Pickup at Jubilee Park on Wednesday 3-6 PM

Little as anyone knew, this sport has been in Malaysia for about 5 years or more and currently it is getting more popular in Malaysia, but concentrated only at Kuala Lumpur and Selangor. Therefore, this blog entry is created to create awareness and help to spread this sport, especially towards the North region of Peninsular Malaysia.

There are already numerous tournaments being held in KL and Selangor. Most of the participants are from colleges and universities, such as INTEC, Nottingham, UiTM, Taylors and Help. Secondary schools such as Catholic High School and Subang USJ also join the tournaments.

There are local pick-ups (which is known as weekly friendly games) played among anyone who loves Ultimate Frisbee.

History

Ultimate Frisbee was originated from the United States and it was started by Joel Sliver. It was introduced back in 1968 and the sport grew ever since, with high popularity in the US and also in Europe. Asia is the new region to gain the popularity of Ultimate Frisbee. You can read more about it at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultimate_frisbee.

About Ultimate

Ultimate Frisbee is a non contact sport and also promotes the spirit of the game. What’s more is that the game encourages co-ed relationship, males and females playing together, as a team and the line up on the pitch must have females.

Ultimate in 10 Simple Rules:
1. The Field — A rectangular shape with endzones at each end. A regulation field is 64m by 36.5m, with endzones 23m deep.

2. Initiate Play — Each point begins with both teams lining up on the front of their respective endzone line. The defense throws (”pulls”) the disc to the offense. A regulation game has seven players per team.

3. Scoring — Each time the offense completes a pass in the defense’s endzone, the offense scores a point. Play is initiated after each score.
4. Movement of the Disc — The disc may be advanced in any direction by completing a pass to a teammate. Players may not run with the disc. The person with the disc (”thrower”) has ten seconds to throw the disc. The defender guarding the thrower (”marker”) counts out the stall count.

5. Change of possession — When a pass in not completed (e.g. out of bounds, drop, block, interception), the defense immediately takes possession of the disc and becomes the offense.
6. Substitutions — Players not in the game may replace players in the game after a score and during an injury timeout.
7. Non-contact — No physical contact is allowed between players. Picks and screens are also prohibited. A foul occurs when contact is made.
8. Fouls — When a player initiates contact on another player a foul occurs. When a foul disrupts possession, the play resumes as if the possession was retained. If the player committing the foul disagrees with the foul call, the play is redone.
9. Self-Refereeing — Players are responsible for their own foul and line calls. Players resolve their own disputes.
10. Spirit of the Game — Ultimate stresses sportsmanship and fair play. Competitive play is encouraged, but never at the expense of respect between players, adherence to the rules, and the basic joy of play.
(Source from UPA)When and Where to PlayTues @ ISKL - Ampang campus, 5.45-7.00pm
Tues @ KUTKM - Melaka, 5.30pm
Tues @ MARA - Banting campus, 5.00pm

Wed @ KBU - Bandar Utama College, 5.30-7.00pm

Thurs @ Inti College - Nilai campus, 6.00pm
Thurs @ KUTKM - Melaka, 5.30pm
Thurs @ MARA - Banting campus, 5.00pm

Sat @ KBU - Bandar Utama College, 9.00am-12.00pm (The popular one)
Sun @ ISKL - Ampang campus, 4.30-6.00pm
Sun @ Kota Kinabalu, Sabah - Likas Sports Complex, 4.00-6.00pm

Frisbee Disc

Discraft is the standard measurement of a Frisbee. It weights 175 grammes. Discrafts cost about RM 40 in Malaysia, depending on designs and special features, like glow in the dark or UV light.
Alternately, there is a distributor in Malaysia for cheaper discs, with material and measurement made closely to Discraft and it usually cost RM 10. It is call MyDisc and it can be obtained from people at KBU Colleges every Saturday (subject to availability).

Some Cool Stuffs About Ultimate

The Dress Code (you can wear anything)

The Catches

Ultimate Frisbee on 8TV Malaysia

For more info Ultimate in Malaysia, you can check out - http://www.malaysiaultimate.com/

The top 8 teams have been decided for the African Cup of Nations 2008. The fever will now heat up even more. And for Nottingham students who are passionate towards football, they are definitely organise when it comes to the football schedule. The pictures below will tell you how organise and passionate are they.

The schedule of the matches are posted on the glass window.

Here, you can see the top stars of each African country. Kanu, Muntari and Kanoute are few of the famous names.

To find out more info on the African Cup of Nations 2008, click here. I’m putting my money on Ivory Coast. Just hope they win….