An "Ultimate Tradition" Continues at TIP at UGA

Story and Photos by Kelly Castro
M & M staffer

If you’re walking across the quad and happen to hear “Heads!” then there’s a chance the flying object won’t be coming from above. It’s not a bird, a plane, or Superman. It’s not a football, basketball, or book bag for that matter.
Instead, try looking for a round, plastic disk with curved edges soaring into view.

Frisbees are as common to see at TIP as the neon-colored shoelaces the participants, or TIPsters, are required to wear. The game is played so often that other camps have confused the academic program for an Ultimate camp on numerous occasions.

“These guys from a golf camp asked us ‘Are you with that Frisbee camp?’” said TIPster Dillon McDermott, 14, from Port Charlotte, Fla (pictured, right).

Basically, as long as there’s enough space TIPsters will find the means to play, whether it’s an actual game of Ultimate or just standing in a circle and tossing a Frisbee around. Ultimate is a non-contact sport with two, seven-player teams where players pass the Frisbee to each other until they reach their end zone. The game is offered as an evening activity, and usually run by Residential Staff members who play on a regular basis. Stephen Stradley, one of the RCs, is even on his college’s Ultimate team in Washington.

Abbey Meller, a 4th-year TIPster from Atlanta who has been participating in TIP for three years, was shocked to see how few people signed up for Ultimate the first night it was offered as an evening activity.

“Where’s the TIP spirit?!” she said.

Frisbee as a TIP tradition has been passed on as new students join the program. For the most part, the initial reaction to the sport is one of confusion. “

"Why is everyone so hung up on Frisbee around here?” said Kyle, who is attending TIP for the first time this summer.

AnnaMarie Koehler-Shepley, 14, from Tampa, Fla., remembers how TIP changed her perspective on Frisbee. “Frisbee before TIP was more like just something that happened now and then around the neighborhood for kids and dogs but then when I got here last year you could tell it was so much more. It was some of these people’s entire existence almost…You could tell they were completely loving it,” she said.

Luckily for those who want to get in on the pastime, experienced players are always willing to help.

“We have some really talented people… If you don’t know how to play they’ll teach you and they’re really nice about it,” said AnnaMarie.

Gordon “Vinny” Glass, 16, from Vidalia, Ga., has been participating in the program for four years now and didn’t play until he found it at TIP either.

This year he has been one of the most involved 4th-years for frisbee, having been a leader for the Staff-vs.-Student game. Despite his involvement here though, he barely plays at home.

“I might throw it like, once a year but, that’s about it,” he said.

Some TIPsters do take the tradition home though, practicing at school or in their free time.

Dillon McDermott played frisbee at home before TIP but only as a kid, and not very often.

Since his first year at TIP, he has picked up the sport again and continues playing during the school year.

“I push for it at school,” he said, “during like, P.E. class.”

Jamie Ward, a 3rd-year/4th year, is another TIPster who takes frisbee close to heart.
Having not played before his first year at TIP, he likes to practice as much as he can, even if it means getting hurt. Last year, Jamie fractured his spine and was on crutches after landing on his back while playing frisbee at TIP.
“It’s one of the best feelings to win, like at EpicFest!” he said.

All the same, some TIPsters prefer watching from the sidelines.

“Frisbee is great to watch, but I can’t play it very well. The kids here really get into it. It’s become a serious tradition of Duke TIP,” said 14-year-old Kiersten Neely, from Charlotte, N.C.

Those watching should still look out; rogue frisbees can do damage if thrown with enough force.

AnnaMarie finds this to be one of the more memorable sides of frisbee though, saying “I mean, who doesn’t have a favorite TIP memory where somebody calls ‘Heads!’ and you duck and you still get hit by a Frisbee?”

The tradition aspect of the sport is something all TIPsters can agree on though; there’s even a staff-vs.-student game which AnnaMarie describes as “legendary.” What seems best about Frisbee at TIP is the bonding experience that helps TIPsters get to know each other better and interact.

As Dillon puts it, “It’s probably the best tradition we have, the most unifying. Considering a frisbee is a circle, people at TIP love each other and it never ends.”