Author Archives: Josh

New Valley Ultimate Leadership

Josh Seamon (he/him/his) has stepped down as board president after 6 years of leading Valley Ultimate. Amber Tandujaja (she/her/hers) will be taking over the duties as Acting President, Kelsey Wentling (she/her/hers) as Acting Vice President, and Lee Feldscher (he/him/his) as Acting Treasurer. Seamon will remain on the board as an emeritus member.

“It has been my honor to serve Valley Ultimate.” said Seamon. “I’m so proud of everything the organization has been able to accomplish and create. The Valley is a special place, especially when it comes to ultimate, and it’s been thrilling to contribute to such a vibrant community. VU is in exceptionally good hands: Kelsey, Amber, and Lee bring a wealth of experience to their new positions. I’m excited to see where they helm the organization.”

“I’m looking forward to helping with Valley Ultimate’s bookkeeping, finances and filings to keep the organization moving into the future on sound financial footing” commented Feldscher.

Tanudjaja added, “I’m excited to help Valley Ultimate move into its next phase of life and find new ways to fulfill its mission to grow and support ultimate of all kinds in Western Mass. I hope to reinvigorate the board and our community by bringing in and raising up as yet unheard voices in ultimate. I’m really looking forward to working closely with Kelsey and the rest of the board to set up another good 6 years for VU.”

Acting Vice President Wentling is excited to get to work, saying, “I hope to use this time to learn what Ultimate means to folks here in the Valley, and from that, understand what our role is in shaping accessible, inclusive and joyful places in Ultimate. I am humbled by what Josh and the VU board have accomplished, and am looking forward to meeting the challenge alongside Amber and the entire board.”

YCC Update

This just in from VU’s YCC coaching staff:

Dear VU Team Members and Families,

We are thinking of you all, missing you tremendously, and hoping that you are all staying safe and healthy.

USAU announced last week that YCC 2020 has been postponed. Please see the official communication HERE. We are so sad that we will not be spending our summers with you all but are hopeful that some kind of Youth Club opportunity will be rescheduled for the fall season. We will be in touch as soon as we have more information and, in the meantime, please feel free to reach out with any questions or if there are ways in which we can support you and your ultimate development in the absence of the Valley Ultimate this summer!

Sending lots of Valley Ultimate love,

Your coaches, Leila, Joe, Dylan, and David

The Ultimate Community

Valley Ultimate is aware of certain incidences of unacceptable behavior by athletes from the Amherst Boys Varsity Ultimate team last spring. When situations come to Valley Ultimate’s attention that are not consistent with our values, and the core values of the sport of Ultimate, we are compelled to acknowledge and speak out against them in order to help create a better future for the sport and the athletes that play it.

We acknowledge the embarrassment these actions have brought on the Ultimate community and the wider community at large. We commit ourselves to support the Amherst Ultimate program in making the necessary changes in culture to prevent any future incidences. We acknowledge that the Amherst Ultimate Frisbee program does not exist in a vacuum, and we re-commit to support changes to build equity, respect, and justice into the overall ultimate culture of the Valley. Prevention of this behavior is a moving target, but Valley Ultimate is committed to constantly seeking solutions to ensure ultimate frisbee continues to be a leader in developing an equitable and safe sports community. We hope this commitment will have impacts in our broader community.

Our belief is that all people should be treated with dignity and respect at all times with no exceptions or special circumstances. Respect for the rules, for teammates, and for opponents are all central tenants of Ultimate. There are no exceptions. We stand for good spirit, fair play and adherence to the rules. This is the culture we stand for and will work to create and protect now and in the future.

The Valley Ultimate Board

WUD 4.0 Recap

We are so grateful to all the coaches and athletes who came out to our 4^th Womxn’s Ultimate Day. Coaches from Brute Squad, Slow White, Wild Card, and our local grand masters’ team spent the day running skills, mental-resilience, and body mechanics workshops for athletes whose experienced ranged from brand new to ultimate to having veteran club experience.

Athletes split into groups by skill level and rotated through clinic stations on throwing and breaking the mark, cutting, marking, and defensive positioning. Advanced groups learned about throwing windows and footwork for defensive dictating, and beginner groups learned the rules, set their first marks, and threw their first forehands (!!).

After applying new skills in a scrimmage, athletes split into two groups and rotated between mental-resilience and body mechanics workshops. The mental resilience workshop was led by Leila Tunnell and covered goal-setting and tools for refocusing that are key to reaching your potential as an athlete. In the body mechanics workshop, player learned techniques for improving straight-line acceleration and changing directions quickly and safely.

We are already looking forward to Womxn’s Ultimate Day 2021! Although it didn’t work out this year, we’re hoping that in the future, we can add another event with a longer series of workshops on equity in ultimate, leadership, and planning seasons and practices.

The clinic was led and organized by Hannah Baranes and Leila Tunnel. We had a stellar support team of all-star coaches and administrators who helped bring this day to fruition, including Valley Ultimate board members Josh Seamon and Joe Costello. And as always, thanks to Indoor Action Sports in Greenfield for hosting our event!

Our coaches included:

Hannah Baranes (Slow White)
Leila Tunnell (Brute Squad, Happy Valley)
Alex Ode (Brute Squad)
Olivia Hampton (Slow White)
Laura “Buzz” Davis (Valley Grandmasters)
Erin Rea (Brute Squad)
Sarah Judd (Wild Card)
Caroline Pellegrini (Happy Valley)
Tess Johnson (Slow White)
Caitlin Fitzgerald (Slow White)

Thanks again to all who participated, and we’re looking forward to seeing you on the field again soon!

-Leila Tunnell + Hannah Baranes

Stay Safe, Stay Healthy, Stay Spirited

As of March 27, USA Ultimate extended the timeline for postponements and cancellations of all USAU sanctioned events to May 10. No sanctioned USAU programs will operate through at least May 10th. To keep up to date with these decisions follow their website or their Facebook.

WFDF has already cancelled events through the summer. Follow their decisions via their website or Facebook as well.

As the weather gets warmer, it becomes even harder to face the challenges that the COVID-19 pandemic has brought us all. Social Distancing, self-quarantine and economic uncertainty have us all under a lot of strain. For many of us, this kind of anxiety and stress is precisely the reason we exercise in general, and play ultimate specifically. We love ultimate as much as you do, but we must strongly suggest that all pickup games, formal or informal, be suspended until state and federal public health orders come to an end. We also suggest you avoid playing catch with anyone outside your household, especially in public spaces, as no disc can remain disinfected between tosses. Following social distancing guidelines is good spirit!

Even without ultimate frisbee, we encourage you to keep in touch with each other, share home workouts, take solo runs in quiet places, and enjoy the library of great ultimate videos out there. If you find something you would like Valley Ultimate to share via our Facebook or Newsletter, just send a message to our page or an email to atanudja@gmail.com

For now, enjoy this post from WFDF, Greatest Ultimate Bag, and Spirit of the Game (SOTG) about the spirited way to handle the COVID-19 pandemic.

Stay Safe, Stay Healthy, Stay Spirited!

Equity Resources!

Our equity resources are now online!

Interested in helping develop the items that are online and potentially authoring more? If so, please contact Amber (atanudja@gmail.com).

Valley Ultimate Scheduling Meeting: February 2nd

The Valley Ultimate Scheduling Meeting will be happening on Sunday, Feb 2 from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm at the Hartsbrook School in Hadley, MA.

This meeting is for middle school, high school, and college coaches & captains. The primary purpose of the meeting is to schedule your spring season.

WUD 4.0!

Announcing VU’s Fourth Annual Womxn’s Ultimate Day!

Join us for a weekend of clinics and workshops run by championship-level womxn athletes from Brute Squad, Slow White, and more. We’re expanding this year’s event to TWO days, and you’re welcome to register for both days or just one of the days!

Day 1: Saturday, February 1st, 1 to 5pm at Northfield Mount Hermon School located at One Lamplighter Way, Gill, MA 01354. Join us for a day of workshops, discussions, and building connections with other womxn in your ultimate community. Topics are listed below. This day costs $20 to $30 and has NO cap on # of participants. [The day is free if you are student at NMH.]

Day 2: Sunday, February 2nd, 9am to 2pm at Indoor Action Sports located at 1385 Bernardston Rd., Greenfield, MA 01370. The clinic is open to players of ALL abilities and experience levels, and we will split into groups to provide differentiated instruction based on your experience. You will rotate through clinic stations that are each focused on a different skill (for example, defensive positioning, downfield offensive spacing and timing, throwing instruction, or breaking the mark). At the end of the clinic, we will apply your new skills in small-sided scrimmages. This day costs $33 to $40 and is capped at 70 participants.

Visit the event page for more information and to register!

VU YCC 2019 Recap

Valley Ultimate sent two U20 teams to the 2019 Youth Club Champs.

Here’s a recap of their summer season:

From Girls Coaches Leila and Dylan:

In August of 2019, the Valley Ultimate U20 girls team returned to the Youth Club Championship tournament for the third year in a row. Over the course of our 5 days in Minnesota, we had an exceptional experience, both on and off the field. Not only did our team grow and our on-field performance improve dramatically throughout the weekend, but we also had the opportunity to forge meaningful relationships and connections among players from all over western Mass! Another tremendous highlight of the weekend was getting to watch the best women’s ultimate players in the world compete at the International Club Championship tournament which took place at the same sports complex. Not only did we get to cheer for and learn from top programs and such as Boston Brutesquad (our home team!) and Colombia Revoloution and top athletes such as Manuela Cardenas and Claire Chastain, but we also were lucky enough to meet and interact with these world class athletes (see pictures below!).

Every year, this team helps to build and grow not only strong girls division ultimate players in Western Mass, but creates opportunities for us to connect meaningfully with ultimate players and families of all ages from not only within our local community but around the world. Special thanks to the Schroeders and the Bogdans for hosting us this summer! We cannot wait for the 2020 season!

Happy Valley and Boston Brutesquad right after Brute wins the ICC Finals!

From Boys Coach Joe Costello:

In 2019, the VU U20 boys team competed in Minnesota at the Youth Club Championships for a third straight season! Training throughout the summer saw increased commitment by practice and travel players, and an increase in fun! We were extremely fortunate and grateful for the Gentner and Kunze families for hosting our team. We love making connections in other communities. We will never forget hinging out by the lake, in the hot tub, or playing pool during down time. We can’t wait to go back!

During the tournament, we played with heart and commitment and were met with consistent growth and success as a team. Originally seeded 20th, we outplayed that ranking by winning our pool and crossover games, only losing to a better team from Chicago in the 9th place bracket. With our last game being canceled after a long rain delay, we officially left the tournament tied for 11th place. An excellent showing for a young program, and validation for our process-based approach and season goals!

Looking ahead to 2020, we are excited to continue growing as players and coaches with some exciting new ideas and maybe a surprise or two! Go VU!

2nd Annual NMH Girls Ultimate Clinic!

Announcing the 2nd Annual NMH U-20 Womxn’s Ultimate Clinic! The event will be held at Northfield Mount Hermon on Sunday, November 10th from 1:00 to 4:00 PM.

Click here for more information and to register.