How to play Ultimate Frisbee

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

Level playing field (70 yds)
8 field markers (orange cones, sneakers, anything can be used!)
175 gram frisbee disc (preferably Discraft)
At least 10 players (14 preferred)
Cleats are used by experts, but beginners can use sneakers or even bare feet!

Step 1

A Frisbee is really a disc, because "Frisbee" is actually a brand name. From now on we will call it a "disc".
Step 2

Before you get started, everyone should know the basic rules.
1. DISC MUST BE THROWN, NOT HANDED OFF. DISC CAN FLY IN ANY DIRECTION.
2. SCORE POINTS BY CATCHING THE DISC IN THE ENDZONE. (like football). Disc must be thrown to a player who is already in the endzone. You cannot run into the endzone with the disc.
2. NO RUNNING WITH THE DISC. Like basketball, players must stop moving as soon as they catch the disc. They can establish a pivot foot and they are allowed to pivot around on that foot without gaining ground. (If you are sprinting, you must try to stop as fast as possible. Sometimes it takes a few extra steps. However, you may NOT catch the disc and then take 3 extra steps).
3. NO CONTACT OR FOULS. Like basketball and soccer, players may not touch each other or try to physically prevent other players from running, catching, etc. Sometimes accidental contact may happen, and in that case a player may call "FOUL!" The game will stop and the players will discuss. The player who called "foul" generally gets the disc back and starts again.
4. PLAYERS HAVE 10 SECONDS TO THROW THE DISC. Players may only hold the disc for 10 seconds. If players go over 10 seconds, they must give the disc to the other team. How do they know when 10 seconds are up? The player on the other team who is guarding the player with the disc, counts to 10 out loud. (slowly: 1 mississippi, 2 mississippi.... not 12345678910!). A player must be within 10 feet to be allowed to count. This is usually considered the strangest part of Ultimate, but if this rule were not in place, the player could hold onto the disc forever. Boring!
5. TURNOVERS-- THE OTHER TEAM GETS POSSESSION IF ANY OF THE FOLLOWING OCCURS. PLAY STARTS UP AGAIN IMMEDIATELY!
-if the disc touches the ground
-if a player drops the disc
-if the defending team intercepts, catches, or knocks down the disc
-if a player catches the disc out-of-bounds
-if a player holds the disc for more than 10 seconds (as counted out loud by the opposing team)
6. ONLY 1 PLAYER MAY GUARD ANOTHER PLAYER (no "double-teams")
6. NO STRIPS--Players may NOT knock or pull a disc out of another player's hands. If 2 players catch a disc at the same time, the player on offense keeps it.
7. NO PICKS--Players may not run through/around other players in order to get open. If this happens, the defending player may call "PICK." Play stops and the defending player gets to catch up. This is an advanced rule, so don't worry if you don't use it
Step 3

Winning the game: First team to score 15 points wins the game (you could shorten or lengthen this, of course). Teams must win by 2. You can have a half-time break when one team reaches 8 points.
Step 4

Ultimate field dimensions

To begin: mark off a field using your 8 cones, sneakers, or markers. The field should be rectangular, with 2 endzones at either end, marked off by the cones. The field dimensions are: 40 yards wide, 70 yards long, with 25 yard endzones. You can estimate a field size by walking--one stride equals 1 yard. Hint: it's easier to "walk-off" a field with 2 people to make sure that the sidelines are even.
Step 5

Divide into 2 teams. It helps to have one team wear white, and the other team wear dark colors. A regulation game will have 7 players per team on the field (7 against 7), with several substitute players. You can easily play with 6 or 5. 8 or more is not recommended because it gets crowded, dangerous, and chaotic. In this case, it is better to have substitutes. The game is very fast, so people will get tired! Substitutions may only occur between points, or when there is an injury.
Step 6

Players starting a game

KICKOFF: Flip a coin to see which team begins on offense/defense. The two teams separate and stand in a row of 7 on the front of their own endzone. The team on defense has the disc and 1 defensive player raises his hand to indicate he is ready to play. When a player on the offensive team also raises his hand, the defending team starts the game by throwing the disc as far as he can down the field, like a kickoff. (In ultimate this is called "the pull"). If the disc lands out-of-bounds, the offensive team gets to bring it to the center of the field as close as possible to where it went out. Otherwise, the offensive team must start from where the disc lands on the field. The offensive team may also catch the disc, but if they drop it it is considered an instant turnover, and the defense gets it immediately!!
Step 7

Scoring a point!

Now the offensive team has a chance to score by working the disc up the field, running and throwing and catching. If they drop it or it is intercepted, the disc goes immediately to the defense, and play starts immediately. Once a point is scored, the losing team walks to the opposite endzone. The winning team stays in the endzone where they scored, and keeps the disc. The winning team becomes the defensive team, and starts the game again with a "Pull", by repeating Step 5.
Step 8

Vertical Stack strategy

Basic Strategies:
-When lining up at the start of a game, the defensive team should have its players line up directly across from the players on the other team they wants to guard. They should then guard that player for the entire point. This helps avoid confusion as to who is guarding whom.
-Contrary to soccer and basketball, a helpful offensive strategy is to have all of the offensive players start the play in a vertical line on the field (this is called "THE STACK"--see diagram). This strategy creates space along the sidelines to pass the disc and make plays. Players can take turns running (or "CUTTING") into the open space on the sideline to catch the disc. If the player does not receive the disc, he should return to the stack and wait for another opening to cut. The STACK should be constantly moving up the field and reforming as the playing progresses. If you do not use a STACK or another strategy, the field will be total chaos and it will be difficult to cut and pass.
-It also helps to have one person (preferably someone with reliable throws) to hang out behind the thrower. This person acts as a bail-out in case the thrower has no one to throw to, and the count is getting high. This is called the "DUMP."
Step 9

A good defensive team will know who they are supposed to be guarding, and will guard them for the entire point. Another good strategy involves guarding the player, and forcing him to only throw to one side of the field. This is called making a "FORCE", or "FORCING". Before a point begins, a team will decide which side of the field they will ALL force their players to throw to. Usually they will say "let's FORCE them to throw towards HOME this point" or conversely, "Let's FORCE AWAY this point." (Home is the home-team sideline, where the scoreboards or water or backpacks are located). This is a very helpful strategy because their teammates will always know which side of the field the disc will be thrown to, and they can play defense on that side. If you look at the diagram, you can see that Red will have a hard time getting open on the "HOME" side, because of the FORCE strategy. The Blue player guarding the thrower must NOT let the thrower throw to the "AWAY" side!