Ultimate has traditionally relied upon a spirit of sportsmanship which places the responsibility for fair play on the player himself. Highly competitive play is encouraged, but never at the expense of the bond of mutual respect between players, adherence to the agreed-upon rules of the game, or the basic joy of play.
- UPA 10th Edition Rules of Ultimate

Teams were each asked to nominate a player from their own team who they feel displays the highest level of spirit. The definition of spirit is up to each team, but usually includes elements of sportsmanship, leadership, perseverance, fire, etc. Individual spirit winners received a medal and donated merchandise from Chasing Plastic Magazine.

Masters
Big Unit – Peter Thomas
Empire – Eric Dorsch
Fat Boys – Doug Parrish
GLUM – Trevor Pound
Grey Expectations – Dave Gregg
HOSS – Frank DeFazio
Kavu – Eric Rogers
Keg Workers – Elod Toth
Never Nice Guys – Joel Kindem
Old and in the Way – Karl Heuerman
OLD SAG - Cornacchio and Marc Schoettle (tie)
Refugees – Todd Demetriades

Mixed
B+ - Jenny Hong
Bad Larry – Julie Dintman
Blah – Dan Baker
BRU - Beth Oppenheimer
Chinstrap - Brian Healy
Donner Party – Jen Mader, Gina Montesano, George Grass (tie)
Drive Thru Liquor – Josh Dewitt
FoF – Anthony “AJ” Iwaszko
Halibut – Victoria Morales
Hang Time – Pam Mclemore
Holes and Poles – Hugh Daschbach
Kaze – Craig Moore
Persuader – John Neill
Phob – Cindy Craig Harper
Red Fish Blue Fish – Kelli Hereford
Rival – Dan Heacox

Women
Alias – Missy Richardson
Bait – Katy Janzen
Clutch – Lani Kawamoto
Fury – Martita Emde
Lady Godiva – Anne “Westy” Westcott
Nemesis – Sasha Romantseva
Ozone – Lisa Kotora
Pounce – Karen Thorne
Prime – Jennie Craig
Rare Air – Sara Gravelin
Riot – Kathy Scott
Safari – MaryAnn Polityka
Schwa – Tara Sechler
Stella – Monica Kerr-Coster
Strike – Kate Shropshire
Brute Squad – Erin Baumgartner

Open Division (Farricker Award)

Peter Farricker Spirit of the Game Award - The spirit award in the Open Division is called the Farricker Spirit Award, named for Peter Farricker, a player who embodied Spirit of the Game to those who knew him and those who played with or against him. This award is given to a player in the Open Division of the UPA’s Championship Series adjudged to have exhibited personal responsibility, integrity, and fairness combined with a high standard of playing ability. Each qualifying Open team nominates one player from their own team as the person who best represents the spirit of the game. At the Open Championship, each nominee is honored with a disc, pin or set of Mardi Gras beads. Our hope is that the people wearing the Mardi Gras beads will be connected to Pete, each other and the Spirit of the Game, and become role models for their teammates and opponents. A selection committee watches the open semis and selects one of the 4 semifinal nominees as the winner.

Farricker Award Winner

Andy Crews - Condors - One thing can perfectly sum up Andy’s level of spirit and commitment – The Condor Van. With our team spread across California from San Diego to San Francisco, travel is an issue, especially for the 5 guys that drive 6 hours each way from San Fran to Santa Barbara for practice. So after a long season of commuting in ’99 and the Bay Area group possibly thinking about joining local teams, Andy went out and bought a van for the group to commute to practice. And we’re not talking about some lame old mini-van; we are talking about a 1988 Dodge Ram B250 equipped with TV, VCR and a stereo. That is an All-American van from an All-American player.

Farricker Award Finalists

Allan Nichols - Furious George - Al has played ultimate in Vancouver longer than any of us can remember and has continued to raise the level ultimate around him since. One of the reasons for Furious’ success in recent years has been due to Al’s relentless work ethic, but also his commitment to playing with spirit at the highest levels of competition.

Justin Safdie - Jam - Justin Safdie represents everything you could ask for in a player.

Dan Axon – Ring of Fire - Ring of Fire is pleased to nominate Dan Axon for the 2003 Farricker Award. Dan Axon has been playing elite level ultimate for 20 years. He has competed in National and World Championship events, playing with teams from Boston, San Francisco, and Finland, but primarily for Ring of Fire. Throughout his career, Dan has been the epitome of what the Farricker Award is about, showing a class and respect for opponents that is rarely seen while competing at the highest levels of ultimate. Dan is a loyal and dedicated teammate. Giving 100% sounds cliché, but for Dan it simply defines him. After grueling Ring practices, he can be found running sprints on his own. Dan spends time and energy to invest in the instruction of our younger players, always putting the team ahead of himself, and always dedicated toward the continued improvement of Ring. While on the field, Dan’s experience and subtle genius make him a great asset. When he is not on the field, you will find him roaming the sidelines, involved, cheering or running laps to stay loose and warmed up to play his best. Over the course of his career, and at age 41, Dan Axon has impacted the game in a way that few will ever hope to. In a pinch he is smooth, impossible to guard, and as always, 100%.

Farricker Award Nominees

Big Ass Truck - Craig Frankland – He is a gifted athlete and one of the best defenders on BAT. In spite of the fact that he is always playing aggressively, Craig is always a gentleman and a true sportsman on the field.

Boss Hogg - Ben Friedenson. Ben has been a member of the Boss Hogg team since its inception in 2001. Before playing with Boss Hogg, Ben played for the Boston area team Midvale in 2000. Ben graduated from University of Pennsylvania in 2000, where he played for the UPenn Void for four years. Ben is an extremely honorable and fair player who never adopts a win-at-any-cost attitude. This is especially impressive since he is among the members of the team who works the hardest to achieve our goals, yet he always keeps a level-headed perspective on the game, even during the heat of competition; he never loses his sense for what’s right and what’s wrong, whether he’s playing in a casual summer league game, or the game to go to make it to UPA Nationals. Contrary to many ultimate players competing for high stakes at Regionals or at Nationals, Ben does not bend the rules in his favor to take advantage the fact that Ultimate is typically played without observers. All of Ben’s teammates, and each of his opponents, respect him both for his great ability and his superb spirit. Boss Hogg is proud to present him as its 2003 Farricker Award nominee.

Chain Lightning - Jason Simpson - Jason Simpson’s tremendous athletic ability and innate competitiveness are both tremendous assets on the Ultimate field. However, the characteristic that sets Jason apart is his love for the game. Not the love of playing the game or the love of competing, but truly a love FOR the game and everything it stands for. The result of having such a connection with a sport is that you approach it in an entirely different way – in Jason, it’s a difference that others notice and an excitement that cannot be described. As a result of this love for Ultimate, Jason embodies one of the sport’s defining characteristics, the spirit of the game. Where others have gotten into arguments, berated one another, or sacrificed fairness due to bias (whether intentional or not), Jason has not. His demeanor on the field is exemplary and reminds everyone that plays with him how the sport should be played. It is for that reason that Chain Lightning nominates Jason Simpson for the 2003 Pete Farricker Spirit of the Game Award. May your passion for Ultimate be its foundation for many years to come.

DoG - Jit Bhattacharya - Jit Bhattacharya embodies what it means to be an ultimate player. He is a fierce competitor and a top player but he maintains his focus on fair play and sportsmanship in the toughest situations. Jit won a college national championship with Stanford in 2002, and has also played with Valhalla. This is his second year on DoG.

Doublewide - Todd Peters - Todd embodies the definition of spirit. No matter what the situation, Todd is always the voice of reason and diplomacy. Todd is one of those guys that is the bond that brings a team closer together through his personality. He is able to inform the leadership both what is working and what is not working with the team. The team would not be what it is today without Todd Peters.

E-Pig - Patrick Mackie #9 - Patrick Mackie stands head and shoulders above his peers in two important ways: height and respect. He exemplifies everything we aspire to be as ultimate players: fierce competitors on the field, friends off of it, and gentlemen in all cases. Patrick proves the saying that role models come in all shapes and sizes – sometimes they’re tall, lanky, and covered in bruises. Check out number 9.

Johnny Bravo - David Remucal - With the agility of a jaguar, the silence of an evening breeze, and the deadly strike of cobra, David personifies the Ultimate athlete. If you best him on the field, you’ve done a manly job, and he will be the first to raise his glass to your feat. But when “the gecko” stands triumphant, you will rarely see more than the flash of his smile and the offer of gentlemanly hand.

Pike - J Dono - On a team that prides itself on playing spirited ultimate, J nevertheless manages to stand out as the clear Farricker Award nominee from Pike. An extremely gifted athlete, he routinely makes layout blocks and difficult catches that evoke jaw-dropping responses from everyone on the sideline, even teammates who regularly see his highlight-reel performances. Through it all, he exhibits endless humility and respect for other players, both his teammates and his opponents. Never one to get involved in calls or controversies, J plays with a huge heart and great intensity without ever letting his desire to win get the best of him. It’s hard to imagine a better spirit award candidate, or even a better teammate, than J.

Sockeye - Sam Chatterton-Kirchmeier - We are proud to nominate Sam for the Farricker. He plays hard and takes the Spirit of the Game to heart. Sam writes this about the Spirit of the Game: The Spirit of the Game keeps ultimate focused on the sport at a basic level, allowing the outcome of games to be decided by making plays, not making calls. Players hold themselves to the standard of honor that removes the element of trying to get away with breaking the rules to gain an advantage. It is this honor that also helps connect the ultimate community, fostering mutual respect between teammates and opponents alike.

Sub Zero - Dave Boardman

Vicious Cycle - Will Broadway

Madison G-Unit – Tom Burkly



Team Spirit Ratings