The Ultimate in beach sports

Healthcare Financial Management, March, 2006

For HFMA member Gordon Jones, nothing beats a good game of Frisbee, whether diving for a catch on grassy terrain or digging his toes through soft sand to maintain his footing.

Jones, a member of HFMA's South Carolina Chapter, has played Ultimate Frisbee for 12 years. Four years ago, he developed a passion for Beach Ultimate, a form of Ultimate that is played on sand with a Frisbee-shaped disc--and became so good at it that he captured a silver medal with the U.S. Men's Masters Team in the 2004 world championships in Portugal.

"I've been throwing a Frisbee since I was a little kid," said Jones, who is a consultant for Horne/ Guest Employee Benefits Consulting in Mount Pleasant, S.C., and is a professor at the Medical University of South Carolina. "Twelve years ago, I was working in Atlanta, where they have a prominent Ultimate league. I gave it a try, and right away, I was hooked."

The object of both Ultimate and Beach Ultimate is to catch a Frisbee-like disc in the opponent's end zone to score a point. Ultimate is played by two seven-player teams in a grassy, rectangular-shaped field that is a little bigger than a soccer field, while Beach Ultimate consists of two five-player teams that play on soft sand in a smaller area.

"It's more difficult to play in the deep sand than on grass, which is why I like Beach Ultimate," Jones said. "Although I'm 6 feet tall, I have short, muscular legs that are better for short distance speed rather than the long distance runs on the grass. This gives me an advantage in Beach Ultimate, where I can cut hard and sprint through sand quickly."

One of the unique aspects of both Ultimate and Beach Ultimate is that there are no referees. Instead, players adhere to a code of conduct that revolves around fair play, personal responsibility, and respect for the opponent.

"The main thing about Ultimate is the spirit of the game," Jones said. "It's not about winning so much as it's about the way the game is played. After each game, each team rates the other team's 'spirit,' and at the end of a competition, the team that showed the best spirit wins an award. Even during competition, if someone on the other team makes a good play, both sides compliment the player. It's one of the reasons why I enjoy Ultimate so much."

At 44, Jones is a little older than most Beach Ultimate players, who tend to be in their 20s and 30s. During Beach Ultimate tournaments, when the spandex beach socks that Jones wears are not enough to protect his feet from the sand during three to five days of matches, "My feet get really mangled," he says. "I definitely take my anti-inflammatory medications."

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