Discs and Discoveries: Karls Frisbee Team takes on Midwest Throwdown

Frisbee is a big deal at Carleton! New Student Week kicks off with every first year throwing a disc to symbolize their new chapter of life and you will always see people throwing on the Bald Spot!  We have six Ultimate Frisbee teams here at Carleton and I am on the Club-Level team in the open division (Karls). The six teams are split across an open division and a womxn’s division, with the most competitive teams (CUT and Syzygy) competing for national championships every year!

Karls

My team is called the Karls, we are the club level team so we are the least competitive of the three Men’s teams on campus. The Karls are a super welcoming team to people of all abilities, from people who played through high school to people who had never picked up a disc before. When I came into Carleton, I didn’t know any of the rules of frisbee but I’ve learned a lot! We typically practice two or three times a week and go to four or five tournaments throughout the year. Earlier in Winter Term I went to my first ever Frisbee tournament: Midwest Throwdown in Warrenton, Missouri.

Midwest Throwdown

We took a bus down to Midwest Throwdown with our friends on CHOP (the more competitive D3 team at Carleton). We left Friday afternoon and got to Warrenton at around midnight. It was definitely a long drive but it was a great opportunity to go over strategy and catch up on some sleep. This tournament functioned like many others, with a day of four pool games followed by three placement matches on Sunday. The highlight for Karls was definitely a nice win against Northwestern B which allowed us to break seed. It was also super cool to play against some bigger teams like Iowa State and UW-Eau Claire. Overall, it was a great experience and we got a lot better as a team!

Exploring Missouri

Coming from the East Coast, I love getting off campus to explore the Midwest. When else would I be in the middle of Missouri with friends? We took the opportunity to get away from dining hall food (though Carleton food is pretty solid!) with a trip to get some excellent Hibachi. Afterwards, we were able to walk through a bit of the town, a nice relaxing time after the intense frisbee matches. For Karls, we typically stick to regional tournaments but the more competitive teams will go all over the country, from Savannah, Georgia to Seattle, Washington!

Takeaways

I loved my first frisbee tournament experience and I can’t wait for all of our upcoming tournaments in Spring. This was a great opportunity to bond with my teammates and compete against a new batch of opponents. All of our opponents were super kind and the overall vibes were incredible. I strongly recommend trying out frisbee for any incoming first-years, you’ll meet a lot of great people and have a lot of fun!

George P. (he/him) is a first-year student interested in studying Geology, Religion, and Physics. George is a native of Western Massachusetts and can’t wait to explore everything Minnesota has to offer! George’s passions include Karls frisbee, flannels, CANOE trips, and root vegetables. George also serves as a Class of 2027 Representative and next summer he will be staying at Carleton to work as an intern on the Student Organic Farm.