At 6.30 on a pleasant Saturday morning, a group of 15 people huddle together at a school ground in the city. The object of their affection rests in their hands — a bright Frisbee that will soon cut a swathe through the morning sky.
They are members of DisCreed Coimbatore, which has been trying to get the city to take to Ultimate Frisbee as a sport. Every weekend, the group, made up of students and young professionals, plays for an hour or two.
Businessman Bhavin A. Shah is a new entrant to the sport. The last he played Frisbee was as a child, like most of us. For the past three weeks, he has been working up a fine sweat on the grounds of National Model School on Avanashi Road, where the group plays now.
Forging bondsNishit H. Shah, one of the co-founders of the group and a mentor now, says the best part about the sport is the on-field bonding with people from different disciplines. “When we started in 2011, I never dreamt I will meet so many interesting people,” he says.
Ultimate Frisbee is very popular in most metros and tournaments are held regularly in Chennai (by the beach), Delhi and Mumbai. There are clubs from Ahmedabad to Alapuzha. DisCreed Coimbatore, in fact, finished a creditable 12th among 25 teams at a recent event in Bangalore.
The group used to practise in CODISSIA grounds but has now shifted to the school. The wind factor plays an important role in the sport, but most teams learn techniques to fling the disc even when it is very windy.
“We have always had a mixed group; every year, some people leave the city and a few others replace them. We go through a lull till a new team is set,” says Nishit.
DisCreed typically begins every session with some warm-up exercises before the main game. Teams are split into two or three depending on the group strength and they pack in a couple of games before they call it a day, until next weekend.
Fitness angle“This is a great exercise. You need to be really fit as it involves a lot of running. It is a very cost-effective sport too. You just need to invest in Frisbees, which don’t cost much. No other paraphernalia,” says Nishit.
The group has visited schools and colleges to talk to students about the beauty of a sport that banks only on creativity and flexibility, and some of them do come back and join the group.
“It is a sport that links strangers. If I land in Bangalore or Chennai or Hyderabad and feel like some Frisbee, all I have to do is drop a Facebook message on their page and before I know it, I play with a new bunch of people who make me feel totally at home. Just because we all love a simple disc,” he says.
Entry to the group is free. To know more about the group, call 98430-13593 and 96008-98081 .
