For me, it’s been since my years with Sylvania Mapleleaf Lacrosse that I’d participated in a competitive sport with practices, dedicated teammates, expectations, joy and disappointment. After being invited to become a part of the new Argentine ultimate Frisbee team known as Sapukay, I still didn’t realize that the things I love best about sports – competition, harnessed aggression, sportsmanship, camaraderie and desire were all about to come rushing back to me.
Dire straits: Brian and Ian talk strategy to the team before the pull.
First off, why the team name Sapukay? Well it’s an old Guarani war cry that we adopted as our motto, name and cheer. Plus it fits right in with the other teams in the league: Discosur, Big Red, Aqua, Cadillacs and Corporal Punishment. They’re all ridiculous. Who are these teammates that have become my friends? Well from Colombia we’ve got our matron Juanita, Luchito with the unbreakable spirit, our everlasting attack dog Danny Torres, Gabriel with the trucker hat, Julian the team stretch leader, Angelica, Pepe and Moises. From Argentina, we’ve got spindly and scrappy Ian, my patient teacher Sabina, crazy Nacho, quiet and confident Diana, vocal Fernando and smiley Marcelo. Finally, we’ve got the gringos: myself, bearded Brian and our friend Molly, from Bowdoin via Indiana. Last, but not least, we’ve got our Peruvian friend Gabriella.
Our 'coach' and teammate Juanita giving Sabina a pointer.
Consistent with what I know about Frisbee elsewhere in the world, Argentine Ultimate is about one thing more than anything else: Buena Onda. Buena onda translates to good vibes. But in this sport it means putting it all on the field, trusting your teammates, playing one more point than you think you have energy to, helping your opponents up after a spill and cheering for the best dives and catches. What else does it mean? For team Sapukay, it’s meant getting burgers after Saturday and Sunday games, getting drinks for each others’ birthdays, meeting at each others’ apartments to talk strategy, watch YouTube and eat pizza, and throwing lots of discs in lots of parks. It means playing on muddy fields and getting filthy, it means finding the positive in a loss or having the grace to win like ladies and gentlemen.
We’re a team. We’re family. And before and after every game we circle up after Juanita or Danny has told us how lucky we are to be playing together on a Saturday - we all put our left hands in the middle and starting with Ian we begin one by one to add to the growing cry around the circle until we’re all cheering and then we yell, SAPUKAY! All together. Why the left hand? Because according to my friend Molly, it’s closest to the heart.
Team spirit on the line.
Brian makes a lateral pass as Dianis breaks up field.
Basically, I’m just plain grateful to have been a part of this team. We didn’t have jerseys, or referees, cheerleaders, coach buses or personal trainers. And it was refreshing to be back at square one with a sport, which is completely about the sport and the people playing it and nothing else. Before the hardware, before the championship t-shirts, before the framed photos, before the jerseys comes the game and your brothers and sisters on the field. Thank you Sapukeños. Les quiero.
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