Pod Practice

From Jim's Hall of Fame page,"A gifted athlete who simply could not be covered, Jim was also a strategic mastermind who was an integral force behind the invention of cutting-edge hybrid zones and elegant offensive formations that frustrated and conquered the best teams in the world."Jim is one of the GOAT players and minds of ultimate. He literally wrote the book on strategy with Eric Zaslow, "Ultimate Techniques and Tactics."With too many titles to list, Jim is most well known for helping lead DoG to 6 straight titles from 1994-1999.In this episode we talk about Jim's history with the game, how and why DoG used certain strategies, and watch some film of a couple classic games.Pod Practice Store: https://ko-fi.com/podpractice/shopPromo Code: PRACTICEPLAYER for 40% off T-ShirtsGreatest Bags: https://www.greatestbag.com/Use promo code: PODPRACTICE10 for 10% off your Greatest Bag OrderPod Practice BE Ultimate Store: https://shop.beultimate.com/collections/pod-practice-podcastDownload The Playbook: https://betterthanever.beultimate.com/the-playbook-infoMore from Pod Practice:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/podpractice_podYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@podpractice_podEmail: show@podpracticepod.comShop BE Ultimate: https://beultimate.com/Kikko Socks: https://kikkosocks.com/Use discount code: POD15 for 15% off your next order.

We welcome on Felix Shardlow of Hive Ultimate for Episode 80. Felix has medaled in the UK and Europe as a player and coach in just about every division. We know him best for developing the Hexagon offense and Flexagon defense. In this episode we dive into the principles of Hex, the benefits of running a Hex style offense, the biggest misconceptions of Hex, some of the challenges of running Hex, and areas to continue innovating. The best part of talking with Felix is how open he is to collaboration, innovation, and even criticism. We recorded this episode in 2 sessions. We stitched them together to make sure the principles of Hex are properly covered before diving into challenges and areas of improvement. Parts of the episode are best to be viewed.Check out his work with Hive Ultimate: https://hiveultimate.com/IG: https://www.instagram.com/hiveult/Pod Practice Store: https://ko-fi.com/podpractice/shopPromo Code: PRACTICEPLAYER for 40% off T-ShirtsGreatest Bags: https://www.greatestbag.com/Use promo code: PODPRACTICE10 for 10% off your Greatest Bag OrderPod Practice BE Ultimate Store: https://shop.beultimate.com/collections/pod-practice-podcastDownload The Playbook: https://betterthanever.beultimate.com/the-playbook-infoMore from Pod Practice:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/podpractice_podYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@podpractice_podEmail: show@podpracticepod.comShop BE Ultimate: https://beultimate.com/Kikko Socks: https://kikkosocks.com/Use discount code: POD15 for 15% off your next order.0:00 Intro1:08 Episode Breakdown2:16 Felix Intro & Hive History5:45 Hex - Misconceptions, Origins, Friction points15:05 Principles of Hex1:19:19 Challenges of Adopting Hex (Visuals)1:28:47 Working Harder vs Working Smarter1:30:18 AlleyCats running Hex Style Offense1:34:00 Tradeoffs of running Hex... more limited deep game1:38:40 Integrating Deep Game, the Challenges1:42:20 Attacking from Stoppage1:44:20 Film Examples of Deep Looks (room for improvement)1:47:06 Film Examples of Field Sense 1:50:00 Benefit of Hex - Developing Field Sense 1:55:05 Areas for Improvement2:01:14 Greatest Strengths of Hex 2:03:50 Innovating through Collaboration 2:07:07 Why the Vertical Dogma at all levels? Flexagon Defense2:10:00 Team Defense - Do we stagnate players as coaches?2:14:30 Felix's thoughts on the State of Ultimate2:30:10 Outro2:30:43 BONUS BE Ultimate Playbook Film Breakdown

Marshall Lian is a masters student studying sports psychology. He has been part of the AMP and Philly YCC coaching staffs. We had been exchanging messages with Marshall about the importance of having a strong mental game in the world of sports and competition. We found the conversations very interesting and helpful for our own teams so we thought it was time to bring him on the pod and share his experience with all of you. Check out Marhsall's IG: @marshall.lian for more information Also check out his photography IG: marshalllian.photo Pod Practice Store: https://ko-fi.com/podpractice/shop Promo Code: PRACTICEPLAYER for 40% off T-Shirts Greatest Bags: https://www.greatestbag.com/ Use promo code: PODPRACTICE10 for 10% off your Greatest Bag Order Pod Practice BE Ultimate Store: https://shop.beultimate.com/collections/pod-practice-podcast Download The Playbook: https://betterthanever.beultimate.com/the-playbook-info More from Pod Practice: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/podpractice_pod YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@podpractice_pod Email: show@podpracticepod.com Shop BE Ultimate: https://beultimate.com/ Kikko Socks: https://kikkosocks.com/ Use discount code: POD15 for 15% off your next order. 0:00 Intro 1:20 Marshall Lian Intro 3:30 What is Mental Toughness? 6:30 VR Training - Cognitive Performance 8:50 Most common mental weak points - resetting after mistakes 11:00 Tools to Improve Mental Resilience 12:35 Reframing 14:15 Impact on Teammates 21:00 Transformational Leadership - Preparing for the Car Crash 26:40 Cultural Artifacts 29:15 Expressing Emotions - is it okay to Internalize? 32:20 Mental Reset Exercise from "Essential Ultimate: Teaching, Coaching, Playing" 34:45 Types of focus, importance of resetting focus, and physical tools 38:15 "I am excited," cues for positive self talk 40:24 How do you reset when things are out of your control? 45:00 Toxic Positivity - can we be too positive? 48:00 It's okay to feel any types of emotions during competition 51:10 Mental strength needs to be worked on over time 55:00 Joe Mazzulla-isms - reframing a threat to a challenge 57:10 Power of believing, self hypnosis 1:01:10 Emotional Regulation 1:04:30 Physical routines to cue mental focus and visualization 1:08:00 How to visualize 1:14:15 Brian Nevison plug, value of physical and mental self care 1:17:30 A little bundle-ruski? 1:17:50 How to contact Marshall 1:22:00 Be seeing you

In this episode Jake Smart talks about building a culture of honest communication and his constraints led approach to teaching. Jake is one of the best coaches in ultimate frisbee and no stranger to winning. Before joining Brown as a coach, Jake played for the Wisconsin Hodags, another historically great college program. His teams are known for having incredibly efficient offenses and defenses that make opponents always second guessing. A few of Jake's accolades: 3x College Champion (2 coaching BMo, 1 playing for the Hodags) 2x College D-I Men's Coach of the Year YCC Champion Coaching Boston BUDA --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pod Practice Store: https://ko-fi.com/podpractice/shop Promo Code: PRACTICEPLAYER for 40% off T-Shirts Greatest Bags: https://www.greatestbag.com/ Use promo code: PODPRACTICE10 for 10% off your Greatest Bag Order Pod Practice BE Ultimate Store: https://shop.beultimate.com/collections/pod-practice-podcast Download The Playbook: https://betterthanever.beultimate.com/the-playbook-info More from Pod Practice: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/podpractice_pod YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@podpractice_pod Email: show@podpracticepod.com Shop BE Ultimate: https://beultimate.com/ Kikko Socks: https://kikkosocks.com/ Use discount code: POD15 for 15% off your next order. 0:00 Intro 3:00 Balancing Commitments 4:20 College vs Club vs Pro 7:00 Jake's Coaching Philosophy 13:00 Switching contexts 16:15 Facilitating honest communication 19:30 UAEs 21:05 Receiving imperfect feedback well 23:00 Honest, imperfect feedback might hurt in the moment, but if it makes you better then it's worth it 28:45 Holding things in creates resentment 30:35 Honesty is a two way street 31:20 Almost every criticism you get is right even if the solution is wrong 33:40 When is it time to give feedback? 40:50 Framing friction as an opportunity to get closer 41:55 Elo 46:25 TrueSkill 48:00 How Jake uses Elo in practice 54:10 Practicing "caring about an outcome" 54:55 Jake's practice structure, pro games, anti drill, learning to use the right tool 59:20 The value of playing more, playing age 1:01:00 How to teach during games 1:05:30 BMo's style of play, response to criticisms 1:14:20 Jake's thoughts on offensive structure, clearing, and zone concepts 1:18:15 Reading the field as a player 1:20:30 Brown's understanding of roles 1:23:15 Jake's line calling philosophy 1:28:40 Decision to play zone 1:33:30 Strategizing for the UFA 1:37:30 Balancing Commitments Pt Deux 1:41:00 Transferrable skills between work and frisbee 1:42:45 All-Time Brown 1:44:50 Jake's offensive meta, front dominated vs the cutter driven 1:49:50 Back to the All-Time Brown Team 1:51:25 All-Time Hodag Team 1:54:44 All-Time Hodags vs All-Time Brown 2:00:20 Outro

Tony Leonardo wears many hats. He's an author, filmmaker, journalist, commentator, player, and historian of ultimate frisbee. Co-Author of "Ultimate: The First Four Decades" Author of "Ultimate: The Greatest Sport Ever Invented By Man" Tony's latest and most important project is "THE LOT," an independent documentary that tells the story of ultimate frisbee from its beginnings at Columbia High School to today. Learn more about the film and how to support it here: https://welcometothelot.com/ ------------------------------------------------ Support the Landesmans: https://www.gofundme.com/f/aid-jeff-and-laura-after-home-loss Pod Practice Store: https://ko-fi.com/podpractice/shop Promo Code: PRACTICEPLAYER for 40% off T-Shirts Greatest Bags: https://www.greatestbag.com/ Use promo code: PODPRACTICE10 for 10% off your Greatest Bag Order Pod Practice BE Ultimate Store: https://shop.beultimate.com/collections/pod-practice-podcast Download The Playbook: https://betterthanever.beultimate.com/the-playbook-info More from Pod Practice: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/podpractice_pod YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@podpractice_pod Email: show@podpracticepod.com Shop BE Ultimate: https://beultimate.com/ Kikko Socks: https://kikkosocks.com/ Use discount code: POD15 for 15% off your next order. 0:00 Support the Landesmans 3:27 Tony's beginnings in ultimate 5:04 "THE LOT" 12:18 Joel Silver, CHS 17:14 What the title means 19:30 Supporting the film 22:17 Wham-O's involvement in frisbee 28:50 Becoming the historian of ultimate frisbee 37:55 Legend of Molly Goodwin 41:00 Legends we need to talk to 42:33 Charles Kerr & The Callahan 51:10 Youth initiative ideas 57:05 Tony's UFA thoughts 1:00:24 Preserving the game 1:04:55 Integrity rule and incentivizing fouls 1:11:10 Telling stories of the sport 1:17:25 Jose Cuervo 1:21:08 Book giveaway 1:25:07 "Flatball" 1:27:25 Female Pioneers 1:29:40 How to conduct an interview 1:33:40 Retro designs 1:35:40 Pod Practice Fantasy 1:39:04 Macho Sidewinder 1:43:00 Wham-O Frisbee Master 1:48:42 Tony Time, Story Time with Tony 1:49:15 Outro

If you've watched a frisbee highlight video in the last 10 years you've likely seen Nathan's work. He's the game's most prolific videographer, traveling non-stop around the world to document the game's most biggest moments. Support the Landesmans: https://www.gofundme.com/f/aid-jeff-and-laura-after-home-loss --------------------------------- Pod Practice Store: https://ko-fi.com/podpractice/shop Support the Pod: https://ko-fi.com/podpractice Pod Practice BE Ultimate Store: https://shop.beultimate.com/collections/pod-practice-podcast Download The Playbook: https://betterthanever.beultimate.com/the-playbook-info More from Pod Practice: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/podpractice_pod YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@podpractice_pod Email: show@podpracticepod.com Shop BE Ultimate: https://beultimate.com/ Kikko Socks: https://kikkosocks.com/ Use discount code: POD15 for 15% off your next order. 0:00 Landesman GoFundMe 1:43 Intro 3:30 Kaimana Klassik 6:15 Nathan's Start 12:20 Ultimate Full-Time 16:45 Magnet for Big Plays 19:00 Gear 24:10 Filming Process 28:55 Say hi at tournaments 29:55 Editing Workflow 41:25 Choosing Highlights 42:20 Shoutout Garrett Bush 44:25 Shoutout Chuck Clearly 46:48 Back 2 Back 2 Back Highlights 47:35 Finding the Best Games 51:13 Live-streaming POV 53:25 Long Filming Days 54:55 Upcoming Hawaii Trip 1:02:30 Upcoming Projects - Kaimana 1:10:40 2025 Schedule 1:11:50 Outro

Sit back, relax, and listen to Robert “Nob” Rauch recount the last 50 years of ultimate's growth from behind the scenes. One of the forefathers of the sport, Nob is the current WFDF President and a USA Ultimate Hall of Famer. Before WFDF, he became the 4th national director of the UPA (now USAU) in 1987. So much of what we take for granted today was spearheaded by Nob years ago. Nob started playing in 1976 at Williams College, and played on some of the legendary club teams of the 80s and early 90s - Rude Boys, Windy City, KABOOM!, New York New York - winning 6 UPA Club Championships and 5 World Championships. Listening to Nob speak about the history of the game helped put into perspective how young the sport is, and how much growth it's still capable of. Pod Practice Store: https://ko-fi.com/podpractice/shop Support the Pod: https://ko-fi.com/podpractice Pod Practice BE Ultimate Store: https://shop.beultimate.com/collections/pod-practice-podcast Download The Playbook: https://betterthanever.beultimate.com/the-playbook-info More from Pod Practice: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/podpractice_pod YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@podpractice_pod Email: show@podpracticepod.com Shop BE Ultimate: https://beultimate.com/ Kikko Socks: https://kikkosocks.com/ Use discount code: POD15 for 15% off your next order. 0:00 Intro 3:33 70s 8:45 80s 21:00 Softies Today 22:08 90s 24:00 Sweden Semis 38:17 The Evolution of the Ultimate Players Association 43:04 The Growth of the UPA and Its Impact 46:55 Revitalizing WFDF and Addressing Challenges 53:11 Achieving IOC Recognition 56:33 The Future of Disc Golf and Ultimate Frisbee 01:03:38 The Future of Ultimate and Disc Golf 01:25:55 Legends of the Game: Players Who Shaped Ultimate 01:32:22 The Future of Professional Ultimate 01:38:47 Youth Development and Community Engagement 01:40:44 Global Growth and Olympic Aspirations 01:46:53 Hope and the Spirit of Ultimate

We're closing out the year with a couple bangers. In our penultimate episode of 2024 we talk to Isaac Saul. Isaac was one of the most interesting people we've ever talked to. In our circles, Isaac is best known for being the fiery coach and former captain of PoNY. In any other circle, Isaac is best known for being the founder of Tangle News. From the Tangle About Page: https://www.readtangle.com/about/ "Tangle is an award-winning media organization that covers the biggest politics stories in the U.S. by summarizing arguments from the right, left, and center (then "our take"). We are independent, non-partisan, and subscriber-supported, with a newsletter read by over 275,000 people in 55+ countries across the world and a podcast that reaches hundreds of thousands of listeners every month. Our audience is made up of conservatives, liberals, independents, and those who don't identify with any political tribe. " Spirt of the Game means different things to different people. At its core, Spirit is about hearing a different perspective and making an informed decision after considering it. Isaac has impacted hundreds of thousands of people doing just that. In this conversation we talk about Isaac's roots in ultimate from Pennsbury and MCUDL to Pitt and PoNY. He comes from a Frisbee family. His dad played. His older brother, Noah, is a club and UFA champion with Ring and Flyers respectively. Isaac also gives his takes on where the sport should go, what we should hold onto, and what we should let go. See Isaac's TED Talk here: https://youtu.be/543mYKKh1EE Pod Practice Store: https://ko-fi.com/podpractice/shop Support the Pod: https://ko-fi.com/podpractice Pod Practice BE Ultimate Store: https://shop.beultimate.com/collections/pod-practice-podcast Download The Playbook: https://betterthanever.beultimate.com/the-playbook-info More from Pod Practice: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/podpractice_pod YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@podpractice_pod Email: show@podpracticepod.com Shop BE Ultimate: https://beultimate.com/ Kikko Socks: https://kikkosocks.com/ Use discount code: POD15 for 15% off your next order. 0:00 - Intro 1:57 - Isaac's Wikipedia Page 3:00 - Isaac's Ultimate Background 9:00 - Tangle News 13:50 - Philly, MCUDL 20:30 - Tangle & Frisbee 25:41 - Perception Gap in Frisbee 31:55 - Ability to Self Officiate 37:52 - Different Rules Game to Game 47:10 - Culture Setters 48:04 - How Isaac Met His Wife 49:39 - Back to Culture Setting

We take a look back on 2024 through the lens of Spotify Wrapped. Thanks to everyone for tuning in. We're humbled and grateful for the little community you've all helped us build. Pod Practice is a passion project for us. As we say, Pod Practice started as a construct for us to hangout and meet new people. It's crazy to think that anyone gets any value out of it. Special shoutouts to BE Ultimate, Greatest Bag, Disc Studios, Excel Ultimate, Advanced Ultimate Coaching, and Kikko Socks! Another shoutout to Ryan Shigley for creating a short doc on The Patch, a core piece of Mamabird tradition: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eq3NRbAAH9s We also had a time to weigh in on a couple fan questions about catching technique and guarding the front of the stack. Finally, stay tuned for new podcasts debuting under the Pod Practice umbrella in 2025. We're most excited about plans for podcasts dedicated to relationships in ultimate and the history of ultimate. We're not quite done with 2024 yet though! We might take a short break after New Year's, but expect 2 more episodes in 2024. P.S. Congrats to Zeke Thoreson and Tobias Brooks for their U24 National Team selections! 40% off Pod Practice T-Shirts Use Promo Code: PRACTICEPLAYER Pod Practice Store: https://ko-fi.com/podpractice/shop Support the Pod: https://ko-fi.com/podpractice Pod Practice BE Ultimate Store: https://shop.beultimate.com/collections/pod-practice-podcast Download The Playbook: https://betterthanever.beultimate.com/the-playbook-info More from Pod Practice: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/podpractice_pod YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@podpractice_pod Email: show@podpracticepod.com Shop BE Ultimate: https://beultimate.com/ Kikko Socks: https://kikkosocks.com/ Use discount code: POD15 for 15% off your next order.

40% off Pod Practice T-Shirts Use Promo Code: PRACTICEPLAYER Pod Practice Store: https://ko-fi.com/podpractice/shop Rowan's back to tell us about Excel Ultimate and the new Excel Classroom. If you want to learn from the best players in the world like Raphy Hayes, Mac Hecht, or Connor McHale check out https://excelultimate.com/. Stay tuned for an upcoming Pod Practice collab with the Excel Classroom! In 2025 Rowan will be playing on the Men's Beach National Team, trying out for World Games, hoping to play another season with DiG, and eyeing a potential return to DC Breeze. We dive into the niche of making a living within ultimate and the challenges of finding players and teams to market to. Specifically, the resistance from US teams to pay for resources. In 2024 Rowan played for DiG after being synonymous with Truck Stop for the better part of the last decade. Even for a player as accomplished as Rowan, self doubt and confidence issues can creep in when you're trying to fit in with a new team. We talk about finding confidence as a player and what teammates can do to help support everyone's confidence. Make sure to listen to the end to hear Alex's keys to a perfect mark. Pod Practice Store: https://ko-fi.com/podpractice/shop Support the Pod: https://ko-fi.com/podpractice Pod Practice BE Ultimate Store: https://shop.beultimate.com/collections/pod-practice-podcast Download The Playbook: https://betterthanever.beultimate.com/the-playbook-info More from Pod Practice: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/podpractice_pod YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@podpractice_pod Email: show@podpracticepod.com Shop BE Ultimate: https://beultimate.com/ Kikko Socks: https://kikkosocks.com/ Use discount code: POD15 for 15% off your next order. 0:00 - Intro 1:30 - Rowan's Back 2:40 - Clinic in Canada 6:00 - Excel Ultimate Updates 25:15 - Beach Roster Announcement 26:10 - Resistance from US Teams to Pay for Resources 35:00 - Prep for World Games Tryouts and 2025 41:40 - Self Doubt, Finding Condfidence as a Player 56:25 - Transition to DiG from Truck Stop 1:07:30 - Functional Breaks 1:10:10 - Push Defense 1:13:05 - General Film Breakdown 1:17:10 - Marking 1:23:10 - Outro