Post by Andreas Carlsen.
Being a new player on the Ragnarok team is a challenging and rewarding experience. There is no question that ultimate does not get any better here in Denmark than at Ragnarok practices. Some people in Jutland might not agree with me on that but they clearly do not know what they are talking about.
Why did I choose to tryout for Ragnarok? Last fall I was studying abroad in the US and played with one of the best college teams. When I returned I wanted to experience the same level of intensity and continue developing my ultimate skills. A fellow team mate from Copenhagen Flying Circus made me aware of the tryout for Ragnarok. I had no doubt and signed up instantly.
The first part of the tryout was held in Farum in February. We were approximately 10 players primarily from Flying Circus and Spinners trying out for the team. I guess most of new players felt a certain amount of pressure because we knew that we had to play our best if we wanted to make it through the tryouts. And the conditions did not contribute to make it a more pleasant experience. It was windy, cold and at times also snowing. It was definitely not what one would call perfect conditions for playing ultimate. Combined with the hard gravel pitch it was a testing experience. In spite off what might seem as a situation doomed from the beginning the practices in Farum turned out to be a worthwhile experience. Mads Bakkegaard, Daniel, Bille, Marcel and many of the other experienced players was generous with instructions on how to improve our game.
At first I found it somewhat scary to practice alongside with the experienced Ragnarok players. I had only heard people talking about them and seen them at nationals. But as the months passed and winter turned to spring and summer I began feeling more and more as a part of the team. I found out that the old players from Ragnarok were a bunch of cool guys. Sometimes they also make mistakes on the field and most of the time their sense of humour is as crappy as mine – sometimes even worse. Just as the practices in Farum the experienced players from Ragnarok have continued to advice me on how to improve my game. Combined with intense practices several times a week I have developed many aspects of my game. What probably made the biggest difference for me was playing tournaments with Ragnarok. I enjoyed playing WCU, EUCR in Nurnberg and xEUCF in London. Even though the results achieved did not fulfil the expectations I believe that the team as a whole have improved and are stronger now than before.
Now that the xEUCF is finished I turn towards indoor ultimate with my own club. Last time I played indoor it seemed like a real alternative to outdoor ultimate. Now it is more like a pass time activity while you wait for the next outdoor season to begin. So I am definitely looking forward for the winter practice in Farum in January or February. I can wait to feel the cold wind and snow in my face. And I guess I am looking forward to refresh my memory of how it feels like laying out for a disc in the end zone on a gravel pitch. Why? Because this means that we can start playing real ultimate again. And because it means that we can start preparing for one of the biggest ultimate frisbee events that many of us will ever experience. The world championship in Prague next summer.
I’ll do my best to be there what about you?
