Jose Pires just sent me an email that a new satellite image was taken during the Bar do Peixe tournament in Portugal.

(Also see the Google Earth .kmz link)

You can clearly see the mass of players around the umbrellas, the 2 fields, the players on the fields and the side lines. On field 2 (left mid), the players are on the line, about to start a point!

Could this be the first time that a Beach Ultimate tournament was captured by the big eye above us?

It took me by surprise when I saw the announcement for a Spanish Beach Ultimate tournament promoted by SportsVest 2009. I quickly went to their site and was confused... what is this? It looks like Spring Break for undoubtedly many intoxicated British students. After surfing around the site I was no less confused. Probably because my university years are long gone but there was just too much info to deal with.

So I contacted the person that brought this tournament to my attention. I wanted to know if BULA should be promoting this tournament as I had my doubles. As it turns out, James 'Chef' Melzack is an Ultimate player who has a wealth of experience organizing tournaments and who assured me that he always puts players first. He told me that the tournament qualified to be a BULA tournament and that was just what I wanted to hear: enough playing time, SOTG, parties, etc... It should be a great event! :-)

It will mostly be UK student teams but we hope that perhaps some Spanish, French, or other European student teams will go too. That would make it the first international Student Beach Ultimate tournament in the world!

So if you are a student and want to have some fun in Lloret de Mar, here is your chance: the SportsVest Spain tour (March 28th - April 3rd) includes: 3 days of beach ultimate, 4 nights accommodation, 4 nights of parties, Guest DJ's Scott Mills, Scratch Perverts & Urban Knights.

Sounds like fun to me... :-)

Brian Calle was recently interviewed about Lei Out and the future of Beach Ultimate. The TDs for Paganello and Wildwood were also interviewed. Check it out!

http://theultiverse.com/2008/11/24/brian-jumpi-and-mike/

Or find it at www.leiout.com

Slowly but surely Beach Ultimate is getting into Asia... Recent developments in China and now in India are heartwarming to see :-)

Adding to the excitement is the fact that in two week the hosts for the 2009 Asian Championships Beach Ultimate will be announced. Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, China, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines, Currier Island, and Pakistan have all shown interest in participating. No word yet from India and Taiwan but we hope they will join the championships as well.

That there is Beach Ultimate in India is certain. Just look at this invitation:

Although there is no beach in sight, I didn't want to keep this video from you. Take a car. Drive it fast. Make it spin and catch the disc that was thrown to you...

Believe it our not, the Beach Ultimate tournament that started with just a few dedicated Ultimate Players tossing a Frisbee around on the sand in Santa Monica, California is turning a decade old. January 17 & 18, 2009 mark the tenth anniversary of Lei-Out.

This year promises to be a special year with upgrades in tournament sponsorships, event parties, and even better competition--not to mention spirit giveaways! The Lei-Out team is working hard to grow the tournament and bring in some new international flavor.

And teams with rosters consisting of over 50% of the players from outside of the United States will receive a special gift!

Check out www.leiout.com for more details or to register. Don't miss your chance to come to Lei-Out 2009...the tournament is filling up fast.

Burla Beach Cup video 1

Burla Beach Cup video 2