I saw a short and “terrible in so many ways” clip of ultimate yesterday that left me feeling pretty upset. I’m not going to show the clip but it made me angry because the ultimate world is the wrong way around. Many of the really really really good people in ultimate don’t have the same opportunities to promote the sport that others do. I couldn’t even sleep last night because I was so upset so I took 2 hours to throw together a post about something that is going on in ultimate that is *much* happier. Sorry if this seems as though it was written waaaay too fast . . . .

Thank goodness for the All-Star tour! There are two days left to support them and the Tour is as good a cause to support as there is in ultimate. Here’s the page for their fundraising campaign:

The All-Star Tour’s fundraising page

Here are 10 things I’m excited about for this year’s tour.

(1) The return of Stevie Miller

Miller isn’t super flashy – rather just totally rock solid in every aspect of the game. She does all of the hard work you need to do to help your team win. Pick a point when she’s on the field in one of the All-Star games this summer and watch her rather than watching the disc. You’ll learn a ton.

This short possession against Schwa last year is a great example. Watch how her positioning leads to a nice goal on a beautiful throw from Hannah Leathers:

I love players who do the hard work. Players like Miller – say Riot’s Molly McKeon, Schway’s Kelly Hansen (who is guarding Miller in the clip above), Fury’s Darragh Clancy, Nightlock’s Rachel Habbert, and I could go on and on and on – are what make the sport great. I’m happy to see them get recognized and I’m so excited to have the chance to see Miller play again this year.

(2) The return of Hayley Wahlroos

I just leave this here (with a slightly early start to hear Miranda Roth talk about Hannah Leathers since that audio made me really happy, too!):

and Gwen Ambler’s description of the play:

Haley Wahlroos has no fear. None. — Gwen Ambler (@gwenambler) August 6, 2015

It is an absolute joy to watch Wahlroos play.

(3) Mira Donaldson

Donaldson is one of the most gifted college players that I’ve ever seen. Her Callahan video is so understated but you could film her with a flip book and the throws would still jump off the page.

It was so fantastic last year to learn about Megan Cousins from her Callahan video and then have the chance to see her shine all summer with the All-Stars. Can’t wait for the same thing with Donaldson this year – she’s an unreal player.

(4) The return of Caitlin Fitzgerald

Caitlin was part of the All-Star tour last year but couldn’t play because she’d broken her arm in a game before the Tour got started. Super bad luck for her, so I’m really happy that she’s able to play this year.

Having grown up in Omaha and played competitively in Minneapolis, I’m also really glad to see players from the middle of the country represented on the Tour’s roster. Will be cheering extra hard for Fitzgerald and Clare Frantz this year.

(5) The return of Kate Scarth

Before last year’s tour I’d never heard of Scarth. In the first game against Riot last year she threw this pass to Lisa Pitcaithley to take half:

After that I was a fan for life! It was a thrill to see her join both UBC and Traffic last year. I’m really happy to have the chance to see her play again this summer.

(6) Beth Kaylor

I’m a huge fan of Kaylor – her play with both Schwa and Oregon the last couple of years has been at a level that hardly anyone else can match. *Everyone* looks forward to seeing her play:

@gwenambler I'm such a fan of Kaylor – her matchup with Hannah Leathers at club nationals last year was amazing — Mike Lawler (@mikeandallie) May 29, 2016

Can’t wait to see her with Nightlock during the club season, and I’m really excited for the whole country to get to know her with the All-Stars this summer. She’s off the charts!

(7) Claire Revere

Have you seen her with Whitman?

Have you seen her with Mixtape?

She is a monster.

Get ready club teams – she’s coming for you!

(8) Alex Ode

Had a chance to see her play in person at the US Open a few weeks ago. I’ve been hearing about her from just about everyone for years and she lived up to all the hype and then some! Here’s a little sneak peak at her skills and her play:

She seems to be fitting in with Riot pretty well, too – ha ha

Can’t wait to see more of her this summer!

(9) All the new players I’m going to learn about

The best part about the All-Star tour last year was meeting / watching / learning about players who I never would have seen without the tour. Players like Margot Stert, Erynn Schroeder, Dori Franklin, Carolyn Normile, and on and on.

This year there are two international players as well as 6 or 7 players who I’ve really never seen play. I can’t wait to see them play and to see them show and represent to the world everything that is great about ultimate.

(10) The return of Jesse Shofner

It was a thrill to meet her last year and then follow her on the tour, follow her as part of the US team touring in Asia last winter, and follow her last season with Oregon. I was bummed to not see her on a club roster this season, but that all went away when I saw her name on the All-Star roster again 🙂

If you’ve read this far you’ve seen hours and hours of Shofner play, so I’ll end not with a clip of her, but with an interview (that starts at 0:48) that showed me last year’s tour was going to be amazing:

So, two days left to support them and then the Tour starts in less that 2 weeks 🙂