The Game "Just catch one!" With those words, Guts Frisbee players have tried to convince their friends, family members, and other interested onlookers to participate in this most-unusual, should-be-an X-Games sport. The idea was this: If a novice, or newbie, could just feel the adrenaline from catching a Frisbee thrown at high speed using just one hand, the newbie would become hooked. It has worked more than once! No, it’s not for everyone. It’s for those who love/need to compete, have better than average eye/hand coordination, can endure two long days of tough mental and physical exertion, are addicted to adrenalin, and enjoy people of the same wicked persuasion. What’s it like to play Guts? Ever play “Burn Out”, where two people with baseball mitts play catch, throwing a baseball as hard as they can? Guts is like that. Sort of. Except that in Guts, you’re playing 50 to 75 mph catch on teams at a distance of 14 meters with a 110 gram Pro model flying disc that “moves”, not only from the thrower’s arm speed but with wind speed and wind direction, angle of release and, more specifically, release point, plus forward or backward spin, depending upon each individual thrower’s style. Got GUTS? Then, because most catches are not made on initial contact but upon deflection, and must be made cleanly with one hand, every catch attempt can become an event in itself. With one or more players each touching the disc one or more times, and doing everything possible to keep the disc from touching the ground and to get themselves physically in position to make a catch – well, let’s just say it’s some of the most exciting few seconds in sport! Got GUTS? Points are scored when shots are thrown; an uncaught “good” shot scores a point for the throwing team; an illegal shot or a “bad” shot (called a dump) scores a point for the defensive team. A catch keeps the other team from scoring and the player who makes a catch must make the return throw. It’s a game of strategy and teams are only as strong as their weakest links. Games are played to 21 point and teams must win by two. There’s more – see Rules of the Game. Today we are seeing more and more new players trying – and liking – the sport of Guts Frisbee! And, if you’re one of those who just likes to watch, Guts is possibly the greatest spectator sport of all-time! Beginnings: The Healy’s and the IFT In 1958, two brothers, “Boots” Bob and John Healy, discovered a Pluto Platter flying disc in a store in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It was passed among the family until Tim and Mary Healy and several friends began tossing it around on July 4, 1958. By the end of the day, the game of Guts was invented. It’s, very basically, a game of throw and catch – two teams of five players each stand fourteen meters (about fifteen yards) apart and throw the Frisbee (less than vertical and within reach of any of the opposing players) to be caught by a member of the other team with one hand. That August, Tim and Mary took the disc to the Healy Insurance Company (and family) Picnic in Eagle Harbor, Michigan and played the game of Guts Frisbee, and the "Invitational" Frisbee Tournament was born. The first few years, only the family and a few friends participated so during its early years, competition was dominated by the North Central team, comprised of four Healy brothers – “Boots” Bob, John, Tim, and Peter, with Dick Warden, John O. Sangregret, Jack Fenton, and Jim Boggio filling in as fifth man in different years. With outside interest growing, invitations were sent all over the world to "everybody who was anybody”. Posters and T-shirts were created to promote the event. In 1967, George "Thor" Anderson and his team, the Foul Five, unseated North Central for the first time to become the new IFT champions. Back in the days of players using nicknames, Foul Five was Thor, Sky King (Richardson), and three guys they talked into playing with them. The three were never seen at another IFT and their names may forever go unknown: Steel Hands, Dr. Kildare, and Charlie Brown. Ed Headrick, then Executive VP and General Manager of Wham-o Mfg., the manufacturer of the Frisbee, brought his team to the UP in 1968 to see what all the excitement was about. His team was the California Masters and included “Steady” Ed and his two sons, along with Steve “The Enforcer” Sewell, Jay “the All-American Boy” Shelton, and “Super Shrink”, Dr. Stancil E.D. Johnson. The California Masters won the event, and repeated as IFT champions in 1969, in an event highlighted by the attendance of Julius T. Nachazel, a Michigan Tech professor, and namesake of the coveted Nachazel Trophy, presented to the winners of the IFT. Now the "International" Frisbee Tournament, “Jumbo” Jon Davis took over as tournament director in 1970. That year, Mel Visser led an entrance procession for the Foul Five with his bagpipes, and later they defeated a bunch of kids from Chicago – the Highland Avenue Aces. The Highland Avenue Aces would elevate the sport to a new level. They would win the IFT in '71, '72, and '73, defeating such classic opponents as Berkeley Frisbee Group Fuschia, Humbly Magnificent Champions of the Universe, Keeweenau Liberation Army Swedetown Sweathogs, and the Bosch Hunt-Hers. The Bosch team became the Library Bar, coincidentally, owned by Jumbo Jon, and would win in 1974, '77, and '78. The Air Aces would win in 1975 and '76, and Motor City would win in 1979 and '80. Davis's promotion had paid off. IFT competition had grown to some 60 Men’s teams and 12 Women’s teams. His imagination and ability to “embellish” worked like magic, and spectators and fans were estimated to be as high as 10,000 over the two-day event. After losing in the finals in 1980 as Mr. Berger, the Lightweights would win the IFT in 1981. Following their win at the 25th International Frisbee Tournament in 1982, Foothill Institute of Frisbee Culture would take the Nachazel Cup out of Michigan to California, only to surrender it to the Hartland Heartbreakers in 1983. The Cupola Bandits won IFT in 1984, and again in 1987, ’88, ’90, and ’91. The IFT today Guts and the IFT downsized in 1993. To accommodate fewer numbers of players, the five-man game became a three-man game. But the level of competition remained the same. In 2004, a “reunion” brought players back into the game and a resurrection began, and the IFT returned to its roots and five-man teams. The IFT has always been held in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan – Eagle Harbor, Calumet, Copper Harbor, Atlantic Mine, Marquette, Hancock, Hubbell, Baraga, Lake Linden, and Chassell have each been host to the prestigious event. Players travel from all over the country to compete for a chance to drink from the Nachazel Cup, the coveted trophy still awarded to the winners. The cup is now mounted on a beautiful multi-tiered base made by Jeff "Fro" Warren of the Lightweights, IFT winners in 1981. The base features the names of all of the winning teams from each of the IFT’s. IFT Winners and Runners-Up Year, Tournament Location, and Winner vs. Runners-Up 1958-66 Eagle Harbor – North Central vs. ?? 1967 Eagle Harbor – Foul Five vs. North Central 1968 Eagle Harbor – California Masters vs. North Central 1969 Eagle Harbor – California Masters vs. Keeweenau Liberation Army Swedetown Sweathogs 1970 Calumet – Foul Five vs. Highland Ave Aces 1971 Copper Harbor – Highland Avenue Aces vs. Foul Five 1972 Copper Harbor – Highland Avenue Aces vs. Berkeley Frisbee Group Fuschia 1973 Atlantic Mine – Highland Avenue Aces vs. Bosch Hunt-Hers 1974 Marquette – Library Bar vs. Highland Avenue Aces 1975 Marquette – WABX Air Aces vs. Library Bar 1976 Atlantic Mine – Air Aces vs. Humbly Magnificent Champions of the Universe 1977 Atlantic Mine – Library Bar vs. Air Aces 1978 Atlantic Mine – Library Bar vs. Paul's Bar 1979 Atlantic Mine – Motor City vs. Windy City Hitmen 1980 Atlantic Mine – Motor City vs. Mr. Berger 1981 Atlantic Mine – Lightweights vs. Motor City 1982 Hancock – Foothill Institute of Frisbee Culture vs. Queen City Flyers 1983 Atlantic Mine – Hartland Heartbreakers vs. Cupola Bandits 1984 Atlantic Mine – Cupola Bandits vs. Hartland Heartbreakers 1985 Atlantic Mine – Hartland Heartbreakers vs. Helter Skelter 1986 Hubbell – Hartland Heartbreakers vs. Cupola Bandits 1987 Baraga – Cupola Bandits vs. Queen City Flyers 1988 Hubbell – Cupola Bandits vs. Team Shark 1989 Lake Linden – Where-Day-Go vs. Cupola Bandits 1990 Lake Linden – Cupola Bandits vs. Reckless Abandon 1991 Marquette – Cupola Bandits vs. Scary Guys 1992 Marquette – Team USA vs. Nefarious Miscreants 1993 Marquette – Hartland vs. Porky’s 1994 Marquette – Oh My! vs. Burnt Brown Rats 1995 Chassell – Ambassadors of Burnt Toast and Runny Eggs vs. Hartland 1996 Hancock – Fugitives vs. R&R&R 1997 Hancock – Breakers vs. Fugitives 1998 Hancock – Breakers vs. Gurus 1999 Hancock – Hartland Heartbreakers vs. Breakers 2000 Atlantic Mine – Hartland vs. Beer.com 2001 Atlantic Mine – Cupola Bandits vs. Breakers 2002 Atlantic Mine – Cupola Bandits vs. Breakers 2003 Houghton – Pinche vs. Breakers 2004 Atlantic Mine – Cupola Bandits vs. Breakers 2005 Atlantic Mine – Cupola Bandits vs. Breakers 2006 Atlantic Mine – Boomtown Saints vs. Cupola Bandits   LUX interactive Katon (Japan) Selfish (Japan) Tri-City Helter Skelter Queen City Flyers I & II Team 151 Bud Lite Blame the Dog Projectile Disc Function Cupola Bandits Boomtown Saints Paul's Bar Lightweights Ridin High