For years, Ultimate players from the Midwest have had to travel out of the heartland in every direction to attend fun, high energy, community building tournaments like Potlatch and Gender Blender. Not anymore.
Camp I-Wanna-Huck-It is an all-inclusive hat tournament presented by Midwest Ultimate and Ultimate Chicago taking place at Dynamo Soccer May 11-13 in Bourbannais, IL, just 60 miles south of Chicago. For the full overnight camp experience, cabins will be provided at Camp Shaw-Waw-Nas-See in Monteno, IL, just ten minutes from the fields.
The summer camp theme would not be complete without activities, counselors, and a little late-night mischief. After the first few rounds of Ultimate on Saturday, players will return to camp, break into new groups, and play disc games like goaltimate, disc golf, and schtick led by “counselors”. During these activities, campers can earn points and badges for their Ultimate teams. Later that night will be a camp-wide party with alcohol provided for those over 21.
“We’re providing food, we’re providing beverages, and we’re providing swag. You won’t have to think about ‘What do I have to buy? What do I have to bring to the event?’ Everyone can just focus on having a good time,” said Chris Olig, founder of Midwest Ultimate and a director on the planning committee of Camp I-Wanna-Huck-It.
Additionally, the camp will provide running water and showers, as well as transportation from the campsite to the fields.
The idea for Camp I-Wanna-Huck-It was conceived last fall between long-time friends Olig and Stephanie Folk, a board member of Ultimate Chicago. Ultimate Chicago was looking to put on a fun, preseason tournament while Midwest Ultimate, which has run tournaments such as Wisconsin Swiss and Mad Disc On, was looking to expand into the Chicago area.
“I’ve been playing Ultimate for over 15 years now, and I’ve gone to events such as Potlatch, Sandblast, and Trouble in Vegas. We wanted something similar that is community oriented. There’s camping. Everybody is right there. Everybody is happy with each other. Even if you had a dispute on the field, that’s left there, not at the party,” said Olig.
In keeping with their goal of fostering an integrated community over the weekend, the coordinators chose the hat-tournament format in order for “relatively new players to elite club players could all play together,” said Folk.
The coordinators hope the tournament will draw at least 200 players, although the camp could house up to at least 240 or more. And although the majority of participants will undoubtedly come from the Chicago area and the Midwest, there are already campers planning on traveling from Florida and San Francisco, said Folk.
If nothing else, Camp I-Wanna-Huck-It is an opportunity to dust off your cleats and warm up your hucking arm before the club season.
“It is a way to start off your season. It’s before everything. It’s before tryouts. It’s a way to spend the weekend remembering why you love Frisbee,” said Olig.
Registration is now open through Ultimate Chicago’s website. Also, be on the lookout for another Midwest Ultimate and Ultimate Chicago collaboration tournament in the fall.
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