Over the past week or two, i have been speaking to Seattle about their Season expectations, name idea among other things.
SR: Now with just over 50 days to go until the new season, what are your
expectations for this season?
Raptors: we started the season early with the Combine on the 18th of January and our first practice on the 4th of February because we're building a brand new team
and need to use our limited time effectively. My goal is for the Raptors to qualify for the Western Division Playoffs in July. My expectations from the players are to
1. Be focused and train hard at practice,
2. Memorize the plays and strategies,
3. Do regular track work outs on their own,
4. Use their specific talents and know their limitations,
5. Understand their individual roles and,
6. Become an efficient and cohesive member of the team.
SR: Ok, now what made you choose the name Raptors? what other names where you
considering?
Raptors: I've always had a fascination with flight. As a kid, I loved watching birds and their amazing maneuverability in the air. I wanted to fly too, so I earned my Certified Flight Instructor (CFI) rating at Florida Institute of Technology (FIT) where I was also introduced to the great sport of Ultimate.
Eventually, I joined the Air Force and learned that their highly maneuverable, supersonic fighter jets are known as the F-16 Falcon, the F-15 Eagle or the F-22 Raptor.
Well, good ultimate players need to be fast, highly maneuverable and sometimes, they need to leave the ground and "Lay Out" to make a catch or a block. So, why not call ourselves the Eagles or the Falcons? Well, those names are already well known in Football and I didn't want to cause confusion for those who don't know much about Ultimate Disc. A Raptor, however, is defined as a "Bird of Prey", so, you could be talking about an Eagle, a Falcon, a Hawk or even an Owl. Good ultimate players come in varied shapes and sizes too. One can be a 5'6" handler who can change direction very quickly while another could be a 6'4" receiver with the ability to snag a disc over 10 feet off the ground. So, I thought that's what I'd like out team to be known as. A bunch of speedy,
highly maneuverable but varied "Birds of Prey", that chase after another flying object "the Disc" and snatch it out of the sky with their talons.
SR: Great! I love it! looking forward to seeing the Raptors do just that! Who are going to be your key players for the upcoming season?
Raptors: Some of the Key Players will be Grant Zukowski, who played in the AUDL with the Chicago Wild Fire last year and Matt King, who competed with the USAU National Contender out of Raleigh known as "Ring of Fire". There's also a Evan Klein, Peter Bender and Matt Neeley: a trio that competed together at the USA Ultimate Nationals in the mixed division with "Mental Toss Flycoons". We also have a lot of young and talented players who have won Youth Club Championships or have competed at college Nationals to include Adlai Felser, Mike Cavanaugh, Peter Osseward, Adam Bronstein and Ryan Sturm. There are also a few key players from the Open Club team named Voodoo which include Dana Dunbar, John Klaassen, Andrew Lynch and Gavin Sing. And then, there's " Alexander "Sasha" Semennikov who played with the Russian team "Jupiter" at their National Championships in St. Petersburg. Bottom line: the team is chock full of talent and we're now in the process of refining their individual talents and melding them together into a
cohesive and efficient ultimate machine.
SR: i am looking forward to seeing what you are capable of this season! What will you do to try to get the people of seattle through the gates and into the stadium to watch the Raptors?
Raptors: We want to get involved in the grass roots aspect of Ultimate by holding clinics for Middle and High Schools throughout Renton, Bellevue, Seattle and other surrounding areas. We would cater our instruction appropriately to the age and experience of the students. For example: younger students would be taught some of the basic throws and then be coached through an actual game. For older students who already have an ultimate disc (Frisbee) program at their school, we
would teach offensive set ups and plays from horizontal or vertical stacks and defensive man-to-man coverage options as well as a number of different zones. Then, at the end of the clinic, I plan to hand out free tickets to all of the students that attended in the hopes they would bring a friend or family member to the game. I'm sure that once people get a chance to see the game, they will
want to come back again and again.
SR: Thank you for your time! I look forward to watching the raptors in the AUDL and I
hope to speak to you again soon
Follow our twitter! @SportReportBlog
Follow Seattle Raptors! @RaptorsAUDL
This article will also be published at www.sraptors.com
Who else should I interview? Comment below!
SR: Now with just over 50 days to go until the new season, what are your
expectations for this season?
Raptors: we started the season early with the Combine on the 18th of January and our first practice on the 4th of February because we're building a brand new team
and need to use our limited time effectively. My goal is for the Raptors to qualify for the Western Division Playoffs in July. My expectations from the players are to
1. Be focused and train hard at practice,
2. Memorize the plays and strategies,
3. Do regular track work outs on their own,
4. Use their specific talents and know their limitations,
5. Understand their individual roles and,
6. Become an efficient and cohesive member of the team.
SR: Ok, now what made you choose the name Raptors? what other names where you
considering?
Raptors: I've always had a fascination with flight. As a kid, I loved watching birds and their amazing maneuverability in the air. I wanted to fly too, so I earned my Certified Flight Instructor (CFI) rating at Florida Institute of Technology (FIT) where I was also introduced to the great sport of Ultimate.
Eventually, I joined the Air Force and learned that their highly maneuverable, supersonic fighter jets are known as the F-16 Falcon, the F-15 Eagle or the F-22 Raptor.
Well, good ultimate players need to be fast, highly maneuverable and sometimes, they need to leave the ground and "Lay Out" to make a catch or a block. So, why not call ourselves the Eagles or the Falcons? Well, those names are already well known in Football and I didn't want to cause confusion for those who don't know much about Ultimate Disc. A Raptor, however, is defined as a "Bird of Prey", so, you could be talking about an Eagle, a Falcon, a Hawk or even an Owl. Good ultimate players come in varied shapes and sizes too. One can be a 5'6" handler who can change direction very quickly while another could be a 6'4" receiver with the ability to snag a disc over 10 feet off the ground. So, I thought that's what I'd like out team to be known as. A bunch of speedy,
highly maneuverable but varied "Birds of Prey", that chase after another flying object "the Disc" and snatch it out of the sky with their talons.
SR: Great! I love it! looking forward to seeing the Raptors do just that! Who are going to be your key players for the upcoming season?
Raptors: Some of the Key Players will be Grant Zukowski, who played in the AUDL with the Chicago Wild Fire last year and Matt King, who competed with the USAU National Contender out of Raleigh known as "Ring of Fire". There's also a Evan Klein, Peter Bender and Matt Neeley: a trio that competed together at the USA Ultimate Nationals in the mixed division with "Mental Toss Flycoons". We also have a lot of young and talented players who have won Youth Club Championships or have competed at college Nationals to include Adlai Felser, Mike Cavanaugh, Peter Osseward, Adam Bronstein and Ryan Sturm. There are also a few key players from the Open Club team named Voodoo which include Dana Dunbar, John Klaassen, Andrew Lynch and Gavin Sing. And then, there's " Alexander "Sasha" Semennikov who played with the Russian team "Jupiter" at their National Championships in St. Petersburg. Bottom line: the team is chock full of talent and we're now in the process of refining their individual talents and melding them together into a
cohesive and efficient ultimate machine.
SR: i am looking forward to seeing what you are capable of this season! What will you do to try to get the people of seattle through the gates and into the stadium to watch the Raptors?
Raptors: We want to get involved in the grass roots aspect of Ultimate by holding clinics for Middle and High Schools throughout Renton, Bellevue, Seattle and other surrounding areas. We would cater our instruction appropriately to the age and experience of the students. For example: younger students would be taught some of the basic throws and then be coached through an actual game. For older students who already have an ultimate disc (Frisbee) program at their school, we
would teach offensive set ups and plays from horizontal or vertical stacks and defensive man-to-man coverage options as well as a number of different zones. Then, at the end of the clinic, I plan to hand out free tickets to all of the students that attended in the hopes they would bring a friend or family member to the game. I'm sure that once people get a chance to see the game, they will
want to come back again and again.
SR: Thank you for your time! I look forward to watching the raptors in the AUDL and I
hope to speak to you again soon
Follow our twitter! @SportReportBlog
Follow Seattle Raptors! @RaptorsAUDL
This article will also be published at www.sraptors.com
Who else should I interview? Comment below!