TOURNAMENT
The BURLA BEACH CUP is an International beach Ultimate tournament having 4 divisions.
We’re asking you to follow and respect with common sense and fairness the guide lines here below:
1st DIVISION: this division is dedicated to OPEN teams looking for a competitive tournament.
2nd DIVISION: this division is dedicated to (true) CO-ED competitive teams.
3rd DIVISION: this division is dedicated to WOMEN teams and for all teams but with a lower level respect to the 1st and 2nd div. (soft Co-Ed teams, very young club team, …)
4th DIVISION: this division is dedicated to JUNIOR U19 players (players of 18 years old allowed).
BASIC RULES
Burla Beach Cup is played under the 5 vs 5 BULA rules. BULA is (since 2008) using the WFDF rules as the basis for playing. The differences between grass Ultimate and Beach Ultimate are shown in two appendices (one for 5-on-5 and one for 4-on-4). You can find the WFDF rules as well as the BULA appendices here :
http://www.beachultimate.org/5on5rules.html
All games have a time limit (see match length) (finals excluded). When time is over, the point must be finished and then the match is over EXCEPT if the points gap between teams is less then 2 (0 or 1). If so, then the 'cap 1' rule is applied: after the last point is finished, the score to reach to win the game is determined by summing one (1) points to the current leading team's score. The fraction of game played after this moment is named cap. The cap is played only as explained before (point gap between teams is less then 2). If the time finishes between two points (i.e. when the teams are on the lines or are lining up), the point to be finished is the one still to be played. In other words, as soon as a point is scored or, in the case of a discussion, acknowledged), the next point begins: walking back, making substitutions and lining up are all part of the next point.
Match length @ BB-Sea : the time is over after 40 minutes, for all matches except for the 1st place final of open_1 division. The game is over when a team scores 13 points with a lead of at least 2 points, in the regular time (hard cap at 15). In the cap, this score limit does not exist, i.e. the game finishes according to the cap rules. No half time.
One (1) time out/team. Time-outs cannot be taken either in the last 5 minutes or in the part of the game between the end of the time and the end of the current point (i.e. the beginning of the cap): no time-out can be taken from the signal of "5 minutes left" until the beginning of the cap. No additional time out can be taken in the cap.
First Place Final length. The 1st place final game lasts until one team reaches a score of at least 13 points with a lead of at least two goals (hard cap: 15): 12-12 -> the game is to 14, 13-13 or 14-14 -> the game is to 15. No half time. One time-out per team, not in the last five (5) min, no additional time out during the cap. Time limit is 60 min. (only for the final of the Open 1 division). Finals rules could be set differently by captains in agreement with the tournament's director (Max).
Scoring: the score for all matches will be done by you, beach ultimate players. That means we are asking minimum one player of the team which loose the previous game to stay on the field in order to keep the score for the match to be played on that same field. Thanks for your understanding and cooperation.
S.O.T.G. : BB SEA uses the spirit of game scoring system launched by the World Flying Disc Federation (WFDF) and BULA. The system is designed to quickly and accurately determine the SOTG winner while teaching what spirit of the game really means. Scoring is based on judging Respect, Fairness, Positive Attitude, Emotional Management, Rules Knowledge and Physical Contact. Teams are also asked to reflect on their own spirit as that is only fair.
"401 Spirit of the Game: Ultimate has traditionally relied upon a spirit of sportsmanship which places the responsibility for fair play on the individual player himself. Highly competitive play is encouraged but never at the expense of mutual respect between players, adherence to the agreed-upon rules of the game or the basic joy of play. The purpose of the rules of ultimate is to provide a guideline which describes the way the game is played. It is assumed that no ultimate player will intentionally violate the rules; there are no harsh penalties for inadvertent infractions but, rather, a method for resuming play in a manner which simulates what would most likely have occurred had there been no infraction." (WFDF Ultimate Rules (rev. 1/28/02)) The idea at BURLA BEACH CUP is to make a special effort to put this into practice. This means three things:
a) BACK TO THE RULES! Every player is asked to check that they remember the rules, by re-reading them. Each team should check that its members have done this, before they come to the beach. The idea here is simple, but important. We want to reduce the number of calls, especially contested calls, that are totally based on a misunderstanding of what the rules actually say (something that can happen a lot, right? Right).
b) GET INVOLVED! In real life, some people always have a better grasp of the rules than others. So we ask that the more experienced and informed players on a team step in and help negotiate things, immediately a dubious call is made, and preferably even before the other team has a chance to contest it. In other words, if your team-mate makes a wrong or dubious call, and you have good grounds for thinking they are wrong, then we ask you to say so, quickly and clearly, with a view to resolving potential discussions and contested calls before they happen, and in an informed way. That way, the onus for interpreting and applying the rules correctly is shared by a whole team (it’s sometimes too big a responsibility for one individual player, as we all know!)
c) The REAL SOTG (Spirit of the Game) AWARD There has been a tendency to give the SOTG award as an encouragement, or as a consolation, to a team which places near the bottom, and which comprises a bunch of nice, likeable people with whom there are no problems on or off the field. We want to get away from this, and give more competitive teams a chance to remind everyone that competition and spirit not only can co-exist, but can actually thrive together! At BURLA Beach Cup, teams will be asked to award their SOTG vote on the basis of the criteria for spirited play as outlined above. The prize is to be given to the team which gets the vote for best spirit, within the context of competitive and informed, knowledgeable play. [This may still be won by a relatively new and inexperienced team, but we think it is equally likely, or more likely, that it will be won by a more established and competitive team, although, most importantly, it will go to a team regardless of its final placing in the tourney].The ‘fun’ teams will still be there -- you know, the guys and girls who succeed in giving the impression that they are not looking to achieve a particular placing -- but at BURLA they would not necessarily be contenders for the SOTG award. (Thanks for your attention).
More about SPIRIT: http://beachultimate.org/blog/2009/10/spirit.html
Perimeter lines: Perimeter lines (sidelines and endlines) are lines separating the playing field from the out-of-bounds area and are not part of the playing field.
Footwear: Playing barefoot is highly recommended. Cleats are not permitted. Players may wear any soft-soled footwear, so long as it does not endanger the safety of any other player. For BB-Sea tournament, we are asking to avoid to wear any kind of shoes (except very soft-soled if really necessary).
Throwing Team: The players on the throwing team shall remain inside the endzone they are defending prior to the disc being released on the throw-off, but may move anywhere within said endzone.
Receiving Team: Before signaling their readiness to begin play, the players on the receiving team shall be standing with one foot on the goal line adjoining the endzone they are defending and may not change position relative to one another until the throw-off is released.
Brick rule: (applied at BB-Sea tournament) penalty on the throwing team: The receiving team is awarded an automatic 10 mt "brick", regardless of the result of the throw-off. The receiving team may elect to take the brick, or put the disc in play from where possession is gained.