1990:
The '90 Classic was different. The
Tournament Directors and the Poultry Days Committee dedicated the tournament to two very
well known, fine young Ultimate players, Jeff Warrick and Dan Goubeaux, who died of
leukemia. They were and will always be sorely missed. 27 teams arrived in 1990 to soggy
fields and humid weather. However, Poultrygeist of Chicago won Division 1, Pool A and
Rockford took Pool B. Pool C went to the combination of North Coast and Burning River,
while Breast & Thighs earned the honors of Pool D. Quarter finals got underway Sunday
morning with Chicago downing Cooler By the Lake and North Coast/Burning River taking
Bedrock. The final battle was between Breast & Thighs and North Coast/Burning River
with North Coast/Burning River prevailing. Entertainment was provided by Bedrock (Indy)
and Panic (Cincy) who exchanged volleys of water balloons and Chilly Willys, while some
balloons "accidentally" landed on spectators. Finally, a traditional picture of
the winning team was taken with Miss Chick.
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1991:
The '91 Classic boasted 25 teams from
three UPA Regions & Sam and Sue from England stopped in from their world tour to play.
The spectacular lightning show produced sounds of oohs and ahhs from the octagon shelter
where many gathered till the wee hours in the morning. Sunday morning's captains' meeting
started promptly at nine and the games started soon after. The Masters defeated Toledo,
Breast & Thighs were downed by the Buddha Boys. Chicks N' Cocks beat U. of Illinois
and the Dixie Chickens defeated Hurl. Indy's Chickensaurus Rex, with their 5 foot blow up
dinosaur cloned into a chick downed Outside Loop and Rockford won a close one with
Knoxville. I.U. Hoosiermama? defeated Oxford and Panic with their rooster boxer shorts
ousted Grand Haven. The quarter's brought the Buddha Boys over the Masters, Dixie Chickens
defeated Chicks N' Cocks, Indy over Rockford and Hoosiermama? defeated Panic. In the
Semis, Huntsville's Dixie Chickens defeated the Buddha Boys and Indy downed Hoosiermama?
in the battle for Indiana. The final game put the Dixie Chickens over Indy's Chickensaurus
Rex. Miss Chick arrived with a standing ovation from all fans surrounding the finals game
and later was invited by the crowd to shoot water balloons at spectators on the hill. As
the day ended, the trophies were awarded and pictures were taken with Miss Chick.
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1992:
The '92 Classic was the biggest yet,
bringing into town 31 teams from across the land. Most of the teams arrived in the wee
hours of the morning on Saturday to set up camp in the "tent city" at Heritage
Park. Pool play ran all day Saturday, which counted down the final 16 teams for Sunday.
The Dixie Chickens of Huntsville, Alabama defeated Breast & Thighs in the finals to
repeat as champions. This was the first repeat in the history of Poultry Days. The Budha
Boys and Arm & Hammer took third and fourth.
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1993:
The '93 Classic brought 31 teams into
town from around the land. Teams populated the park with their vast array of colorful
tents to form a tent city within Heritage Park. Pool play ran all day Saturday, which
counted down the final 16 "A" teams for Sunday. "B" and "C"
pools were provided for teams with similar records. The Dixie Chickens of Huntsville,
Alabama defeated Panic of Cincinnati in the finals to repeat as champions again. This was
another first in the history of Poultry Days. Dixie Chickens remained on to win the title
three years in a row. Rotten Eggs and Madison took third and fourth respectively.
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1994:
East Rocks Poultry Days!! A new team
joined the tournament this year to fill a 41 team extravaganza. All had similar intentions
to knock the three time defending champs "Dixie Chickens" from their roost. By
the way, where do they keep all those trophies? Eight pools of five teams were erected
Saturday morning to compete in round robin pool play. Sunday teams were entered in 'A',
'B' and 'C' brackets depending on their records from Saturday's play. Columbus ended Dixie
Chickens’ three year reign at Poultry Days. Unfortunately they lost to Hoosiermama in
the next round probably because they were up all night playing the bongos Friends of Frank
Purdue captured the '94 title by defeating Chicken Coup in the finals followed by Grand
Haven and HoosierMama? as runners up.
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1995:
1995 saw the tournament reduced in size
to 35 teams in an effort to preserve the fine Poultry Days spirit and Dale's sanity. Lemon
Chicken, from Cincinnati, rolled through the tournament to capture the '95 Poultry Days
honors on their way to making an appearance at the 1995 Ultimate Players Association
national tournament. As always, Miss Chick arrived to present the trophies and posed with
the winning team.
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1996:
1996 Brought The 15th Anniversary Of The
Poultry Days Ultimate Classic. Hot Weather And Hot Ultimate Was Experienced Throughout The
Weekend. The Tournament Culminated With The Crowning Of The Madison "Cheezy
Chickens" As The Poultry Fest Champions As They Overtook Michigan's "Breasts
& Thighs" In A Fiercely Competitive And Spirited Final. Dixie Chickens And
Chicken Pax/ Southern Fried Chicken Rounded Out 3rd And Fourth.
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1997
Thirty-five open and ten womens ultimate
teams converged on the Town of Versailles, Ohio to compete in the 16th Annual Jeff Warrick
Poultry Days Ultimate Classic on June 14-15, 1997. Around 4 p.m. Sunday afternoon, Breasts
& Thighs, a Michigan team with plenty of Chicago and former Michigan club players,
emerged with an incredible hard-fought comeback victory, 13-12, over Red Rooster Blue
Chick, a San Francisco co-ed team, with a hefty injection of Boston and D.C. talent, in
the open A division finals. The co-ed proponents had to be pleased when the finals teams
agreed to play a 4/3 co-ed format for the championship. On a nearby field, the Baltimore
Banshees held on to an early lead to capture the Women’s second annual Poultry Days
Classic championship at Poultry Days over the Chickpeas from Indianapolis/Bloomington,
13-9.
The sunny 70-80 degree weather was kind
to the approximately 700 ultimate players who arrived by plane and car as early as
Thursday, and to the spectators who visited The All American Festival to chow on barbecued
chicken or to see that special ultimate-playing family member compete. By Friday evening
some players were actually scrimmaging near the pavilion field, while others exchanged
hugs and war stories with former teammates and opponents. Saturday morning brought the
captains and team representatives together for the captains meeting with Mark
"Feebs" Simons, the man responsible for the team bids and pool assignments.
After a very quick and quiet captains meeting, a reminder to abide by the ultimate spirit
embodied by the late shaggy-haired local, Jeff Warrick, whom the tournament is dedicated,
and who played for the Blue Meanies of Versailles who founded the tournament. The captains
scurried back to roust their teams and get them to the fields on time. By 10 a.m., both
the Poultry Days parade and 21 ultimate games were underway all over Versailles.
As Saturday play ended, only four teams,
Breasts & Thighs, Dixie Chickens (southern combo), Anodyne (D.C.), and Lemon
(Cincinnati), emerged with 4-0 records, while eleven other teams finished the day at 3-1,
and seven other teams were 2-2. Rather than take the top two from each of the seven pools
plus two wild-cards, as most captains expected, the tournament organizers did something
different and ranked the teams from 1-35 based on overall point differential, and allowed
the top 16 to advance to the "A" division and the next 16 to "B"
division for Sunday play. The format resulted in one 3-1 team, Superfry (Yale Alum),
playing in "B" division (though rumor has it that Yale requested "B"),
two 2-2 teams, Chicken Eagles (Indianapolis) and Cashew Chicken (Carbondale, IL),
advancing to "A" division, the 2-2 Denver Omelets unhappily heading to
"B" division despite defeating the Eagles, 13-10 in pool play, and three winless
teams heading to the Mr. Sluggo contest to vent. In women’s play, eight teams served
as chicken feed for the two finalists, Banshees and Chickpeas, each of whom emerged 4-0
with 45 and 41 point differentials, respectively. Clearly missing some key players from
the past, Madison’s Cheezy Chicks finished 3-1 in the Chickpeas’ pool, followed
by Chicks of Cin (Cincinnati) 2-2, Green Eggs & Prozac (Huntsville), 1-3, and Finger
Lickin’ Good (U of Illinois), 0-4. In the Banshees’ pool, it was Medusa
(Chicago), 3-1, Valu-Chicks (Cleveland) 2-2, Alice Unchained Chicks (Columbus), 1-3, and
Chicken Pasties (Nashville), 0-4.
As if providing free camping at the
fields with a refreshing swimming pool and 85 cent drafts at Sam’s Place nearby
wasn’t enough, the tournament hosts served inexpensive breakfasts on Saturday and
Sunday mornings and a Saturday night lasagna dinner in the pavilion at the main fields. If
a late Saturday game interfered with a player’s chance for one of the 10,500 bbq
chicken dinners sold on Saturday at the festival, the hosts picked up and delivered the
dinner to the player. The hosts, led by workhorse Dale Wilker, Chad Yokam, their families,
and several others, also did a good job of providing and replenishing cold water at all
the fields, some of which were a mile from the main fields, and all of which were lined.
Sunday open division play featured three
13-12 games (Lexington, KY over Champaign, IL, Madison over Minnesota, Breasts &
Thighs over Champs Friends of Frank Perdue) and a two-point victory by Grand Haven over
Ohio U. Alumni in the round of sixteen. In the other games, Red Fish eliminated Anodyne,
Atlanta Chicken Pax ended Hoosiermama’s weekend for the second straight year, champ
Lemon crushed champ Eagles, and threepeater Dixie Chicken stuck a fork in Cashew Chicken.
In the quarterfinals, defending champ Madison failed to avenge its pool play loss in
falling to Red Fish for the second straight day, Lemon squeezed the Lungs out of
Lexington, Breasts & Thighs beat cross state rival Grand Haven, and Dixie Chickens
outlasted Atlanta. In Sunday "B" quarters, Yale Superfry sent Cleveland back to
the North Coast and Columbus Drum Sticks kicked Cooler (Milwaukee) back to the Pond, both
13-8, while Rochester’s Other White Meat ensured that Denver’s players would not
miss their flights, and Toronto’s Canuck-A-Doodle-Doo snacked on Ann Arbor’s
chicken a l’Orange. In the "B" semis, Superfry porked The Other White Meat
while Canuck-A-Doodle-Doo deboned the Drum Sticks. In the all co-ed "B" finals,
Superfry defeated Canuck-A-Doodle-Doo. As the eliminated players returned from the
drive-through liquor store and the chicken tent, Lemon and Red Fish were engaged in a
spirited semifinal battle on the main field right next to the Breasts & Thighs-Dixie
Chickens matchup. Lemon stayed close with its much larger roster but could not stop the
superior break-mark throws of every player on Red Fish, which won 15-13. In the other
game, Dixie Chickens, featuring UPA Director of Competition Rex O’Quinn, employed a
zone and other junk defenses to stay close before falling to B & T, 15-11.
Though the game started by 2:30, the
finalists agreed to play to 13, likely the shortest final game in Poultry Days history.
Also making history was the teams’ agreement to play four men and three women on the
field throughout the game. The Red Fish players, clearly not wanting to miss their long
flights home, jumped all over the less-than-supple looking Breasts and the cramping Thighs
of their opponents in taking a 7-2 half-time lead. Henry Thorne and Sue Bourbeaux gathered
their teammates as B & T searched for a way to come back against players named Bim and
T-Man. Just as the crowd was ready to head for the smoke of a thousand burning chickens,
Michigan’s Breasts perked up and its Thighs began churning to put the game up for
grabs at 12 all. Red Fish used a time-out in an effort to find that last point and seemed
to have succeeded as one of its players laid out and placed his outstretched hand on the
game winner at the back of the end zone only to see the plastic slip away. Breasts &
Thighs promptly marched the disc back up the field until Matt Greff pancaked the game
winner and secured a photo-op with Miss Chick. Breasts & Thighs, runner-up in ‘90
and ‘92, had finally won the Poultry Days hardware, and Dale, Feebs, Wade Barga, Dan
Young, their families, and the town had survived Poultry days Sweet Sixteen.
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1998
TOP ULTIMATE PLAYERS SQUARE OFF IN MOST EGGCITING
ULTIMATE EVENT IN ALL AMERICA
By David Hasbrook
As thirty-five open and nine women’s ultimate
teams from coast to coast and sun belt to rust belt converged on the Town of Versailles,
Ohio on Friday, June 12, 1998, the players quickly learned how Darke County earned its
name. The skies blackened, the thunder roared, electricity filled the air, and the heavens
perspired to soak the Poultry Days’ fields with several inches of rain. By Saturday
morning, however, over six hundred ultimate players toed the line as the 17th
Annual Jeff Warrick Poultry Days Ultimate Classic commenced. By Sunday afternoon, two
stacked summer teams-Friends of Frank Perdue (Baltimore) and Red Rooster Blue Hen
(Everywhere)--met in a final that could have been played anywhere. But
"anywhere" wouldn’t be Poultry Days, would it?
The two finalists could have played in the
greater D.C. area, where a plurality of their respective players reside. In the Chesapeake
Bay area, it would be crab cakes instead of barbecued chicken, clam juice instead of
chilly willies, and Beltway politics instead of an honest round of Mr. Sluggo. In the end,
it was Friends of Frank, led by its speedy captain and former St. Mary’s College (MD)
ultimate player, Eric Wenck, trouncing Red Rooster, 15-8, to capture its second Poultry
Days championship (‘94 winners) and the coveted photo shoot with Miss Chick and her
Court. Friends of Frank employed a somewhat loose zone defense in the finals that Red
Rooster’s players, who dream about zones as they fly from tournament to tournament,
inexplicably failed to solve. Red Rooster stood at the runners-up altar for the second
consecutive year.
In 17 years, Poultry Days has transformed from a
backyard ultimate event to the premier national co-ed tournament (though it is still not
officially a "co-ed tournament"). Consider the sample "starting"
line-ups for the finalists. Five of the seven Friends of Frank players on the field for
its semifinal, 14-14 game-point played at UPA Club Nationals in 1997: Eric Wenck and Jeff
Cappella from Chicago Z, Amy Dubrouillet from Chicago Nemesis, Anthony Iwaszko and Jim
Nesbitt from D.C. Anodyne, Paul Devine from Columbus Thumper, and Eli Cooper, no club. Red
Rooster boasted an all-star line-up of players from around the country: Jim Parinella and
Bim Johnston from Boston DoG, Mark Determan from Philly Rage, Beth Wise from Philly
Peppers, Asako Yamamoto from D.C. Vixen, Jackie Bourgeois from Boston Godiva, and Phil
Price from San Francisco DSR/Money. For those ultimate fans not privy to the rosters,
programs, and stat sheets found in other spectator sports, high level North American
summer ultimate is a game of musical chairs, where top players, with money, good jobs, and
available time, align themselves with other top competitors to form powerhouse teams to
try to win tournaments. Red Rooster, normally a west coast co-ed team known as Red Fish
Blue Fish, is a classic example of well-heeled ultimate junkies from nationals teams
converging on a fun tournament in search of more hardware for the trophy case. The trend
is nowhere more evident than at Poultry Days, where a Central Region team failed to reach
the finals for the first time ever. But it was very close.
In the best game of the tournament, Friends of
Frank, after squashing ‘96 champs, Madison Cheezy Chicken, 13-5 in the quarters,
faced Bake Beach Chicken (Grand Haven, MI), fresh off a solid 13-9 quarters defeat of the
Clucking Foosiers (Indianapolis), one of only two non-co-ed teams in the tournament. Bake
Beach, a combination of athletic Lake Michigan beach bums and talented Motor City club
players, led 12-11 in a straight up game to 15 and possessed the disc in scoring position
about 25 yards from Friends’ endzone. The cock crowed once, and a Bake Beach player
lost control of the disc on a hard pivot, 12-12 tie. The cock crowed twice, and a Bake
Beach handler dropped an undefended 5 yard swing pass at his own 15 yard line, 13-12,
Friends. Bake Beach remained calm and marched up field to tie the game at 13. The cock
crowed a third time and another Bake Beachster dropped the disc on a pivot move, 14-13,
Friends. Bake Beach promptly went for broke on the next point and scored on a clucking
huck, to tie the game at 14 and set up a thrilling finale. After pulling to Friends, Bake
Beach played great team defense and took the disc back, only to promptly cough it up
again. Through several excellent individual defensive efforts by Graham Smith, Scott Rues,
and Pat Prendergast, Bake Beach managed to get the disc back three more times on game
point from the generous Friends. As the point went into its tenth minute, Frank
Perdue’s best buddy, Eric Wenck, bought the chicken farm on a spectacular lay out in
front of the fans, taking the disc away from Bake’s Rob "Load" Anderson at
midfield. Wenck quickly got rid of the disc only to get it back from Ohioan Paul
"Devo" Devine at the ten and rocket the game winning pass to former Macalester
College (MN) player, Jeff Cappella, for the 15-14 victory.
In the other semifinal, Hoosierchicken?, a 35
player (and growing) Indiana University reunion team featuring Chicago Z captain Rich
Hollingsworth and several other Z and Pumphouse 5 (Indy/Cincy) club players, came up short
for the second straight day to Red Rooster, 15-11. Hoosierchicken? trounced ‘95 champ
Lemon Chicken (Cincy) and survived the aging ‘91-’93 threepeaters, Dixie
Chicken, 13-9, to reach the semis. Dixie Chicken knocked off the defending champs, Breasts
and Thighs (Michigan, et al.) in pre-quarter play on Sunday morning. Red Rooster,
frequently featuring three of its world class women players on the field to its
opponent’s one or two, defeated Cashew Chicken (Nebraska) in pre-quarters, and
knocked off the ever-dangerous Chicken,
frequently featuring three of its world class women players on the field to its
opponent’s one or two, defeated Cashew Chicken (Nebraska) in pre-quarters, and
knocked off the ever-dangerous Chicken Pax (Atlanta), 13-9 in a quarterfinal game. Chicken
Pax, which led Red Rooster 6-3 and 7-5 before hucking away its chance to advance, had
reached quarters by defeating the Denver Omelettes, a spirited bunch making the long trek
from the mile high city.
In Frank Perdue’s bracket, Friends whacked
Seattle’s Cock Knockers and Bake Beach survived Toronto’s Canuck-A-Doodle-Doo in
pre-quarter games. Toronto, the other non-co-ed holdout, reportedly faced the peer
pressure of lining up its all male squad against an all female Hoosierchicken? line for
two points in Saturday pool play, splitting the two points. The rest of the pre-quarter
round saw Madison squirt past Chilly Willies (Maryland), and the Clucking Foosiers barely
escape the claws of Disclaim Chicken, 13-12. Disclaim from Yonkers, New York, ran hard,
stayed positive, and came close to knocking off both the Foosiers and, on Saturday,
Madison-two of the better teams from the Central Region.
In the women’s division (yes, a co-ed
tournament with a women’s division), Baltimore’s Banshees made it two straight
by defeating Toronto’s Wild Game Face, 13 to 8. 1996 and ‘97 runner-up, Aunt
Maude’s Chicken (Indiana), led the Banshees 8-5 at half in the semis. A banshee is a
female spirit in Gaelic folklore believed to presage, by wailing, a death in a family.
Apparently the larger, stronger Baltimore women engaged in some serious wailing during
their halftime huddle as they came out running, scored six straight to grab an 11-8 lead,
and orchestrated the 15-10 demise of Aunt Maude, a club team of women from Indianapolis,
Bloomington, Indiana, Columbus, Ohio, and Chicago. Meanwhile, Game Face knocked off
Chicago Chicks, 15-8, in the other women’s semifinal. Women’s quarters were all
blowouts with Valu-Chicks (Cleveland), Fried Eggstrogin & Grits (Huntsville, AL), Coop
de Swille (Ann Arbor, MI), and Chicken Pasties (Nashville) coming out on the short end of
the wishbone.
In an all-Ohio final, Plucking OUtrageous (Ohio
University Alumni) captured the "B" Division title by defeating Drumstix
(Columbus), 15-9. In years past, these "B" Division final teams probably would
have faced off for the Poultry Days crown. There was no word from OU’s leader, Rick
Eikstadt, as to whether Little Miss Poultry Days showed for a team photo with Plucking
OUtrageous. Interestingly, the two "B" Division finalists emerged with 2-2
Saturday pool play records from the pools won respectively by Friends of Frank Perdue and
Bake Beach Chicken. Pool play results from the Open Division follow this article.
The hosts, led by workhorses Dale Wilker, Chad
Yoakam, Mark "Feebs" Simons, Wade Barga, Dan Young, and their families, provided
outstanding hospitality to their ultimate guests. In addition to pumping up the local
import beer and cinnamon roll economy, the players raised a substantial sum of money for
the Leukemia Society of America, in the ongoing battle to fight the disease that claimed
the tournament’s namesake, Jeff Warrick, at age 28. Somehow, Versailles Poultry Days
managed for its first thirty years without ultimate. One wonders how the 48th Annual could
go on without the crescendo of Miss Chick crowning the winners of the 18th Annual Jeff
Warrick Poultry Days Classic, the most eggciting ultimate event in all America.
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1999
For a dozen-and-a-half consecutive years, Mike
Miller has traveled from Dayton, Fort Wayne, and Indianapolis to the hallowed fields of
Heritage Park inVersailles, Ohio to play ultimate in what he describes as "the best
organized, most fun tournament in the nation, definitely." Why is it the best, Mike?
"Where else can you find 27 lined fields stocked with cold water and Gatorade, along
with free showers and camping?" Oh, and get a trophy from a queen named Miss Chick.
You see, Mike is the only ultimate devotee to have played in all 18 tournaments. Why do
you come back each year, Mike? "To pay respect each year to a fallen friend in that
small grove of trees in Heritage Park. Although none of us are worthy to wear the cleats
of Jeff ‘Thing’ Warrick, each of us should try." Through sunshine,
humidity, thunder, lightning, and rain, and inspired a little by Steam’n Al’s
parade-worthy Chickenmobile, Dale Wilker, Mark ‘Feebs’ Simons, Wade Barga, Chad
Yoakam, Dan Young, their families and many others hosted Mike and a thousand ultimate
campers at the Jeff Warrick Poultry Days 1999. Pool play commenced on Saturday in weather
so hot and humid that one player ended up in intensive care for four hours by the
afternoon. The lineup saw the first two high school teams ever to compete at Poultry Days:
Pink in the Middle (Nashville) and Roving Band of Chickens (Temperance, MI). Roving Band,
playing in only its second tournament "got ripped to shreds, but had an amazing time
doing it," reported its 17 year-old captain, Tim Grabowski. A winless weekend for the
young players was unforgettable because "instead of criticizing and laughing, [our
opponents] taught and helped us. . . a great bunch of folks!"
At the other end of the spectrum, many male and
female players from some of the best ultimate teams in North America competed in the de
facto elite coed division of Poultry Days. For the last three years, the finalists and
nearly every team in the top 16 at Poultry Days have played 5/2 or 4/3 coed without
compulsion from the laissez-faire tournament directors. While some players still complain
about the lack of a coed edict from on high, the most successful teams at Poultry Days
simply load up with outstanding women club players who relish the opportunity to play
competitive coed ultimate before their high-level fall women’s season kicks in. Which
brings us to a "perdue": a soldier sent on an especially dangerous mission. The
collection of ultimate die-hards known as the Friends of Frank Perdue survived all kinds
of thunder, lightning, rain, and thermonuclear barbecued chicken en route to their second
straight date with Miss Chick and the Poultry Days title by defeating former and only
threepeaters, Dixie Chickens (Atlanta/Huntsville), 13-11, on June 13, 1999. As the 1990s
close, Friends of Frank and Dixie Chickens can look back and count six out of ten Poultry
Days’ championships between them. Featuring Poultry Days co-host, Mark
"Feebs" Simons, and led by at least three Chicago Nemesis players and a mixture
of male clubbers mostly from Chicago Z and D.C. Anodyne, Friends of Frank defended its
title. Friends of Frank will attempt to threepeat next year while playing their Saturday
games on the pavilion field.
Full-time coed teams were no match for the Poultry
Days assemblages. Red Rooster Blue Chick (SF Bay Area), the defending 1998 UPA Fall Coed
Champions (with a few additional UC Berkeley alums), lost in the round of 16 on Sunday
morning to Cashew Chicken (Pella/Springfield). Hot Chickens (Colorado’s Pira Haku)
finished second in the 1998 UPA Fall Coed Championships but failed to make the round of 16
and lost in the B Pool round on Sunday. Friends of Frank disposed of Superchicken (IU
Alumni) in the semifinals, 13-11, and Chicken of the Sea (Toledo) in the quarters, 13-10.
26,000 Chicken Dinners (Cincinnati), which enhanced its roster with the addition of Cincy
native Ann Schuler of Portland Schwa and several other women from top club teams, returned
to the semis before falling to Dixie Chickens, 13-8. Schuler, undoubtedly inspired by
Cincy’s Lifetime Achievement award winner, Billy Brady, made at least two stellar
defensive plays on the man she guarded in Dinners’ quarterfinal come-from-behind one
point win over the Clucking Roosters (Indianapolis). Dixie Chickens snuck past
Michigan’s El Pollo Supremo (Breast & Thighs) in another quarterfinal match while
Cashew Chicken fell 13-11 to Superchicken in the other quarterfinal.
Ripken-like Mike Miller recounts that when Thing
Warrick was Poultry Days tournament director one year, he determined the pools by pulling
toy animals from a miniature barn. No doubt Feebs was calling on Thing for inspiration
Saturday afternoon after a giant midwestern thunderstorm chased the players from all
Versailles fields and forced cancellation of pool games during the 4th of 5
rounds. The storm took its toll on the players’ homes as Jim Goeke-Morey of Pollo
Loco (U. Dayton alums) heard the following response after a teammate’s tent had blown
thirty yards intact and landed in an odd location: "Hey Sandman, get your goddamn
tent off my car." Thing’s flair for mischief continues to infect the campers as
they pull pranks on each other throughout Saturday evening while the hosts hope to
maintain a positive relationship with the nearby neighbors. Fortunately some regular teams
work their own magic with the neighbors and got floor space to crash on rainy nights or
freshly baked cookies from their adoptive grandma. While the children played, Uncle Feebs,
with the aid of a few disc flipping contests, somehow figured out the Sunday draw for all
55 open teams without much of a peep from the livestock.
Chilly Wilma (Baltimore) captured its third straight
title by defeating Mother Cluckers (Chicago), 14-8, in the final of the ten team
women’s division. Each finalist toughed out the championship game with only 8
players. Wilma jumped to a commanding 6-1 lead only to see the Cluckers close to 6-5 and
hang at 8-7. Wilma stomped Wingin’ It (Chattanooga) 13-1 in the semis while Mother
Cluckers removed Chicken Pasties (Nashville) from the field, 13-6. Wilma’s captain
Andrea Apo vowed to return to defend their threepeat title in 2000. For more details visit
the tournament web site at www.poultrydays.com.
The open B pool final featured a battle of alumni
teams with Superfry (Yale) facing Pollo Loco (Dayton). Led by their pink-haired captain,
Superfry debeaked Pollo Loco and clawed its way to the second division crown, 11-9. Pink
Flamingo (Boston/St. Petersburg) received the "Queen’s Chicken" award from
an extremely lively Miss Chick 1999 for its outstanding spirit. The open D pool final
found the number 1 seeded Coop de Ville (Cincinnati) team taking on the number 2 seeded
Roosterfarians (East Lansing). The Roosterfarians were able to peck their way passed the
Coop for a close 15-14 victory.
Blackened Chicken Lung (Lexington) and Chickenooga
(Chattanooga) provided the most passionate final game as the survivors of the C Pool
squared off at Heritage Park. Lexington went up quickly 2-0, on a huck by Sluggo Rydz, who
was celebrating his return from the old back 40 fields to prime time. (Query: Is the Mr.
Sluggo game at the festival named after Rydz?). Nooga fought back behind the play of Steve
Cobble and three long throws to take the lead 4-2. Nooga took half 7-5 then raced to a
commanding 10-7 lead. Lexington took advantage of three key defensive stops - a hand block
and goal-saving endzone knockdowns by Steve "Stumpy" Turnbull and Jeremiah
Lucas, to close the deficit to one at 11-10. After trading goals, Lung avoided the frying
pan when John Pohl batted away a high stall dump near Lung’s endzone and Luke Morgan
hucked for a 12-12 game point situation. As Nooga threatened to score the winner again,
Pohl made the final defensive stop near Lung’s endzone. After a timeout, the rain and
thunder picked up force as Lung’s Jeremiah Lucas caught the game winning score with
an eight stall count on the mark and Lexington completed its 13-12 comeback victory.
"The intensity, level of play and sportsmanship exhibited in this game was
outstanding. Jeff Warrick would have been proud," said John Pohl after the C Pool
final. The entire town of Versailles and the greater ultimate community are proud of the
hometown boys, their friends, and families who produce the labor of love in honor of the
town and old friend, Jeffrey Thing Warrick.
David T. Hasbr |
