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Santa Barbara, CA—Santa Barbara’s youth sports scene is about to get a new addition: Friday Night Frisbee.
Sponsored by the nonprofit Santa Barbara Youth Ultimate (SBYU), Friday Night Frisbee aims to create a community event that makes the fast-growing sport of ultimate frisbee accessible to all. Held on West Beach, the weekly games (no other practices are scheduled) take place on Friday evenings just as the sun is setting, giving families a fun and relaxing way to close out their week.
“The sport of ultimate frisbee is really about community,” says Aaron Weaver, Board President of SBYU. “The entire ethos of the game is based on mutual respect, communication, and appreciation for your opponent. It’s what we call ‘Spirit of the Game’ and we want to share that with the next generation.”
Weaver comes by his love for ultimate frisbee honestly—he is a former professional ultimate frisbee player who now leads the local nonprofit SBYU as a coach and mentor to younger players. He started playing ultimate frisbee at UCSB with Black Tide in 2009, quickly fell in love with the sport, and continued playing competitively until 2023. He has played professional ultimate frisbee on various teams and leagues, most notably as a captain and All-Star player for the Los Angeles Aviators in the Ultimate Frisbee Association, the world’s largest professional ultimate league (which was known as the American Ultimate Disc League before its 2024 rebrand).
Friday Night Frisbee was his idea.
“I wanted something that would bring together the whole family—league play for middle schoolers, free activities for younger kids, and coaching and leadership opportunities for older teens,” he said. “I wanted to create a community where people look forward to spending Friday nights with their friends on the beach, watching their kids do what they love.”
The format of Friday Night Frisbee is simple: Friday nights from 6pm to 8pm, with no additional weekly practices needed. The first two weeks will be skills clinics and scrimmages. Then each player will be assigned to a team, and the final six weeks will be structured games.
Friday Night Frisbee will be held weekly on Fridays from March 27th to May 15th. The league is currently accepting kids ages 10-14 regardless of ability or experience level—Weaver emphasized everyone is welcome and encouraged to come and play. Scholarships are available through a confidential online form with a self-determination of ability to pay.
In addition to the league play, there will be a free Frisbee Fun Zone set up for siblings, parents, and anybody in between to play alternative frisbee games. There will be a jumping station to see how high you can catch a frisbee, a radar gun to see how fast you can throw, a disc golf net for testing your accuracy, and more activities to practice your skills.
For more information or to register, go to https://sbyouthultimate.org/friday-night-frisbee.
About Santa Barbara Youth Ultimate:
Santa Barbara Youth Ultimate organizes adult and youth Ultimate Frisbee leagues, tournaments, camps, and clinics. Our mission is to collaboratively build a community emphasizing accessibility, relationships, and engagement through learning, playing, and teaching the sport of Ultimate.
