Throughout my 15 years playing ultimate, I’ve noticed that a deep personal connection to the sport is pervasive throughout our community. I’ve also noticed that the intensity of the sport creates limited opportunities for us to reflect on and share our experiences with each other, leaving some players to deal with things like injuries, personal losses, mental health issues, etc. on their own. That’s why I created Ultimate Ink. Ultimate Ink showcases Ultimate-inspired tattoos, tattoo designs, and the stories behind them. Stories feature a wide variety of topics such as substance abuse, relationships and sexuality, mental health, parenting, and grieving the loss of a teammate. The platform explores how these subjects intersect with who the storytellers are on the field. So far, we’ve received over 100 stories from athletes all over the world. Check out the project on Instagram (@ultimateink) and read more about it in Ultiworld.
I’ve found that talking to people in person is the best way to prompt personal experiences, especially about more serious topics— Ultimate Ink received about 30 submissions from the people we talked to about the project at Wildwood alone. I’m looking to cover my expenses from this project and expand the scope to reach a diverse range of storytellers. Thank you for supporting Ultimate Ink!
