Ultimate Frisbee Tournament
Where :: Playa Grande, Puerto del Carmen
When :: November 14th – 16th, times tbc.
The International Ultimate Frisbee Tournament returns to the main beach of Playa Grande in Puerto del Carmen from November 14th to 16th. And if your memories of Frisbee are little more than chucking a plastic disc around in your local park then this version comes as something of an eye-opener. As Ultimate Frisbee requires a high degree of skill and athleticism.
Ultimate is the latest sport craze sweeping the States and is basically a bizarre hybrid of American football and netball. But instead of using a ball the players use what they like to call a flying disc (a Frisbee to the rest of us).
Two teams of seven play on a 64 metre long rectangular pitch. At each end there’s an 18-metre zone (end zone) where goals are scored. A goal is scored when a player receives the flying disc in this zone.
Perhaps the most unique thing about Ultimate is that there are no referees. Instead the game is self governing, with the players taking responsibility for fair play. A Corinthian code that obviously wouldn’t pass muster with your aspiring Wayne Rooney’s. But which has apparently proved more than adequate for resolving disputes right up to world championship level.
Unsurprisingly, the sport was born in the US, originating as a college game back in the late 1960´s when it was started as a bit of a joke by non-jock nerds at Columbia High – who came up with the idea of what they then called Frisbee Football.
Today, Ultimate is played in 42 countries with an estimated 100,000 participants worldwide and has already featured as a medal sport at the World Games. Head down to Playa Grande and check it out first hand.
Competition times are still being confirmed – contact the Tourist Information Office in Puerto del Carmen on 0034 928 515337 for more details.
Rave At The Cave
Where :: Bar La Cueva, Oasis de Nazaret
When :: Saturday November 8th, midnight onwards
Leading local DJ´s Hugo Cipres and Daniel Palacios will be dusting off their decks at Bar La Cueva in Nazaret this coming Saturday 8th from midnight onwards.
La Cueva lies in the grounds of the up market restaurant LagOmar – once the home of Hollywood film star Omar Sharif. And provides a highly atmospheric backdrop for the tunes of these two local favourites. Entrance is free of charge.
Getting To Grips
The 26th Championship of Lucha Canaria, the ancient art of Canarian wrestling, gets underway from 31st October, with competitive wrestling bouts organised for the months of November, December and January around the island.
The action all takes place in a ‘terrero’ – or sand covered ring – which has been specifically developed for Lucha. The objective of each bout is for the wrestler to unbalance his opponent so that a part of their body, other than their feet, touches the sand.
It is believed that the Spanish upon their colonisation of the islands inherited Canarian wrestling from the Guanche, with the earliest known mention dating back to 1420. Lucha Canaria was one of the first forms of wrestling to formalise the rules of engagement, with a written code of conduct inscribed in 1872.
The next meetings will be on 6th November in Tinajo, 7th November in Playa Honda and 8th November in Haria from 21.00 every evening. For a full list of upcoming matches and profiles of the leading stars of Canarian wrestling, visit the Lucha Canaria website.
Exhibition at the Foundation
Where :: Cesar Manrique Foundation
When :: From November 13th
From 13th November, a new exhibition will be inaugurated at the Fundación César Manrique featuring a selection of paintings by the renowned Spanish artist Godofredo Ortega Muñoz. Entitled The Absolute Sea, the exhibition will run through until 25th January 2009.
Muñoz was one of the most influential Spanish landscape painters of his day and has been compared to greats such as Cezanne. Despite familial hopes that he would train as a pharmacist, he instead left home to become a painter in Madrid, serving as an apprentice at the Museum of Reproductions and later at the world famous Prado, before going on to win national acclaim during the 1950’s and 60’s – when he was awarded an honorary degree from Barcelona National Fine Arts School in 1968.
In 2004 a Foundation in his name was created posthumously in his hometown in the province of Extramadura.
Amongst the many subjects Ortega Muñoz chose to depict were the unusual landscapes found on Lanzarote, especially in the La Geria region where geometric patterns such as the dry stone wall ‘zocos’ that surround fig trees and grape vines captured his imagination.
The César Manrique Foundation is open daily from 10.00 to 18.00. Admission is €8 for adults, free for children under 12 years.
Hot Wheels
Where :: Gran Karting, Puerto del Carmen
When :: November 15th and 16th
The Canarian World Cup Go Karting competition takes place on the 15th and 16th of November for all those budding Lewis Hamilton’s out there. It’s taking place at the Gran Karting Club, which is situated just outside Puerto del Carmen. Saturday 15th will see the classification of all participants whilst Sunday 16th is the day of the Grand Final.
