How Frisbee is the National Sport

One of DC most famous locations is "The Mall"...a long stretch of grass flanked by multiple museums, with the Capital at one end and the Lincoln Memorial at the other. In the center stands the the Washington Monument (I got my ticket to visit in the mail today, ha!). The Mall is a nice stretch of grass available for all sorts of activities.

Saturday I ate my lunch at The Mall (on The Mall? in The Mall? Uhhh....). While my favorite Bollywood song charged through my Ipod, I enjoyed a feast of visual amusement. I watched the tourist in Chicos wandering up and down hitting the sites, taking photos with the Capital or Monument in the background. Many attempting to humor their screaming children with promises of treats or threats of naps. There were a few bikers (also in Chicos), a few isolated individuals attempted to make political statements (mostly in dreadlocks)...and then there were the athletes (also frequently in Chicos).

I've been on The Mall quite a few times. It's taken a while to crash all the museums. I've always been amused by what people do on that grass. If it was France, Kenya, Zambia, or most places on earth, soccer enthusiasts would be kicking a spotted ball around. It it had been Zim or Pak, the insane cricket freaks would be standing bored in white outfits waiting to dash after a red cork ball. But this is America. And the only sport people engage in on the green Mall is....Frisbee. Once I saw baseball which was drawing a sizable crowd, but that's it. I was amazed, and humored.

I wondered what this said about the American culture. I deduced several good things. It's easy to join in on Frisbee. It's easy to learn. It's easy to play. The equipment is super cheap. It's sociable and you can talk while you play. Anyone of any age, size, gender, ethnic background can join in. There's some skill involved in Frisbee but it's hard to feel like an idiot no one's left feeling like an idiot. Frisbee enthusiasts play the more sophisticated, "ultimate Frisbee" which because I've never played, I can't in good faith blog about it but I've heard is fantabulous.

Thus, through inductive reasoning, I theorize that Frisbee is the national sport. Now like good capitalists we need to develop the perfectly shaped Frisbee, the right color, the right squeezable grips on the sides, and then outsource production to Asia and sell them en mass on Amazon.com. It's the American way. Go find a Frisbee. Embrace it. It's a pretty fun sport.