We had our first Ultimate Frisbee gathering of the year this afternoon. The weekend forecast looked a little more Spring-like than it actually turned out to be (we had fat wet snow flakes falling this morning, melted within a couple hours), but the old summer gang showed up at Franklin Park nonetheless. Cleats on, Frisbees a-flying. The air was cold enough to sting Frisbee-struck fingers during our warmup tosses (and my hand and knee scars were glowing a robust purple), but once we started playing the clothing layers were quickly shed. We played 4-on-4 for a couple hours, plenty long enough to remind the legs and lungs what it feels like to sprint around outdoors again. As I stood in the endzone after a sliding catch, grinning at my mud-caked leg and happily picking at the flecks of grass wedged in my socks, I was reminded again why I love playing sports and why riding a stationary bike at the gym all winter is a sad substitute.