Men's Texas Hall of Fame By-laws
Mission
The Men’s Texas Ultimate (Frisbee) Hall of Fame exists to recognize and honor Texas Ultimate Athletes, Coaches, Teams, and Contributors for their achievements and contributions to the sport.
HOF Founding Members
The Founding Members of the HOF are Neal Dambra (Houston Aerodynamics, Elvis), Stuart
Farquharson (UT Ultimate), Tom MacNiven (SMU Ultimate), and Greg Clark (Austin and UT
Ultimate).
Initial Committee
The initial committee includes the 4 Founding Members and individuals selected from the first 7 year era (1978-1985) who started city and/or college teams in the state of Texas, and/or laid the foundation for such teams, with a high level of play and spirit of the game.
Initial Committee: Neal Dambra (Houston Aerodynamics, Elvis), Stuart Farquharson (UT
Ultimate), Tom MacNiven (SMU Ultimate), Greg Clark (Austin and UT Ultimate), Jim Gerencser and Steve Hagan (Dallas Sky Pilots), Kevin Sullivan and Chris Luckay (Texas A&M Ultimate), Ronnie Eason (Austin Ether Bunnies), Maco Newton and Mark Kendall (NTSU Ultimate), Gary Greivenkamp (Clear Lake Ultimate).
Nomination Criteria
HOF nominees can become members for their contributions in one or multiple different categories including: Founders, Players, Teams, Coaches, and Contributors.
In the Players category, nominees must have competed at a level higher than most players in their era and must have demonstrated “Spirit of the Game.”
In the Coaches category, nominees must have contributed sustained, meaningful contributions as a Coach to the growth and success of notable Ultimate teams within the state of Texas.
In the Contributors category, nominees may include photographers, tournament organizers, youth organizers and/or innovators who have made sustained, meaningful contributions to the growth and success of Ultimate within the state of Texas.
Process
Initial Process: The Hall of Fame is seeded with a founding set of members. In order to establish an initial critical mass of HOF members, the initial committee took two key steps: (1) they nominated and voted on a set of second era members from 1986-1992; and (2) they nominated and voted on a small set of clear first-ballot members from the third, fourth, and fifth eras. The purpose of reaching these future eras ahead of their time is to align the Texas Hall of Fame with the national Ultimate Hall of Fame. This catch-up step is referred to as a
“splash” induction round.
Current Process: 7 year eras are considered sequentially with no hard limit (persons, plus teams, etc.) per era with induction ceremonies occurring at least once per year. “Look back” nominations are also accepted for any past era HOF candidate.
Current Process: For each 7-year era, nominations are open publicly and are community-driven. Each 7-year era is considered sequentially.
Criteria
Nominations should include information on an individual’s playing career in Texas and
elsewhere (role in team wins, College and Club Regionals, Nationals, Worlds), off the field
contributions, spirit of the game, directing/hosting tournaments, and coaching.
Voting
One vote per committee member for new nominees, a two-thirds majority (66%) for induction of a nominated candidate. Voting members are allowed to abstain from voting on individual candidates. There will be a 3-month nomination period before the selection process begins.
What made Ultimate different from the beginning was not just the disc. It was the culture. The sport grew around athletic competition, creativity, teamwork, and self-officiating — values that became central to what is now known as Spirit of the Game.
Timelines
- Annual Meetings
- Nominations and Voting Timelines
- By-Law Revisions
HOF Website
HOF will be virtual/on-line.
Website will include bios of members and information on Texas Ultimate History and Teams.
A date will be announced on the website for members and non-members to make nominations for each 7-year era during a nomination period.