极限飞盘的多彩历史 The Colorful History of Frisbee

　　你知道吗?“Frisbee”这个词由“Frisbie”演变而来,原本是一家馅饼生产公司的名字。也许当年想到用锡盘装馅饼的人也没料到这个设计会衍生出一项广受欢迎的运动……
　　
　　The Frisbee that many people know today was not exactly the same Frisbee that was thrown and played years ago. Back then, it was believed that students played Frisbee using pie tins. The design of the Frisbee evolved through the years until it finally settled with the plastic design.
　　Back then, Frisbee had a different spelling but it was pronounced the same way. It was spelled “Frisbie” and it was derived from[由来,衍生] a company name. The Frisbie Pie Company was a very popular pie-producing company which supplied to most of the school and university campuses in New England注1. The pie company operated from 1871 to 1958, and the pies were put in pie tins with the name of the company at the bottom of the tin.
　　Since the students loved their pies, they were left with lots of pie tins. The students were able to come up with a game they called “Frisbie-ing” and the pie tins were in turn called “Frisbie.”
　　Walter Frederick Morrison made a new version of the pie tins and made a plastic Frisbie, but he did not call it by the name coined by the college students. Instead, he called it Pluto Platter[大浅盘] because during that time, UFOs were very popular and intriguing[引起兴趣的].
　　Indeed, his Pluto Platter was a sure hit and many people patronized[惠顾] it. Later on, he had it patented[取得专利] by the name Morrison Slope.
　　The Pluto Platter became extremely popular as a toy and Wham-O注2 took an interest in it. They convinced Morrison to sell his rights, and after that, the company produced the toy and called it by the same name. The sales declined after several years, so the company wanted to re-introduce it to the market. They conducted thorough research about the toy until they finally came to know that it was originally called “Frisbie.”
　　When they finally decided to re-introduce the Pluto Platter, they called it Frisbie and it was popularized as a sport or recreational[消遣的] game. They called the game “Frisbie-ing,” but at present, it is called Ultimate Frisbee. Wham-O was also the one who changed “Frisbie” to “Frisbee,” so that they could avoid possible lawsuits in the future.
　　If you try to analyze[分析] it, there is no specific date or a certain inventor. The years mentioned and the companies and individuals involved are all part of the sport’s improvement. The history tells so much about the Frisbee and you can learn a lot from it. You can’t disregard[忽视] any of the companies or individuals involved in the evolution of the Frisbee because if one of them were missing, Frisbee would not exist today.
　　In order to better understand Frisbee, you must first know about its history. Now that you know its colorful history, you will surely enjoy playing it with your friends.
　　
　　今天人们熟知的飞盘与多年前被扔来扔去的飞盘是两码事。人们相信当年的学生玩飞盘游戏时用的是装馅饼的锡盘。多年来,飞盘的设计不断改进,最终固定为塑料盘。
　　那时候,“飞盘”这个单词的拼写和现在不同,但读音一样。它写作“福瑞斯比”(Frisbie),源自一家公司的名字。福瑞斯比馅饼店是当时很受欢迎的馅饼生产公司,为新英格兰地区的大多数学校和大学供应馅饼。这家馅饼公司的业务从1871年持续到1958年。他们将馅饼装在锡盘里,盘子底下印有公司的名字。
　　学生们很喜爱他们的馅饼,所以留有很多装馅饼的锡盘。他们于是想出了一种叫“福瑞斯比”的游戏,而装馅饼的锡盘就被叫做“福瑞斯比”了。
　　沃尔特·弗雷德里克·莫里森制造了新型的锡盘,那是一个塑料“福瑞斯比”,但他并没有用学生起的名字为其命名。莫里森把它叫做“冥王星浅盘”,因为那时候飞碟很受欢迎,也很有吸引力。确实,他的“冥王星浅盘”大受欢迎,惠顾者众。后来,他以“莫里森斜面”这个名字申请了专利。
　　作为玩具的“冥王星浅盘”卖个满堂红,惠姆奥公司(音译)看中了它,并说服莫里森出售其版权。自那以后,这种玩具就由惠姆奥公司生产,保留原有名字。几年后,飞盘销量下降,于是公司想将它重新推出市场。他们对这个玩具进行了深入研究,最终发现它最初叫“福瑞斯比”。
　　他们最终决定把“冥王星浅盘”重新投放市场,并把它叫做“福瑞斯比”。后来“福瑞斯比”被普及为一项运动或休闲游戏。人们把这种游戏称为“福瑞斯比”,但现在,它被称作极限飞盘(Ultimate Frisbee)。惠姆奥公司还把名字“Frisbie”改成“Frisbee”,避免以后可能发生法律纠纷。
　　如果你分析一下整个过程,(就会发现)这当中没有具体的时间或发明者。其中提到的年份,以及涉及的公司和个人都是这项运动演变历程的组成部分。这段历史涉及很多有关飞盘的知识,你可以从中开拓见闻。你无法忽略任何一家公司或个人,因为如果缺少了任何一环,飞盘将不会存活至今。
　　为了更好地了解飞盘,你必须先知道它的历史。既然现在你已经知道了它多姿多彩的历史,你一定会享受到与朋友玩飞盘的乐趣。
　　
　　注1:新英格兰是美国东北的一个地区,由现在的缅因州、新罕布什尔州、佛蒙特州、马萨诸塞州、康涅狄格州和罗德岛组成。
　　注2:Wham-O是位于美国加利福尼亚州的玩具生产公司,它因成功推出众多广受欢迎的玩具而闻名,其中包括呼啦圈和飞盘等。