Summer League games will be officially cancelled under the following conditions:

1. Rain is falling steadily at 3:30pm; and/or
2. Environment Canada forecasts rain to continue into the evening; and/or
3. It has rained very heavily during the day resulting in 'standing' water (the City and School boards will dictate the prohibition); and/or
4. Environment Canada issues a Severe Thunderstorm/Lightning watch or warning: and/or
5. The General Manager applies certain discretion to the forecast

At 3:30 pm of that day, the decision will be made and as quickly as can be accessed, a banner will be posted on the TUC homepage when games are canceled. At this point, all games are officially cancelled. If the League knowingly allows games to be played despite the above conditions, TUC can have its permits withdrawn by the City Parks Department and various School boards. In addition, TUC may possibly be held liable for injury or death due to lightning.

Unfortunately, the weather is not a factor the League can control in any way. Yes, ultimate can be played under rain conditions, except for in the presence of lightning. However, we trust you all agree that losing the permits or ruining fields is not worth the cost of playing that game. Every attempt will be made to adhere to the 3:30 pm time. It would be ideal to wait longer or even just before game time to decide, but members have indicated that they require enough time to contact their team members. Consequently, there may be situations where a cancellation has been issued but the weather unpredictably changes by game time.

In 2007 several weeknight games were canceled. Some nights were canceled because the conditions at the time of cancelation were quite inclement and the forecast was for continued and sustained inclement weather. Another night was canceled because we had experienced a large and continuous amount of rain for several days before hand. Although it was sunny at game time, many fields had standing water (rendering them unplayable) and if we had played on them we would have greatly worsened the field conditions. We were also contacted by the school boards on this day with a request to remain off of the fields. Especially that early in the summer, an Ultimate game would destroy the grass roots and the fields would be barren by July.

If weather conditions are such that a Severe Thunder/lightning storm watch is issued and heavy downpour is anticipated, games for that day will be officially cancelled. Should the weather be unpredictable and there is a possibility of the storm blowing over by game time, the opposing captains may want to contact each other and work out a contingency plan. For example, the captains may agree to wait until 5pm, or perhaps show up at the field and decide then, or perhaps reschedule for another day. The reasoning for officially canceling games, aside from the obvious permit and liability issues, is so that a team not wanting to play because of lightning, field damage, or because at 6pm in their part of the city it is storming, they will not be unfairly assessed a default because the opposing team shows up at the field and claims a win. The League insists that captains who do decide to try to play the game, use common sense at the field if rain or lightning does take place. Please don't selfishly lose or destroy a field for the rest of the league so that you can play that one game.

Following a cancellation, if teams affected choose to reschedule the game for another day, the League has a number of fields set aside for uses such as playing make-up games; please contact the TUC office to arrange for a 'make-up game' field.

Please consider that the League does not desire the cancellation of games. The weather is uncontrollable, and for example, it could rain every Tuesday for 5 weeks in a row. Please appreciate that a cancellation is the last option, and is made due to consideration of greater consequences if play is condoned.

Please note that normal rainy conditions are not a reasonable explanation for defaulting a game (when games are not canceled by TUC or conditions are not dangerous).  For an explanation of defaults please read our Default Policy in the policies section.