Bigdog

Hey all, The top three I can think of(in no particular alphabetical order): 1. Gerry Davis patent leather 2. New Balance 450's 3. Tanel 360's Jim at Ump-Attire.com is a great guy with a great business. VERY customer oriented and willing to talk to you if you have any questions. Bigdog:cool:

Hey all, I know what you mean, I would have loved to start umpiring when I was in my teens. Look at the bright side, hopefully, you are more level headed now than you were a long time ago and your age might get you a little more respect when talking with coaches than a new 20 something year old would get(IF you know your rules!). Not many coaches can come up to us 40 something umpires with the "look here, son" type of attitude. Bigdog:cool:

Hey all, If you do HS ball, check out these 2009 NFHS Rule changes. If your association still won't let you go darker, I highly recommend Honig's pants. I like the feel and quality of all their uniform pieces that I have come across. Bigdog:cool:

Hey all, I personally will not buy any more heather gray pants, only the dark gray. As far as the brand/supplier, I use the Honig's poly wool plate pants and their new Ultimate Combo pants for the bases. They are the same color and the plate pants hang terrific since the fabric weight is a little heavier than your standard polyester material. Great comfort and look with NO FADING TO PINK!!! My second choice would be the GD charcoal pants because a friend of mine has them and I like the look of them, just not as much as the Honig's. The Smitty pants are basically a darker version of the heather gray pants. Same weight(MAYBE a hair lighter) and not quite as dark as the GD or Honig's. I do have some of these pants because I tried to save some money and now I don't really wear them. Bigdog:cool:

Hey all, I especially like how they have things on their weather maps that are physically impossible. Bigdog:cool:

Hey all, WAIT A MINUTE!! I RESEMBLE THAT REMARK!!! Ok, not anymore I don't, but I used to be a weather forecaster when I was in the Air Force. There is a BIG difference in military and civilian forecasters. MOST civilians are/were guessers, military guys and gals aren't. That being said, TV WEATHERMAN ARE THE WORST!!:rolleyes: Bigdog:cool:

Hey all, When I first started, I literally read the rule book from cover to cover. It took a good amount of time because I kept falling asleep:( (It is a great cure for insomnia!!), and I had to keep looking up the definitions of words I wasn't sure of. I then got the best advice on how to read the book: START with rule 2.00 Definition of Terms. Don't go on until you know that rule well, THEN read the rest of the book. Then, do a lot of game and learn how to apply those newly learned rules. Reread rules covering calls that were missed, (by you OR your partner), or rulings that you have questions about. Every year, I reread the rule book over AFTER I make sure I read the rule changes for the upcoming year. Bigdog:cool:

Hey all, NOT EVEN CLOSE! I was the UIC for our LL for two years and the major/minor league rep this year. With the UIC being new this year, I had the unofficial title of rules interpreter. During our managers meetings before the season started, when ever the managers had a rule explained to them that changed, was a point of emphasis, etc,... , that the didn't understand or think was "right", they would tell each other that they'll just figure it out when they get on the field. Then they wonder why the umpires are being so hard on them and calling the rules by the book, and why the younger age groups of players don't do crap when compared to other All Star teams. SOME coaches are just straight out IDIOTS that are only doing it for their own or their kids egos. Or is it just me? Bigdog:cool:

Hey all, I hate when that happens! I know and occasionally work with a guy who makes up his own signals during games. His IFF signal went from touching his ear to touching his nose to touching his belt buckle, then finally acknowledging everyone else's signal for ANYTHING with rubbing the edge of the bill of his hat with his index finger. Bigdog:cool:

Hey all, Nice pic, Kyle! (Or should I say Kyle's wife?) Stance looks real solid. Bigdog:cool:

Hey all, All I have to say is "THANK GOD FOR ASPIRIN AND MOTRIN!!!":D;) Bigdog:cool:

Hey all, I don't care what anyone else says, GO HARD SHELL for your cp. It will be well worth the investment, especially if you want to move up to "higher" levels of baseball. Remember the lower the level of baseball you call, the more likely you are to be hit because the catchers don't quite realize that it's not just a title, it's a job description! Bigdog:cool:

Hey all, The plate is not harder than the bases, and the bases are not harder than the plate, but the plate is where you have MANY more decisions to be made. I think that the plate is harder PHYSICALLY than the bases, but that is about it. Bigdog:cool:

Hey all, There are only two reasons for being outside on LL mechanics: 1: the size of the field (some of the 12yo's can hit!) 2: to be able to see then enforce the penalty for leaving the base early (NOT necessarily in that order.) The rest of the mechanics are basically the same. Bigdog:cool:

Hey all, No Febreeze, but I do let my gear air out, the bag that I have it all in has a mesh top. Whenever I feel it needs it, I just wipe everything down with cleaning wipes and a dry towel or paper towels. Bigdog:cool:

Hey all, When I first started, I used the scissors. After one year, I quit doing that and went to in the slot, heal to toe. I tried to get to the top of the strike zone, but it seems like, at least in the LL that I do, the kids are a lot shorter than when I played. That plus being 6'4", made it kind of difficult. I lock in by putting my slot hand on the top of my calf in a fist, or behind my thigh, depending on the age group I am calling. It not only locks me into a set height, it also helps protect that hand. My other hand is directly behind F2's back, not touching him, but to help gauge his movement. Bigdog:cool:

Hey all, I can't advise you on camps in your area since I'm a little too far west for that, but Referee Magazine is a good reference magazine to start with. That being said, I believe the information that has helped me the most is talking with better and more experienced umpires than myself (4 years), checking in on this and other forums, looking for articles from people such as Carl Childress, and getting on the field as much as possible. Experience will give you knowledge, knowledge will give you confidence. Oh yeah, bury your head in the appropriate rule book! Another good training device is your TV. Watching the umpires in MLB games, the recent CWS, and what other games are out there for mechanics and timing. Even though you can't hear a lot of what is being said, you can still see how their body language is being used , in a game management sort of way. Bigdog:cool:

Hey all, You forgot DON'T SUCK! Bigdog:cool:

Hey all, I write substitutions, (#/innings/outs entered), pitching changes, and for LL, not eligible for catching. I use a separate card for trips/conferences. Bigdog:cool:

Hey all, Steve, next thing you will be saying is there is/isn't any Santa Claus! Bigdog:cool:

Hey all, SDS, WELCOME, I think you will like it here. Bigdog:cool:

Hey all, On the fields that I have/do umpire at, the fans seem to run from baseballs coming their way, EXCEPT the little kids who want to take an out of play foul ball to the snack bar for a treat of some sort! Bigdog:cool:

Hey all, PU should take all tag ups at 3rd base. Plus base coach won't be watching what PU does, just what BU does. Bigdog:cool:

Hey all, You mean that there was no coach yelling at the runner to get back on the base? I think it would be beneficial for the player to start watching for the umpire's call or telling him to return to first. Bigdog:cool:

Hey all, I would definitely go with wool, unless a majority of the other umpires you work with have the mesh. As for cleaning the wool, I use a cap buddy like the one on the top. I run it through the dishwasher, with soap, without dishes, on the top rack. When it is done, I put it in the dryer on an air dry setting. I have had my hats for going on 4 years, and they look new after they have been cleaned. Bigdog:cool: