Hello to all

[BlueZone]

I would like to say hello and introduce myself. My name is Rick and I do most of my umpiring in Little League Baseball and Softball in Florida District 17. I also (when asked nicely) support the travel ball leagues and I even got pulled into a HS JV game because one of the umpire got sick right before the game and I was friends with the PU for the game.

I got into umpiring by asking 1 rediculous question. While attending a mandatory emergency coaches meeting when my son was in T-Ball that revolved around the district wide umpire shortage, I raised my hand (1st mistake) and asked, "What do you have to do to get certified as an umpire?" The very aggressive moderator of the meeting with a big pionty finger said, " YOUR AN UMPIRE". At the time in our league the majors division coaches had a very bad reputation for being a big pain in the ass for umpires, yet I agreed to give it a try and I guess I did OK. That was the day I realized I needed to get out of coaching and become an umpire. 10 years have passed and I am finally out of coaching for good. I am looking forward to geting to know everyone and learning more about what I already know everything about, (right).

Rick

[JaxRolo]

Welcome. Good to have you!

[mstaylor]

Welcome to the board, a pretty good place to learn.

[Stan W.]

welcome to the site....you will never regret signing on.......

[Umpire in Chief]

Glad to get you from the dark side.