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When is it time to hang it up?


BrianC14
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1 hour ago, maven said:

If you're asking when it is time to stop officiating a particular sport, no one answer will apply to each official's situation. Sometimes health, age, fitness, interest, or other priorities make stopping the right option.

Health:  good to excellent overall, though more recently, it takes longer to recuperate from what used to be aches and pains that I could ignore.  This past season I was finding myself reaching for the ibuprofen before AND after games.     I incurred an injury to my toe that I got during a clinic, and it still hasn't healed after two weeks. :o

 

Age:  Not getting any younger; next one is the big 6-Oh.  (But I hear some folks saying that 60 is the new 40... or was that the other way around)? ;)

Interest:  I don't think I'd ever not be interested.  The problem is the political atmosphere where I am.   :(

Other priorities:  Family and job, which will always have to come first.   College in looming for the only child in about 4.5 years.   :o

I see your point though;  of course it is up to the wants and needs of the individual, just wondering about input from others in a similar point in life, etc.  

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I have one reason to keep umpiring. My grandfather umpired in 1930 and there has been a member of my family (uncle, father, cousin, brother) umpiring since then. As it stands right now, I am the last of the line. I want to make to 2030, I'll be 73. There will b 100 years of Sansevere umpiring.

All that other stuff is a factor, too.

 

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I've always said I'll stop umpiring/officiating when it isn't fun anymore.  When/if there comes at time where I don't look forward to stepping onto the field, court or rink, I know I'm done.

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1 hour ago, MUAump2 said:

I've always said I'll stop umpiring/officiating when it isn't fun anymore.  When/if there comes at time where I don't look forward to stepping onto the field, court or rink, I know I'm done.

For me? This ^^^^^^

I recall a few years back as the HS season was winding to a close... after what seemed like the thousandth game in a row, I recall thinking that this was becoming a job. Thankfully the season ended and after a few weeks off the passion returned.

If it is not fun and you are feeling it is a grind? Hang it up for a bit... see if you long for it, or do you not even notice it is gone? Just find something to stay busy and have fun with it. 

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My goal for the past decade was to do "better" baseball and not just "more" baseball. There was a time prior to that when I umpired any game that was played with a white ball and red stitches......Pretty much I've been able to do that. 

I was attending a Sunday double-header as a fan when I noticed the crew contained Umpires that I knew well. Both umpires were senior citizens and had retired years ago from any competitive baseball. I spoke to them pre-game asked them how they were doing. It was great to see them. I learned a great deal from them back in my early HS career.

Both of them said they were "working their way down the ladder and out"....meaning umpiring younger baseball on smaller fields.......I wished them good luck. I then witnessed the saddest 2 games I can remember. Age and infirmity had robbed these two war horses of everything. And the coaches and parents were brutal to them.  Between games another umpire from my association and I went to them to check up on them. We asked them if we could do a little free 4 man with them for old times sake.....NO, NO, they had it......  piece of cake.....

We left them with a couple extra water bottles and went back to the stands. My association mate said " those guys used to be really good umpires" 

Right then I knew when I was going to call it quits......I will not "work my way down and out"..........     

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On 9/16/2017 at 6:41 PM, BrianC14 said:

Interest:  I don't think I'd ever not be interested.  The problem is the political atmosphere where I am.   :(

 

This is such a shame... I've seen it posted here any number of times and in person that the politics drives out good umpires. Unfortunately in many instances Umpire Associations are political beasts. 

For me the day will come when I no longer enjoy umpiring. Umpiring is fun, it often serves as an escape for me from work, family or other stresses in my life. I have a couple of hours where it is just me , my partners and baseball and the rest of the world doesn't exist. When it feels like a job to me I'll need to re-evaluate why I'm doing it. 

I have a very good friend who is "very seasoned" and previously worked D-I and would occasionally get called to fill in at the local MiLB park if they needed an ump quickly. Now that he's beyond retirement age and has two new knees, he cant work the same level of baseball, but he is still umpiring. Primarily coach/ machine pitch but loves every minute of it and he'll be doing it as long as he's physically able.

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When it's not fun anymore, primarily.   Many factors can make it not fun, including politics.

This is why I'm not coaching anymore, and won't unless I get the itch again.  

Time is finite.  There are only 168 hours in a week.

50 go to sleep.  50 go to the day job.  You better do something you enjoy with the other 68.  I was putting 40 into coaching for four months of the year...20 another six months.

If that set of hours becomes a job, and a job you don't need to do to pay the bills, your time is better spent on something else you'll enjoy.

Besides that, I remember a lot of athletes talk about their retirement decision, but John Elway's sticks with me.

He wanted to come back to try to win a third consecutive Super Bowl, and he wanted to play the game he loved.  But he no longer wanted to do the off season workouts, the practices, or all the other stuff he needed to do to play at the level he expected...and continuing half assed would have been a disservice to his team mates, coaches, supporters, etc.

So, for some it's time to hang it up when you're not willing to pay the price, before and after, to do the job right.  If you're not willing to keep learning, not willing to fight traffic to and from, if you're not willing to do the paperwork the next day, then it's likely not worth it.

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Some guys stay too long, others leave too early. I've quit officiating both baseball and basketball twice over the years because it had become a grind; I finally got the right work/life balance down and enjoy working both sports right now. I've found when I work too much I start to get tired of it. 

I've seen older guys (70's) who can still call a great game and others who should have retired years ago. There is an umpire in my area who is pushing 80 and still works a full D3 college and HS schedule every year. He can't move as well as he used to but he still gets around well enough and calls a really good game. His mind is still sharp and he knows the rules better than anyone around here. He should absolutely still be working if he wants to. He gave up varsity basketball about 10 years ago because he felt like he was no longer able to work that level effectively anymore; he still works jr high and jv games in basketball. On the other hand I've seen a few other guys in their 70's who clearly can't call a game anymore. Things just move too fast for them and they get confused; they can't move well enough to be in good position. It's sad to watch those guys and even sadder to work with them; most of them don't know they do a terrible job because nobody tells them.

I have an agreement with a guy who is a good friend and also my baseball partner for many of my games. We've both always been brutally honest with each other about our performance on the field. We've both agreed that when the time comes where we think the other guys skills have declined to where he's starting to embarrass himself we will tell him he needs to hang it up. I'd much rather have a friend and fellow umpire tell me I stink and need to retire than make a fool of myself on the diamond. 

That said I hope to stay healthy enough to work games long past my retirement from my real job (another 9 years). I lift weights, run half marathons and stay active so I see no reason I couldn't umpire well into my 70's if I'm still enjoying it. I think umpiring will be even more fun when I no longer have to get up and go to work in the morning after working a doubleheader the previous night.

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For the past several years I have asked myself the same question. And every March my panties get all in a bunch and I'm back at it.  

Selfish reasons: I do it for the love of it.  It keeps me fit.  It is something I have worked at and have become very good at doing.  I am well respected in the community and enjoy the mens night out at our weekly meetings.  

Real reasons: The community, the youth, the parents, the coaches, the schools and baseball need us!  Continue to educate as long as you possibly can, which is the reason I began officiating 20 yrs ago!

You can go golfing on Saturday:cool:

 

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