[HoopsRefJunior]

First, I'll explain that I am in Georgia where the Georgia High School Association offers about a dozen training camps for officials scheduled throughout the summer months. These camps provide high school teams an opportunity to play games and the officials who work the games receive training from a variety of clinicians as well as evaluations.

I have attended four of these camps over the past three summers and I will admit that my perspective and opinions about this process have changed as I have gained exerience.

I think the process is intimidating for two types of officials. The first is the newer official. Most are receiving three-person crew mechanics training "on the fly" at camp. This is because most have "cut their teeth" in officiating by working in two-person crews. The camps I have attended generally take this into consideration and place newer officials with more veteran crews.

The second type of official that I think is intimidated by the process is the long-time veteran with limited skills. I've worked several camp games with this type of official. They are generally resistant to change and resistant to constructive criticism. They also tend to offer more judgement about their clinician/evaluator than they offer help to the newer official(s) on their crews.

The overall experience for me has been best when I've been assigned with at least one veteran official who is also eager to learn and get better. Since that is the type official I want to always be, it excites me to share experiences, opinions, and the floor with guys who are always seeking new information, techniques, and methods.

I've learned as much or more at camp from my fellow officials and watching guys work games as I have from the actual games I've worked. As a result, I've learned to really enjoy the process and the experience.

What kind of summer camp experiences are you guys (y'all for other Southerners) having in your state?