Tried out the GD system on 10-13 year olds today. I called 2 games in a row, with the first being a heel-toe slot tight on the catcher, the second the GD system. I believe the second game was my better one. I had a much better view of the plate. It took about an inning and a half to get used to the new look, but I am sticking with it. With this age kid, the ball is an arc, and a little difficult to judge where it is dropping at first.

I did not get hit with any past balls except one that skimmed me on the batter side, and took a foul in the face mask.

This stance is definitely a keeper. It seems like I have a lot more time to judge the pitch, and being back 3' off the catcher makes it easier to view the zone. I am very happy with the game I called.

Thanks Carl and others.

I didn't want to be left behind, so I gave it a try tonight for the first time. 13-14 yr olds. All the same comments as others have offered. Great view. Really stable by setting up early. My zone was a bit higher than usual, probably a good thing. By being farther back, I was not worried about interfering with catcher.

Two concerns. If you have a big catcher, do you ever blocked out? Also, I'm not sure about how to put hands on my knees. A little ackward with the pads.

I believe I will continue with the experiment.

Jay

You should be resting your hands, palms down, above your knee on your lower thigh, not pushing down on your pads. see the childress articles on childress.officiating.com or other GD posts in the forum

I got assigned some 9-10 and 11-12 games so I thought it would be good to experiment. The 11-12 games went fine, after I began lowering my seat at TOP to take the strain off my neck. In the 9-10 game I got hit in the right arm, the mask, and even got hit by a bat upside my neck. Setting up way behind the catcher makes it tough to get the low pitch on the 9-10 year olds. I'm not sold yet, but maybe I try again with some older players.

I used it today with 12-13 year olds again. Much better with the faster pitchers. I called an excellent game and even the losing coaches told me my strike zone was right on the money.

I have done 3 games with it and not taken a foul ball yet....I am getting lucky.