Looking for an Umpire Camp close within Va or close?

No, I'm not.

Help me find Umpire Camps?
 

Sorry- I am looking to attend a baseball Umpire camp. Do you have any suggestion for me?

Now that was truly funny. Thank you Mr. Byron,
you made my day.

Scott,

Try this link:

www.gmcgriff.com/refonline/camps.html

Not a big fan of this site, but this may help.

Steve

:D Yes, that was funny, mbyron!

Anyody have any advice on what kind of pro school a guy like me could go to if I have no desire to look for a pro contract? I'm already over 50. I want to be the best HS umpire I can be, and would like to work college games eventually. I'm interested in more than a weekend clinic. I'd like the longest school possible without trying to make it a career. Thanks.

Mike

Mike,
Go to either one of the 5-week pro schools, and you'll come out a better umpire. Yes, they teach MLB rules, but those rules are the fundamentals that FED and NCAA and the other codes are based on. Learn the fundamentals first, then the variations at the levels you'll be working. You'll learn solid mechanics and communication, and the greatest thing they instill is confidence. 20 years after I went, though I never got a pro job, I'm working high levels of NCAA and loving it.

JJ

San Diego Steve,

Unless my computer is locked in some sort of time warp, that link appears to be 8 years out of date!

Amazingly enough, I would be interested in the same type of clinic as is the original poster and/or Mike Walsh, in the same geographical region. I can't devote 5 straight weeks to a school, but two or three full week sessions over a period of a few months would not be out of the question for me. Is there anything out there in the mid-Atlantic region?

http://www.umpireacademy.com/flclasic.html

Where do you live, Mike? No offense, but at 50 you don't have a lot of time to "eventually" work college games. You need to get started on that now. You're past the age some conferences will even look at an entry level college umpire.

gotblue?,

I apologize for the ancient link. I didn't go there personally to check it out. I got it from the search engine, saw the name on the link, and figured it was up to date. I should have known when I saw whose site it was that it would be no good. :mad:

Scott,

I live in NC and can mention a couple of the clinics I am aware of. Webb Turner runs the Cape Fear Classic Umpire Camp in Fayetteville NC during February. However, I know that last year's camp was cancelled due to low registration and I have not spoken to Webb regarding the future of the camp. Webb is out of the game now and living in VA and that may affect the future. The website for last year's camp is still up http://www.capefearclassic.com. It's a good clinic and you will learn needed elements of umpiring. Matt Hollowell used to also run a similar series of clinics in NJ called the Northeast Umpires Clinic. They had very positive reviews. Matt is also out of baseball now and I believe he had to cancel his clinic last year also. Tony Thompson runs the Southern Umpires Camp in Atl each Feb also. It's the longest running camp of it's kind so they have to be doing some right :). You can search on Yahoo for the link but it is definitely worth a look. Good luck on your search.

From the little I have gathered, many of the camps are suffering from lack of attendees and I can only think this has to do with the economy being tough right now. It also has not helped that many of the instructors that started these camps or were long time instructors are no longer in professional baseball. Some aren't even umpiring on the amateur level either.

Regards,

Lawrence

Where do you live, Mike? No offense, but at 50 you don't have a lot of time to "eventually" work college games. You need to get started on that now. You're past the age some conferences will even look at an entry level college umpire.
__________________
GB
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No offense taken, Garth. 50 is much better than the alternative. I live in South Jersey. There are a lot of small college opportunities in the area, and a number of medium and large ones, too. I know of a few associations that have college contracts. One will welcome just about anyone, the other requires tryouts and accepts only the best qualified. The latter is the one I'm interested in. I've already done a few college games for pre-season tournaments and fall ball. I realize my age is against me in many ways, but I have a lot of availability and flexibility with my real job. My ideal retirement would be to go out early while I'm still healthy and devote all my time to being an umpire. That's a long shot and not a goal so much as a dream. The goal is to be good enough to do it whether or not the opportunity arises. I'd be fine with honing my skills to the highest degree possible even if I don't get a shot at a higher level. So the question comes down to how to get as good as possible. Thanks.