I had a discussion the other day with a senior member of my association concerning my advancement as an amatuer umpire. I was told that I have a lot of talent and have the makings to advance quickly. It was recommended that I attend a camp and start getting some advanced training on mechanics, philosophy, etc.

I am aware of the 2 pro schools and Bible's weekend camp. Are there others out there that the forum has attended? Where did you go to find information (I haven't been able to find anything on Bible's)? What do you feel was the best "bang" for your buck? Any camps that you do not recommend? What kind of costs can you expect to incur for a quality camp?

Thanks in advance!

I think Jon isn't running his camp anymore.

Look at your state's (and maybe neighboring states, if you live near a border) HS association website to see if they have a list of camps in your area.

I would go on the net and look under "umpire schools" or "umpire clinics". There are usually a flurry of them held in February for about a week all over the country (I know of one near San Antonio that I am planning to attend next year), and I am sure there is one out by you. It's been a while since I looked at it, but I remember thinking the cost was pretty reasonable.

Alternatively, organizations like Gerry Davis Sports can bring the school to you if your league wants to foot the bill and have all of the umps trained at once.

Two clinics are in the southeast. The Southern Umpires Camp is excellent (I went last year). It is based in Atlanta and always has pros on hand to work with students on plate work and Paul Nauert and Brian Hale from Wendelstadt run the field work. It is 4 days. Ed Hickock runs a camp in Florida around the same time in Feb with a number of minor umpires. Jim Evans has his week (which is said to be one of the top short programs), the first week of Jan. in Fla. if you want to go further north Matt Hollowell runs the Northeast Umpire Clinic in NJ around the same time in Feb. He uses some of the newer pro umps and some minor leaguers. It also was excellent (I went this year to their first camp). There are also a few others around (Virginia). Referee mag has ads in the back.

Ed H

Check out Jim Evans' one week "Desert Classic"