Inclement Weather
 

I do not know about the rest of you but this Spring has been the worst high school season for umpiring that I have had in quite some years. I have lost 14 baseball games and 2 softball games to inclement weather since April 1st. Mark, Jr., has lost 3 games but he only scheduled about 10 games because of his college class schedule.

The level of games that I lost were freshmen, jr. varsity, and varsity. The game fees for these 16 games totaled over $700.

Mark, Jr., and I got our freshmen game in tonight, but my jr. varsity game for tomorrow morning is questionable.

MTD, Sr.

Yeah, it has rained a LOT here this spring. It seems that there is a chance of rain just about every day. Last week I lost every date that I had on the schedule. I was scheduled Monday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday this week, and Friday is the only one I've lost so far. Tomorrow looks good enough to get three varsity games in though.

I've learned that this is the one reason why I like basketball season. While we do have a couple of cancellations each season for winter weather, 99% of the time you're going to get your games in.

HS season went by with little to-do over weather. One or two rain outs. Now this last round of playoffs have been eventful. Rain, rain and more rain.

Tournaments have been cancelled almost every weekend for the past month or more. Game fees lost to rainouts in tournaments is at least what you've lost, if not closer to $1000. Looks promising for this weekend though.

Last year was my worst season for rain outs. I lost 23 games last year for a total of $1057. This year I have only lost 9 games for $652, which is about normal for this area.

Today is the last of 44 consecutive days scheduled for me. Of those 44 (assuming we play today), 8 were lost to weather, 1 lost due to a scheduling snafu.

Sou Ohio seems to be the same as Toledo area...26 games worked to date, 12 rainouts...I usually figure about 1/4 - 1/5 of my games rained out on avg per season- this is the worst...

Spoke too soon. They got Friday night in. Saturday was delayed, but we squeezed in 4 games in the PM. Sunday the tourney got cancelled before any games could be played.

We need the weather to change patterns - it's nice all week then rains Fri/Sat/Sun - I could live with rain all week and nice Fri/Sat/Sun

I spoke too soon as well. Got to the field Saturday morning for three games...no one around. No phone call from anyone, nothing.

In the process of getting a game fee plus mileage.

Had a ton of rain outs last week, something like 17 rained out games for the season so far.

Our commissioner sent out an email that one of the private school districts may be scrapping their district tournament due to the rain.

I read elsewhere last week that a school district somewhere was just going to kill their regular season where it was and those standings would be their standings for the district. The issue comes because there were plans on making a minimum number of games played which would eliminate the #1 team which was undefeated but got the least amounts of games in. That would suck.

:eek:

Mercy! I'm a piker!

Lots of rain in Virginia this spring. Lost nearly a complete week last week. Threatening rain again tonight, although the weekend was fine.

Cheers,

Bob James

Glad to see...
 

...that it's not about the money for you guys!

Apparently you don't understand the concept of lurking.

SpokaneLurker:

Sports officiating is a profession that is disguised as an avocation. I am a structural engineer, because that is what I wanted to do with my life and make a living that way, i.e., one of the reasons I am a structural engineer is for the money.

I enjoy officiating basketball and umpiring baseball and fastpitch softball (I enjoy baseball over softball.). And since I have to fill out a Schedule C for my basketball officiating and baseball/softball umpiring income every year for Uncle Sam then yes is it also about the money. Whether I am designing a building structure or officiating a college basketball game or umpiring a high school baseball game I am a professional doing the maximum of what my profession demands of me and I expect to be compensated for it.

MTD, Sr.

Amen

The wettest April in Chicago's recorded weather history. The second coldest April in 30 years here. The cloudiest April in 14 years, and the windiest April (goes well with COLD temps) in 14 years here.

So much for the continued BS that is "Global Warming." :rolleyes:

Note: Many major models are predicting something the U.S. hasn't seen in a while: a significant El Nino event beginning next fall and through the winter. This results in a colder and wetter winter and spring for the southern tier of the nation, but a warmer and drier winter and spring for the heartland, Midwest, and northeast. As far as the west coast, well, who cares? Earthquakes, mudslides, and wild fires will take care of them. :D

It was either last year or the year before that have been much worse. Then again I had more games scheduled in the past couple years than this year. I have a least worked a couple of times a week where in the past a few years I had entire weeks wiped out.

Peace

I know that you have an axe to grind and are not really interested in the topic, but climate change points to increasingly "extreme" weather rather than uniform warming of the planet. Although the average temperature is increasing, a more descriptive name might be "Global Weirding." As you point out, this April has been extreme and weird.

These misnomers happen in science. For example, the "Big Bang" was neither.

No axe to grind. I do, however, agree that there is climate change. Always has been; always will be. Earth's climate goes in cycles and will always have extremes. It just irritates me that there are those gullible individuals who have been fooled into thinking Man is reponsible for this change. We can't change the global climate anymore than we can move Mt. Everest 12" to the west.

Only one thing out there can affect the climate on a global scale: the sun.

Back to topic now. :)

Hehe, where did you get that nugget from? You don't also happen to believe that the best umpired game is one where nobody noticed the umpires, do you?

The preferred terminology is "climate change" now please, thank you. ;)

"Big Bang" is catchier than "Big Result". :)

Just because I'm aware of how much money I didn't make due to weather, does not in any way mean "I do it for the money"

Although, Mark has a good point. I continue to look forward to the additional income and use it to my benefit. The fact that I get paid to do what I enjoy is a bonus.

Mind-reader
 

Wow, Welpe, you must have ESPN!! I just posted to that effect on another thread, so I am impressed. Nobody cares who the umpires are, as long as they get it right.

I did just see that. I'm sorry you think that way because it is just not true.

I just got the call. My game for tonight has been rained out. :D

MTD, Sr.

Now I am not a big fan of the Global Warming claims either, but I am not naive to think we should not do everything to prevent man made damage to the Earth and atmosphere. I find it odd that Republicans claim that financial positions of the current administration will affect the future of the children, but let us not stop some affects man might be causing on the world. And let us not certainly come up with energy alternatives that might get certain countries that advocate our destruction by keeping access to the same old technology.

Mine too.

Peace

It's good for the crops!:D