Camp Reviews/Info? Sticky?

[Raymond]

Originally Posted by HokiePaul

D3 Super Camp Basketball Officials Referee Referees Official

I attended this camp at University of Richmond couple summers ago. I found it to be a good skills development camp and would be a good first camp for someone who has some 3-person experience.

I thought it was well organized - a good balance of classroom discussion/feedback and games. They taught a very specific style/philosophy on positioning that they wanted used in the conferences they assign. I found the philosophy interesting personally but it may not translate to what your HS assignors want.

There was a bit too much of a good ol' boy club feel for me personally -- a lot of the officials there were repeat campers hoping to get noticed by the camp directors. I got the impression that attending multiple years was pretty much expected if you wanted to be part of the club.

I've observed at that camp every year for the last 4-5 years, one day out of the weekend. I attended in 2004, way before I was ready for NCAA ball and came out kind of feeling the same way as you described above. I think that is a function of not being known or familiar with clinicians/supervisors. Attended again in 2008 and got picked up by both conferences. As I've progressed through the years, I've learned that this is a tight-knit group. These 2 supervisors are easily the closest to their staffs out of any of the college supervisors I have worked for.

I won't pretend to know what goes through the supervisors' minds in making hires, but every year 5-7 new guys get hired. It is expected that you pick up on the floor positioning that is taught, especially in the C and Trail. I am a big advocate of the floor mechanics that are taught. My own video review shows that my missed calls overwhelmingly occur as a result of a lack of discipline in adhering to these mechanics.

[Lcubed48]

I agree with Raymond in that the 2 supervisors are close with their staffs. It gives the camp a friendly, family feel. They are very dedicated to the teaching aspect of officiating, but it is also a tryout camp. I'll never get picked up by either conference, but I attend every year that I can. I use it for professional development networking. It's close to home, and it gives good return on your dollar. It's a good fit for me, and that's all I'm looking for in the world of BB camps. It does indeed make for an excellent first camp.

PS - You also get to work with some greats, i.e. - the one formerly known as BNR & APG.

[Valley Man]

How about the Mountain East Conference Camp (Mike Eades) at WVU??

[SC Official]

Joe Forte Camp in Suwannee, GA:

Joe has one D2 and one D1 conference. It’s been a few years, but to me it was a ripoff. First of all it’s expensive and there’s no food or lodging included ($500 I think was what I paid for just the camp). There are a ton of campers (over 100) and not a commensurate number of courts so you don’t get enough games. I did a game with no clinicians on my court. If Joe likes you, you’re going to get asked to go to a second camp later that summer and pay more money, and you still might not get picked up, so you come back next summer and pay for two more camps again.

That being said, I know some people who have had a great experience at this camp and work lots of games for Joe, so take my criticism for what it’s worth. But to me, this camp epitomizes the racket of the college camp system.

[Raymond]

Originally Posted by SC Official

Joe Forte Camp in Suwannee, GA:

Joe has one D2 and one D1 conference. It’s been a few years, but to me it was a ripoff. First of all it’s expensive and there’s no food or lodging included ($500 I think was what I paid for just the camp). There are a ton of campers (over 100) and not a commensurate number of courts so you don’t get enough games. I did a game with no clinicians on my court. If Joe likes you, you’re going to get asked to go to a second camp later that summer and pay more money, and you still might not get picked up, so you come back next summer and pay for two more camps again.

That being said, I know some people who have had a great experience at this camp and work lots of games for Joe, so take my criticism for what it’s worth. But to me, this camp epitomizes the racket of the college camp system.

Forte used to run his camps for around $250-300. He either likes you or he doesn't. I know I'm not his cup of tea, so I don't waste my time or money.

He has a poor reputation for accounting/bookkeeping, but when he hires you he works you right away.

[SC Official]

Originally Posted by Raymond

Forte used to run his camps for around $250-300. He either likes you or he doesn't. I know I'm not his cup of tea, so I don't waste my time or money.

Interesting. Was this before he had the Big South? $495 this year per guys I know going.

Also, he and another assigner with a D2 and a D1 league in the same geographic area despise each other, so I don’t think there are many officials who work for both of them. But, I’ve gotten out of that nonsense and maybe things have changed.

[Raymond]

Originally Posted by SC Official

Interesting. Was this before he had the Big South? $495 this year per guys I know going.

Also, he and another assigner with a D2 and a D1 league in the same geographic area despise each other, so I don’t think there are many officials who work for both of them. But, I’ve gotten out of that nonsense and maybe things have changed.

I went to a Forte camp a while back that was only $275; still with the same caveat of being invited back to a later camp if you caught his interest.

That other supervisor must be Mike Wood. I not sure many folks are big fans of him, from what I have heard.

I remember when the Bob Gibbons tournament (Ral-Dur-CH) was a free camp where campers were only responsible for their hotel rooms and getting to their games on time. I went there twice. Both years I worked with an official who got picked up by the NBA the following season (Eric Lewis/David Guthrie).