Belt or no belt?

[Rich]

I've been out of town for a week or so, and I'm finding reading through this quite interesting.

I've been working basketball since 1987. I've never owned a pair of belted pants. I've lived in six states and I've never seen a top official wearing a belt. As for the underwear question, most guys I work with wear compression shorts or long tights these days. No panty lines

I don't care what people wear, but I'll admit that when I see an official wearing belted pants it makes me a bit wary about what his on-court performance will be. Some surprise me. Most don't. Same with adjustable hat wearers in baseball and football.

I worked one varsity game with a guy in belted pants last season. Worst partner of the year who made fun of me behind my back because I pulled out a court board to do a proper pregame and told him I brought pleated and non-pleated pants so we'd match. I'm sure the belt was a coincidence. Seriously. We didn't match, though. I'm only working regularly with 2 guys this year, so I know I'll match them.

I sure hope the patent leather shoes don't become a trend either. They look sooooo fake.

Rich