Anyone work without a lanyard? I worked on it all summer so I could do it during the season and not drop the Fox, and I'm happy to say I haven't dropped one yet.

However, I had an assigner at the game several nights ago and he asked for one good reason why I do it, and I couldn't come up with a <b>good</b> one, so I told him I didn't have any reason in particular. My personal reason is I figure everyone needs their niche, and maybe that would be mine...??? Unfortunately, I have no better reason than that for why I work without one.

What I'm asking from you is to provide me with one solid benefit to working without a lanyard. Yes, I keep a noose and whistle under my stripes for 'emergency' use, but haven't had to use it...so far!

Can you think of a good reason?

No.

Might hurt you getting games from the assignor who saw you.

Well one good reason is that the whistle will eventually fall out of your mouth (whether you get hit or whatever). When you do, it's better that it ends up hanging from your neck rather than on the floor.

Z

I can't think of a reason, it's just personal preference. I know that in my area, I haven't seen anyone without a lanyard.

Now that being said, I can't think of a good reason not to work with a lanyard.

Although an evaluator told me I should get rid of the noose and go to the smitty because everyone else has one. I guess everyone wants us to look the same.

I worked some summer games that way to help me slow down and I never dropped it but always kept a backup under my shirt because I envisioned it dropping and then stepping on it and crushing. As soon as season started, I went back to my noose. I've been told not to show up at any camps without one.

I would never even think about trying it. But I don't care what someone else does. The learning part of this is very entertaining, though!

No lanyard!!???
 

That's ridiculous.

I don't know of any pausible reason to not use a lanyard.

I had to try it for a quarter one time when the medal hook fell off or bent where my lanyard could not stay on the shirt. I kept spitting out the whistle and it would fall to the floor each time I blew air into it. I hated the experience and ever since have used a neck lanyard. I do not see how anyone can do that, but I know some have tried and succeeded. You do not see it very often anymore, but I know guys that go without a lanyard in the summer. I guess I just do not see the point. But if you can successfully do that and no one has a problem with it in your area, more power to you.

Peace

I did hear one guy say ...
 

We have a group of guys that have been trying this for a year or so and its very entertaining to watch them drop it and pick it up etc.,

The reason one of our college officials gave me for doing it is that it makes him slow down. He has to take his time to blow the whistle, signal, then remove it etc.,

I didn't see how it helps at all, but that was his take.

Thanks
David

I can't think of one good reason not to use a lanyard and can think of countless headaches and problems. I can't even see using the finger Fox 40's like a lot of guys do in soccerworking on the hardwood.

At the high school level, it seems like they don't want you to have a niche or personal style.

College seems to be more laxed, in fact you might get props for going no-lanyard.

Anyone besides me ever hooked their neck lanyard with their fingers while raising fist or hand upwards? When something trys to pull the whistle out of your teeth it is a natural reaction for your teeth to clamp down harder, at least thats what mine did. It hurt like heck. I still use a lanyard but could see that as a benefit of not using one.

When I was giving a direction signal, I snagged my hand on my lanyard, and choked myself with my noose. Everyone had a good laugh over that one. :D

I have never seen anyone at the college level not use a lanyard. I only saw this from the NBA Refs of the 80s. Nowadays all the NBA Refs use a lanyard. At least what I see.

Peace

I do that for some men's league games. I have not dropped the whistle since the first game I tried to do it.

It's fun to do every once in awhile.

In one of the rare times I watched the NBA
 

Recently (within past 10 days), I observed an entire crew on a televised game that was without lanyards. Can't recall the specific game, but sure do recall how peculiar the crew looked.

I've seen one NBA ref not use one. I don't watch the NBA, I saw it on the highlights of Sportscenter when I'm forced to watch the clips of the game. As far as not using a lanyard, I've got enough things to remember about other than trying to remember not to drop my whistle or it will hit the floor. Happy Holidays!

T Jones

And thus your nickname....:D

Ronnie Nunn was a notable NBA official who went "lanyard-free".

In my (limited) college experience, this is only true for guys that have already "made it". Big time refs can do pretty much whatever they want as long as they make good calls. But for guys like me, stuck in D3 with less than 5 years experience, we have to toe the line and don't get much slack in expressing our individuality.

I could be wrong about the larger picture, but that how it seems to me in my neck of the woods.

Funny story about the finger-Fox. I used to ref HS lacrosse. Great game and I loved it. Hated to give it up, but it was just too time-consuming right after basketball season.

Anyway, our lacrosse association required the finger-Fox. No lanyards. Fine.

For face-offs, the proper mechanic is to point down to the ball (telling the players to get "set") with one hand and to raise the other hand to "chop" the clock in. When you chop the clock you blow the whistle to signal the start of play. Well, if one hand is pointing down, and one hand is up in the air, you can't blow the whistle if it's stuck on a finger. So we had to take the whistle off our finger and hold it in our mouths.

First game I ever did, first face-off. Whistle in mouth, hand pointing down, hand up to chop. Chop, blow whistle, and (of course :rolleyes: ) spit out the whistle. With no lanyard, it landed right in the mud. I had to pick it up and wipe off all the mud before I could put it back in my mouth. Yuck!

I watched a boys JV game last week and one ref didn't use a laynard. It didn't seem natural to me. I thought he looked just plain silly. Well, there were a few other traits lacking like movement and some strange mechanics. But he did have his individuality.

We have one member of our zone who refs without a lanyard. Like some of you mentionned, he is veteran who can call his own shots. He did the Gold Medal game of the 1992 Olympic Games. I was watching a game that he was officiating with a friend of mine. He sarcastically asked if the referees manual said you should put your whistle in your pocket before you report a foul. I replied he could put it down his pants if he wanted to. For the rest of us, that`s a different story.

We had a young official who tried to emulate him a while ago. He was told by our assignor to use a lanyard.

The last three partners I have had worked without a lanyard. Next time I will ask why. FYI none of them had a problem.

Around these parts we have a legend that did not use a lanyard since the 60's up until he retired from basketball
a few years back. As far as now I think we need to not try to draw attention to ourselves on the court. It usually finds us somehow. I'd rather have someone say they wanted
some official to go with them to a "gun fight" because of
their ability not their niche appearance. JMO

You are called Juggling because you juggle the whistle trying to catch it after you drop it?

With the collarless shirts, the neck lanyard looks geeky. Especially with my neck. I go with the short lanyard attached to the shirt. I have gone to the short lanyard in FB, attached to the zipper on the shirt. Never gets caught when I signal.

Unfortunately, twice in the last 2 nights, my Smitty has come off the loop of my shirt. I prefer the Smitty noose, but as somebody else said, we don't want to draw attention to ourselves, so I wear what my partner(s) wear.

I dunno, guys (and ladies) I can't think of any more good reasons not to use a lanyard than I can think of good reasons to smoke. It's just flat doesn't make sense to me. IMHO your just asking for trouble while trying to look cool --- and it doesn't even look cool to me.

Blaine Reichelt in the NBA does not use a lanyard. I also saw an official in a Pac-10 non-conference game officiating without one. Not surprisingly, both of these fellows had poor mechanics because they were more worried about catching their whistle instead of showing proper mechanics.

However, I can safely say that the college guy was NOT wearing a belt. :)

The no-lanyard thing, in my experience, is more of a "look what I can do" thing than anything else. Perhaps the odd official finds it useful, or is so capable that they just do it out of habit and you'd never know.

But by and large, it seems like more of a game. And we're not supposed to be playing games out there.

Just my $0.02

One of my sub varsity assignors has been no-lanyard since his first or second year when one broke on his shirt. I never noticed it till one game when we were talking during a dead ball and I saw nothing hanging on his shirt and i was like "dude - your lanyard broke again" and he was holding it in his hand. He made a bet with me that I couldnt go the rest of the game without dropping my whistle, I took him up on it. So anytime I worked with him we didnt use them. I kept it up during the AAU stuff and all that and I started a game this season without even thinking about it - my partner did even realize it till he didnt see the thing hanging on my shirt. It's become so much a part of my normality most peopel dont even recognize or can tell that I dont go without. Of course if an assignor or someone who matters tells me I need to wear one I wear one. always have a spare no-lanyard in my left pocket and a noose in my right. I've only gone to the noose twice this year because we were starting to have more and more deadball activity and I wanted both of my hands free.

I do find that it helps me slow down when blowing the whistle.