I am curious as to why Officials do what they do. It is the money? Is it something you do for enjoyment? I got into it because I love to work with kids. I coached many sports with my two children as they grew up and I found that I wanted to continue working with kids.

I am finding out that I enjoy it and I want to continue to improve and do more and more games.

Why do you Officiate?

i enjoy the game, but sometimes it scares me to know that these coaches are also our teachers.

I thought it would be a different way to be involved in sports, one I hadn't experienced before. A chance to help kids experience the good things in sports and facilitate their development. I heard you can meet some great people and have fun doing it.

It definitely isn't for the money, though I wouldn't do it for free.

Though right now it's not much fun. I admit I have a low tolerance for b-s when it's not directly related to something I absolutely have to do, but if it's going to be parents *****ing, coaches *****ing and players *****ing like it's been lately, I'm inclined to hang 'em up. I know it comes with the territory, but I've never had any grand designs on making this a career, so as long as it's going to be something I do on the side, I'm not inclined to put up with b-s.

/rant, sorry to digress

You can go to the beach for that. I do it so I can go to HS sporting contest and be paid to be there instead of paying them to be there.

Which beach?

Which Gym?

i can't narrow it down.

for me it's a way to be involved in hs sports.
i've always competed and this is something that challenges me physically, mentally and with some coaches emotionally.
kills 2 birds with 1 stone: get to see alot of basketball, plus i get paid to exercise.
the sky is the limit, how far can i go?
the referee community is a brotherhood.

plus we get to wear really cool looking shiny shoes!

Makes me feel good about myself
 

It's a position of authority... Lest you think I'm a power-monger, I see authority as opportunity to lead; I'm a leader - not a dictator.

The money helps but it ain't near enough to make this avocation worthwhile. Pennies per hour.

The job of officiating is definitely a challenge. It gives me a feeling of satisfaction to do it and to do it well.

Being recognized for doing a good job also gives me a feeling of being respected.

All these combined, give me a feeling of confidence that I don't see in other people.

I love sports, but can't play them worth a lick, so I figured the best way to be involved was to officiate.

Also, at the intramural level, I get to meet a lot of people & see those who I already know through games and meetings. (The formation of sorority leagues didn't hurt, either ;))

Re: Makes me feel good about myself
 

Well said Tony. I once calculated, based on the population of our county, that there are probably just a fraction of a one percent of people who can do what I (we) do--officiate well a high school basketball game. One should take some pride in doing such a difficult and necessary task that few others are capable of doing.

Most of all, like we often tell the kids: "Have fun!" I still do it 'cause it's fun--even with all the "feedback" we get from the "uninformed and uneducated". When it ceases to be such, then I will hang em up.

Its fun!
 

having been one who played every sport as a kid, and then being a coach for several years, I find that its a way to stay involved with sports and with the community.

Also, its a great second source of income. It takes a lot of work and money to become a good official, but to me its worth it in the end.

Thanks
David

I appreciate the "have fun part of it". Some of these kids are not having fun. That is a problem. They may be doing it to please thier parents or coaches. They are driven by getting better and being the best. That in and of itself is not bad. I think we all strive to do our best in all that we do. It becomes a problem when we are so driven that it is no longer enjoyable.

I will say from time to time mainly to Middle Schoolers as I hand them the ball on a throw in "are you having fun?" Some will say "no" and some "yes". I will say to them "smile and have fun".

I think this will also be true about officiating. We must strive to do our best and to improve, this is what is required. With that said, it must continue to be enjoyable.

We own it to the game to strive to improve and to enjoy what we do.

I ref basketball because I love the sport. I ref basketball because I can stay close to the game of basketball. If I did not ref, I probably would have tried to coach. I just love the game. The money and the other benefits are just extra.

Peace

It's a good way to be involved in the lives of kids, in a positive manner. For all the hollering and advice that comes from the bleachers, you rarely see or hear of people who would willingly trade places with you. That's usually a fun place to be, through the good times and bad.

I worked a fundraiser tourney on Sat afternoon. It was pretty laid back kiddy ball. One of the things they did was have a parents from the team running the tourn ref along with us. That way they only had 1 ref to pay. These parents were 110% clueless. Didn't know where to stand or anything. If any grief was given, they received ALL of it. I worked 4 games with 3 different parents and they all said they now have a whole new respect for refs. One parent even fell while running backwards. I warned him but he thought he knew better.

For me it is an excuse to get out of the Apt. and do a little exercise that I would not nomally do. My grandsons play and I am at the gym to see them play, so why not ref. while i'm there. ( elementry school stuff,tounaments, etc.)
$ is not the most important thing for me, but as others say, I would't do it on a continuing basis ethier.

I started for the exercise. Now, I do it because I don't like the withdrawal when I stop!

Oh come on now...we all do it because it's the only moments in our lives we can wear tight polyester pants in public and get away with it!!

I do it for a lot of reasons. I do it because it has nothing to do with computers (which is my career and had been my hobby as well), it's a great stress reliever, because it is a huge challenge that gives expression to my competitive side, because the kids deserve to have somebody ref their games who really wants to do it right, for a bit of pocket money, to have a good excuse to hang out online, to get out of the house a bit, because it's great exercise, and to see how far I can go with it. :)

You and I are a lot alike in this respect. Although I would do it for free, and I have a bunch of times. Several years ago I was working in the worst association I have ever worked in - in Albuquerque, NM. I had one school where the parents were the absolute worst role models for their kids - they even went so far as to throw stuff onto the court during games. Then I moved to San Jose, CA and thought I'd be in for a lot better basketball, but it was not much better. The kids were as mouthy as the coaches, who were as mouthy as the parents. It was not any fun for me to go to games. I had a Varsity ref come onto my court in streetclothes at halftime one time and start berating my partner. I had no idea who the guy was and it scared me at first, till I found out he was a ref. This same ref, after the game, ripped my partner a new one in the hallway after the game. I had enough. So I quit and never looked back. Moved to Oregon and my son started high school. I went to his fall sports award ceremony, which happened to be in the gym at his school. First time I'd been in a high school gym since the day I quit reffing. I got the itch...so I started up again. I have a whole new attitude and am having more fun than I ever have. I don't know how long it will last this time, but I can tell you that it's only good if it's fun for you.

If you feel like you aren't having fun, maybe you should take a season off and see if you miss it. You're not going to be doing anyone any good if you're not having fun.

Well I'm not going to make any rash decisions based on the bad experience I had last night, but I have two more games scheduled next week and I'm going to do those and then re-evaluate. I don't have anything else scheduled, though I could pick up more games if I wanted to. I'm just not sure I want to.

I have to admit I don't love basketball. Right now I think I actually prefer football officiating (even though it's more complex), and I didn't think that way after my first football experience.

Well no matter how much you love any sport, you're likely to have your good games and your bad games. I had my best game of the season last Thursday, followed immediately by my worst game of the season last Friday. We must have easily called at least 90 fouls Friday night. All you can do is be glad it's over and look forward to the next one. If you find yourself being glad every game is over, then it's time to question your motives. Hang in there and good luck. Hope you feel good enough to stick with it.

I agree with most. I do it because I've always loved the game. The money and exercise are great. I look really good in black and white polyester. The one I haven't seen that is a big motivator for me is the fraternity with other officials. Most of my good friends from college worked their way through intramurals on up to HS varsity while going to college. I got enjoy their stories second hand and finally decided to give it a shot myself. We all still communicate on our cell phones at least once a week on the way home from games, talking about situations and humorous stories. I only wish I would have started sooner. I'm even thinking about picking up softball, baseball and football.

Challenge
 

That's part of the challenge... can you re-engage and forget the crap from last game? Can you do a better job? You can't... if you quit.

Many are the games I've come home fuming and continued to stew about some tiny little thing for days.... anyone else upset?... anyone else stewing....? probably not. Just me.

Then there are the games I didn't do anything but smile and sweat for the whole game.

Worked a game last week that just seemed horrible to be involved in - the girls played terrible and clobbered the snot out of each other. When it was all said and done our crew got compliments from both sides about the great job.... so there are also bad games, you can still do a great job and receive the appreciation of the parents/fans.

My schedule is so extremely full... but I'm not sure I could give it up. It is too much fun!:D

Just cause when played right it is the best game out there. I just really enjoy the game and this is a way of staying involved.

No smart %^$^% comments....I like the pressure of getting it right. I realize that I have a partner, but it really boils down to me getting in the right position, getting the right angle, and getting the call right. Even if everyone in the stands hates the call. IF I know I got it right that just gets me even more charged up. Because I know something that they don't.

Don't take this as arrogance; I have missed more than my fair share of calls.

I'm working on getting that perfect game everyday.

Coaches, fans and parents would be surprised at the comments that have been made.

It is so true, we all want to get it right.

It would be great to get it all 100% right all the time.

That is what we are trying to do.

I do it for the challenge. Its one of the hardest things to try to master. Its fast, detailed, emotional, specific, its a speciality in and of itself.

No better place to be than in the arena with the warriors. The referee has the best seat in the house.

Some of us don't really "get away with it!"

I dunno, I tend to think my seat as scorekeeper is better. :p

I think that Ref Daddy was talking about Rainmaker's "seat"(see post at top of this page). Gotta be nicer than Rocky's.

Why do it?
1. Because I love kids and trying to be a positive influence. One of the greatest compliments I get from parents,AD's and colleagues is the way I handle the kids in a game. I like all three sports that I do, soccer, basketball, and volleyball. Sports is one of the ways that I can do that well.
2. There's just something about being involved and a part that is exciting, rewarding, fun (most of the times... but there are those times.) I love most aspects of sports -- the competition, the physical demands, the emotional release, the challenges.
3. It's such a stress reliever from the things that my job requires everyday.
4. I make a lot of freinds that I wouldn't normally get to know because of officiating.
5. The sound of a Fox 40 is kind of addictive, you know!

Now if Rocky would wear fishnets....

Are you really sure that he <b>doesn't</b> wear fishnets?

Somebody has been spreading rumors abour Rocky, ya know. (<font size = -3>me</font>)