I am getting ready to order my uniform for basketball officiating. I am looking for some recommendations on the type of Cliff Keen shirt as well as slacks. For the beltless slacks, does that Flex Belt really work at holding up your pants? I am in-between sizes and will get the belt if it does work. How do the slacks size chart match with blue jeans sizes? I.E. a size 38 slack will be pretty close in fit around the waist to a size 38 pair of jeans?

Thanks.

WOOOOOOOOOOO big toopic starter there Dave. You are going to get advice from everywhere. I personally like the cliff keen micro mesh v-neck shirt alright, but I am sure most will tell you that the official's choice micro-softer mesh shirt is the best. As far as slacks go, I have cliff Keen's and they do me fine, but I hear the best is sansabelt. I wear a size 32 or 33 in jeans, but I ordered my slacks tighter with a 31. I know the cliff keen's fit true to size. like i said you will get feedback from everyone. so take what you want. by the way here are some websites where you can order some of this stuff:

http://www.refshop.comif you order over $100 or 125 you get free shipping.

http://www.purchaseofficials.com one of my favorites. I don't know why.

http://www.officialschoice.com

http://www.honigs.com

http://www.refandsport.com

I was you last year. I went nuts and bought a bunch of stuff. Here are a few thoughts:

Sansabelt are the best IMHO.

Dont worry about the silly rubber belt. Just get a pair of compression shorts and tuck your shirt (and black undershirt) into the compression shorts. Then put on the pants. They shirt will stay in no problem.

I like the Cliff Keen micro mesh V.

Dont skimp on the shoes. I bought the New Balance. They are the best shoes I have ever bought. Better than Nikes and Addidas and Reeboks. They are just great. Fit great. Feet feel great after a game. And no break in time. They were awesome out of the box.

You will get a split of opinion on the patent leather ones. You might want to check with your association. I know this sounds silly but some of the senior guys can be real anti-patent leather. You dont want to rub them the wrong way. I dont have any problem shining my NBs up. They are tough at first until you get a few good layers on them. They are dull for a bit. But a few days and a few coats and they shine nice.

Oh, and make sure to get the dri-fit V neck sleevless t's that you can find on line. They are awesome.

I personally also prefer the noose style lanyard to the smitty. I just get paranoid the smitty is going to come off. I had it happen once while I was tying a shoe before coming out to the court. Maybe I overreacted but I just didnt feel I could trust it. The problem is also perhaps with my clip. I could get a better one. Maybe I will revisit it this year. But I do like the noose style lanyard.

Good luck!

Clark

Since there are like others out there in the same situation, I'll respond a little broader than the specifics you asked for.

For the most comfort in shirts, avoid the polyester, cotton, and cotton/poly shirts. Get either micromesh or McDavid Intera. Both will keep you much cooler than cotton or poly. Also, get some form of wicking undershirt: coolmax, dri-fit, intera, etc. No cotton. Anywhere. It gets wet and stays wet.

Pants...most are moving to pleated (and beltless). Check around your area and get the style that the top official are wearing. I get mine from Honigs (house brand) and they're just fine. At Honigs, the pleated fit quite a bit loser than the flat front (the nature of pleated) but the waist size also seemed a little bigger.

Once I went pleated, I needed the flex belt. It really does work. I never used one before. With the pleated, there was a lot less fabric in contact with the shirttail and they slipped down/out too easy. Nothing looks worse than your shirt hanging out or you tucking it back in every few minutes.

Shoes...all black...whatever fits you best. Some will swear by New Balance; others, Nike, Reebok, or Converse. Most of what seperates them is fit.

Socks...I like the thorlo support/uniform socks. There are many good ones out there. Your feet will appreciate having a good pair of socks after back-to-back games over several days.

Whistle: Fox40. End of story.

Landyard: some like the smitty; some the noose or the standard with a slider. Whatever you like. However, if you use a smitty, carry a standard as a spare in case the attachment loop on the shirt breaks (mine has).

Wear black compression shorts just in case you ever split your pants.

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I prefer Honings. Perfect service including several returns for poor fit.

I tried purchaseofficialsupplies once but they were slow and were out of advertised items (and wouldn't have them in for 5-6 months).

I've not tired the others that refTN mentioned since I've had such good service with Honigs.

All the advice has been right on, as expected; but I think Camron brings up the best little ditty-- WEAR BLACK COMPRESSION SHORTS IN CASE YOU SPLIT YOUR PANTS. In fact, make everything black...all black, all the time. I'm sure someone will say, "Wear pants that fit right," but sometimes you just never know.

This happened to a partner of mine who didn't have black compression shorts, he was screwed. I always carry at least one extra everything with me to a game, which helps as well.

I know that people have dogged Official's Choice here at times, but if you call them in stead of ordering through the internet, you are much less likely to have problems. I find their pants, and especially their shirts, to be the most comfortable out there.

DON'T FORGET THE FISHNETS !!!!!!!!!!!!!

And tuck your shirt into your compression shorts. I watched a game one time where the ref's zipper broke, and the corner of the shirt came creeping out, with quite an astounding effect. If his shirt had been tucked into the shorts, it wouldn't have been nearly as, uh, interesting!


(Also, compression shorts help prevent the spare tire from "bobbing along")

[Edited by rainmaker on Jun 8th, 2005 at 11:25 AM]

Dave,
Every one of us will have favorites for shirts, shoes, whistles, pants, etc. As for me, I like the Cliff Keen all polyester extra long shirts even though I'm only 6'1". They stay tucked in better. I've never worn the micro mesh shirts, but many of my partners have. I don't think I would like them but that's just me! Many people hate belted pants. I wouldn't wear the unbelted ones despite being called a heretic by many on this site because the work better for me. One word I hope you will take very seriously. Don't skimp on shoes. The right shoes make all the difference in walking off feeling tired or just plain hurting. Everyone's feet and knees have different needs and every brand has it's strength and drawbacks. You'll know when you get the right one on. Fox 40 classic or CMG on the whistle. Let us know what products you decide to go with.