Official's Facial Hair

[inigo montoya]

I had my goatee before I met wife and she would be pissed if I shaved it. It also makes me to look old enough to be possibly respectable - and without it I probably still look too young to be taken seriously. It is possible to be neatly-groomed and professional, and still have facial hair.

I also wear glasses. If I had to pick between wearing contacts, where something could happen at any second to cause me to be unable to see (even momentarily) and wearing the glasses, I would pick the eyeglasses. I've only ever heard one fan comment - "he already has glasses, so THAT'S not the problem" - but I don't know how coaches or the leaders of my association feel.

I'm not doing varisty yet, but I'm reasonably sure at this point that's a product of many things completely unrelated to my grooming habits (experience, skill, lack of attendance at association training camp, no field clinic yet). If it eventually keeps me out of varisty games, then so be it. I can live with it.

[Mark Padgett]

Originally Posted by inigo montoya

I've only ever heard one fan comment - "he already has glasses, so THAT'S not the problem"

Davism for glasses remarks:

"Hey ref - want to borrow my glasses?"

"Why? They're not doing you any good."

[Mark Padgett]

Originally Posted by som44

I have a goatee and I wear glasses..does not seem to bother anyone..maybe I am just lucky and the people in NH overlook those things- nice to live in the "Live Free or Die" State

I thought you had to have a blond beard in the "Live Free or Dye" state.

[Welpe]

I don't work basketball but...

Originally Posted by inigo montoya

If I had to pick between wearing contacts, where something could happen at any second to cause me to be unable to see (even momentarily) and wearing the glasses, I would pick the eyeglasses.

That's precisely why I wear contacts. I'd be up the creek if my glasses broke or fell off my face during a play. At least if I lose one contact, I can still see out of one eye. The only time I've ever had an issue with contacts is when I wrestled in school. The gym was extremely hot, which dried out my eyes and I blinked them right out while being pinned.

[inigo montoya]

I didn't wear "soft" contacts but the harder "semi-rigid" kind for a while, so your experience may be very different. But when I did, I found my eyes much more susceptible to dust and dirt and other things getting into them, and having lenses occasionally move out of place. I also blinked more, and teared up sometimes for no reason.

Whereas in my 2nd year of officiating have never come close to damaging my eyeglasses.

[Welpe]

Ah, yes there is the difference. I've never worn hard contacts but my father made both for years. I know some people can't wear soft contacts but I can't see how anybody can wear hard contacts!

I'm also a klutz so anything I can do to reduce breaking things is a good thing.

[rsox34]

I live in Salem, NH. How about you?

[Camron Rust]

Originally Posted by MajorCord

Do your official's associations have regulations concerning facial hair...?

Around here, if you have facial hair, as in this picture, you don't get any varsity games. Just curious what your experiences are.

In the Portland area we don't have any regulations governing facial hair.

That said, I can't think of a single official that has much more than a mustache that does Varsity games. There are one or two that have sometimes had very thin goatees or similar...no full beards at all.

[MCJB Ump]

Originally Posted by archer

we have several European Americans that have side burns. We have a mexican american with a pencil mustache, and a antartic american with a full beard.

[BillyMac]

http://web.mac.com/arnold_zwicky/ArcticAmerican.jpg

Penquins don't live in the Arctic. Most live in either the Antarctic, somewhere else in the Southern Hemisphere, or near the Equator.

[MichaelVA2000]

Originally Posted by NewNCref

For softball, I umpire with many guys with facial hair, and no one has ever said anything about it. For basketball, I can't think of many people with facial hair.

And JRut was right earlier. There are several African-American guys in our association, many of whom call varsity games, who have facial hair. This does just seem to be a hang-up of Caucasian persons.

I asked because I belong to several associations and some of them have no issues towards facial hair while others will restrict the level of ball you officiate if you have facial hair; no matter what ethnicity you are.

[JugglingReferee]

Originally Posted by BillyMac

Penquins don't live in the Arctic. Most live in either the Antarctic, somewhere else in the Southern Hemisphere, or near the Equator.

I thought Penguins live in Pittsburgh.

[Rita C]

Originally Posted by BillyMac

http://web.mac.com/arnold_zwicky/ArcticAmerican.jpg

Penquins don't live in the Arctic. Most live in either the Antarctic, somewhere else in the Southern Hemisphere, or near the Equator.

And you spelled Antarctic properly.

Rita

[som44]

rSOX34--I Live in Campton..

[DonInKansas]

Maybe instead you should rock prescription goggles, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar style.