Pre-game habits, rituals, etc.
 

Up late packing for a trip and got to thinking...I have some rituals/habits that I go through before every HS game I do, and I'm sure some others do too. What does everyone out there have to do before a game? Do you have to get dressed one side before the other, listen to music, etc? Thought this might be a fun little topic to get going.

There are three things I have to do before a game.

-While driving to the game, I have a certain playlist on my iPod that I listen to. For some reason, music helps me start to get focused.

-After getting into the locker room, I always stretch first. I have to start stretching my torso first, then my legs.

-Right before my partner and I take the floor, I always do a little bit of shadowboxing in the corner. It helps get my heart pumping and ready to go.

Maybe I'm just crazy for doing all this. Feel free to make fun of me as you see fit :)

Pre-Game Ritual
 

My favorite pre-game ritual is to get to the dressing room early and shave. Goofy, but somehow it impresses a mindset that has yielded good results.

If at all possibly I try to get a shower and shave in right before I leave for the game. Don't know why, but it helps me feel fresh and ready.

I've also got a warm up/stretching routine that I use that has really helped me physically. Each year it seems more and more important, too!

Hey Everybody, Our Referee Tonight Is Rocky ...
 

If the coaches, or players, see you doing this, it will certainly give them pause before giving you a hard time.

Shave And A Haircut, Two Bits ...
 

Thanks for posting this. By the odd looks I get from my partners, I thought that I was the only official who does this . I get a pretty heavy five o'clock shadow, and use an electric razor in the morning, which doesn't cut as close as a blade, so my pregame shave just makes me feel better. A little splash of good old fashioned Mennen Skin Bracer and I'm ready to take on the world.

If I have a game that involves a coach that likes to get up close and personal, I like to have a pregame meal (definitely Italian, :D) that is loaded with garlic and onions, :D, and then I do not brush my teeth or use any mouthwash before the game, :D.

But, seriously, I like to get to the game site early so that I can get ready for the game in leisurely manner.

MTD, Sr.

Yes. I do the outside first. :rolleyes:

I must admit, shadowboxing does sound cool. It really sends a message.

[QUOTE=Mark T. DeNucci, Sr.;545736]If I have a game that involves a coach that likes to get up close and personal, I like to have a pregame meal (definitely Italian, :D) that is loaded with garlic and onions, :D, and then I do not brush my teet or use any mouthwash before the game, :D.

I don't brush that part of my body prior to a game either, but if it instills a renewed focus on the game at hand, maybe I should try.

USDA Regulations ...
 

My cousin is a dairy farmer. According to USDA regulations, he has to do this, and has no choice in the matter.

Did you hear about the cow that tried to jump over the barbed wire fence and was udderly destroyed?

(Thanks Freddy and DonInKansas)

You should stop doing it before you go on the court and do it during the introductions of the starting players. It will show everyone you mean business.

Red Bull and three Aleves.

:)

I usually arrive early.

Get dressed except my shoes.

Look over pregame notes.

Look over notes in my journal.

Pre-game with partner(s)

Stretch

Tell a joke and smile just before we enter the court

Like "how many assistant coaches does it take to change a light bulb?"

Uhm, why do you ref without shoes? Is this a regional thing?

One better, what is brown and sticky?

yes, I just wear black socks.;)

Let me guess...you learned this at camp from a D1 referee? Did he offer to take you snipe hunting as well? ;)

If I am the Referee, I have a way I bounce and spin the basketball (towards me) and I must slap the ball twice after each spin. I go with the left arm first, then the right arm. I really have not any rhyme or reason for this. Just something that has become a habit and I do it every time.

Peace

Hmmm, my rituals are not quite as colorful, but they begin the night before. I always pack my bag the same way every time, and the clothes are put in so that I can take them out in the order I put them on. On the way to the game site I either listen to my Art McDonald pre-game CD or the sound track to A Knight's Tale, just depends on whether I feel a greater need to get focused or get pumped up. At the site I dress, always in the same order. I briefly consider what an idiot I am for not stretching. And then I turn to my partner and start our pregame by say, "All right, Chief. How are we gonna do this tonight?"

I really should look doing my shadowboxing on the court right before the jump. A little fear never hurt anyone right?

Probably not a good idea if you're tossing. That circle isn't very big. It would end up being not-shadow boxing, and might even include a lawsuit!.

You stole mine....

Not fair!

BTW, my post-game ritual includes my wife telling me what an idiot I am for not stretching. I like symmetry.

I don't know why, but I have to count the stars and stripes of the flag during the anthem. First the stars, then the red stipes, then the white stripes (and yes it always equals 13). It drives me nutz if I'm at an angle I can't see all the stars for counting.......... :cool:

not a quite set ritual
 

I don't have a set routine, but I do like to take the time to brush my teeth...even though half the guys here like to have a great, garlic, horrendous breath, I prefer to have a clean mouth to blow into my fox40.

I like the post about telling a joke prior to going out to loosen things up. My one partner during the captains meeting got the two sides hands together and said "Go Eagles!".....Lucky for him...I'm a huge Steelers Fan and they're in the NFC.

-KG:D Go Gators & Go Steelers!

I go out and dance to the pre-game music. Sometimes the coaches like to dance and sometimes they don't. and boy does it get awkward. :D

One word.

Burritos.

Snaqs, for me you can leave the rest of the sentence off! ;)

Right before I take the court, I toss a handful of powder into the air.:D

The Chinese just sent three cows up in space. It was the first herd shot round the world.

The night before I referee, I hang out with my girlfriend. :o

When I get home my wife always asks if anyone yelled at me. DUH! I reply with a classic line about a bear and the woods. I tell her it doesn't bother me any, it comes with the territory.

She won't watch any game I do because she can't stand to see me get yelled at. How ironic, dear!

I pack my bag exactly the same every time. Undergarments on the bottom of the pile, outergarments in the middle, and shoes in a bag on the top. Dunno why, but I just do.

When the national anthem is played, I make a mental picture of it being done in sign language, unless I'm at the school for the deaf, then I watch the cheerleaders do it and do the English translation in my head.

The whole deaf ref thing interested me enough to run down to the local JC and get into the beginning ASL class.

My vocab is now almost 30 words. Which is 30 more then it was when I started.

I try to get in the locker room first so I can have a quiet moment to get focused. I always say a prayer asking for patience and wisdom in adjudicating the game and to protect the officials and players from injury. Then put on the under armour. Then stretch. Then finish getting dressed, make sure the fly is up.... do the pregame...recheck the fly and make sure I have a whistle plus one in my pocket with a needle. Then go have fun.

I always say a prayer that my partner actually arrives more than 15 minutes before game time.

(Sarcastic? A bit. But unfortunately, not so much.) :(

I'm usually saying that prayer the whole time I'm driving to a game!

Cool. I hope you are enjoying learning ASL as much as I enjoy teaching it.

I usually trim the ol shaggy beard somewhat before I put my rubber band in to center it. Then put my second rubber band in to tie my hair up in a pony tail down my back to get me started. Remove all my piercings. Q tip ears, brush teeth. I am almost ashamed to admit I am up to 1/2 bottle of ben gay lathered up over most of my body avoiding my eyes. The knees have been acting up this year more than ever so it takes some time to put on both compression braces. I sometimes put my calf and ankle braces on as well. I put in earplugs last game to drowned out the fan noise. Next, grab by pair of black Hagger slacks and put them on one pant leg at a time along with my belt to hold them up. Next, pull down the sleeves of my shirt to cover my tats and questionable body markings and pull down the bottoms of my pants to conceal my lucky white socks. Placing my glasses on my nose is also important along with the black elastic band to hold them in place. Stretch the ol hammys a couple times and ask my partner if he has any questions. Finally, slam at least two 5 hour energy drink bottles to get me through and then tell my partner that it is my turn and I will be "tossing" tonite since it is a huge game between two rivals. P.S. Our assignor has told me to stop wearing my suspenders under the stripes since at certain angles they are visable and he said it just does not look too good.

What a coincidence....

The night before I referee, I hang out with your girlfriend too.