Flip 58 AP switch experiment
 

Trying out the Flip 58 for the first few games this season.. For those not familiar with this, it is a small piece of plastic with a 2 sided movable switch ( black for visitors, white for home) that fits on the underside of your whistle. It does take a little bit of the performance out of the Fox 40, but a little more air seems to do the trick.

I've tried the "whistle in the pocket" method, just does not seem to work for me to keep track of AP. Hoping that as I get more years behind me, knowing the AP status will just become natural. One of my goals for the season, ( small as it may seem), is to not have to look one time at table for an arrow check.

Wish me luck... :)

Alternative Approach
 

Rather than that goal, try this:
Keep your head filled with other more important things, and don't look at the table every time.
Pregame it that the one facing the table when the held ball occurs glances at the table and gives an immediate direction signal. The guy(s) with back(s) to the table cue(s) off the guy opposite table.
It works well for us.
Lots better than always trying to keep personal track of whose possession it will be next time.
Just an idea.

What is the solution for the OP if there is no AP arrow at the table?

By Rule . . .
 

. . . there must be a device indicating AP direction at the table.

When there wasn't a lighted device, I've had the table use a shoe even. Also a water bottle. One time a PhyEd pylon.
There's gotta be something, by rule.

I have no problem with using a device to keep track of the arrow. But I do think it looks much smoother if you don't need to check your pockets before signaling the direction of the held ball.

One trick I heard at camp was to remember the arrow as you're counting. For example, when you have a backcourt 10-second count, instead of counting "1 one-thousand, 2 one-thousand. . .", try counting, "1 red arrow, 2 red arrow, 3 red arrow". This has actually worked great for me. I can still take a quick peek at the table to make sure I have it right if I need to. But when a held ball happens, I've beaten the arrow into my memory so I don't have to check the table or my pockets or the switch on my whistle.

As far as having an arrow at the table, I read a story (I think it had to be on this website a long time ago) about an official who used to carry a child's stuffed animal in their equipment bag. It was a toucan, with a long beak. And if there was no arrow at the table, he would leave the toucan at the table to be the arrow. There were jokes about having to "flip the bird" after every held ball. :)

Nice!

Is That A Whistle In Your Pocket, Or Are You Just Happy to See Me ???
 

Here, in my little corner of Connecticut, as opposed to the entire State of Connecticut, that I can't speak for, because I don't know what the other parts of the State do, we have to, by local mechanics, keep a whistle in our pocket to keep track of the arrow. We've been doing this since the introduction of the alternating possession rule. It's become so second nature to me that I don't have to actually physically "check" my pockets. Since I never keep anything else in my pockets, I can just "feel" the whistle in one pocket, or the other.

Now, I will admit that it would look a lot "smoother" if I didn't have to change the whistle after each alternating possession. This is an easy switch at the beginning of a game, but as the game moves along, and gets more intense, and I start sweating, it's gets harder to get the whistle out of one sweaty pocket into the other sweaty pocket.

Several years ago, when I arrived on the court to do the first game, boys soph, they had no arrow. I got a Coke can from a fan, who was sitting close to the table, and we used the can for the direction indicator for our game.
Since I live just 3 miles from the school, at the end of our game, I went home and made a wood arrow, that could be flipped and got it back to the school at half time for the JV game. They used it for half of the season, until they got an electric arrow and then they used my wood arrow in their auxilliary gym for a few seasons.
Last year I fashoned an arrow out of a white box, that originally had some short stem roses in it, to use on AAU and wreck games, that usually have no arrow available.
I've tried the "whistle in the pocket" but just haven't been able to get accustomed to it.

King Tut
 

Another solution would be to always have Steve Martin serving as a table official. :D

Pasted image by BillyMac no doubt forthcoming.

Or not to Tut..... that is the question.
 

Ran some V scrimmages yesterday with the whistle switch, I think I'm gonna like it! Didn't have to look over at table, and got every AP correct.... This is a keeper. Thanks for the comments and suggestions guys!

Though if we could get Steve as a table official, I'd lose the switch.. :D

My only suggestion is to be careful. If the officials working the games you want aren't using it, you might not want to use it.

A good point Snaqs and thanks. The switch itself is barely noticeable under the whistle, and I didn't let on to my P's yesterday that I was using it.

What about using a flesh colored rubber band on your wrist? Might be able to switch that faster than a whistle?

There must be one. So your question is moot.

This.

Only one official -- the one facing the table -- looks at the arrow after an AP. He/she signals. The other mirrors, if necessary / desired. Nobody turns a back to the court to look.

I'm only concerned that the arrow be set properly. And changed properly after an AP situation. But memorizing its status at all times? Not really necessary, IMO.

That works great!

Except the table isn't always right. :(

That's why it's an even better idea to learn to keep the AP in your head.

1) Do not use the whistle or whatever item you want to use from pocket to pocket method. It does not look good.

2) Do not use the rubber band from wrist to wrist method. If a rubber band is jewelry on a player it is jewelry on an official.

3) We are paid big bucks (poor Buckeyes, :o) to know the direction of the AP Arrow. That means we need better game awareness.

4) I own a couple of whistles with the Flip Switch and I just bought two of the new whistles with the buttons on them. Do NOT use either of these types of whistles during real basketball games; see (1), (2), and especially (3) above.

5) I bought both the Flip Switch and the button whistles for two reasons: 1) I wanted to try them, and 2) I wanted a tax deduction for buying equipment. The Flip Switch does effect the sound of the Fox-40. The button whistles, which look like a Fox-40, do not sound any different.

6) I use the Flip Switch whistles during H.S. scrimmages and summer team camps, and "games" where there is no AP Arrow or the Table Officials are not very competent, such as CYO, youth recreational leagues, and AAU type tournaments in the spring. I have never used the Flip Switch whistle at an AAU or YBOA national qualifiying tournament or at the National Championship Tournaments themselves.

MTD, Sr.

It's right if I make sure it's set properly. And changed when it's proper for it to be changed. I normally have it in my head (especially in boys games where we don't have a lot of AP situations), but if I don't it's not the end of the world.

Image ??? Hell No, This Calls For A Video ...
 

I tried to resist, but two things made me post it. First, this is one of my all time favorite Saturday Night Live performances. Second, many of our younger Forum members have absolutely no idea what Freddy, and shavano, are referring to. Martin performed this skit on April 22, 1978. How may Forum members weren't even born yet? We all can be sure that Mark T. DeNucci, Sr. was alive. He was sixty-five years old, and ready for retirement, at the time of the skit.

Steve Martain- King Tut - YouTube

Where's chseagle When You Need Him ???
 

Just because this is the right way to do things in your little corner of the Buckeye State doesn't mean that it's the right way to do things in my little corner of the Constitution State.

Also, the table crew gets the "big bucks" to know the direction of the AP arrow. We just try to keep a "backup" available in case there is some type of problem at the table.

Company computers here at work block YouTube.
Pleeeze post an image.
"He hates these cans!"

And, Get Off The Internet, And Get Back To Work ...
 

Sorry, an image just wouldn't do it justice. "Goggle" it when you get home.

Talk about "Must See TV"!! Forgot how funny this skit was... Back when SNL was actually worth watching. :)

And it's wrong if you are distracted and don't look, if a partner changes it without your knowledge or if a chseagle takes it upon himself to change it when you're not looking.

Nobody is 100%, not even you. :D

Billy:

We are going to have to agree to disagree on this one but, if you to any college supervisor, I am sure that you will find that they do not want their officials doing it. I also know a few Div. I evaluators, including Daryl Long, and they do not want officials doing it either. That said, as an instructor, an interpreter, camp evaluator, and college evaluator, I would surely tell the official of my concerns, but would let it go at that because I have more important things to worry about as an evaluator.

MTD, Sr.

Huh...do you also keep a pad and pencil in your pocket to keep track of the running score and fouls?

When In Rome ...
 

Agree on many levels. I don't officiate any college games, but I would hope that the table crew would do a much better job at keeping track of the alternating possession arrow than the high school table crews that I work with. Almost all that I work with rely on the actual arrow, and don't keep track of alternating possession in the scorebook. When a question comes up about the alternating possession arrow, and you ask the high school table crews that I work with when the last alternating possession arrow occurred, they look at you like you're speaking Greek. Also, this seems to be one of those, "When in Rome", issues. On my local board, we teach our rookies to use a whistle in their pocket, and all officials, including veteran officials, are expected to keep this whistle as a backup to the table arrow, in all games.

Is The Arrow Pointing The Right Way ???
 

No. The powers that be around here just expect us to have a backup plan for the alternating possession arrow. Although we do try to know when we're approaching the bonus, or "double bonus", to prevent the most common type of correctable errors.

I make sure that the scorer is keeping track of the AP when I have my pre-game.

Mark, I agree with you, but the fact is Billy isn't your target here. His little corner of Rome actually requires it. Would you have him ignore the instruction of his assigners?

No.

Of course, I worked a tournament a while back where the UIC tried forcing people to carry ball/strike indicators on the bases. I tried, like a good soldier, but kept forgetting to turn the wheels and stuck it in my pocket. If someone required it of me, I'd carry the spare whistle, but I'm not sure I'd remember to move it.

Seems to me to be a solution to a problem that barely exists.

Tip... For those using a whistle to switch back and forth in your pocket to track the held ball Try swithching to a small comb. It works much better. The comb does not get stuck in the pocket or pull the pocket out when switching sides. A partner turned me onto this when I was using the whistle method.

Follicle Deficiency
 

There is about an 85% probability that about 85% of those participating on this forum haven't had need to use a comb in about 85 years. :D
And I'm one of them. :)

Here's a tip. Throw it out.

If you develop bad habits now they will become engrained in your repertoire as an official.

Arrow,team foul, and shot clock awareness are not difficult at all if you focus.

I'd rather have a new official focus on all the other stuff that clogs up a newbie brain. Once that starts to become second nature, then the focus on the arrow, shot clock (if used) etc. can be added.