Contacting Partners

[tomegun]

In my corner of Nevada the R contacts the other official(s). For high school we have an Assignment Administrator that handles all contact with schools if a game is cancelled, times are changed, etc. This procedure is basically the same for college.

[BillyMac]

Cancellations due to bad weather are a "free for all" here in my little corner of Connecticut. Athletic directors are supposed to contact the officials, and then the assignment commissioner, who then makes the change on Arbiter. In reality, athletic directors seldom contact the officials, and just contact the assignment commissioner. Because of this, officials are expected to try to contact the school (good luck if it's after office hours, or if it's a Saturday, or a school vacation day), and keep their eye on their Arbiter schedule, when bad weather is in the forecast. Communication between the officials, and the assignment commissioner, is discouraged because he's so busy with athletic directors, and Arbiter changes. There is seldom, if any, communication between officials assigned to the game. There has got to be a better way?

[BktBallRef]

Originally Posted by tomegun

For high school we have an Assignment Administrator that handles all contact with schools if a game is cancelled, times are changed, etc.

Exactly. The assignor communicates with the AD and assigns the games. Why wouldn't he have the same responsibility in the event of a time change, site change, or cancellation?

That's why I pay him a booking fee. It's not my responsiblity to confirm that the game he is sending me to work is still being played.

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by BktBallRef

It's not my responsibility to confirm that the game he is sending me to work is still being played.

Maybe once, every other year, my email confirmation (or a post card back in the olden days), will "spark" something in the mind of the athletic director: holiday, or winter, vacation; Martin Luther King Day; mid year exams; boys and girls site, or time, conflict; home and away site mistake; Saturday game; conflict with another school activity (holiday concert, holiday dance); no subvarsity game, leading to an "odd time" varsity start; games that were changed (site, or time) where he forgot to contact my assignment commissioner; etc. Over thirty-two years, my confirmation has prevented about a dozen such "mistakes", "mistakes" not created by, and having little to do, with my assignment commissioner, "mistakes" that may not have been prevented without my confirmation with the athletic director.