Bad Weather

[il-zebra]

I am wondering how other areas handle inclement weather
such as lightning interrupting a game and causing it
to be rescheduled another day.
How long do you wait for break in the weather?
If game is rescheduled do the crews get paid again
for 2nd date, or if subs replace what rate do they get
paid?

[nvfoa15]

Here in Northern Virginia we use the flash-bang method for determining stoppage of a game. If the difference between the "flash" and the "bang" is 30 seconds or less this means that the storm is within 5 miles of the game site. Per regional regulations the stadium is evatuated (including fans) to a safe place, usually inside the school. The game is suspended for 30 minutes. If during that time another flash-bang of less than 30 seconds occurs the 30 minute clock is restarted. The game will resume only if there is no recurrance of lightning for 30 minutes. All schools hava access to local weather radar via computer and will monitor that site during the stoppage.

I have had several weather related stoppages over the past several years. At one school the game was suspended in the third quarter and resumed, at the point of interruption, the following Monday. The same crew is assigned the game.
Last year I had a game postponed for lightning after about an hour wait. (We had completed a pre toss but had not kicked off.) At another game I had an extended half time (45 minutes) while waiting for a rain storm to pass. Both schools wanted to complete the game that night, and, of course, its easier to do that than resume the game at a later date. This year at a FR/JV game, we had lightning but no thunder the entire time. It turned out that the lightning was over a city 100 miles to the south, just high enough in the atomsphere for us to see.

As far as who gets paid what if the same crew members are not available, I haven't had this happen to me but it could be easily worked out.

[Sleeper]

The schools I have worked with in Texas have meters that measure the static electricity in the air. Once it reaches a certain point, they suspend the game. It has to drop below the magic number for 30 minutes straight before the game can resume.

[Ed Hickland]

Rain is more a problem here on Long Island than lightning and thunder but we do get it.

In inclement weather we must call the school two hours before the scheduled start. If we leave home before being notified of the cancellation it is full payment for the game.

If the game is cancelled at the site by the officials it is full payment for the game and payment for the re-scheduled game.

As for lightning or thunder the game is suspended immediately. Officials are paid for the game and re-scheduled to complete the contest for another game fee. That includes up to thirty minutes before the start of the game.

We get a fair number of cancellations when heavy rains hit the area. Already this year we have had two weekends with significant rain and about 25 percent of the game were postponed until the following day.

[JimNayzium]

Il Zebra - Lonesome Dove is the best ever....

There is none higher, I wanted to name my son Augustus, but my wife would not let me, so the next dog is Augustus.

[Mike Simonds]

... At least that is what I saw on a T-shirt the other day...

Hey, I noticed the Notre Dame fight song makes reference to the weather:

Cheer, cheer for old Notre Dame,
Wake up the echoes cheering her name,
Send a volley cheer on high,
Shake down the "thunder" from the sky,
What though the odds be great or small,
Old Notre Dame will win over all,
While her loyal sons (and daughters since 1972),
Go marching onward to victory...

Hey Jim Naysium, I appreciate your comments and someday I would love to officiate in one of your games... By the way, If ND has to lose I hope it will be to one of the service academies... ND is one of the largest ROTC programs outside of West Point, Annapolis, and the Air Force and they value this relationship...

[JimNayzium]

Mike Simonds.....where do you live and officiate regularly....maybe you can vacation at Myrtle Beach SC and do one of our scrimmages in early august....not a bad idea....we usually have one scrimmage that is game like except special teams are not live.....

[Mike Simonds]

Hey Jim, thank you! I would really enjoy meeting you and working with your kids. Since I live in Hawaii I don't have any short-term travel plans to the East Coast.

But I do have relatives in New England and the Mid West so maybe someday I'll be in your area.

I know this is a long shot idea but last year this organization put together an all-star team of graduated players from small high schools in Texas, Oklahoma, and surrounding states and brought them to Maui for two summer games. Maybe you could start something like that over there and bring them here for a game. It was lots of fun and there were some representatives from small colleges there to talk to the kids about continuing their education and playing football at the next level...

[Ed Hickland]

Originally posted by JimNayzium
Mike Simonds.....where do you live and officiate regularly....maybe you can vacation at Myrtle Beach SC and do one of our scrimmages in early august....not a bad idea....we usually have one scrimmage that is game like except special teams are not live.....

Jim,

My wife wants me to take her to Myrtle Beach and my in-laws live inland in Orangeburg.

Would love to come down and do an early season scrimmage.

[JimNayzium]

need to stay in touch then....no joke....

email me at [email protected]

my games are in Columbia, SC 45 minutes from Orangeburg, 2 and half hours from Myrtle Beach.

Maybe I will have my association assign the scrimmage and let you work it with them to get an idea of my guys....At scrimmages though, they all seem sharp and energetic....during the season it gets really bad.

[BktBallRef]

Originally posted by il-zebra
I am wondering how other areas handle inclement weather
such as lightning interrupting a game and causing it
to be rescheduled another day.
How long do you wait for break in the weather?
If game is rescheduled do the crews get paid again
for 2nd date, or if subs replace what rate do they get
paid?

il-zebra, you must be a jinx! It's raining, I have two games today, and I'm already sick with the flu!! Thanks a lot!!

[4 Sport Official]

I, also, have a rain game to look forward to, now. The prediction for game time tomorrow :

33 F, with a rain/snow mix all day starting at 10am, up until our scheduled 7:30pm game time, at which point we are expected to get some relief from the precipitation, but not the temperature.


This will be the first time I have worn long sleeves since over two years ago! BRRRR!!! I realize that this is not as cold as many of you have to deal with, but I have become accustomed to the warm California weather in the few years that I have been here.

[Huskerblue]

To heck with the rain, we got 3 inches of snow on the gound here in Northwest Iowa. Does Honig's carry cleated overshoes, or should I just tape some tennis rackets to my feet??