Usfa
 

A couple questions about USFA:

1. How big is USFA?

2. If you call USFA, what is your opinion compared to other organizations?

3. Level of teams playing USFA? Example rec, class B, class A, Gold.

3. Any additional comments


Thanks for your input.

1. How big is USFA? Growing. Larger in the South

2. If you call USFA, what is your opinion compared to other organizations? Don't call it. Current Umpires are terrible. Little or no training plan.

3. Level of teams playing USFA? Example rec, class B, class A, Gold. Mixed

3. Any additional comments. Mostly grown on the fact that their "Nationals" are held in Florida and can provide team members and families with "vacation spot" for Nationals. POOR umpiring. I speak of this from both as an umpire and as a father of a player who has participated in their tournaments.

We have some members of this board who have called USFA quite a bit, including the Pensacola nationals. I have never called USFA, but their rule book used to be a complete joke... it was not possible to run a tournament and have the umpires call the game strictly by the published rule book; it was required to mix in ASA or some other better thought through rule book to cover the gaps. If the UIC was not thorough enough to go through all of this with the umpires, then you would be getting inconsistent calls on some plays.

Their rule book has gotten longer, but I haven't read it in a couple of years, so I don't know if their book has improved.

As to training, there are an awful lot of so-called sanctioning organizations that make no effort to train umpires at all; they've been living off of ASA or perhaps high school league training.

The rulesheet (calling it a book is just absurd, really) is a lot better than it used to be - and it at least tells you what rules to use if something's not covered (FED, not ASA, btw). (An example of an old rule from the rulesheet: "Contact between runners and fielders will be watched and scrutinized by the umpire." Um.... what? So ... I'm supposed to watch it and scrutinize it ... but then do nothing, I suppose? This sort of craziness is gone from the rules now.)

It's getting bigger in the south.

And I don't know how you can say the training is bad ... I was trained - here's how... I sent them my $30 and got a card. Done.

Honestly, though, the USFA state tourney in Texas recently was VERY well umpired - they really did go out of their way to call the local assignors and only ask for their best.

Detail
 

Ok. I have another definition of training. Sorry. :-)

I should, out of fairness, qualify my answer to the poor umpire. In Indiana. The umpire quality used by the USFA is poor. And they don't help the Indiana situation that they have a habit of pulling umpires from IL. I am not saying all umpires in IL are bad. Don't read too much into my statement. My concern is and I have to ask....why are they not working in IL. Reputation? All the good ones already being used? Come to Indiana and not worry about pissing off the local (IL) reps because your working other organizations? Work Indiana tournaments and not worry about what they think because you get to back to IL on Sunday evening?

They "book" is available on line. I like the statement in the book where if you do not find a rule listed within their book that you should refer to the rule as written by the "governing body of softball". I assume that to be ASA?

Opps. Fogot
 

In a recent Indiana USFA tournament. The tournament director....who by the way left her same position within the State USSSA organization last year to come to Indiana USFA. Is using all of the balls marked for usage in USSSA and the official softball of USSSA in the USFA softball tournaments she is directing in Indiana for USFA. Guess she had a bunch leftover.

Not here... USFA and ASA are not the best of buddies. FED is the default.

I have worked a couple USFA Tournaments and have found that the rules refer to ASA a lot. It seems that a lot of teams in Texas are playing USFA and ASA, but ASA is still the strongest organization in my area. Most Umpires here call ASA and USFA.

What part of Houston, trooper? I'm in Katy / Sugarland area.

I sent you a PM.

Òóðèñòó
 

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reported :(

OK so the training is not bad.. it simply does not exist!:D

LOL Ad reopened an old thread, relevant to me though. Just called my first USFA tournament this weekend. Not TOO bad.....rule book still a cluster. ASA book @ approx 250 pages, USFA at 32....with 3 pages of ads.

Strike zone is the width of the plate and from the batter's knees to her "solar plex". Not sure what a solar plex is but sounds like she should be getting carbon credits for it or something.....

Saw one of the base umpires with not one, but two ball bags on. And USFA allows shorts in the field....black ones while the plate guy is wearing heather. Not so much alike.

All in all the professionalism simply wasn't there. Guys seemed nice but wow....just wow. Thankfully I was on a field with two other "newbies" to USFA calling 12Us. One has a full D1 schedule and the other was the High school umpire of the year last year. Worked with both of them numerous times before...games were smoooooooth. UIC later told me we could call anytime we were free.....was nice but gonna have to think about it.