Sports officiating?

This is a post about my upbringing and sports. My upbringing has burned some bridges in my life and caused people to be angry with me... What does that mean?

We are all taught specific values, beliefs, and habits by our parents, teachers, friends, employers, and government… Ultimately, no matter the influences, we become who we are when all that information is formed together.

There is one hard-taught lesson my father emphasized that has really come to light recently. My father held a strong belief that if you are going to criticize someone, you better walk in their shoes, and if you have anything bad to say about someone, if you can not (and do not) say it to their face, do not say it.

I have lived with this in-bread advice for over 4 decades. It has caused many problems and saved me many times. After I walk in someone's shoes, I am far more forgiving of their issues. That is why I have done it so many times. I had the urge to highly criticize someone. Still, before I did, I "walked in their shoes" like organizing a large running event, organizing a tennis tournament, being the director of a youth sports group, coached softball, baseball, tennis, hockey, football, basketball, soccer, and more. I had done so many things as I wanted to walk in their shoes and found that I did not have much to say anymore when I had.

There are so many criticisms I hear… The Doctor makes way to much for what he does, those overpaid government workers have it easy, salesmen are overpaid people who can charm the right person, teachers get overpaid for working 9 months a year, and so on. I recalled a friend complaining how his sister in pharmaceutical made $200,000 in one year and almost flunked out of college. He said, "She must have slept her way there," I said he really needs to understand that industry before he says things like that! I do not believe all these statements are true, just like many other comments about many professions. This is because I have not been in their shoes, so how would I know?

Why does this come up now? Recently I have had some heated e-mails about baseball umpires and mistakes they made recently. I am not arguing they were not mistakes. Criticizing so harshly, which has never been experienced by most, caused me to get on the offensive. If you watch ESPN, even John Kroch said there were clear errors but did not call for them to be fired. So many are calling them idiots and saying they should be fired. Now, this is a subject dear to heart, and in my dad's own words, if you have not been in their shoes, do not judge them.

I get offensive, as I have been there. For 7 years, I worked hard as a baseball umpire. Actually, I decided to make it a profession. Then I learned that most umpires are business owners, wealthy in some other way, or retired from another profession. You cannot raise a family in that profession.  Well, truthfully, a select few do. Since that time, I have been a tennis official. I have seen the same thing in this sport as well. I have worked at professional events where, after traveling and other costs, I earned $300 a week for working 10-hour days.

A good friend of mine is a top tennis official. He has attended the US Open, Australian Open, and Wimbledon and is one of the top officials I know. I recently asked him about his income. He said he nets about $1000 a month, but he has other means of support.

But what hurts me most is the fact that society really does not understand what it is like in that position. No matter what you do, you will be hated. Imagine if every aspect of your job was played over and over again by the press. You cannot quit a gig late or risk losing the next assignment. Have a sick day, and there will be consequences…

The outstanding officials (like many old friends and myself who were very highly rated) left baseball to get a job where we have health coverage and a wage we could raise a family. As I said, some may make it, just like players in "The Rookie," the movie about Jimmy Morris and his quest to make it.  Almost broke his family. And two years later, he was out of the majors. In officiating, very few hang on long enough to make it to the golden spot unless they have another form of income.

So few solid officials continue, as it is not a stable and thankful job. That makes the pool thin to select from. Just like a few years ago, I commented the retail sector really hurt with solid customer service and skilled employees. What I heard is that this is the best applicant they can get... Like I said earlier, have your job every minute on film, and I bet there would be reasons to be fired if you hold them to that standard for a bonehead mistake, a misstated word, or another little issue that is on tape... 

So, in this life, when I look at someone and think they are just idiots, I look in the mirror and think, aren't we all at times? We just do not have ESPN showing it 20 times a day, placing it in the newspapers, or debating their job status at the water cooler…

Like I said, been there, done that… whole new perspective…

Carry on.

Same old complaints....

You have heard this before. My weight is always been an issue for me. I can gain and lose 10 pounds a week. Lately, more gains than losses! I have been working out and tracking everything I eat. I have been working out (Cardio) 30-45 minutes a day. I feel so much more robust, and my knee hurts very little. I even went 3.1 MPH at a 15% incline for 40 minutes on the hamster wheel... I have been eating 2,200 to 2,700 calories daily. Nutrition has been very balanced. I lift weights in a full routine 2 or 3 times a week.

I have gained all I lost in the past two weeks (5 pounds) and 3 pounds in addition to where I was three weeks ago. WTF is all I can say in a kind way. I am at 268. That is 30 pounds over last October and 65 pounds over my 2006 50-mile weight. I was only 34 pounds before I got to where I peaked in 2005.

Many may get tired of all this complaining, which I seem to continue doing. But I am using this blog right now just to vent. It pisses me off... Makes me mad!

I want to get a great big pail of ice cream I have been avoiding for weeks and eat what makes me happy. But instead, I am heading to the gym for the second time today. I will ride the bike for an hour, then go home, eat a 500-700 calorie well-balanced dinner (not enjoyable), and pout.

I can only hope that the big increase this AM was caused by water gain from my heavy lifting workout yesterday and tomorrow morning (I weight each AM) I will see a decrease. If not, I will keep on this same path as I know from experience: losing weight, getting healthy, and successfully running an ultra are never always fun! The reward comes from success, which only comes after all the pain, frustration, and agony! I need to Carry on!!!! I will not let the scale bother me if I feel stronger and am not junking it out!

As I close, I just found out Pamela McNeill is having her CD release party on the same night as the UMTR party (November 14). The party starts at 9 PM at Bunkers, so I can attend both. I will just leave UTMR at 8 PM. For those who do not know Pamela McNeill, she is quite an accomplished singer/songwriter in the Metro area. I have an old post about her (All you quiet dreamers carry on) and close with her typical closing "Carry on". If you read that post, you know the special meaning that her music has for me, as well as the phrase "carry on". (Just writing this brings a lump to my throat and a tear to the eye. I wonder if I will ever not feel immense pain and sorrow from unexpected deaths?)

Anyway, I also support local musicians when I have a chance. (As long as I like the music.) If anyone likes the music, it should be a great night.

Tomorrow I will break my foot drop-kicking the scale. Either way, I need to keep pushing onward and remember to be happy!

Carry on!

Movin on up...

I really liked the Jefferson's: the show and the theme song. Recall.

Well, we're movin' on up,
To the east side.
To a deluxe apartment in the sky.
Movin' on up,
To the east side.
We finally got a piece of the pie.

Fish don't fry in the kitchen;
Beans don't burn on the grill.
Took a whole lotta tryin',
Just to get up that hill.
Now we're up in the big leagues,
Gettin' our turn at bat.
As long as we live, it's you and me, baby,
There ain't nothin wrong with that.

Who does not love this theme song? That theme song has been a favorite of mine as I climb hills in the past and now as I walk the treadmill at 15% inclines. Stupid in a way, but it does increase my spirit.  Can Carl write new lyrics for a Superior Trail theme song? He is great with words!

For the past few weeks, I have been doing at least a mile or 20-30 minutes on the 15% incline of the treadmill, picking up the pace. I did 1.75 in 30 minutes the other day—just walking, huffing, and puffing! It is a great workout if you do not hold on to the treadmill. My knee is slightly stiff, but it is just part of the process, and things are improving.

The first day I tried the 15% incline, it was a little challenging as it took 23 minutes to reach the mile. Today, I started to feel like I could do an hour. I may try that next week. An hour at 15%. Not the animal workouts Adam has been putting in, but I am still happy with them. I am getting a better understanding of how Diane did most (or all) of her training on the treadmill and walked the ST 100 to finish. I still recall her and yo-yo-ing between miles 30-35, with her passing me on the uphills with her awesome walking strength and me passing her on the downhills with my heavy weight being hard to stop on the downhills.

Been reading about many people looking forward to Surf... I am looking forward to seeing them finish a 50. It should be a hoot to volunteer.

I found out that my tennis event on the weekend of the UMTR event was canceled. YIPEE, I GET TO GO. It was nice last year, and I look forward to it again. I hope many plan to make it out there. Yes, that means you, Kurt, and Carrie. It would be nice to hear about Carrie's half-success. She finished; congrats!

Anyway, after not being able to work out and keeping moving on up the scale (pounds), I have two weeks of regular workouts and am down 5 pounds. Yep, I'm moving on up. But I hope it leads to the North Side (Superior Trail!).

Carry on!

What a differance a few years can make?

I was in Ashland, WI, this weekend for Shelley's first half marathon, The Whistlestop Half-Marathon. I used to have very high regard for this race, but after this weekend, I left with a new impression. I think some of the problems are that it is hurt by past success. Thank God there is a great course and a scenic course, but I am not sure I would suggest anyone go there again.

It all started going wrong Friday after I got to the event check-in... At check-in, we were informed that we had to pick up the race chip at the start. That seemed goofy. (Later, when we looked in the bag, we learned there were also no pins for the number.) We went to the pasta dinner... The lines were long. They needed to be prepared for the number of people waiting. When we reached the end of the line, there was no pasta. As we waited about 3 minutes, a guy came out and said, "We can not cook it fast enough." This was early in the night, about 6:15 PM... When we left, the line was longer, and people appeared to wait longer than we had.

Okay, it was not a great start, but we went back to the cabin and went to sleep. We woke to howling winds and snow—about an inch. The road was a little icy. The temperature was near 30, but the wind chill must have been single digits. Great...

We went to the start I had Shelley wait in the line for the biffy while I got the pins and the chip. I went to a barn to get the chip (and there was again a line!) and asked about the number's pins. No one knew. One person suggested I go out by the start (a few hundred yards across a field) and check there. At that location, a person told me to go back to a table near where I got the chip, and they were on the table... less than 50 feet from where I got the Chip.

Then, an announcement was made that the race would start 10 minutes late. After waiting so long for the biffy in the frigid cold, Shelley and I went to the car to warm up. Fortunately, the car was parked about 30 feet from the start. We saw people lining up to start and exited the car to see what was happening. Before we knew it, did the start gun go off? But there were less than 200 people in the race. I thought there were 1,500+... THEY STARTED IT ON TIME WHEN WE WERE TOLD 10 MINUTES LATE... I really felt like they had no clue what they were doing!

People were still coming to the start, confused when the male leader came by (3-mile mark). Over a thousand started over 5 minutes after the real start, as they were told the race would start 10 minutes late. Many people just sat in the cars trying to stay warm and exited the car 8 minutes later, 2 minutes before the assumed start.

The road was slick, but the sun was coming out and warming up. I just stood there waiting for Shelley and saw so many people confused as they came to the start line, and there was no official start for them.

Then, my day was spent seeing Shelley every two miles. Watching the aid stations, I was so happy I had her carry a bottle, as the stations were too small to serve the crowds that were there—very short and understaffed.

The race was a success for Shelley. She was about 2:35 and really was fresh the whole way. She said it was an enjoyable course. She wanted to get out of her wet clothes and get her finisher's shirt. Oh, they put that a block away in another tent... She went to the tent to get her finisher shirt. GUESS WHAT? They were so understaffed that she stood outside the tent for about 10 minutes, waiting in line to get her shirt.  And the wind chill was easily in the low 30s. She got really chilled being in wet clothes.

So we really had a sour taste of the experience when we decided to pay $7 to have her time posted on her medal. We dropped it off, and they said about 30 minutes. We waited 30 minutes, then I checked, and we were 14th in line, and it took about 2 minutes each. So we went to the entertainment tent and got Hot Chocolate. We waited in the tent for 30 minutes and went back, we were now 13th in line... I asked what that was all about, and he said, "We put all these ahead."... They were from the other races (10K/5K). He said another 30-40 minutes. Now, we could have gone to shower and eaten already... But we had wasted over an hour waiting for the medal the way it was. So we decided to go to the grocery store and return in an hour. The medal was done... BUT THEY SPELLED HER NAME WRONG! We just shook our heads and left.

Fortunately, Shelley loved the course and the success she had. She did not like the weather, and as she has little experience with races, she was not bothered by the rookie effort I saw from the under-prepared organizers this weekend. There are so many errors and a lack of communication. There are so many ways to make this easier (Like giving pins in the packet, giving the chip the night before so the race site is not so congested and packed trying to get people the chip, putting the shirts near the finish, and hand them out near the medals, by learning to spell, by being prepared for larger numbers.)

I felt they needed help handling a larger, high-class event. Based on my experience with a smaller race, they have done a great job, but this was way too much for them to handle. If they try to get the size down and make it more manageable, they are succeeding, as I will no longer suggest this as a half or full marathon to participate in.

I did take many pictures. They can be seen at: http://picasaweb.google.com/peasemines/DropBox?feat=directlink

Carry on...

Whistlestop, but not to run...

I am on my way to Ashland, WI, for the second time. Over a decade ago, I enjoyed one of the best fall marathons in the nation (in my opinion) there, and now I am going to support Shelley. She is doing her first half marathon. In my history of running, like many of my friends, a half marathon is just a boring training run.

Although I look back to 1984. I look back to my first 10K. I remember being nervous and thinking, "What am I doing!". I finished and recall limping for the next two days. This is the same process I had for my first 15K, then a 1/2 marathon, then a marathon, then 50K, then 50 miles, and so on. So, I respect those worries and will support those mental barriers I know I had once in my life... In fact, coming back from this knee surgery, I fear a 2-mile run once I am cleared. 

I know she will be fine physically. She is in her best shape (well, the past 5 years I have known her). She has been lifting weights and several quality training runs, and her core and upper body are much stronger. I am more concerned about the mental part of the race. Over the years, I have learned that mental training is more important than physical training in longer races, at least for me. Last fall, we ran a casual 12.5 miles together when I lied to her about how far we were in the run, and I did not give her a watch. When I told her how far she had gone at the end of the run, she immediately became very sore and fatigued. The mind is an amazing thing that stops results in many more DNFs than any physical issue.

I look forward to Carrie Neuburger (Kurt's wife) running her first 1/2 marathon. The last time I saw them was Afton 50K, and I hope her training went well. It should be a great time for pictures at this time of the year, and I will have three cameras. Whistlestop is the best for spectators as well. It is easy to see your runner almost every two miles, and it is a beautiful course. It should be fun!

Carry on...

This was sent to me... had to share...

QUOTED FROM BILL COSBY

"They're standing on the corner and can't speak English. I can't even talk the way these people talk:

Why you ain't,
Where you is,
What he drive,
Where he stay,
Where he work,
Who you be... I'm like....

And I blamed the kid until I heard the mother talk. And then I heard the father talk.

Everybody knows it's important to speak English except these knuckleheads. You can't be a doctor with that kind of crap coming out of your mouth
In fact, you will never get any kind of job that will make a decent living.

People marched and were hit in the face with rocks to get an Education, and now we've got these knuckleheads walking around. The lower economic people are not holding up their end in this deal. These people are not parenting. They are buying things for kids.

$500 sneakers for what? And they won't spend $200 for Hooked on Phonics.

I am talking about these people who cry when their son stands in an orange suit.

Where were you when he was 2?

Where were you when he was 12?

Where were you when he was 18, and why didn't you know he had a pistol?

And where is the father? Or who is his father?

People putting their clothes on backward:
Isn't that a sign of something gone wrong? People with their hats on backward and pants down around the crack, isn't that a sign of something? Isn't it a sign of something when she has her dress all the way up and has all types of needles [piercing] going through her body?

What part of Africa did this come from??

We are not Africans. Those people are not Africans; they don't know a thing about Africa ......

I say this all of the time. It would be like white people saying they are European-American. That is totally stupid. I was born here, and so were my parents, grandparents, and, very likely, my great-grandparents. I don't have any connection to Africa, no more than white Americans have to Germany, Scotland, England, Ireland, or the Netherlands. The same applies to 99 percent of all black Americans as regards Africa. So stop already! ! !

With names like Shaniqua, Taliqua, and Mohammed and all of that crap .......... and all of them are in jail. Brown or black versus the Board of Education is no longer the white person's problem.

We have got to take the neighborhood back. People used to be ashamed. Today a woman has eight children with eight different 'husbands' -- or men or whatever you call them now.

We have millionaire football players who cannot read. We have million-dollar basketball players who can't write two paragraphs. We, as black folks, have to do a better job.

Someone working at Wal-Mart with seven kids, you are hurting us. We have to start holding each other to a higher standard.

We cannot blame the white people any longer."

Dr. William Henry 'Bill' Cosby, Jr., Ed.D.