McCandless Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 I am speaking solely for myself. Just 'cause I have an RO 2, and I read up on the rules, and try to think through the "you make the call" posts, doesn't mean I have all the answers. Although I get in a few licks RO'ing at monthly matches. That just isn't enough. Our rules are getting fairly complicated (to my mind, anyway) and sometimes, something just isn't in the book. Look at it this way... baseball umpires go up through the minor leagues, learning and experiencing, before they get to "the show". Knowledge of "the book" doesn't make 'em great umpires as soon as they put on the suit. I shared the RO duties on my posse at a major match this weekend, with absolutely wonderful, classy, friendly, and somewhat inexperienced shooters (for the most part). (The two of us who did RO, were the only RO 2's on the posse). There was a call or two, that with 20/20 hindsight, I might have called a little differently. But, I can say with a clear conscience, I really did the best I knew how. No calls were protested (that I know of). I did all I could to get the shooters through the stages safely. I plan to get out there at monthly matches and RO as often as they'll let me, and I'm going to ask those who are more experienced than I to make sure I don't foul up, and if I do... TELL ME!! To those on my posse this week. My apologies if I did something that wasn't "up to snuff". I really did try to make it a good experience for everyone. Ruptured Duc (hobbling off to get my bottle of Aleve.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rance - SASS # 54090 Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 Howdy McCandless... I think your beatin' yourself up over doing the best job that you could do.. That's all any of us can do.. You were the RO... (yeah another fella helped ya) so.. take the credit where credit is due.. Sounds like newer shooters.. posse ran smooth.. no stage or match DQ's.. Right? Good Match!! The Match Director felt you were qualified to be the RO at a major match.. I'm thinkin' that's a feather in yer hat.. that's a compliment.. Yeah... some folks are perfect.. but most of us aren't Hindsight is always great.. but just think of it a different way... At one Major Match I attended about 5-6 years ago.. We had 2 RO's per posse.. (I ain't the RO) We had a bunch of experienced, know it all, ask every question possible... shooters on our posse.. After half a day of this at lunch break the RO's had had enough.. before the afternoon shooting started.. They asked the whole posse.. "We'll step aside.. Who wants to be the RO's?" Posse was quiet.. no one stepped up... A lot of folks don't want to accept the responsibility of being the RO.. You did... Feel good about it.. Rance Thinkin' ya done the best ya could.. forget about it.. but.. we are all still learnin' huh? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grizzly Dave Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 I appreciate the folks who RO a lot. While I am an RO II, I don't run the timer much, I just move too dang slow to keep up. My hats off to all them what do the job! Grizz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rance - SASS # 54090 Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 I appreciate the folks who RO a lot. While I am an RO II, I don't run the timer much, I just move too dang slow to keep up. My hats off to all them what do the job! Grizz See there.. Grizz can say the same thing in a lot fewer words.. Rance Thinkin' Grizz knows and appreciates.. Same as your posse did.. I ain'ta RO and I'll admit it.. Ain'ta gunsmith either :lol: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snakebite Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 Yes, you are correct... R.O.'s do need practice. I totally agree. Our new training program was directed toward raising the competency level of the membership when it comes to knowing the rules, and it has already started making a difference in the quality of our match officials. We now, for the first time, have certified and qualified instructors teaching EVERY class, which has had a major impact upon consistency. (this is not to say that many past instructors were not excellent) As we increase the knowledge base among our membership the overall quality of our R.O.s will continue to rise. I encourage EVERYONE to attend refresher courses every couple of years so as to keep up to date and refreshed on the rules. It cost nothing to attend a refresher course. I am amazed at some of the "What's the call" post that I see here on the wire. Many of them could easily be answered if the author would just open the Rule Books and READ! If the answer can't be found or understood, then by all means ask on the wire. The ROC Spokesman is Pale Wolf. He has taken on the very difficult job of attempting to answer the rules questions which are posted on the wire.... My hat is off to him for the tremendous job that he does, and also for the unbelievable patients that he displays! Job comes to mind. I encourage members to join in and help out at the local clubs by accepting one of the R.O. positions. With a strong training program, and membership involvement in sharing the various R.O. positions, the level of officiating will continue to rise. So... yes, I agree, "R.O.'s need practice, too!" Snakebite ROC Chairman Chief RO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Go West Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 Do the best you can, do a refresher class now and then and if something comes up, look it up. I was posse marshall a few weeks ago and I brought the handbook, the ROI and the ROII books just in case. If something came up, I was prepared to look it up rather than rely on my fuzzy thinking. As it turned out, it ran real smooth and we had no issues. If you have some folks on the difficult side, then invite them to look it up for you. Just ask "where does it say that?" The only time I feel bad is when I time folks and I lose count of the shots, usually due to some malfunction or other that takes awhile to correct. Most of the time, I can save someone from a P and that's a good feeling. When I can't, I feel like dog doo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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