To Referee the Game – You Gotta Know the Rules | Discussing the rules to happiness, life, and NCAA Women's Basketball!

NASO Statement on Texas High School Football Incident

Posted on September 8, 2015 by Rachael Melot

For Release September 8, 2015

NASO Statement on Texas High School Football Incident

In Marble Falls, Texas this past weekend, an officiating nightmare took place. It took place and nobody was sleeping. Fortunately someone was videotaping the game. Without any room for equivocation, that video shows two players from John Jay High School in San Antonio purposely and with malice physically assaulted back judge, Robert Watts during the final moments of the game. He was viscously and without warning knocked to the ground by a Jay player and then, while prostrate on the turf, was helmet-speared by a fellow Jay teammate.

Robert is a long-time member of the National Association of Sports Officials. That fact energizes us to take a stand on his behalf. But, make no mistake, had Robert not been a member of NASO, we would be taking to the ramparts in his defense and in that of all men, women and young people who officiate our games.

What occurred that night on that field is unacceptable and we in the officiating community will not accept it. NASO has taken steps to ensure that Robert is provided the full benefits of NASO insurance, legal and consultation services. Whatever course of action he intends to take in order to have his assault properly redressed, NASO will stand in support of him.

NASO president, Barry Mano, has been a frequent and often quoted media interview about this horror. He has presented NASO’s firm belief, backed unanimously by the NASO board of directors, that commensurate consequences must result from this act, wherever they may lead. Certainly calling to account the two players will be just a starting point. An investigation by the proper authorities and jurisdictions is underway now. The facts and the broader truths will be of interest to all of us in the officiating world.

NASO works in partnership with the Texas Association of Sports Officials (TASO) and the University Interscholastic League (UIL) in a number of officiating programs. The three organizations embrace the belief that assaultive behavior against sports officials will not be tolerated nor accepted at any level.

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Contact: Chris Szolyga
Assistant Editor
Referee Enterprises, Inc.
cszolyga@referee.com

262-632-5448 | 262-632-5460 (fax) | NASO.ORG

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Work Out Like the Pro

Posted on August 28, 2015 by Rachael Melot

How the NFL’s first female referee prepared for the season.

http://www.stack.com/2015/08/26/sarah-thomas-workout/

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To Enjoy Success You Must Adapt

Posted on June 8, 2015 by Rachael Melot

Remember how I started this blog a few years ago – sharing how the rules to my game had changed (Rule Book for Life). Well, as the saying goes, “the only thing that is constant is change.” It is once again time for the rules to change, but this time I’m talking about the NCAA changing the rules.

If you haven’t yet heard, the proposed rules changes are out for our review. http://www.ncaa.com/news/basketball-women/article/2015-05-15/rules-committee-recommends-moving-womens-games-four-quarter

What immediately happens when big rules change is that people begin asking referees about their opinions on the new rules, and we start spending our time giving reasons why we like or dislike the new rules. In reality, our opinion of the rules changes does not matter; it is our job to carry out the role of administrating the new rules as written. Period. The end.

The reason I think this point is so important to remember is that at the end of each season we are asked our opinion on new rules in the way of a “proposed new rule” document. At that time, officials are allowed and encouraged to suggest new rules. After that time, the rules committee, made up of coaches and administrators from universities. There are no voting officials on that committee (see link for current committee members) http://web1.ncaa.org/committees/committees_roster.jsp?CommitteeName=WBBRULES

The fact of the matter is that once they determine the rules changes, it is no longer about our opinion. Especially the opinion of us mid- tier Division I officials and lower. We are simply to enforce the rules as written. We are to adjust. We are to change and adapt to the rules.

This summer, you will be asked to administer new rules. You will be asked your opinion on the new rules. And I’d like to give you a little suggestion: Like them, adapt to them, and administer them as written. Because the truth is that no matter what you like and don’t like, these are the new rules and the officials who adjust to, adapt and enforce the changes will survive. Those who choose to dig in their heels and not change will not advance.

As I look back to my original blog post from more than three years ago, I can honestly say that I am proud of myself and my ability to adapt and adjust to the new rules life handed me. Just today, I hired a painter and handled my own drill and electric stapler for a home improvement project. And I kissed a great guy goodbye at the airport as I headed off on another trip. All in all, the changes have been good. But had I not been willing or able to accept the changes…whether I liked them or not… I would not be where I am today.

I challenge you to embrace the changes life hands you, and embrace the changes to the rules of the game you love. Accept them, understand them and enforce them. Learn to adapt in order to succeed.

“Enjoying success requires the ability to adapt. Only by being open to change will you have a true opportunity to get the most from your talent.” –Nolan Ryan

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Posted on May 3, 2015 by Rachael Melot

If I don’t practice for a day, I know it. If I don’t practice for two days, the critics know it. And if I don’t practice for three days, the public knows it.

Louis Armstrong

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The Shadow of the Transition by Kimberly Hobbs

Posted on April 15, 2015 by Rachael Melot

Today I came across a post that I felt all of you would really enjoy. I have copied the text here and the link to her page where the original content is posted. Visit the site.

http://www.aaroheeyoga.com/the-shadow-of-the-transition/

“I took a deep breath and listened to the old brag of my heart. I am, I am, I am.”

Sylvia Plath The Bell Jar

Every year about this time, I dive into a little stupor of depression and anxiety. The funny thing is, I know it’s coming. For the first several years in this job I looked externally for the causes of this spiral down the rabbit hole. Unhappy relationships, unfulfilling work, dissatisfaction with where I was living- those things were to blame. The list of problems was always long and I found myself running. Change. Transition. It is fucking hard.

In the last few years (with the help of a lot of therapy) I have been able to recognize that with the profession that I have chosen, there is a period of transition in the beginning of the season and at the end. The beginning seems to be easier, but that could be because I am writing this at the end and the beginning just couldn’t have been as hard as this.

Spending 5-6 months trying to manage 4am wake up calls, first flight out, hotel rooms, rental cars, shuttles, different cities, workout schedule, aches, pains, ice bags, heat pads, dinners, lunches, whiskey, yoga, receipts, credit cards, checks, weather…the list is long. And on top of all that, and most important, did I actually do my job to the best of my ability?

With all of those things, I still find myself thriving on the hectic-ness of the season. While it is hard on the mind, body and spirit (not to mention the toll is takes on the personal relationships in my life); I enjoy the pace of schedule and I absolutely love what I get to do.

But then, it ends. And I know it’s coming. But all at once, it’s over. No more flights, no more insane schedule. And I find myself laying in my bed with all this time on my hands and I can’t even manage to do the laundry. My life seems to have lost it’s purpose. I have zero idea what to do with myself. Time is infinite and looming and it feels oppressive.

During the season I dream of sleeping in and spending two hours in the yoga studio and getting outside and paddle boarding and going for bike rides and visiting my family and friends. Writing and self-discovery. Taking classes and diving into the life of casual and blissful exploration.

But I can’t get up. And if I can get up, I certainly cannot make the damn bed.

It’s like I am mourning a death of a loved one. Like a piece of my soul is missing. (I know that is a little dramatic). I get over it; I emerge from the forest. The fog lifts and I can breathe. But for those couple of weeks after the season ends I find myself in a very dark place. Questioning the meaning of life, the purpose of our existence. What’s the point?

I try to prepare myself. Allow myself the time to mourn and to not place expectations of great accomplishments right away. To allow the space to grieve and process. That any kind of change is hard and that the expectation of transitioning gracefully in a matter of days or weeks or even months is a unfair expectation to place on myself. The guilt of “should’s and could’s” needs to be released. That is it’s okay to not know what to do. There is an embrace of the shadow that we have come to think of as a negative. But what if we turn to this shadow self and embrace the opportunity to go deeper? To take the journey down the rabbit hole as a chance to explore the depths of the soul.

And in the end, I remind myself that nothing is permanent. The lows, the highs. The darkness and the light. Everything shifts. Like the wave of the breath – the beginning, the middle and the end. Always. Finding grace within the lows and humility within the highs. It will always change.