Sports Opinion by Tater
Topics: ignorant parents,
Hockey playoffs, Baseball
Well, it is time for me to write another rant.
The month of May is the time of year that hockey playoffs start to really
heat up, baseball stats start to carry meaning, football teams start to
take form, and college gets out. Every year at this time my family
helps my Dad with his track organization stuff. Every it is the same
old stuff. Track meets every weekend, 3 long hours or longer,
doing paperwork, running messages from the booth to the field, getting
yelled by ungrateful coaches or ignorant parents.
The last comment is where I will focus. About a year age at a track
meet, I am doing my job, when I notice that a bunch of kids are sitting
in the breezeway between the front and the back of the bleachers.
These kids happen to be from my parish so they know that a) I am an OFFICIAL
at that meet, b) my dad is their coach and an official at the meet, and
c) I do not like being yelled at by someone that I know is wrong.
Them sitting in the breezeway is a hazard. If there is an emergency
in the bleachers and medical personnel or other personnel must get to the
front of the bleachers these kids are in the way. So I say to the
kids that they cannot sit there because that is a hazard. They start
to get up to leave, but a mother comes over and tells them to stay put.
She turns to me and says if they go out in the sun they have a higher chance
of suffering from heat exhaustion. I tell her if they drink plenty
of fluids that the kids will not suffer heat exhaustion, and that secondly
they have a higher chance of getting a major cramp in their event if they
go from the shade to the hot sun like that. Another coach from
another parish comes along and says exactly what I say plus adds that he
is a PROFESSIONAL athletic trainer. They start yelling.
I then yell above them that I have heard enough, I tell her that kids must
sit in the bleachers like everyone else or I will begin disqualifying them
from events. She turns and tells me that I am acting, "in a very
unchristian like way for an event of this magnitude." My jaw
hit the ground. I look at her and say I am an Official at the meet
and go into further detail as to why the kids should be in the stands.
I also inform that I am going to do two things, first I am going to inform
my dad, the kids coach though at track meets he tells his kids that he
is an official so if they do wrong he will be forced to rule against them,
and second if I come through and see the kids sitting in the breezeway,
after the next announcement to not sit there, I will disqualify them
and revoke all awards already earned at that meet. Upon hearing
this more than two thirds of the team gets up and walks out, knowing that
I am serious about that and I have the power to do that. What makes
everything really weird is that the "lady" knew that a) I was an official,
b) that my dad is the kids coach and an official at the meet, and c) that
the reasons for not sitting in the breezeways was announced and that
the consequences were also announced. I bring up this
story just to illustrate the ignorance that I have put up with at these
track meets. I have had coaches yell at me that times were
wrong for an event, that their kid should have won a ribbon or medal over
another kid, or I was not doing my job well. What is interesting
is I have no control over the giving out of times or places in various
events and these coaches know it. I can control the kind of job I
do and usually I do a good enough job that at the end of the day everyone,
that knows exactly what my job is, says I did a good job. So
the next time you are at a sporting event remember that those that are
working the event are most likely volunteers, who are giving their time
because you will not.
"And for this I volunteered."
Famous last words of every volunteer that has been yelled at by someone
while they are doing volunteer work.
Well I said this in my last rant and I will say
it again watch out for Saint Dominic and his band of united Sabres.
They rolled through my Philadelphia Flyers and and have started on the
Canadians. The Capitals are the highest seed left in the East
(CAPITALS???????). The Caps beat a Bruins team that I told everyone
I knew was the least likely to make out of the first round for a 5 seed.
The Caps, senators series has inspired a little bet between the President
of the United States, and the President? of Canada. The losing
President must wear the winning presidents team jersey at an official press
conference and photo opportunity. The Canadian President is hoping
fo a short series with the Senators winning so he can rub Bubba's face
in the fact that his team lost at the international meeting in europe next
week. In the west Colorado is out, big shock.
Detroit's defense must try and slow down the St. Louis Blues offensive
attack. This spud says St. Louis rolls and gets to take on (yeck)
Dallas. Why Dallas??? Two words: Ed Belfour. The
guy has a 1.?? GAA against Edmonton for his career. As much as a
Philly fan does not like Dallas, I still must choose them in this series.
It looks to be a Buffalo vs. Dallas Stanley Cup Final. Go Sabres.
For now. Keep the cup shiney for Philly in 1999.
One Final thought. To all publications
that said Philly would be dead last in the NL east. I bet your hoping
they fail big in the second half. :) I can not wait to
see them in 1999 and 2000. Then they should be really good.
They have 3 good looking starters in AAA(Wolf, Nye, Loewer), plus a couple
of good looking relief pitchers (Brannan, most notable) down on the farm.
Their future second baseman (Marlon Anderson, don't forget that name) is
in AAA right now and will be up next year. PLUS, if Lieberthal's
elbow makes him miss any substantial time, they have a more than adequate
replacement (Bobby Estalella) in AAA right now.
D.A. Tater
The opinion of this rant is mine and mine alone.
Anyone mentioned in the rant is mentioned at my discretion. This rant will
be updated an changed when I feel like it. All past rants can be found
on the previous page.
Problems with my opinion. Email me at datater@oocities.com
and maybe we can have an email discussion about your problems with
my rant.
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