LaxRef
04-08-2005, 01:31 PM
This quote is from another thread (which has been closed):
just a question regarding measuring the stick and "tolerances". I saw a stick bounced during a stick check between quarters for what the ref claimed to be 1/16 of an inch on his Stanley tape measure. I am saying he'd be lucky if he could determine if it was in fact a 1/16 short on a good day, with equipment finer than a stanley tape measure. While I understand and respect the fact that you are there to enforce the rule, wouldn't the common sense thing to do in this instance be to tell the player that his stick is VERY close and that he should look into it. I don't think any advantage is gained by a 1/16 of an inch...and if you handed that stick to 5 different people you'd get at least 3 different measurements.
There is some legitimate concern about this. The solution I've heard that I like best is to give 1/8 of an inch. That is, if the stick, by my tape measure, measures less than or equal to 6 and 3/8 inches at the head, I'll flag it.
Where does 1/8 inch come from? Well, my friend, the longtime lacrosse official and mechanical engineer, says that's what the tolerance is on these things.
Another solution I've heard is for everyone on the crew to measure the stick and to only flag it if all (or a majority--different people do different things) find it to be illegal. The problem I have with this is that the measurement errors are likely to be correlated. For example, on a cold day, it's likely all 3 metal tapes will have contracted somewhat, tending to make all 3 err on the side of flagging the stick.
OTOH, as an official I can't lose much sleep over this. We're enforcing the rule as we're told to do it. Maybe the players and coaches should be making sure they have a little room for error. I mean, if that 1/16th of an inch doesn't help any, why not play with a head that's 6 and 3/4 inches so you know you'll be safe? :chuckle:
just a question regarding measuring the stick and "tolerances". I saw a stick bounced during a stick check between quarters for what the ref claimed to be 1/16 of an inch on his Stanley tape measure. I am saying he'd be lucky if he could determine if it was in fact a 1/16 short on a good day, with equipment finer than a stanley tape measure. While I understand and respect the fact that you are there to enforce the rule, wouldn't the common sense thing to do in this instance be to tell the player that his stick is VERY close and that he should look into it. I don't think any advantage is gained by a 1/16 of an inch...and if you handed that stick to 5 different people you'd get at least 3 different measurements.
There is some legitimate concern about this. The solution I've heard that I like best is to give 1/8 of an inch. That is, if the stick, by my tape measure, measures less than or equal to 6 and 3/8 inches at the head, I'll flag it.
Where does 1/8 inch come from? Well, my friend, the longtime lacrosse official and mechanical engineer, says that's what the tolerance is on these things.
Another solution I've heard is for everyone on the crew to measure the stick and to only flag it if all (or a majority--different people do different things) find it to be illegal. The problem I have with this is that the measurement errors are likely to be correlated. For example, on a cold day, it's likely all 3 metal tapes will have contracted somewhat, tending to make all 3 err on the side of flagging the stick.
OTOH, as an official I can't lose much sleep over this. We're enforcing the rule as we're told to do it. Maybe the players and coaches should be making sure they have a little room for error. I mean, if that 1/16th of an inch doesn't help any, why not play with a head that's 6 and 3/4 inches so you know you'll be safe? :chuckle: