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British softball desperately needs more fastpitch umpires.

We need them because of the increasing amount of domestic fastpitch play centred on the former London Fastpitch Softball League, now renamed the Great Britain Fastpitch League for 2012.

And we need them because we are less and less able to fulfil our quotas for supplying umpires at European competitions. This costs the BSF money and could even prevent us sending teams to Europe in future.
 

Fastpitch Qualification Course

BASU will be running a two-day Fastpitch Umpire Qualification Course on February 4 and 5, 2012, at Milton Keynes, and the course will be absolutely free.

An online registration form for the course is now available.

Those who pass the course will have the opportunity to attend an ESF Fastpitch Qualification Course in the spring of 2012, or in subsequent years, and this course will be subsidised by BASU and free to those who take part.

And passing an ESF course will qualify you to umpire at European competitions.
 

Why do it?

"But," we hear you say, "I'm a slowpitch player. I sometimes umpire slowpitch, but I've never even seen a fastpitch game. I'm not interested."

Well, here are some reasons why you could be:

  • Fastpitch umpires -- particularly plate umpires -- get paid more per game than slowpitch umpires. And there are just as many games on a GB Fastpitch League day as at most slowpitch tournaments.
     
  • The GB Fastpitch League plays on dates that don't conflict with major slowpitch tournaments.
     
  • Fastpitch umpiring is fun, with some challenges you rarely get in slowpitch. But umpires at the GB Fastpitch League rarely get hassled -- everyone is grateful that they're there!
     
  • Umpiring at a European level is exciting -- and once you pass the ESF Fastpitch course, it will be a lot easier to get European assignments for fastpitch competitions than for slowpitch.
     
  • You will be doing British softball as a whole and the BSF in particular a tremendous service and giving something back to the sport.

Convinced?

If you'd like to have a go and want to sign up for the BASU Fastpitch Umpire course in February, contact .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

If you have any questions about fastpitch umpiring in general or in Europe, contact .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

Give fastpitch umpiring a try! It could open up a whole new softball world!