Bruce Davis has been a regular on officiating crews at GNAC cross country and outdoor track championship meets. |
We are using this blog during the 2019-20 academic year to bring you profiles on the unsung heroes of GNAC athletic competition -- the referees, rules officials and officiating supervisors without whom the games could not occur.
These Q&A's are intended to heighten awareness for this critical aspect of amateur sports while celebrating the efforts of those individuals who are giving back to the game through the avocation of officiating.
This initiative is part of a comprehensive strategy by the NCAA DII Conference Commissioners Association to 1) bring attention to the crisis-level shortage of officials affecting amateur sports and 2) promote the benefits and rewards of officiating by implementing a national recruitment effort within the division.
For more information on how to become an official, we encourage you to visit the following links or reach out to your local officiating organization:
Now, on to our Q&A with GNAC track/cross country official Bruce Davis, who will be serving as the head starter at this weekend's 2019 NCAA Division II West Cross Country Regionals in Monmouth, Ore.
Name: Bruce
Davis
Hometown:
Vancouver, Wash.
Years
as an official: 30
Levels worked: Junior
Olympics, middle school, high school, college, and four national USATF Open and
Masters Championships.
What
have been some of the highlights of your officiating career?
NAIA
National Cross Country Championships (four or five times at Ft. Vancouver
Historic Site). Several years of WIAA and OSAA state high school championships.
Collegiate regional championships. I always enjoy working the Junior Olympics state
and regional championships. Vancouver has a 21-elementary school track meet
annually that is a kick.
Describe
your competitive background in the sport of track and field.
None.
I was a tennis player in high school.
What
was it that attracted you to the officiating world?
I was
asked to help out as a "recall starter" by my youngest daughter's
track coach 30 years ago.
What
were the initial steps you took to pursue a career as an official?
Duane
Moodhe worked with me at Columbia River High School when I first got started
and then about 20 years ago I was fortunate to be mentored by and work with
Kelly Rankin who had served as a starter at the Los Angeles and Atlanta Olympic Games.
My first head starter role at the college level was at Western Oregon
University 15 years ago. Mike Johnson, WOU's head track coach, was instrumental
in my development at that time.
What
do you remember about your first “real” assignment as an official?
It
was at Western Oregon and I started the first race (400 meter relay) at the
OSAA State Championships (1A, 2A, 3A). I was very nervous. There was lots to do
(check on the exchange zones to get OK from the judges that they were ready and
then to get the race off on time because it was the first running event of the meet). It went well and then I settled into a rhythm for the rest of the meet.
What
was it that prompted you to move into the intercollegiate ranks?
I was
asked to shadow some meets at the University of Oregon with Kelly Rankin. I did
several college meets with Dr. Rankin and then Mike Johnson at Western Oregon
University allowed me to start his meets at Monmouth.
What
is your specialty event in track and field, and why did you focus on that
particular aspect of track officiating?
Even
though I have done every event but pole vault I am not nearly as good in the
field events as I am as a starter. I am most comfortable with the javelin but
it is the starter position that I am absolutely at the place where I am totally at
ease.
As an
official in any sport needs to become a rules "expert,” what approach did
you take to learning the rule book inside and out?
Each
year I get an updated rule book in all four areas (NFHS, NCAA, USATF, and IAAF)
and read through the running events thoroughly, but, it is the case book
studies that I have found to be most helpful.
Can
you outline a typical officiating year in terms of the number (and
classification) of events you typically have on your calendar and the travel
involved?
I do
around 40 track/cross country meets a year. Most are in the Vancouver/Portland or mid-Willamette
Valley areas of Oregon. Because I mentor neophyte starters I can find myself as far north
as Tacoma, Wash., and as far south as Ashland, Ore. I also go from the Oregon
Coast to Bend, Ore.
What
have you found to be the biggest challenges as an official?
Finding
and working with new starters. I love mentoring them. You have to be at their meets
and work with them to develop their skills and explain the “whys” of the trade.
I have worked with over two dozen starters over the last 10 years. All of them,
I am glad to say, have improved their skills and confidence.
Describe
an aspect of college officiating that the average person or fan doesn’t
realize?
The
NCAA rule book is very light on specifics. As a starter you have to have enough
experience to understand what a "fair start" is and all the ways to
allow that to happen. I have very few DQs because of the different ways one can
abort a potential problem. The side of officiating that I love the most at the
college level is cooperation that I receive from the competitors. They are
great to work with and a joy to be around.
What
advice would you give to someone who is interested in pursuing a career in
officiating?
Just try it out. Connect with an experienced official and do some meets with them at a lower level. Read the rule books. Ask lots of questions and observe a "pro" as to how and why they do their job the way they do.
Just try it out. Connect with an experienced official and do some meets with them at a lower level. Read the rule books. Ask lots of questions and observe a "pro" as to how and why they do their job the way they do.