BETWEEN THE STRIPES

About the Book

This book is over eleven hundred statements about sports officials which are designed by the author to create ten seconds of laughter and possibly twenty seconds of thought. It is a great read for the sports fan and sports officials. Hopefully it will bring a smile when you read it as well as a smile when you see sports officials during a game follow suit with many of the examples provided you in this book … Zany Zebra Zingers. You don’t need to have a background in sports to enjoy this book. One of the author’s concerns is that the reader may take too seriously some of the quotations. It takes a good sense of humor to be a successful official and, if all of us could learn to laugh at ourselves or each other once in a while, we would enjoy the game more as well as appreciate in new ways the role that each of us play in a sporting contest. Robert Frost once commented on his famous poem Stopping By A Woods On A Snowy Evening, “Don’t take the poem too far…just enjoy the thought.” I would like to respectfully offer his advice reminding all of my readers to have fun with my comments not taking any impressions of criticism or perceived sarcasm “too far.” Just enjoy the thought! This collection of Zany Zebra Zingers has taken over thirty-five years to assemble. Additional Between The Stripes books on such topics of Leadership, Communication, Pregames, Supervisors and Observers, Good Officials and Bad Officials are being prepared for publication.

About the Author

“An official’s sense of humor is very important. It is his ability to put himself in the stands as a fan and laugh at his own mistakes.” - John Laurie John Laurie, Ph.D. began his officiating career over 40 years ago. He has officiated at every level including over 25 years as a referee in the Big 8 and Big XII Football Conferences. He served as president of the Football Officials Associations of both conferences and is a member of the Kansas Collegiate Officials Hall of Fame. He officiated as a referee at numerous college championships including the Rose Bowl, Sugar Bowl, and Fiesta Bowl.