On Sunday, September 13th, 2009, thirty referees from the Atlanta area, gathered at the SGAA’s (South Gwinnett Athletic Association) Duel Deck Hockey Arena in Snellville, GA. for an inline hockey officials clinic conducted by USARS/AAU. Seventeen of them were hoping to achieve their Level 3 certification status. These referees represented not only the host rink but Peachtree City Hockey Association. The level 2/3 clinic was instructed by Rich Call, Joe Pellerin and Ken Harbin.
The day began with a welcome and introduction by GIHRA (Georgia Inline Hockey Referee’s Association) founder Rich Call. He informed the group that he and his co-instructors will keep the classroom session moving along, that it’ll be light and informative with plenty of breaks to acquaint yourselves with others, and finally there are no bad questions!
The clinic then progressed smoothly through the morning from 8am to about 12:30pm. The instructors were professional in every way and covered each area very well. Paul Dixon from Grayson, GA said in an email “You kept it light, but, were able to focus on the aspects of the game and rules that are important”
Lunch was provided by the SGAA staff after the classroom session was finished.
The on-surface session started right after lunch. Joe Pellerin and Ken Harbin did an outstanding job. They made the drills relative, effective and fun. Special thanks to Steve Locicero and Michal Cap for their assistance during this session!
When the day was done 17 officials completed and passed the new “closed book” test requirement for an official to attain Level 3. These officials can now work Varsity at the Scholastic High School level, AIHL games and National AAU and USARS inline hockey events. The balance of the referees in attendance earned their Level 2 status.