Mahopac Umpire Is Still at It After 50 Between the Lines

A basketball referee who is as youthful looking as 91 year old Bob Manning could easily go unnoticed as teams set up in the half court offense.  On the other hand, when games goes up tempo his lag was hard to miss - especially from one very pertinent individual.   “They would start the fast break and were all going past me before I got to half court. So I felt I was cheating the girls,” said Manning. “They gave me a party and I retired.”  But Manning still does have both a whistle and well functioning right thumb, and he continues to put them to good use.

“I’m still doing softball and volleyball,” he asserted.

The Gloucester, Massachusetts born man in blue got his start behind the plate in 1975. It also wasn’t far from where he was situated as a baseball player either.  “I was a catcher,” he said. “I tried out at Holy Cross and didn’t quite make it. Those kids were pretty good.”

Nonetheless, he took his degree to Sears-Roebuck and made the most of a little reverse outsourcing.  “I was a store manager in El Salvador,” said Manning.

The outset did leave him in a state of culture shock, though.  Driving into town the first time, he recalled a large group of people crowded around his car at an intersection.  “‘Go home,’ they yelled,” Manning remembered. “So I turned around the car. That was my introduction.”

The three governments in the first three months also left him out of his element, but the overall take away did eventually settle in. “I met some wonderful people,” he said. “They are hard working people, and I enjoyed my time there.”

Central America also got Manning his first look at softball.  A friend had a team, Manning did the catching, and a few years after returning in 1970, he was suited up to umpire men’s and girls’ softball. 

But recently setting down 21 straight was a highlight he was proud to bear witness to. “That perfect game that miss Becker from Mahopac threw,” Manning said, “it was a thrill to umpire.”

Short of perfection, the everyday can be just as up lifting.  “I went into the supermarket the other day and a girl that I umpired from high school remembered me,” he said. “I was very pleased.”

Of course, the biggest downside inevitably angles his way from the dugout.  “The manager in the dugout,” he joked, “they’re going to call every pitch.”

Manning does give coaches some wiggle room for high and low pitches but none for inside and out.  At the same time, the toughest call is also about vantage point. “You got to be in the right position to make the call at the plate,” he instructed. 

Either way, Manning is all ears before moving on.   “You don’t get into any big arguments, but you listen to what they have to say,” he assured.

That approach gets a bit more play in the mens’ leagues he’s umpired in Mahopac, Somers and Yorktown, and he knows to let it roll off his sleeve.  “You’ve head everything if you’re an umpire,” Manning said.  

Otherwise, he did have one unhappy player follow him to his car and was more than startled when the bat was loudly dropped to the ground to get his attention.  “That was pretty rough,” Manning lamented.

Even so, he has only one ejection on his resume, and the more typical excess doesn’t really cause concern for the woman he calls, “his gift from God.”

“No, they just like to talk and basically that’s it,” said his wife Loretta. 

Clearly understanding that boys will be boys, the former Mahopac school teacher draws attention back to the generations of young people he has helped shape.  Good sportsmanship, having fun and developing as an individual is what he stands for, she said. 

His wife of 23 years is also relieved that he has chosen to stop running the floor on the basketball court and has cut down the number of games.  Her continued support is easy to quantify too.  “If it makes him happy, it makes me happy,” said Loretta.

He’s in no position to argue either. “I think the friendships that have come from this game is what I’ve enjoyed the most,” Manning concluded.

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