It’s almost officially summer. Baseball, hotdogs, apple pie and Chevrolet used to be the song for summer, but now it seems soccer, swimming, smores, dolfin sightings and BBQ are the new twist on summer. I’ve had a pretty full spring of soccer, some coaching, some officiating and some official coaching. The current state of referee development in Western Pennsylvania for USSF purposes is completely in limbo after the youth board chose the nuclear option and forced the previous group to register with the federation outside of the local body of governance. I’ll stop the digression and stick to what I can do to personally make sure we have the growth of the game via the guardians of the game. I’ve officially rebranded fcarmstrong.blog with a REF LIFE set up. I’ve worked with local clubs who are willing to pay for mentors. I’ve worked on using the whistle and the weather reports to make sure we keep soccer safe. This past weekend I attended my first PA West Open tournament as a referee. Around 11 years ago I was at this tournament as a coach for an under-14 Plum team. The experience for the boy’s on a college campus was first class. The experience as a referee was also pretty nice, but after getting my National D and hand picking games it was also a good check point on the current state of soccer in the volunteer- not-for profit world vs the pay to join an elite club environment that has continued to grow in the past six years. I logged my miles, issued my cards and did my best to recruit new members to the Northern Chapter–maybe even asking Meadville if they wanted to explore sharing opportunities. Enough soccer, It’s been a while since I took the drive down Presque Isle State Park. Once upon a time the Pankiewicz family vacations found there way around Lake Erie and Cedar Point when we didn’t trip to Wildwood Crest.
Back to the reframing and relaxing–First some Lake Erie waves. as Leslie says it is not as beautiful as Lake Michigan. It is also not as cold as Lake Michigan. I was able to put my ankles in on Saturday night after my 6 games and use the rocks, sand and water for cold therapy. Let’s call it ice bath for my recovery before Sunday’s games. Stretching in the sand and meditating at sunset were also great in giving me a reset after a long day on field 2.
But first let’s talk about great cuisine. Here is a look back on Presidents Dave Holiday 2023 Moon Palace Grand Cancun. It’s really close to CUN. So no throwing up in the van to PlayaCar.
After working a weekend of youth soccer at PennWest Edinboro for the PA West Travel team open tournament recovery and reconnection is key.
