Power Back Up at Warehouse After Ice Storm

After 3 frustrating days without power or phone service as a result of an unprecedented ice storm that has left over 600,000 without power in the Louisville area, as of Saturday around 5pm E.T., we are back up and running. Our website is hosted in Tampa, Florida and has not been affected.

All orders placed since Tuesday 2:30pm ET will be processed Monday 2/2 except for Next Day Air, 2nd Day Air and Express Mail orders through Friday that have already shipped. We did those Thursday and Friday the old fashioned way which was to find an Internet connection with power, write each of them down, pack the orders them under the light of day with our skeleton crew and drive them to a functioning UPS store and post office.

Everyone else was e-mailed letting them know of the status. I have been very impressed with everyone's understanding so far.

Despite needing to process more than double the orders on Monday, which is typically our busiest day of the week, we will dedicate additional staff toward the effort and have full confidence all past and current orders will be processed as usual.

If you have sent us an e-mail or left a message, we will respond to it by early Monday. If you've had any customer service issues, we certainly apologize and will do our best to make amends.

Don't hesitate to e-mail me personally at jim.kirk@ump-attire.com should you have a pressing issue. I will be checking it throughout the weekend. When Monday rolls around, send any issues to service@ump-attire.com as we'll be able to respond in the normal way at that time.

Chicago NCAA Umpire Clinic Exceeds Expectations

This weekend, I reserved a table in Chicago for 1 of 4 annual NCAA Umpire Clinics. Many customers, over the last year, have been saying "you're missing out if you don't go to the NCAA clinics!"

If you're one of them who said that, go ahead and tell me "I told you so." The response we received from the umpires in attendance greatly exceeded my expectations.

First of all, what impressed me most were the number of our customers who stopped by to say "hello". Ordering online can be such an impersonal experience, so it was very nice to meet many of our customers in person. One of those who stopped by was Robert Rachlow (pic below). Robert is the guy who wrote the great Shock FX helmet review for us last year.


Plus, we've always known that we are well-represented with umpires at the youth through high school levels, partly due to our more educational approach that seems to appeal to newer and/or younger umpires. But the shear number of college-level customers/attendees who came by reveals to me that we have more at that level than I previously had thought.

What was also neat was the number of guys who came by who, even if they had not ordered from us, still referenced a blog article I had written or who revealed they also posted on one of the umpire discussion boards which I occasionally post. (See Dave "MajorDave" Teater in photo below)


The many orders we received on-the-spot were something we had not planned to push, but they were certainly not unwelcomed.

What were everyone most interested in there? The top 5 in order were:

1. Wilson Titanium masks
2. Diamond Silver Frame Featherweight Mask
3. Our new and improved Ultimate Umpire Ball Bag (soon available for sale online)
4. Reebok Field Magistrate Plate Shoes
5. Manzella gloves

I'll also be discussing our dinner event we organized for Saturday night in a separate blog post. I have a quick pic below in the meantime (not pictured Dave Teater and John Kay).


All of these customers, connections, comments and orders are simply continued validation that we are doing something right. Thanks to all of you who contributed to our successful trip. We'll not miss out on many opportunities to attend NCAA clinics in the future.

Long Drive Sponsor for MLB Umpires Golf Classic

We are supporting UMPS CARE Charities January 22nd in Scottsdale, Arizona as a “Long Drive” Sponsor for the Major League Baseball Umpire’s 4th Annual Golf Classic. The event raises money for the Major League Umpire’s children’s hospital and youth ticket program.

I'll personally be participating in the golf scramble hosted by the McCormick Ranch Golf Club.

An online sports auction accompanies the golf event. I have been getting the word out about supporting this incredible cause while getting your hands on some unique sports items. I’m bidding on an item or two myself to further support the effort.

Chicago Dinner Event Planned at NCAA Umpire Clinic

Are you a customer planning on attending the NCAA Umpire Clinic in Chicago January 24th-25th?

Join me for deep dish Chicago pizza at Giordano's in Rosemont at 9415 W. Higgins Road on Saturday the 24th at 6:30 PM CT.


Giordano's has been referred to by NBC's Today Show as "the best pizza in America", and the restaurant is just down the street from the Hyatt Regency O' Hare where the umpire clinic is taking place.

If you plan to attend, please R.S.V.P. by Thursday, January 22nd to sherry@ump-attire.com. At this time, only 15 spots are available. So please respond quickly to reserve.

If you are attending the clinic, but can not attend dinner, please stop by our table on Saturday or Sunday.

See you in Chicago!

Diamond iX3 Umpire Protective Gear Package #4 Most Popular Auction Item

Just noticed on the UMPS Care Auction that the Diamond Umpire Gear Package was listed as the #4 most popular item by bids out of the #40 or so items listed. At #4, it's ahead (for now) of the Cal Ripken Jr autographed baseball and the Boston Red Sox VIP experience. Not bad company.

The package ended up going for its buy now price of $250.00. Our Wilson Titanium Mask also went for its maximum buy it now price. Both were among 2 of the first 6 items closed. So our items did well.

Overall, as of writing, $8,000 dollars have been raised with 5 days remaining.

Some recently added items include:

• Lunch with a MLB Umpire before game w/ 2 MLB tickets in city of choice - Buy Now for $250
  What a great opportunity
  
• Take a Ride on the Good Year Blimp - $250 initial bid
  Didn't know this was even possible. If you live close to Carson City, California where it would fly from, how could you pass this up?
  
• VIP Batting Practice experiences with 4 tickets in Houston, Detroit, Florida and Minnesota
• Dick Butkus Items: Golf with him OR Autographed football
  

Other good opportunities still available (e.g. 2 2009 All Star Tickets in St. Louis - $600). Consider bidding at the auction website before it ends January 20th.

Major League Baseball Umpires UMPS CARE Sports Auction

Major League Baseball Umpires just launched an Online Sports Auction to benefit their youth-based programs.

If you missed it, UmpsCare and BLUE for Kids merged recently to become UMPS CARE Charities.

Items Especially for Umpires

What you don't want to miss are auction items especially for umpires. A sampling below includes:

• Wilson MLB Low Profile Titanium Umpire Mask
  Retails for $199.95 but bidding starts at $100 (donated by us)
  
  
• Diamond iX3 Deluxe Umpire Gear
  We donated our new package that retails for $249.95, but you could win it for as little as $100.
  
  
• International or Southern Umpires Camp Scholarship
  
  

Items for Any Sports Fan

A sample of other items that you may bid on include:

• Autographed baseballs, bats and jerseys
  Including Nolan Ryan jersey at right
  
  
• Red Sox Tickets with an opportunity to watch batting practice from the field
  Similar experiences at other stadiums as well
  
  
• 2009 All-Star Game Tickets (coming soon)
  
  
• MLB ticket packages
  
  
• and much much more!
  

With your support, Major League Umpires will visit 12 children's hospitals during the season and distribute more than 1,200 Build-A-Bear Workshop stuffed animals to pediatric patients coping with cancer or other serious illness. Umpires will also treat up to 1,000 children awaiting adoption or at- risk youth from single parent families to Big League ball games in 2009.

Bid Today | Learn more about UMPS CARE

US Lacrosse Names Us Official Supplier of Starter Kits

US Lacrosse selected us as one of 3 suppliers to develop a discounted starter package for its new officials. Officials who attend one of their training programs are eligible and receive a promotional code from US Lacrosse when ordering their starter package from us online.

If you are one of these officials and do not have a code, you'll want to contact US Lacrosse.

Starter Package
US Lacrosse outlined what general items (shirt, cap, whistle, etc) had to be included, and we chose the package from there with their approval.

Included in the package are:

• Short Sleeve Majestic Polyester Referee Shirt
  
• Black Referee Cap with White Piping
  
• Lacrosse Socks - black with white top
  
• Two Penalty Flags
  
• Fox 40 Classic Fingergrip Whistle
  
• Lacrosse Scorecard
  
• Pencil with shield, eraser and clip

We are proud to support US Lacrosse’s ongoing efforts to recruit, train, and retain high-quality lacrosse officials. Click here to learn more about their programs.

Want to see more lacrosse officials' gear? Visit our main lacrosse section here.