Caught in the act again!

By Ed Piper, Jr.

I didn't waste any time this winter--I got kicked off the field, then the court, at both games I photographed the first day of the season.

In the case of high school basketball, there's a new rule. I was unaware.

I'm being a little over-dramatic, but before La Jolla's opening girls basketball game at home Tues., Nov. 29, I chatted with a player's dad who also was carrying his camera, then positioned myself as I often have for the past dozen years under the Vikings' basket to take photos.

Almost immediately, one of the referees called timeout from the opposite end of the court. "You can't be there!" he said.

I've learned over the years not to question things. The officials have final say where I can sit, and they can argue that it's for my own safety. I didn't ask, in this situation.

So, I took it in stride. I think many sports photographers--and other camera bugs--have been through this, so it's not that unusual or totally out of the ordinary.

The referee in question, in fact, hurried down and personally directed me in moving not only me but my rolling camera case as well to the corner of the court.

This followed my less-dramatic experience way down south at Steele Canyon High two hours earlier, when one of the officials called to me to move away from the sideline with my equipment. Again, I didn't debate the issue, I moved.

Some refs will move you, some won't. It's up to the individual discretion of those officials. I've had a softball umpire tell me I had to remove myself from the playing field, though it was down the baseline from home plate. "I can make you stand in a little circle way down the first base line, if I want," the pony-tailed male ump told me a decade ago.

Which is true. Do what they say, don't do what I would prefer, which is stay closer to the action.

So, at Wednesday night's La Jolla hoop game, this time at Serra High, I made a point of locating the pair of referees before the game and ask them if I was fine under the basket. The woman who spoke to me said, "It's a new rule, You can't be out of bounds directly in front of the free throw lane."

The athletic director at Serra, who I know by sight and who I say hi to each time I'm on campus for a sports event, chatted with me and said the rule was due to folks being injured under the basket. It makes sense to me.

I thought after my first night of the new winter sports season, if I keep this rate up, I could be kicked off the field for a zillion events. Hopefully not.