No you just enforce rules the way you interpret them with no accountability if you are right or wrong. When I say you I am not calling out NCAsa I do not know him but we all have had the ump who didn't know what he was taping about.
I completely disagree with this statement. If anything, umpires at Nationals are scrutinized MUCH more heavily than any other umpire at any other softball tournament. I've seen umpires get reamed for something as "minor" as popping their chewing gum on the field.
That being said, if something doesn't sit well with you on the field, talk with the Tournament Director or the UIC. Get the word straight from the source. It's your property, not ours, and you should have some reassurances that you will get it back.
Trust me, there's accountability.
For the record I was not told don't bring them to the field. I was told do not use this banned piece of equipment under penalty of an out and ejection. No one said leave them in the car leave them in your hotel and there were no roadblocks on I94 searching for banned bats. Since this was the first National bats were banned it was new to people umps and players both. So when the bats were asked for I knew to leave my bat in the bag cause it was not to be used. I followed the rules and still the bat was taken. By the way this was the 4th game we played and the second day of the tournament So why all the sudden should I be concerned that a bag would be opened and equipment taken? 1 umpire who interpreted the rules the way he wanted decided to enforce the rule his way.
I remember these days very well, and let's be honest - it was a bit of a mess. Procedures were still unclear, and it was a period of adjustment for all of us. Anytime you have big changes, there will always be bumps in the road, and that's to be expected. Even now, there's still some variance in how the bat rules are enforced, and ASA is no exception to this. USSSA tourneys have the same inconsistencies, as do NSA tourneys and so on.
So again, if there are concerns, talk with the TD, Player Rep or UIC. Let your concerns be known. These tournaments are not for us, they're for YOU. If you're not happy, you'll go elsewhere, and the problem isn't solved.
So tell us why you're unhappy, and let us know how we can fix it. Maybe better communication between the Tourney organizers and the players/managers? Maybe better explanations of what the expectations are at tourneys? Maybe we umpires need clearer directions from the UICs? Maybe something I haven't thought of?
I think you'd be surprised at just how receptive ASA is to your concerns if you put together a clear, concise statement to them regarding how things can be made better. I know for a fact that others here have done just that, and we've seen the resulting changes.
