No jewelery rule - question

Theoretically, yes, someone somewhere probably got scratched by a ring or something. But it's an incredibly stupid rule. It would maybe make sense to ban large earrings and such in basketball, but some grouchy old man somewhere decided to ban all jewelry in all sports.

Sports like wrestling need this rule.

I'm not really sure why a non-contact sport needs the rule

I'm a purist, though, and am fine with the rules. Allowing jewelry or trying to specify kinds of jewelry just opens up a mess.

I think that they want all sports to have similar uniform rules. Since some sports don't want jewelry, none of the sports gets jewelry.

My advice would be to say "for safety" and leave it at that. The more specific you get, the more reasons you will hear for why so-and-so should be able to do it.

"For safety."

Also, when you begin enforcing the rules, do a quick scan prior to each race. If you miss it, it is your fault, No DQing runners after they have won the race. That is in bad taste.

mcgato wrote:

I think that they want all sports to have similar uniform rules. Since some sports don't want jewelry, none of the sports gets jewelry.

I'm an official and this is the reason. For the record, every official I have ever worked with thinks that it's a dumb rule for track.

I'm not fond of the rule either.

mstars wrote:

mcgato wrote:

I think that they want all sports to have similar uniform rules. Since some sports don't want jewelry, none of the sports gets jewelry.

I'm an official and this is the reason. For the record, every official I have ever worked with thinks that it's a dumb rule for track.

Just take the pragmatic and honest approach. Tell your kids you don't understand the reason for the rule, but unfortunately, until it gets overturned, it's just another reality (one with severe repercussions for disobeying) that they've got to deal with. It's good practice for being an adult in an "unfair" world. Plus if you try to justify and own the rule, you're going to come off as a prick.

I thought to rule was congruancy of jewelry, you know, if one girl wears a whatesis all teammates must wear a whatesis,

It goes to the "must wear the same uniform" rule your honor.

"Well Mrs. Smith, lets just say little Johnny is running with his prince albert in, trips, and slides across the track face first. We might have a bit of a medical dilemma if his jewelry is torn out, now wouldn't we?"

First- the people who make the rules feel that "one size fits all."

Second- parents can be stupid. As a coach of HS kids I'll tell you that the parents who complain about the rule will be the first to sue the school because the coach didn't tell their kid to take off their jewelry when the got hurt.

OK, you're wearing earrings, you fall, the sharp part in the back pierces you're neck. Just a little make but the parents blame the coach.

Someone wears hoop earrings and gets hurt, someone wears a "dangling" earring, could be bad, someone wears a small, diamond earring. Where do you draw the line? It's easier to just say no jewelry.

This is true- you cannot wear watches in track (you can in XC) because someone was walking off the track, got it caught on the fence and got hurt.

These are National Federation rules.

I think it is safety. Like you say, one piece of jewelry poses more of a safety issue than another, but where then do you draw the line? No earrings longer than 1", no nose rings larger than 2" in diameter, no ass piercings, and so forth...

Big John wrote:

I think it is safety. Like you say, one piece of jewelry poses more of a safety issue than another, but where then do you draw the line? No earrings longer than 1", no nose rings larger than 2" in diameter, no ass piercings, and so forth...

Why is this not an issue in college?

asdfe wrote:

Why is this not an issue in college?

Don't know.

While I can somewhat understand why a no jewelry rule is enforced, I do not get why HS runners can't wear sunglasses unless they're prescription. It is one of the dumbest rules I had to deal with.

Flagpole wrote:

So, what's the deal? Just so a kid doesn't rip an earlobe?

Jewelry (not just earrings) can snag all manner of things. In addition to earlobes getting ripped you have a little finger getting broken because it goes under someone's bracelet, a ring getting snagged in someone's jersey and both kids going down hard, and as happened to me, I got my wedding ring cause on something sticking out of a volleyball net. Surprisingly hard to disconnect yourself from that.

All small things in the big scheme, but it makes sense to not have jewelry in sporting events. Running included.

Sure, someone with small flat earrings only risks getting the post jammed into their head by an errant arm. A tight bracelet is no different than a watch, etc. It makes perfect sense to tell people they shouldn't wear jewelry, but it doesn't make sense to have draconian post race enforcement. If you wear jewelry against the rules and as a result you get tangled up and injure yourself or others then you get book thrown at you, lose all your points for the meet. If you forget to take off your earrings and absolutely nothing happens and someone notices that at the finish line who gives a s**t. If someone see you before the start they ask you to take them off and put them in a tray. It's possible to reinforce some common sense without going full-on Nazi about it.

When we talk about the rules at the beginning of the year, I tell my team that some of the rules are stupid, but it's not our job to debate them, only to follow them. And we do.

I think the easy answer is "for safety," as someone else suggested. If you need more, here are some possibilities, unlikely as they may be. First of all, T&F isn't necessarily a non-contact sport. High hurdles can definitely get physical. 4x4 exchanges. Distance races. There are plenty of opportunities for contact. As such, what if I get my finger caught in your earring? Also, what if your stud falls out and then the next lap I fall down and take the pointy part in my face? Or what if I land sideways in the pole vault pit and my earring gets stuck in the mesh of the pit?

Yes, I realize each of these is unlikely to occur. But if they do, it's a lawsuit. Better to avoid it.

Besides, does a kid really NEED to wear his earring to race well?

These are high school kids. Let one kid wear a small stud earring and the next thing you'll see will be some brain-child wear nipple to lip to nose chain.

Also consider the jumps. could be easier to get something caught as they tumble across the mats.

But just tell the parents safety, that's the easiest way to go. And to tell the kids it's a stupid rule is counter-productive. Because soon they'll be telling you one of your rules is stupid...and it probably is.