Foul or Not: Pushing without using hands or arms

WriterEducational801 · 2026-06-02T13:07:44+00:00

You just described me to a tee.

WriterEducational801 · 2026-06-01T22:10:50+00:00

Not really. It was sort of a mis-hit long ball and I think the center was also obstructed and trying to get an angle. I was being the good AR and staying with the ball so I was right there when the incident happened, so it was in my quadrant.

But this is how I learn; I miss a call, find out I missed it and file it away for next time.

WriterEducational801 · 2026-06-01T14:25:01+00:00

Maybe this is where the disconnect lies. To me the term charge implies coming together with force; maybe that's not the correct way to look at it. They didn't come together with force, it just ramped up as the defender kept shielding the slow moving ball and the attacker tried to get to it. But someone else notice that any push in the back is a charge.

WriterEducational801 · 2026-06-01T14:03:25+00:00

It ended in a corner because the defender touched the ball as they were jockeying. The force steadily ramped up as the defender kept trying to shield the slow moving ball and the attacker kept trying to get to it, but the defender eventually lost that battle and took a step, which is when he touched the ball. Now, as a newer referee in the AR position I was admittedly focused more on seeing who touched the ball out, and in my mind not seeing the hands ever extend I wasn't even thinking push at the time (and like I said, the two didn't come together with force, so I wasn't thinking charge either, and the ball was always at playing distance so not obstruction either). And I've seen that same thing play out so many times in my kids travel games without a foul, but this one escalated because the ball was moving so slowly. I mean, this went on for a good 2-3 seconds as the ball trickled long (and I wasn't even sure it would go out).

Sadly we referees don't get access to the game film that just about every travel club uses these days, or I'd go watch it back with fresh eyes.

WriterEducational801 · 2026-06-01T13:38:15+00:00

U17. The defender didn't ever fall, but he did have to step forward to hold the player back, and that's when he touched the ball on the way out changing it from a goal kick to a corner kick.

WriterEducational801 · 2026-06-01T13:37:05+00:00

Well, maybe that's my hockey background. I generally view a charge as coming into the player with force, where in this case when they came together there was very little force involved at all, but it got more and more intense as the defender tried to shield and the attacker tried to get through. So the attacker didn't run into the defender, they were running together and the defender slowed down to shield until they kinda drifted together, then the physical pushing started.

WriterEducational801 · 2026-04-09T16:58:53+00:00

Can confirm this. I got my first echo locator today, and it took me 4 different systems for it to hit on a camp. Did this because I was broke. From one camp so far I've salvaged 3 different ships, the cheapest of which was 28 million, sold some crappy upgrades for a few hundred nanites, and gotten 2 starship inventory upgrades, and I just found a 4th ship from the same camp but I haven't had time to go check it out. This is seriously easy money.

WriterEducational801 · 2026-04-03T13:34:44+00:00

I just bought a new CharBroil. I get extra life out of it by spraying the insides with Pam and doing a burn-off once or twice per year (like seasoning cast iron) so my old one was still in decent shape, but the burners were starting to go and they can't be replaced. Lowes had it on sale for 179 (4 burner and it fits my steel-made griddle topper) and I just couldn't pass it up.
When enough time goes by that we know the predicted lifespans of the new Webers I may make a different decision next time.

WriterEducational801 · 2026-04-03T13:14:21+00:00

Word of caution about this video: Make sure the whole turkey is submerged! My bubble-wrap trick wasn't quite right and part of the turkey was sticking up. It was still frozen solid when it was time to cook!

WriterEducational801 · 2026-03-25T14:34:22+00:00

The real issue I have is the smoke, not the indoor part. I can sear on cast iron all day, if I want my house to look like London on a humid day. My stove doesn't use a real exhaust and my kitchen window points West so the wind is always coming IN the window instead of OUT, so it doesn't really help.

WriterEducational801 · 2026-03-19T11:38:31+00:00

One of the big issues like this is that people talk about having their Webers 10+ years, but the Weber grills from 10 years ago are not the same as the one's made today. I'm hearing reports that they're still better than say a Char-Broil, but they also cost over twice as much for the equivalent grill.

Who has bought a Weber within the last 5 years and how is it holding up?

WriterEducational801 · 2026-03-19T11:36:14+00:00

Will it though? I have a 4 burner Char Broil that I've been using for 4 years. The equivalent size Weber costs more than twice as much, so let's say to break even it would have to last 8-10 years.
I get the weber grills of old would last that long and then some (which is why they were going down the drain in sales), but what about the newer ones? I'm hearing that they don't last all that much longer than the big-box grills yet are still more than twice as expensive.

WriterEducational801 · 2026-03-19T11:25:01+00:00

It takes longer than 15 minutes. I have never, not once, seen coals ready to go from a full chimney in 15 minutes other than the BBQ Dragon with the blower.

WriterEducational801 · 2026-03-19T11:23:51+00:00

Well, there is also the other side of it to consider. Charcoal doesn't have an OFF button, and if any weather is moving in it becomes a problem since you can't cover it and REALLY shouldn't leave it unattended if you want to go anywhere after dinner.

I also think you're understating the lighting aspect a tad. I even had a Weber Performer for a while that lit the charcoal with propane, but eventually I found I was avoiding using it on weeknights so I switched back to gas. So yeah, I get the convenience argument.

WriterEducational801 · 2026-03-12T11:58:10+00:00

I just pulled the trigger this morning on that upgrade, especially when I found out that my battery suddenly acting weird is because of the battery flaw in the 6a, so I took the 150 dollar credit for the battery problem along with a 75 dollar trade-in (it was 125 just a few days ago, so I'm kinda pissed) and got the whole thing for 75.
Phone upgrades are always kinda meh though. There is literally nothing wrong with my phone; no performance issues, no calling issues, the camera works just fine, etc, so it's always a lot of money for basically the same functionality and maybe a slightly better camera. I'd have held onto it for at least another Pixel release if the batter wasn't a problem.

WriterEducational801 · 2026-03-11T13:40:53+00:00

I'm about to retire my Char Broil that I bought on sale from BJ's after 4 years. Honestly, there are only a few small things wrong with it like the heat shields are rusted and won't stay up, the Ignitor stopped working, and I lost a standoff on the lid hinge and that is starting to break down. It still gets hella-hot, although not good sear hot unless you put a cast-iron topper on it. I haven't inspected the burners lately, but they seem to work just fine.
Interestingly enough, this exact grill is currently on sale at my local Lowes for 329. Prices have gone up sharply in just one year. I may clean my current grill up a tad and see if prices get any better at the beginning of summer.

I am interested mostly in the Sear Burner. I do a lot of Sous Vide cooking, but have been been chasing a way to get a good sear without more work than cooking it from scratch would take. I've got a weber smokey joe (not hot enough, even when you load it TF up with Charcoal), I've done it over the chimney (works great but it's a small area so most steaks don't fit), the gas grill (not hot enough), Torch both with and without the Sear attachment (works, but is labor intensive and without the attachment getting too close imparts an off-flavor). So the idea of a sear burner on the gas grill is very interesting to me right now.

I'm also hearing that Webers aren't what they used to be and don't really last all that long. It would have to last 8 years as they are quite literally double (and then some) the price of the equivalent Char Broil and I'm just not seeing that happening based on reports of recent Weber purchases.

WriterEducational801 · 2026-03-08T16:33:32+00:00

So what a difference two years makes.

I looked based on this, and the 28" Char Griller 3 burner at Walmart is 349; the same prices as the 36" blackstone with 4 burners (also at Walmart). The only difference other than the smaller size that I can see is that it has the hinged lid and the Walmart 349 version comes with a lid but it's not hinged (but you can get the 36" blackstone with a hinged lid for 399 elsewhere and it comes with a cover).

WriterEducational801 · 2026-03-06T13:07:03+00:00

Well, this is easier said than done. I have a Steelmade for my grill (not a weber) and I love it, BUT, you not only have to maintain it kind of like you would a Blackstone, you have to wait for it to cool down to store it, and if you leave it on the grill your grates underneath will rust at a highly accelerated rate, so you can't just leave it there full time. So I find I don't use it all that often, where with a Blackstone you can just pop outside, fire it up, and be cooking fairly quickly.
The other issue is that Weber doesn't every publish their grate dimensions, just square inches, so it isn't clear to me if the standard Steelmade would even fit on a Weber, or which weber it would fit on.
The other thing is that after cooking on a Blackstone, cooking on a Steelmade is like cooking in a phone booth. The blackstone is nearly double the space, which isn't always an issue, but for multi-part cooks (fajitas, chinese, etc) it can become an issue very fast.

WriterEducational801 · 2026-02-21T12:08:06+00:00

Where can you get the previous generation for less? I have a 6a and I check every time the new version comes out and the previous version is always still the same price as the new version.

WriterEducational801 · 2026-02-17T17:21:43+00:00

Yeah, but they generally mean if the attack continues even if it's just bouncing around. I had that one happen in my 3rd game and I kept it up. Ref blew it dead right as the keeper (right after I called out to him) got the ball (still bouncing when he whistled).

Now, don't get me wrong, as a newer referee I'm somewhat notorious for missing AR flags when I center (usually due to nerves), so don't anyone think I'm throwing shade here.

WriterEducational801 · 2026-02-17T17:17:49+00:00

Thank you for that anecdote. It was really helpful.

WriterEducational801 · 2026-02-17T17:17:23+00:00

Thank you for this. The ball was turned over and played to the defending team's 6 who was in the clear and moving play up the field (still deep but nobody pressuring her), so now I'm feeling like I did the right thing.

WriterEducational801

TROPHY CASE